“He said: ‘There shall not come to you the food with which you are fed but I will inform you both of its interpretation before it comes to you. This is of what my Lord has taught me. Verily, I have abandoned the religion of a people who do not believe in Allah and they are disbelievers in the Hereafter’.”
Tafseer;
This is the first time in the entire Surah that we hear Yusuf (AS) speaking for an extended period of time. Before this Yusuf (AS) was mostly silent. Not only was he (AS) silent but he (AS) was also passive. Yusuf did not do much but rather others did things to him. However now when the time comes for calling the people to Allah (swt), then we see Yusuf (As) speak.
Yusuf (AS) then admits that this was only from the bounty of Allah (swt) upon him and his fathers. It was only from the bounty of Allah (swt) that they were able worship Allah alone. Were it not for Allah (swt) then they would not be able to worship Allah alone.
In the first part of the verse, it is probable that the Qur’an is hinting that Yusuf said he also knew from the side of Allah what kind of food that would be served to them, and that he could also interpret their dreams just as easily.
In this case, the implication would be that in addition to interpreting dreams, Yusuf also knew about other things as well, which he used to foretell. This ability is similar to that of Hadrat Isa (as) who used to read the minds of those around him regarding what they used to eat or what they had stored in their houses.
Question: Why did Hadrat Yusuf (as) not interpret their dreams then and there but postpone their interpretation for later?
Fakhr Razi provides the answer to this question as follows:
1. He wanted to make them wait so that he could advise, admonish, and convert them, perhaps that person might believe before his execution.
2. He wanted to build up their confidence by foretelling the kind of food before the food had been served.
3. He wanted to tantalize them so that they would lend their ears more carefully to what he had to say.
4. As the interpretation of one of the dreams was that that person was going to be executed, Yusuf was postponing the issue so that that person might not lose heart too suddenly.
At any rate, Yusuf, who would not miss any opportunity to provide guidance and counseling, made the most of the two prisoners’ requests for the interpretation of their dreams, and used them as a means for introducing and explaining important facts which were helpful not only for their lives, but also for all human beings.
At first, in order to build their confidence, he told them that he would tell them the meanings of their dreams before their food had arrived.
Reflection
He said I will tell you the meanings of the dreams that you’re asking me about, but before the food comes (as set times of food in prison), but that that all of this, the reason why you have come to me to interpret dreams is because it’s something my lord has taught me
‣ The reason why I’m so nice, I’m kind, etc… I’m only doing this because I am a Muslim, and this what Muslims do, now do you want to know what Islam is?
‣ He said I left the people who didn’t believe in Allah (the people of Egypt) and they don’t believe in the hereafter
• There are two aspects of shahadah
– Negation
– Affirmation
‣ The oneness of Allah is very simple, and it’s part of fitrah
• So they might come to you and ask about very controversial issues
• If you spend the time trying to defend those controversial issues, you might be able to clarify to them the Islamic viewpoint on this issue, but you didn’t fulfill the purpose of
saying “La ilaha ila Allah.”
• You say “I believe that Allah revealed the Quran to Prophet Muhamed, and this is the
true word, and he has ordered me to do so. Now do you you know why I believe
Islam is the true religion?”
• After you take care of La ilaha ila Allah, then you can go to other issues
• The principles and standards, what’s considered right and wrong is always changing
• If there was more the one God, there would be total chaos
• It’s natural disposition when in need, you go back to Allah subhano wa ta’ala
• But you should be like Prophet Yusuf, you should be so kind that people came to him
for help, then he had the opportunity to call them to Islam
‣ He’s mentioning two of the pillars of faith
• The shahada
• The belief in the hereafter
LESSON
1)Take advantage of every opportunity to spread Islam – Anwar AnawlakiYusuf tried his best to spread Islam (submission to Allah) to the best of his abilities. We can see the example of when he was in prison how well he did this, he first starts by informing them that Allah will allow the food to come to them only after he has given the interpretation of the dreams. He also spreads Islam by informing them that his skill of interpreting dreams was granted to him by Allah.
2)When you have the chance, always tell others about your religion. (Ayah 37)
3)you need to speak to people at a time and place they are comfortable with.
This is what Yūsuf did. They come to him with the question of interpreting the dream, and Yūsuf understands, “Now I have your attention for a few minutes, so let me use this opportunity. Give me five minutes.” He then preaches Islam to them.
This shows us that if you do want to tell people about your religion, make sure that the time and the place is appropriate. Don’t try to shove the religion down their throats. Don’t try to be in your face. This is a very beautiful point that we learn from Yūsuf.1. Yusuf was seven years old when his brothers put him in that well so at what age must his father have taught him (AS) about this religion? Thus one lesson that we can take from above verses is to realize how important it is to teach our children about our religion from an early age.
2. Allah (swt) is the reason behind every single good that we do. The fact that we are able to pray and fast and worship Him is a gift from Allah. The fact that we are able to stay away from the major sins is a gift from Him (swt). This is something that we must always be reminding ourselves of.