Tafseer of Joseph · Yusuf · 12:35
Then it appeared to them after they had seen the signs that al-'Azeez should surely imprison him for a time.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of the word of Allah, the Exalted: ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ (Then it appeared to them — after they had seen the signs — that they should surely imprison him for a time.) [12:35]
Abū Jaʿfar said: Allah, the Exalted, says: Then it appeared to the ʿAzīz — the husband of the woman who tried to seduce Yūsuf —
It is said "badā lahum" (it appeared to them) although it concerns a single person, because he was not mentioned by his name and was not explicitly intended; this is similar to His word: الَّذِينَ قَالَ لَهُمُ النَّاسُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُوا لَكُمْ فَاخْشَوْهُمْ [Sūrat Āl ʿImrān: 173] — although it has been said that the speaker was only one person.
It is said: the meaning of ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ is: regarding the judgment they had passed to release Yūsuf, they desisted from it and held the view that they should imprison him مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ after the signs of his innocence of what the wife of the ʿAzīz had charged him with.
Those "signs" (āyāt) were: the tearing of the shirt from behind, the gashes on the face, and the cutting of the women's hands. As in:
19253 — Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Wakīʿ related to us, on the authority of Naṣr ibn ʿAwf, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ — that he said: "Among the signs were: the tearing of the shirt and the gashes on the face." [note 34]
19254 — Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: My father and Ibn Numayr related to us, on the authority of [Naṣr], on the authority of ʿIkrima — identical in wording. [note 35]
19255 — Al-Ḥasan ibn Muḥammad related to us, saying: Shabāba related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid — ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ — that he said: "The tearing of the shirt from behind."
19256 — Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid — مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ — that he said: "The tearing of the shirt from behind."
19257 — Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid.
19258 — [It was related to us], saying: Isḥāq related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Abī Jaʿfar related to us, on the authority of Warqāʾ, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid — identical in wording.
19259 — Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda — مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ — that he said: "The signs" are: the cutting of their hands and the tearing of the shirt."
19260 — Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid — that he said: "The tearing of the shirt from behind."
19261 — Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Salama related to us, on the authority of Ibn Isḥāq — ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ — on account of his innocence of what had been charged against him, by the tearing of his shirt from behind — لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ .
19262 — Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: ʿAmr related to us, on the authority of Asbāṭ, on the authority of al-Suddī — مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ — "the shirt and the cutting of the hands."
لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ — he says: they will surely imprison him until the time when they form a judgment. [note 36]
Allah made that imprisonment for Yūsuf — as has been mentioned — a punishment for him on account of his desire for the woman, and an expiation for his slip.
19263 — It was related to me on the authority of Yaḥyā ibn Abī Zāʾida, on the authority of Isrāʾīl, on the authority of Khaṣīf, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ — "Yūsuf, peace be upon him, slipped three times: When he desired her, he was imprisoned. When he said: اذْكُرْنِي عِنْدَ رَبِّكَ (Mention me to your master) — he remained additional years in prison, for the devil made him forget the remembrance of his Lord. And he said to them: إِنَّكُمْ لَسَارِقُونَ (You are indeed thieves) — and they said: إِنْ يَسْرِقْ فَقَدْ سَرَقَ أَخٌ لَهُ مِنْ قَبْلُ (If he steals, then a brother of his stole before him)."
It has been mentioned that the reason for his imprisonment was that the wife of the ʿAzīz complained of her affair and his affair to her husband, as in:
19264 — Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: ʿAmr ibn Muḥammad related to us, on the authority of Asbāṭ, on the authority of al-Suddī — ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ — that he said: "The woman said to her husband: This Hebrew slave has disgraced me before the people; he excuses himself to them and tells them that I tried to seduce him to be with me, while I cannot make my own excuse prevail. Either: allow me to go out to excuse myself, or: imprison him as you have imprisoned me. That is the word of Allah, the Exalted: ثُمَّ بَدَا لَهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا رَأَوُا الآيَاتِ لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ ."
There was disagreement among the grammarians concerning the nature of the "lām" in لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ .
Some of the Basran grammarians said: It appeared here because this is a position where "ayy" (which) can occur; and because the interrogative particle can be present, the nūn is also present, for the nūn occurs with questions. One says: "badā lahum ayyuhum yaʾkhudhan" — that is: "it has become clear to them."
Some other grammarians rejected this and said: This is an oath, and "hal taqūmanna" (will you indeed rise) is not an oath, whereas "la-taqūmanna" (you will surely rise) can only be an oath.
Some of the Kufan grammarians said: "badā lahum" has the meaning of "saying" (al-qawl), and "al-qawl" encompasses all kinds of sentences: oath and question. Hence it is permissible: "badā lahum qāma zaydun" and "badā lahum la-yaqūmanna."
It is said that "al-ḥīn" (the appointed time) in this case means seven years.
Mention of who said that:
19265 — Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Al-Muḥāribī related to us, on the authority of Dāwūd, on the authority of ʿIkrima — لَيَسْجُنُنَّهُ حَتَّى حِينٍ — that he said: "Seven years."
