'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' The Exalted said: "And she sought to seduce him, the one who was in her house, and she closed the doors and said, 'Come here!' He said, 'I seek refuge with Allah. Indeed, he is my lord; He has made good my residence. Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed.'" "And she certainly intended to seduce him, and he would have inclined to her had he not seen the proof of his lord. Thus, We turned away from him evil and immorality. Indeed, he was of Our chosen servants." "And they raced to the door, and she tore his shirt from the back. And they both found her lord at the door. She said, 'What is the penalty for one who intended evil against your family except that he be imprisoned or a painful punishment?'" The term 'muraawadah' refers to gentle persuasion in the market for a purpose. Most commonly, this word is used in the context between men and women. It seems to derive from 'raad ya rood' when one advances to test the land and pastures. Thus, the one who is seeking to persuade is always testing with his words and gentleness in the act of persuasion, whether in acceptance or refusal. In the Mus'haf of Ibn Mas'ud, it is stated: 'And she knocked on the doors.' This is also narrated from Al-Hasan. The one who was in her house is Zuleikha, the wife of the Aziz. His saying: 'about himself' is a metaphor for the purpose of the encounter. His saying: 'and she closed' indicates an intensification of the action without excess. The apparent context of this incident is that it occurred before he was informed, peace be upon him. Ibn Kathir and the people of Mecca read: 'Hayt' with the 'h' open and the 'y' silent and the 't' pronounced. Ibn Abbas, Ibn Abi Ishaq, Ibn Muhaysin, Abu Al-Aswad, and Isa read: 'Hayt' with the 'h' open and the 't' broken. Ibn Mas'ud, Al-Hasan, and the people of Basra read: 'Hayt' with the 'h' open and the 't' pronounced and the 'y' silent. It was narrated from Ibn Abbas, Qatadah, and Abu Amr. Abu Hatim said: The people of Basra do not know anything else, and they are the least excessive in recitation. Al-Tabari said: It has been narrated from the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him. Nafi' and Ibn Amir read: 'Hit' with the 'h' broken, the 'y' silent, and the 't' open, which is the reading of Al-A'raj, Shaiba, and Abu Ja'far. These four readings have the same meaning but differ due to the variations in language. Its meaning is an invitation, meaning: come here and approach this matter. Al-Hasan said: Its meaning is: come. It is good that it is connected with 'to you' as it has taken the place of her saying: 'come closer' or 'approach', thus it is similar to 'watering for you and tending for you'. From this is the poet's saying addressing Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him: 'Convey to the Commander of the Faithful... the brother of Iraq when we arrive. Indeed, Iraq and its people are a neck towards you, so come, come!' And from this is the other language, the saying of Turfa: 'My people are not the farthest away when a caller from the clan says, 'Come!' And from this is also the poet's saying: 'It has troubled me that sleep has silenced me, and if it were to care for us, I would have come!' 'Asakata' means: entered into silence, and 'Hayta' means: he said: 'Hayt', just as they say: 'Afaf' when he says: 'Uff, Uff'. And from it: 'Subhana' and 'Takbir' and 'Da'da' when he says: 'Da'da, Da'da'.

And the letter 'ta' in all of these languages is fixed. It is in the state of raising like 'qabl' and 'ba'd', and in the state of breaking according to the rule for the meeting of two consonants, and in the state of accusative like 'kayfa' and similar to it. Abu Ubaidah said: 'Hayta' is neither dual nor plural. The Arabs say: 'Hayta laka', and 'Hayta lakuma', and 'Hayta lakum'.

And Hisham ibn Amir read: 'Heetu' with a kasrah on the 'ha' and a hamzah and a dammah on the 'ta'. This is the reading of Ali ibn Abi Talib, and Abu Wa'il, and Abu Raja, and Yahya, and it was narrated from Abu Amr. This may be understood as from: 'Ha'a al-rajulu yahyi'u' if he improves his appearance, similar to: 'Ja'a yajee'u', and it may mean: 'Tahhay'tu', as it is said: 'Fi'tu and Tafayya'tu' with one meaning. Allah, the Exalted and Glorified, said: 'Yatafayya'u dhilaluhu' [An-Nahl: 48], and He said: 'Hatta tafee'a ila amri Allah' [Al-Hujurat: 9].

And Ibn Abi Ishaq also read it this way except that he simplified the hamzah. Ibn Abbas also read: 'Huyyitu laka', and Al-Hulwani narrated from Hisham: 'Heeta' with a kasrah on the 'ha', a hamzah, and a fathah on the 'ta'. Abu Ali said: It is apparent that this reading is a mistake, because it should have been said: 'Heeta li' and the context of the verses contradicts this. Al-Nahhas reported that he reads: 'Heeti' with a kasrah on the 'ha', a sukoon on the 'ya', and a kasrah on the 'ta'.

