“Indeed in their stories, there is a lesson for the possessors of intellect. It is not an invented tale, but a confirmation of what came before it, and a clear exposition of all things, and a guidance and a mercy for people who believe.”
*Notice here* –
this is the last verse of the sūrah – how beautifully the beginning and the end are linked together.
What does Allāh ‘azza wa jall say in the very beginning of the sūrah?
We are going to narrate to you the best of all stories.” Then the ending is: “Indeed in their stories…”
The [third āyah] has the present tense and here is the past tense because now the story has finished, so Allāh is saying,
“In their stories there was…” is like a type of past. In the beginning, Allāh is saying,
Pay attention! You are about to hear some good stories.”
Then it is concluding. Allāh is saying,
“In these stories you just heard.”
This is *beautiful*.
Human beings cannot construct such eloquence.
This is a divine eloquence that only when you think about it you see it,
otherwise if you tried to, you could not bring about such a beauty.
Another *beauty* here
– and wallāhi this is just amazing; think about this
– in the beginning Allāh (subḥānahu wa ta‘āla) says’
“In the story of Yūsuf and his brothers, there are āyāt for those who ask.”
Here we are being told
“In their stories there is ‘lesson for those of intelligence.”
Now surely Allāh is doing this for a reason.
Why is there who ask ( Verse 7)in the beginning and then ‘who understand in the end. Which one is a higher level? Uli’l-bāb.
The one who thinks, the one who ponders.
The one who is asking shows that he is interested and paying attention and has an open heart and open mind.
If you have that attitude of wanting to benefit,
you will find miracles, āyāt, points, but when you really think about the story, you will go beyond āyāt and will go to ‘
Notice
in the
You are paying attention and want to know the story,
the plot,
and the ending.
In the beginning, Allāh ‘azza wa jall says just be interested, sā’il, and you will get a lot of benefit.
In the very last āyah, Allāh says,
“Now you have read the story. If you really want to benefit, you have to ponder over it āyah by āyah, verse by verse, and you will discover ‘ibrah.”
Beautiful.
In the beginning, you will benefit if you just pay attention.
In the end, now that the story is over (in the past tense) Allāh is saying laqad kāna, meaning there was indeed and now that you have done it you should go back.
There is an incentive being given now.
There is a strong incentive being given.
Now that you have finished the story, now is the time to go back and try to do ‘ibrah if you truly are a person of contemplative intelligence.
This is really the beauty of the ending here that it links up directly to he beginning and tells you,
“You haven’t come to the end. This is just the beginning. You need to now go back.”
Notice Allāh says qaṣaṣihim, which is plural, because there are lots of stories.
It is not just one story. We call it the story of Yūsuf, but the fact of the matter is it is composed of multiple stories all put together.
Allāh ‘azza wa jall is telling you, this is just the beginning, and now the real journey begins to go back and find these ‘ibrah and to derive these benefits and wisdoms.
Now Allah conclude this by saying
“These stories are not fabricated fairy tales.”
When we hear a fairy tale, we listen to it from a very different perspective.
When we hear a real story, psychologically and subconsciously we listen and hear with a different mind.
SubḥānAllāh we all understand.
When we watch a Hollywood movie versus a documentary, what is our attitude?
Hollywood movie: entertainment. Documentary: it affects you, and you are seeing real images and this is not acting.
Sorry for being so crude, but we understand now.
BENEFIT
In this last ayah of this beautiful Surah Allah tells us that in the stories of these messengers there is a lesson for people of understanding.
There is a benefit in their stories. What is this benefit?
The benefit in these stories is that they bring us closer to our Lord.
So Allah is telling us that in the stories of these messengers,
like Yusuf (AS), there are lessons that we can take, and should we learn these lessons and then base our lives on that knowledge,
then through this emulation, we can come closer to Allah (swt).
So for example in this Surah, we saw Yusuf (AS) face several different situations.
If we can behave just like Yusuf (AS) when such situations come before us, then we can come closer to Allah through that.
Restraint at times of temptation.
Patience at times of adversity.
Steadfastness and courage in dawah.
Gratitude at favors and bounties. These are just a few of the lessons that we have learned from this Surah so far.
In all of these, we can emulate the noble prophet Yusuf (AS), and we can draw closer to our Lord through that emulation.
Conclusion
THIS surah contains messages for all.
Many of you were able to identify yourself with Prophet Yusuf’s life.
If you find yourself in place of Yusuf’s brothers in the story of your life, then I ask Allah to remove the jealousy from your heart and bless you with a sincere and content heart.
If you find yourself in the place of Ya’qoob (AS), I ask Allah to reunite you with your loved ones and make them the coolness of your eyes.
If you find yourself in the place of Zulaykha, I ask Allah to bless you with halal, so you have no need for haram.
If you find yourself in the place of the king of Egypt, may Allah bless you with more honor and power with Allah’s pleasure.
If you find yourself in the place of Aziz of Egypt, may Allah take care of all your needs.
If you find yourself in the place of those wicked women of Egypt, I ask Allah to guide you and enable you to keep a watch on your tongue.
If you find yourself in the place of Binyamin, I ask Allah to give you the love of a brother like Yusuf (AS).
If you find yourself all over the place in this story then may Allah have mercy on you.
However, if you find yourself in place of Yusuf (AS), then I wish to meet you as Allah has honored you in an unimaginable way.
There is no doubt that you are special to Allah and one of Allah’s righteous servants.
May Allah honor us and raise our status in this life and the next just like He (