Tafsir of Surah Yusuf - Verse 110

Allah's Prophets are aided by Victory in Times of Distress and Need

Allah states that He sends His aid and support to His Messengers, peace be upon them, when distress and hardship surround them and they eagerly await Allah's aid. Allah said in another Ayah,

وَزُلْزِلُواْ حَتَّى يَقُولَ الرَّسُولُ وَالَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مَعَهُ مَتَى نَصْرُ اللَّهِ

(..and were so shaken that even the Messenger and those who believed along with him said, "When (will come) the help of Allah") 2:214 As for saying of Allah,

كَذَّبُواْ

(they were denied) There are two recitations for it. One of them is with a Shadda (meaning: they were betrayed by their people). And this is the way `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, recited it. Al-Bukhari said that `Urwah bin Az-Zubayr narrated that he asked `Aishah about the meaning of the following verse,

حَتَّى إِذَا اسْتَيْـَسَ الرُّسُلُ

(`Until when the Messengers give up hope...), Respite will be granted, is it denied or betrayed `A'0ishah replied, "betrayed." `Urwah said, "I said, `They were sure that their people betrayed them, so why use the word `thought" She said, `Yes, they were sure that they betrayed them.' I said,

وَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُواْ

(and they thought that they were denied (by Allah)) `A'0ishah said, `Allah forbid! The Messengers ﷺ did not suspect their Lord of such a thing.' I asked, `So what does this Ayah mean' She said, `This Verse is concerned with the Messengers' ﷺ followers who had faith in their Lord and believed in their Messengers. The period of trials for those followers was long and Allah's help was delayed until the Messengers gave up hope for the conversion of the disbelievers amongst their nation and suspected that even their followers were shaken in their belief, Allah's help then came to them."' Ibn Jurayj narrated that Ibn Abi Mulaikah said that Ibn `Abbas read this Ayah this way,

وَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُواْ

(and they thought they were denied.) `Abdullah bin Abi Mulaikah said, "Then Ibn `Abbas said to me that they were humans. He then recited this Ayah,

حَتَّى يَقُولَ الرَّسُولُ وَالَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مَعَهُ مَتَى نَصْرُ اللَّهِ أَلاَ إِنَّ نَصْرَ اللَّهِ قَرِيبٌ

(..even the Messenger and those who believed along with him said, "When (will come) the help of Allah" Yes! Certainly, the help of Allah is near!)2:214" Ibn Jurayj also narrated that Ibn Abi Mulaykah said that `Urwah narrated to him that `Aishah did not agree to this and rejected it. She said, "Nothing that Allah has promised Muhammad ﷺ, but Muhammad knew for certainty that it shall come, until he died. However, the Messengers were tried with trials until they thought that those believers, who were with them, did not fully support them." Ibn Abi Mulaykah said that `Urwah narrated that `Aishah recited this Ayah this way, (وَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُمْ قَد كُذِّبُوا) "and they thought that they were betrayed." Therefore, there is another way of reciting this word, and there is a difference of opinion about its meaning. We narrated the meaning that Ibn `Abbas gave. Ibn Mas`ud said, as Sufyan Ath-Thawri narrated from him, that he read the Ayah this way,

حَتَّى إِذَا اسْتَيْـَسَ الرُّسُلُ وَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُواْ

(until, when the Messengers gave up hope and thought that they were denied.) `Abdullah commented that this is the recitation that you dislike. Ibn `Abbas also commented on the Ayah,

حَتَّى إِذَا اسْتَيْـَسَ الرُّسُلُ وَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُواْ

(until, when the Messengers gave up hope and thought that they were denied) "When the Messengers gave up hope that their people would accept their messages, and their people thought that their Messengers had not said the truth to them, Allah's victory came then,

فَنُجِّىَ مَن نَّشَآءُ

(and whomsoever We willed were rescued.) Ibn Jarir At-Tabari narrated that Ibrahim bin Abi Hamzah Hurrah Al-Jazari said, "A young man from Quraysh asked Sa'id bin Jubayr `O, Abu `Abdullah! How do you read this word, for when I pass by it, I wish I had not read this Surah,

حَتَّى إِذَا اسْتَيْـَسَ الرُّسُلُ وَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُواْ

