Story Of Prophet Yusuf ✔

PART 26:YUSUF WAS ESTABLISHED IN THE LAND [Surah Yusuf 12: 56 -57]

56. And thus did We establish Yusuf in the land, he could live therein wherever he pleased, We give a portion of our Mercy to whom We please, and We do not allow to be lost the reward of those who do good.

57. And surely the reward of the Hereafter is better for those who believe and who are mindful of God.

This part of the ayah tells us that Yusuf (AS) was given power and authority in the land. Yusuf (AS) was appointed as a finance minister and 'Aziz was dismissed from his post.  Thus Yusuf became the most powerful man in the land because he now controls the food of the people - From being a prisoner to becoming the most powerful man in the land.

Then Allah says, “We give a portion of our Mercy to whom We please”. Allah (swt) was pleased with Yusuf (AS) and so He (swt) bestowed upon him from His (swt)’s Mercy. Notice how Allah calls it a portion of the His Mercy. This is because what Allah grants His righteous servants in this world is only a small portion of the Mercy that He (swt) has for them. The much larger portion of His (swt)’s Mercy for them has been kept for the Hereafter. Look at all that Yusuf (AS) was given in the life of this world. Can you then imagine what awaits him in the Hereafter?

In the final part of the ayah Allah tells us that He (swt) will never allow the reward to go to waste. He (swt) will make sure that people of ihsan (those who do good) get their full reward both in this life and in the Hereafter. But the reward of the hereafter is even better for those who truly believe and have consciousness of Allah and do their duty to Him.

It was mentioned in the books of tafsir - And Allah knows best - that 'Aziz died during those nights (after he was dismissed from his post) and the King gave 'Aziz's wife, Zulaykha, to Yusuf in marriage. When Yusuf (AS) entered upon her he said: Is this not better than what you wanted? And she said: O Truthful one, do not blame me, for I was a woman who was, as you see, beautiful and enjoying a life of luxury, and my husband could not have intimate relations with women, and you are as Allah made you, very handsome, and I could not help myself. Yusuf found her a virgin. She bore him two sons: Afra’eem ibn Yusuf and Maysha ibn Yusuf. The son of Afra’eem was Noon, the father of Prophet Yusha‘ (Joshua), and daughter Rahmah, was the wife of Prophet Ayyub (Job).

Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy on him) said, "One who gives up his beloved to avoid a haraam relationship and then was enabled to be with his beloved in a halaal way, or Allah compensated him with someone better, as Yusuf al-Siddeeq avoided the wife of al-‘Aziz for the sake of Allah, and chose prison over immoral action, and Allah compensated him by giving him full authority in the land to take possession therein when or where he wanted, and the woman came to him humbly asking for a halaal relationship, so he married her and when he entered upon her he said: This is better than what you wanted.

Think about how Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, rewarded him for the hardship of prison and gave him full authority in the land to take possession therein when or where he wanted, and subdued for him the wife of al-‘Aziz, and she and the other women attested to his innocence. This is what Allah ordained for His slaves in the past and at present until the Day of Resurrection."

LESSONS

1. Do not lose your faith in Allah when your life begins to fall apart. Allah never allows the deeds of the righteous to go in vain. Allah gives an inspiring and heartwarming message for those who are being tested when He says that "We make not to be lost the reward of Al-Muhsinun."

2. Righteousness will always save you.  Turning to Allah and living a good life will always bring about blessings in this world before that of the next.

3. Allah works in mysterious ways to bring His blessings to those who stayed truthful to their faith in times of hardship. Who would have thought that a boy thrown in a well in the middle of the desert would survive, let alone become the finance minister of one of the greatest civilizations of mankind. So the next time you worry about losing a job or a friend, or a relationship because of your faith, remember, 'Allah has full power and control over His Affairs' and trust Allah when He says 'most of men know not'.

4. Remind yourself that you are in fact reading the story of a boy thrown in a well left to be forgotten forever that took place hundreds of years ago. Allah found a way to give that boy hope, so never lose your hope in Allah.

5. Whatever Allah wills, He fulfills it anyhow, and man can never defeat His plan with his counter plans nor prevent it from happening nor change it in any way whatever. It often so happens that we adopt some measure to fulfill our plans and believe that we have done everything which would fulfill our plans, but in the end, we find that we had done something which was against our own plan and conducive to Allah's Plan.

6. When the brothers of Yusuf (AS) cast him into the well, they believed that they had once for all got rid of the obstacle in their way but in fact, they had paved the way for Allah's plan of making him only one rank below the ruler of Egypt, before whom they would have to humble themselves in the end. Likewise, those powerful men who sent Yusuf to the prison, floating over the thought that they had wreaked their vengeance on him, but, in fact, they had provided for him the opportunity for becoming the most powerful minister of Egypt.

7. Even if the whole world united to bring about the downfall of the one whom Allah willed to raise high, it could not succeed. The very "sure and effective" measures that were adopted by the brothers to degrade Yusuf were used by Allah for the success of Yusuf. On the other hand, if Allah willed the fall of one, no measure, howsoever effective, could raise him high.

8. We should remain within the limits, prescribed by the Divine Law, in our aims and objects and measures, for success and failure are entirely in the hands of Allah. Therefore if we adopt pure aims and lawful measures but fails, at least we will escape ignominy and disgrace. On the other hand, if we adopt an impure aim and unlawful measures to achieve it, we shall not only inevitably meet with ignominy and disgrace in the Hereafter, but also runs the risk of ignominy and disgrace in this world.

9. Those who exert for the cause of truth and righteousness and put their trust in Allah and entrust all their affairs to Him, get consolation and comfort from Him. Allah helps them face their opponents with confidence and courage.