And 'Ma'adh' is in the accusative as a source, and the meaning of the words is: I seek refuge with Allah. Then he said: 'Innahu Rabbi' so it is possible that the pronoun in 'Innahu' refers to Allah, the Exalted and Glorified, and it is possible that he means the Aziz, his master, that is: It is not appropriate for me to betray him while he has honored my abode and entrusted me. Mujahid and Al-Suddi said: 'Rabbi' means: my master, and this was said by Ibn Ishaq.

The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: And if a human being preserves his good deeds, it is a pure action, and it is more appropriate that he preserves his Lord.

And it is possible that the pronoun refers to the matter and the affair, then he begins: 'Rabbi ahsana mathwayi'. And the pronoun in His saying: 'Innahu la yuflihu' refers only to the matter and the affair.

And some of the interpreters narrated that when Yusuf, peace be upon him, said: 'Ma'adh Allah', then he defended the matter with argument and persuasion, Allah, the Exalted, tested him with the worry of what he was worried about. And if he had said: 'There is no power and no strength except by Allah' and defended with force, without anything of that, he would not have been tested with the disliked.

And Al-Jahdari read: 'Mathwayi', and so did Abu Tufayl, and it was narrated from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: 'So whoever follows my guidance' [Al-Baqarah: 38].

And His saying: ﴿And she certainly intended him﴾. There is no doubt that Zulaikha's intention was for Yusuf to be with her. There is a difference of opinion regarding Yusuf's intention, peace be upon him. Al-Tabari said: A group said: It was like her intention, and they differed on how it could occur from someone like Yusuf, who is a prophet. It was said: This is so that Allah, glorified and exalted is He, would show him the place of pardon and sufficiency. It was said: The wisdom in this is that it serves as an example for the sinners, so they see that their repentance brings them back to the pardon of Allah, just as it brought back one who is better than them and did not let proximity to sin destroy him. All of this is based on the fact that Yusuf's intention reached - according to what this group narrated - to the point that he sat between Zulaikha's legs and began to loosen his garments and his turban and similar to this, while she had laid down for him. This was said by Ibn Abbas and a group from the predecessors. Another group said regarding his intention: It was merely fleeting thoughts of the heart that a person cannot guard against, and he withdrew at that point and did not exceed it. This is not far-fetched for someone like him, peace be upon him. In the hadith: "Indeed, whoever intends to commit a sin and does not carry it out will have ten good deeds," and in another hadith, "a good deed," so Yusuf may fall into this category. Another group said: Yusuf's intention was to strike her and similar to that.

(p-68) Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And this is weak altogether.

What I say regarding this verse is: The fact that Yusuf was a prophet at the time of this incident is not established, nor is there a narration supporting it. If that is the case, he is a believer who has been given judgment and knowledge, and it is permissible for him to have the intention that is the desire for something without actualizing it, and to entertain the bad thought regarding what is sinful. Even if we assume him to be a prophet at that time, it is permissible for him, in my opinion, only to have the intention that is the thought, and nothing of what has been mentioned regarding loosening his turban and similar to that can be correct; because infallibility accompanies prophethood. What has been narrated that it was said to him: "Will you be in the register of the prophets and act like the foolish?" means the promise of prophethood in what is to come. And for the intention of something, there are two levels: the first is permissible for him along with prophethood, and the second, the greater one, does not occur except from someone who is not a prophet; because entertaining the thought of disobedience and taking pleasure in it is a sin in itself that is recorded. And the saying of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: "Indeed, Allah has overlooked for my nation what their souls whisper to them as long as they do not speak of it or act upon it" means from the thoughts. As for entertaining the thought, it is impossible for it to be permissible; if it occurs, it is a sin among the sins, but it is not like the actualization of disobedience that involves the thought. Among what supports that entertaining the thought is a sin is the saying of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: "He was eager to kill his companion," and the saying of Allah, blessed and exalted is He: ﴿Indeed, some suspicion is sin﴾ [Al-Hujurat: 12]. This is derived from various places in the Shari'ah, and there is consensus that the intention of disobedience and entertaining pleasure in it is not permissible and does not fall under the category of what is overlooked.