(until, when the Messengers gave up hope and thought that they were denied...) He said, `Yes, it means, when the Messengers gave up hope that their people will believe in them and those to whom the Messengers were sent thought that the Messengers were not truthful."' Ad-Dahhak bin Muzahim commented, "I have not seen someone who is called to knowledge and is lazy accepting the invitation, until today! If you traveled to Yemen just to get this explanation, it will still be worth it." Ibn Jarir At-Tabari narrated that Muslim bin Yasar asked Sa`id bin Jubayr about the same Ayah and he gave the same response. Muslim stood up and embraced Sa'id bin Jubayr, saying, "May Allah relieve a distress from you as you relieved a distress from me!" This was reported from Sa'id bin Jubayr through various chains of narration. This is also the Tafsir that Mujahid bin Jabr and several other Salaf scholars gave for this Ayah. However, some scholars said that the Ayah,

وَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُواْ

(and thought that they were denied), is in reference to the believers who followed the Messengers, while some said it is in reference to the disbelievers among the Messengers' nation. In the latter case, the meaning becomes: `and the disbelievers thought that the Messengers were not given a true promise of victory. ' Ibn Jarir At-Tabari narrated that Tamim bin Hadhlam said, "I heard `Abdullah bin Mas`ud comment on this Ayah,

حَتَّى إِذَا اسْتَيْـَسَ الرُّسُلُ

(until, when the Messengers gave up hope) that their people will believe in them, and their people thought when the respite was long, that the Messengers were not given a true promise."

Commentary

Mentioned in the previous verses was the sending of prophets who invited people to take the straight path, and also answered there were some doubts about them. Then, people were admonished that they do not take into consideration the sad end they would face as a result of their antagonism towards prophets of Allah. Only if they were to pay some attention and look around and read signs from ruined cities and the history of lost places they pass by, they would find out how harsh has been the sad end of those who had opposed the blessed prophets, and that too, right here in this world. The habitation of the people of Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) was overturned upside down. The people of ` Ad and Thamud were destroyed through various punishments. And the punishment of the Hereafter, that is far more severe.

Then, towards the end, they were instructed that the pain and pleasure of the present life is, after all, very short-lived. One’ s real concern should be about the life to come, the 'Akhirah, the Hereafter, where one shall stay forever, and where the pain, or pleasure, too shall be eternal. So, it was made clear that a good end of life in the 'Akhirah depends on Taqwa, the fear of Allah and the abstention from sins, and which, in a nutshell, means that one should strictly adhere to all commandments of the Shari` ah.

Since the purpose in the previous verses was to warn people of the time by telling them to take their lesson from what had happened to past prophets and their communities, therefore, in the next verse (110), one of their doubts was removed. The doubt they had was about the warnings of Divine punishment given by the Holy Prophet ﷺ . They were hearing about it from him for a long time, but they did not see any punishment coming upon them. This made them all the more daring. If there was some punishment to come, it would have come by now, they thought. Therefore, it was said that Allah Ta` ala, in His mercy and wisdom, would often keep giving respite to erring and sinning people - and this respite, at times, could also become fairly long. That is why contumacious people become more daring and aggressive which causes a certain anxiety to prophets. So, it was said:

حَتَّىٰ إِذَا اسْتَيْأَسَ الرُّ‌سُلُ وَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ كُذِبُوا جَاءَهُمْ نَصْرُ‌نَا فَنُجِّيَ مَن نَّشَاءُ ۖ وَلَا يُرَ‌دُّ بَأْسُنَا عَنِ الْقَوْمِ الْمُجْرِ‌مِينَ

(Punishment was often delayed) until when the messengers were in despair and thought that they were wrong in their estimation, Our help came to them, then saved were those whom We willed. And Our punishment is not averted from the guilty - 110).

To explain it in detail, it can be said, that: ` The disbelieving and disobedient people of past communities were given long respites, until when, because of the punishment not coming upon them, the messengers were in despair over the possibility that the punishment of Allah will not come upon such people and truth will not manifest itself in the manner and at the time they had hoped it to be, and thought that, while determining the time of the Divine promise, they were wrong in their estimation - that Allah Ta` ala had not told them of a definite time, and the time was fixed by them as based on particular signs. It was in this state of despair that Our help came to them, that is, the punishment on disbelievers came as promised, then saved from the punishment were those 'whom We willed (that is, believers in prophets were saved and disbelievers were destroyed) because Our punishment is not averted from the guilty,' instead, it does come upon them, therefore, the disbelievers of Makkah should not be in any doubt about a delay in the punishment due. [ Bayan al-Qur'an: Gist of Tafsir by Maulana Ashraf ` Ali Thanavi ]

