Story Of Prophet Yusuf ✔

PART 23:THE WOMEN AND WIFE OF MINISTER CONFESS [Surah Yusuf 12: 51-53]

51. Said [the king to the women], "What was your condition when you sought to seduce Yusuf?" They said, " Allah forbid! We know about him no evil." The wife of al-'Aziz said, "Now the truth has come out. It was I who sought to seduce him, and indeed, he is of the truthful.

52. That is so he will know that I did not betray him in [his] absence and that Allah does not guide the plan of betrayers.

A large portion of the story has been left out in this verse too. In the previous verse Yusuf (AS) was speaking to the king’s messenger and in this verse the king speaking to these women. All that transpired between these two events has been left out of the Surah.

What has been left out in this instance is that the messenger returned to the king with the request of Yusuf (AS). The king then began the investigation to find out what happened with these women. The king then discovers how they sought to seduce Yusuf (AS). How he resisted them even though they called him again and again. How the husbands and guardians of these women falsely accused him of intending evil with their women and put him in prison for that. How he had remained in prison for years and years without any chance of parole or pardon. The king found out about all of this through his investigation. So he summoned all of these women to his court and he asked them as to what made them do this. Thus Allah (swt) begins this ayah with the king speaking to these women.

King asked them why they had invited him towards sin even though they knew that he wanted to remain pure. Why they had threatened him with torture and punishment if he did not yield himself to them. King asks them here as to what made them do this. What was their justification for this? What reason could they bring for this great injustice on their part?

The women respond to the question of the king by first saying “Allah forbid!”. Now they have been caught. So they are asking Allah (swt) to remove them from the reality that they are in. They know that there is no way for them to answer the king’s question. They know that they had no justifiable reason for doing what they did. They only did what they did because they could not control their lusts and desires for him (AS). So all that they could say was “Allah forbid!”. They want Allah (swt) to forbid them from being in that situation. Of course, this did not happen. This was the bed that they made for themselves. Now they had to face the consequences of their actions.

These women then say “We know about him no evil”. At this point, they knew that Yusuf (AS) had earned the favor of the king. The king was very impressed with Yusuf (AS) because he (AS) had been able to interpret the dream when no one else could. The king was also impressed with Yusuf (AS) because he (AS) had chosen to remain in prison until justice was done. So these women knew that they could no longer say anything negative about Yusuf (AS). The king would not hear it. Nothing at this point could make the king think negatively about Yusuf (AS). So these women realized that all that they could do now was to speak the truth. There was nothing else left to say but the truth. So they finally admit that they knew from Yusuf (AS) no evil. Not only do they say that he had done no evil, but they even say that they know from him no evil. Thus they are admitting that he had done no evil to them nor to anyone else.

Finally, the wife of the Aziz speaks. Notice that up until this point in this part of the Surah there was no direct mention of her. This was because Yusuf (AS) did not mention her explicitly. He only asked the king to inquire about the women, but he did not mention her name explicitly. This was only because his intention was clearing his name and not on extracting vengeance from her. He did not want to point the finger at her and say that she did this and this to him.

The wife of the Aziz finally says “Now the Truth has come out”. The language of the ayah gives the meaning that this is a truth which she had been suppressing and hiding for a long time now. But it
was eating away from inside of her. And now she finally has to let it out. She had this reputation of her that her slave had committed a crime with her. No doubt society had gossip and slandered Yusuf, so she is saying, “Finally, let’s get to the truth then.”   She has been living with this guilt, so she finally confessed to the kingdom that it was she who sought to seduce him and he was not lying when he said she was the one who tried to seduce him and that “he was of the truthful.”

She then said, “That is so that he may know that I did not betray him in secret”. The pronoun “he” here refers to Aziz. She confessed that she tried to seduce Yusuf, but nothing actually happened. So Aziz may know that she never betrayed her husband in secret; meaning she didn't commit immorality with her slave. Another meaning of this verse is that "he" here refers to Yusuf and she didn't betray him in secret - meaning she confessed of her sin and cleared his name while he was not present in the court.

