Stories Which Gives Us HOPE

Prophet Yusuf and Prophet Yaqoob [The Beautiful Story] -•-Part two-•-

Years had passed, it is reported some historians says 25 years, some say 30 years, some say 40 years, some take it as far as 80 years having passed. Whatever it is... decades had passed.

He asked them: How many brothers do you have?
They said: We are eleven in total.
But at that time they weren't eleven, it was less than that. Binyameen, his brother from the same mother and father was not with them.

Yusuf (AS) gave each one of them what they deserve. But they said, "We have brothers, we have other family members back home."
Yusuf (AS) said, "I would not give you until you tell me who they are. You bring them, I want to see them."
This is his policy. And Yusuf (AS) told them, "When you come next year, make sure you bring your brother with you so I could give you what you just asked for. You said there is eleven of you but there is only ten here. Bring your other brother."

Now Yusuf (AS) could have given them for twenty/thirty people but he wants his brother from the same mother. His brother that he knows that he has been mistreated by his other brothers. He wants to see him. He was more closer to his brother from the same mother [Binyameen] than others. Because Yusuf (AS) and Binyamin were always mistreated by the other ten.

He used to also give them hospitality and make them sleepover, he used to have rooms and used to have places.
"Didn't you see, I gave you good hospitality? So next year bring your other brother. I'm not going to give you for him, I only give you for the number of people that come."

Now they know, they know what they've done with Yusuf, they asked their father to let Yusuf come with them, they went with him and don't come back with him. And now they know, how is their father going to let them take Binyamin with them?

So they said between each other, "We could deceive our father in any way, we will play a game on him, and we did it before we'll do it again."

Yusuf (AS) is not giving out that food for free, you buy it off him, but you're buying it much cheaper than anywhere else. And Yusuf (AS) was afraid that his brothers would not come next year, because they would not have anything to buy with.

So what did Yusuf (AS) tell his workers?
The stock that they just bought from us with, put it back in their caravans. So when they go back, they'll have something to come back with and buy things from us.

When they went home...
"O our father, [further] measure has been denied to us, so send with us our brother [that] we will be given measure. And indeed, we will be his guardians." [12:63]
O our father, we have been prohibited from this one measure, because we didn't take our brother with. So send the brother with and we will protect him.

"Should I entrust you with him except [under coercion] as I entrusted you with his brother before?" [12:64]
The father says, "You want me to trust you with him like I trusted you with his brother before?"
"But Allah is the best guardian," [12:64]
Allah is indeed the protector.

Yaqoob (AS), he knew that there is something hatching here. Anyway... they were now quiet, they didn't know what to say. They started opening their bags. They notice there is all the merchandise in the bag over and above the grain.

"O our father, what [more] could we desire? This is our merchandise returned to us. And we will obtain supplies for our family and protect our brother and obtain an increase of a camel's load; that is an easy measurement." [12:65]
O our father, what more can we ask for? Here is all this merchandise is back in here, we can take it and go and give it back to them and on top of that we will get another measure.
Now at least they were honest, they wanted to know return it. Because they said, "Look, this is not ours, we're supposed to return it. So let's get back there" And they told their father that, we will at least get one more measure. So we are going to go there, send him with.