The word: (kudhibu : were wrong) in verse 110 has been read as in the well-known reading (Qira'at) of the Qur'an - and the Tafsir (exegesis or explanation) which we have chosen to follow is the one which is most sound and free from doubts. The essential sense of the word: کُذِبُوا (kudhibu) is to find one 's estimation or thinking as being wrong, which is a kind of Ijtihadi mistake (as based on personal opinion), and some such Ijtihadi mistake can issue forth from the blessed prophets. However, there is a difference between prophets (علیہم السلام) and other mujtahids, that is, when some Ijtihadi mistake issues forth from the prophets (علیہم السلام) Allah Ta` ala would not let them stay by that mistake, rather, He would make them become aware of it and enable them to see reality clearly. Other mujtahids do not occupy this station. The event of the Peace Pact of Hudaibiyah associated with the Holy Prophet ﷺ is sufficient as proof on this subject - because it has been stated in the Holy Qur'an that this event is based on the dream which was seen by the Holy Prophet ﷺ . He had seen that he was doing the Tawaf of the Baytullah with his Sahabah - and the dream of the blessed prophets is also an imperative form of revelation - therefore, the happening of this event became certain. But, in the dream itself, no particular time or duration was identified for it. The Holy Prophet ﷺ ، according to his estimation, thought that it would happen the same year. So, he announced it before his Sahabah and taking a good number of them with him left for Makkah al-Mu` azzamah for their ` Umra. But, the Quraysh confronted them enroute and they could not avail of their intended Tawaf and ` Umra. In fact, the full manifestation (of the dream) came to unfold itself two years later, in the Hijrah year 8, in the form of the Conquest of Makkah. And from this event, it became apparent that the dream he had seen was true and certain. But, the time for it which, by signs or estimation, the Holy Prophet had taken as the time, was not what it actually was - but that mistake was compensated right then.

Similarly, the expression: قَد کُذِبُو (qad kudhibu : were wrong) in the verse under reference also carries the same sense, that is, the punishment which was to come upon the disbelievers was delayed while the prophets had estimated a time for it in their minds. When this punishment did not come at that time, they thought that they had made a mis-take in determining the time for it. This Tafsir has been reported from Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn ` Abbas. ` Allama Al-Tibi has said that this report is Sahih (sound) because it has been mentioned in the Sahih of Al-Bukhari. (Mazhari)

In some readings (Qira'aat) of the Qur'an, this word has appeared with a doubled sound on the letter: ذَال (dhal), that is: قَد کُذِّبُوا (qad kudhdhibu) as well. This word has been derived from the verbal noun: تَکذِیب (takdhib:falsification). Given this reading, the sense would be: The prophets had determined an estimated time when the punishment would come, but when the punishment did not come at that time, they had apprehensions about their believers themselves, lest they should not falsifying them on the basis that their statement did not turn out to be true. These were the circumstances under which Allah Ta’ ala made His promise prove true, punishment fell on the deniers, believers were saved from it, and thus, overcome they did.

History shows that even those who believed in prophethood also rejected it, when a person in their own community was made a prophet and stood right in front of them. The reason for this was that the prophet of the past had by then become a historically accepted prophet, while the contemporary prophet’s merits were as yet unproven. The acceptance of a historical prophet has never proved difficult, while the reverse is true of any prophet who is still a figure of controversy. The deserted settlements of the communities of the ‘Ad, Thamud, Midian and Lot lay in ruins around the land of the Quraysh, who could not fail to see them in their travels. These ruins were a silent reminder of the punishment which God had meted out to these communities: they were destroyed only because they failed to recognize a prophet during the controversial stage of prophethood. But, in spite of this, the Quraysh did not learn a lesson from them. The reason for this was that it is man’s weakness to do wrong and then, on the basis of some weak arguments, excise his name from the list of wrongdoers. Verse 110 of this chapter is clarified by verse 214 of the second chapter, in which it is stated, ‘Do you think that you will enter Paradise without having suffered like those who passed away before you? Affliction and hardship befell them and so shaken were they, that the Messenger and the believers with him would exclaim, “When will God’s help come? Surely the help of God is near.’” God always helps one who spreads the word of God. But this help brings in its wake punishment for the rejectors of truth. That is why help comes only when the missionary struggle (dawah) has reached its final stage. There are times when this delay makes the preachers feel frustrated and they despair of God’s succour. ‘And surely, the abode of the Hereafter is better for those who fear God’. This shows that God’s succour for His envoy is symbolic of His choicest blessings upon them in the Hereafter. God always helps those who call upon others to accept the Truth: in this world God makes their call supreme. They are thus successful in fulfilling their mission, in spite of all kinds of conspiracies and the opposition of their enemies. This honour and glory will be theirs in the Hereafter, but in a far more perfect and absolute form.