And there was a difference of opinion regarding the proof that Yusuf saw. It was said: He was called. And there was a difference regarding what he was called with. It was said: Gabriel, peace be upon him, called him: O Yusuf, will you be in the register of the Prophets and act like the foolish?! It was said: He was called: O Yusuf, do not commit the sin, lest you be like the bird that disobeyed and its feathers fell, remaining cast aside. Jacob called him with that. It was said: Other than this is what is meant. It was said: The proof was a book that he saw written. It was said: On the wall of the assembly in which he was, and it was said: Between the eyes of Zulaikha, and it was said: In a palm of the earth that emerged without a body. And there was a difference regarding what was written. It was said: His saying, the Exalted, ﴿Is he who is a guardian over every soul, with what it has earned?﴾ [Ar-Ra'd: 33], and it was said: His saying, the Exalted, ﴿And do not approach unlawful sexual intercourse. Indeed, it is ever an immorality and is evil as a way.﴾ [Al-Isra: 32], and it was said: Other than this. And it was said: The proof was that Jacob, peace be upon him, saw him represented with him in the house, biting on his thumb, and it was said: On his lip, and it was said: Rather, the roof opened and he saw him like that. And it was said: Indeed, Gabriel, peace be upon him, said to him: If you commit the sin, I will surely erase you from the register of Prophethood. And it was said: Gabriel struck him with his foot, and his desire left him on his fingertips.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And this is weak.

And it was said: Rather, the proof was his thought of the punishment of Allah and His warning regarding sin. And it was said: Rather, the proof that he took admonition from was that Zulaikha said to him: Stay in your place until I cover this idol - for there was an idol with her in the house - for I am shy of it seeing me in this state. And she approached him and covered it with a garment. So Yusuf took admonition and said: Who will cover me from Allah, the One who is over all things?! And if you do this for what does not have understanding, then I am more deserving to be shy of Allah.

And the proof in the speech of the Arabs is: the thing that gives certainty and assurance because it is something known necessarily or by a definitive report or by a rational analogy. So these are the proofs that were narrated regarding what Yusuf saw.

And "that" in His saying, the Exalted, ﴿If it had not been that he saw﴾ is in the position of raising, the estimation is: If it had not been for his vision of the proof of his Lord. And this "if" from which the news is omitted, its estimation is: He would have acted or he would have committed the sin. And a group went to the opinion that the speech was completed in His saying: ﴿And she certainly intended him﴾, and that the answer to "if" in His saying: ﴿And he intended her﴾, and that the meaning is: If he had not seen the proof, he would have intended, meaning: he did not intend upon him, peace be upon him. And this saying is refuted by the tongue of the Arabs and the sayings of the predecessors. Al-Zajjaj said: And if the speech were: "And he would have intended her if not for..." it would have been far-fetched. So how about with the dropping of the 'lam'?

And the "kaf" in His saying: ﴿Like this﴾ is related to an implied meaning, its estimation is: Our actions and decrees have occurred like this so that We may divert. And it is correct that the "kaf" be in the position of raising with the estimation: Our protection for him is like this so that We may divert. And the majority read: "so that We may divert" with the 'nun', and Al-Amash read: "so that he may divert" with the 'ya' in the narration about the absent.

(p-71) Ibn Kathir, Abu Amr, Ibn Amer, Al-Hasan ibn Abi Al-Hasan, and Abu Raja read "al-mukhlisina" with a kasra on the lam in all of the Qur'an. Likewise, they read "mukhlisan" in Surah Maryam. Nafi read "mukhlisan" also with a kasra on the lam. The rest of the Qur'an was read as "al-mukhalisina" with a fatha on the lam. Hamzah, Al-Kisai, and the majority of the reciters read "al-mukhlisina" with a fatha on the lam, and "mukhlisan" likewise in all of the Qur'an.

And His saying, the Exalted: ﴿And they raced to the door﴾. The meaning of "and they raced" is that each one of them raced their companion to the door; it is to bring him back to herself, and he is to escape from her. So she seized at the back of his shirt, and the shirt tore at its collar, and the tearing extended to the lower part of the shirt. "Al-qad" means the cutting, and it is most commonly used for what is lengthwise, while "al-qatt" is used for what is widthwise. Likewise, this is the term in the saying of Al-Nabighah:

The cutting of the saluqiy

For his saying: "It ignites with the flat stones" implies that the cutting is lengthwise.

And "al-faya": they found, and "al-sayyid": the husband, as said by Zayd ibn Thabit and Mujahid. It is narrated that they found the Aziz and a man from the relatives of Zuleikha at the door to which they raced, as said by Al-Suddi. When she saw the disgrace, she rushed to accuse Yusuf and to plot against him. She wanted the Aziz to think that Yusuf desired her, and she said: ﴿What is the penalty for one who intended evil against your family except that he be imprisoned or a painful punishment﴾. And she spoke about the penalty, meaning that the sin is established and confirmed.

(p-72) And this verse implies the greatness of the position of imprisonment in the souls, especially for those of high status; as it has been coupled with painful punishment.