We notice here that Zulaykha had changed from what she used to be. Not only had her attitude towards Yusuf (AS) changed and she admitted her mistake, but she even mentioned the Name of her Creator in her speech. She not only becomes righteous but she became of those who remembered Allah (swt). She spoke the Name of Allah (swt) for all to hear. She was careful only to do the actions that Allah (swt) would be pleased with. She admits her sin in front of the king and in front of the entire kingdom. While the other women acknowledged that Yusuf (AS) was innocent, but they never blamed themselves even though they too were guilty of trying to seduce Yusuf (AS). But Zulaykha was not like them. She admits the wrong that she had done. She no longer cared for herself and for her desires. Now she only cared for the Truth and for clearing Yusuf (AS)’ name.

What was the reason for this? What made her change? How did she change from being so evil to being so righteous? The answer is Yusuf (AS). Through Yusuf (AS) Allah (swt) guided her to Him (swt).

LESSONS

1. Many are the ways in which Allah guides the people. Sometimes Allah (swt) guides the people through the Quran. Sometimes Allah guides the people through the calling of the messengers and the dawah carriers. Sometimes Allah guides the people through the signs in the universe. Sometimes Allah guides the people through calamities and trials that they face in their lives. And sometimes Allah guides the people through the behavior and the conduct of His (swt)’s righteous servants. This was the case with the wife of the Aziz. It was what she saw in Yusuf (AS) that brought her closer to her Lord. Yusuf (AS) never carried dawah to her like he did to the prisoners in the jail. Thus, it was only through his behavior and conduct that she became closer to Allah (swt). She realized his noble character and high morals. She realized that the reason why he was this way was because he was close to Allah (swt). Then she realized that this was how she wanted to be as well. She saw that this was the kind of life that she should live. A life of those who are dedicated to Allah (swt). The life that all people were created to live.

2. So one lesson that we can take from this ayah is to remind ourselves that our actions is very much a part of our dawah as our words are. Often times our actions speak louder than our words. So we must always behave with the people in the best way. The people need to see the kind of person that this Deen can create. The effect that it can have on a person. So if you truly believe in Allah, if you truly know Him (swt), then you have to act like it. Your belief has to show in your actions and in your emotions. So you have to be patient, you have to be forgiving, you have to be kind, you have to be humble, you have to be truthful, you have to fulfill your oaths, all of this is also part of your dawah. If you do not have this then how can you be near to Allah, and if you are not near Him then how can you call others to Him (swt)?

3. Another lesson that we can take from this ayah is to see how much people can change. This ayah serves to remind us how not all people are pure evil or pure good. There are people like the Prophet (PBUH) who are pure good and there are people like Firaun who are pure evil. But the majority of mankind is in between these two extremes. They have some good in them and some evil in them. Allah (swt) shows us in this ayah how the good in some people can overcome the evil in them. Look at how evil the wife of the Aziz was and look here at how much she had changed. If she can undergo such a transformation then why can’t you? Why can’t you journey to your Lord the distance that she went? So no matter how great are the sins that you have committed do not ever give up on Allah. You can change yourself for the better. You can draw more closer to your Lord than you ever imagined before. All that you have to do is believe in yourself and pray to Allah (swt) to take you there.

4. Never give up on others. Today you may know a brother or a sister who is not practicing the Deen correctly. Do not give up on them. Do not say that they will never change. As we can see from this ayah people can change. They can change more than we could possibly imagine. Once Allah (swt) puts the Light of Guidance in their hearts, then they could be as different as night and day.

5. In these Verses, we are assured by Allah that truth does always prevail over falsehood no matter how impossible it may seem at a time when one's faith is being tested. So for all of you being tested by Allah currently, hang in there and remember that truth will prevail no matter what, period.