Tafseer of Joseph · Yusuf · 12:67
And he said, "O my sons, do not enter from one gate but enter from different gates; and I cannot avail you against [the decree of] Allah at all. The decision is only for Allah; upon Him I have relied, and upon Him let those who would rely [indeed] rely."
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 words of Allah the Exalted: وَقَالَ يَا بَنِيَّ لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ وَادْخُلُوا مِنْ أَبْوَابٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ وَمَا أُغْنِي عَنْكُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلا لِلَّهِ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ وَعَلَيْهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُتَوَكِّلُونَ (67)
Abū Jaʿfar said: Allah the Exalted says: Yaʿqūb said to his sons when they wanted to depart from him to Egypt to buy grain: "Sons, do not enter Egypt by one road; enter it through scattered gates."
It is reported that he said this to them because they were handsome, worthy men; he feared for them the evil eye when they would enter as a group through one road, as the sons of one man, and he therefore commanded them to enter dispersed. Thus:
19487 — Al-Ḥasan ibn Muḥammad related to us, saying: Yazīd al-Wāsiṭī related to us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ وَادْخُلُوا مِنْ أَبْوَابٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ — he said: he feared for them the evil eye.
19488 — Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning the words يَا بَنِيَّ لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ : the prophet of Allah ﷺ feared the evil eye upon his sons — they were people of considerable bearing and beauty.
19489 — 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: وَادْخُلُوا مِنْ أَبْوَابٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ — he said: they were people of bearing and beauty and he feared for them the eyes of the people.
19490 — Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning the words وَقَالَ يَا بَنِيَّ لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ وَادْخُلُوا مِنْ أَبْوَابٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ : he said: Yaʿqūb — peace be upon him — feared for them the evil eye.
19491 — It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Faraj, who said: I heard Abū Muʿādh say, he said: ʿUbayd ibn Sulaymān informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say concerning the words لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ : Yaʿqūb feared for his children the evil eye.
19492 — Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Zayd ibn al-Ḥubbāb related to us, on the authority of Abū Maʿshar, on the authority of Muḥammad ibn Kaʿb: لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ — he said: he feared for them the evil eye.
19493 — He said: ʿAmr related to us, on the authority of Asbāṭ, on the authority of al-Suddī, who said: Yaʿqūb ﷺ feared for his sons the evil eye and said: يَا بَنِيَّ لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ . For it would indeed be said: "Look, these are the sons of one man!" But enter it through scattered gates.
19494 — Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Salama related to us, on the authority of Ibn Isḥāq, who said: When the sons of Yaʿqūb were ready to depart, Yaʿqūb said: يَا بَنِيَّ لا تَدْخُلُوا مِنْ بَابٍ وَاحِدٍ وَادْخُلُوا مِنْ أَبْوَابٍ مُتَفَرِّقَةٍ — he feared for them the eyes of the people because of their appearance and because they were all the sons of one man.
His words وَمَا أُغْنِي عَنْكُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ — that is to say: I cannot avert from you anything of the decree of Allah which He has determined over you — neither great nor small — for His decree is carried out over His creation. إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلا لِلَّهِ — that is to say: the disposing and the judgment belong only to Allah, apart from all else; He disposes of His creation according to His will, and His decree is carried out upon them and His judgment is passed over them; no judgment is withheld. عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ — that is to say: upon Allah I rely and place my trust regarding you and your protection with respect to me, until He returns you to me sound and unharmed — not upon your entering Egypt through scattered gates when you enter it. وَعَلَيْهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُتَوَكِّلُونَ — that is to say: and upon Allah let those who entrust their affairs entrust their affairs.
Notes: In the printed edition it reads "dignity" (hayba), because in the manuscript it stands as "hemma" without dots; the editor wishes to read it as "hiba," but the correct reading is "haya" (appearance/beauty), which also recurs later and which we silently correct. — See the explanation of "aghnā" earlier (15:472, note 1). — See the explanation of "al-tawakkul" earlier (15:545, note 1).
