His saying, exalted and majestic is He:

"Certainly, in Joseph and his brothers are signs for those who ask." "When they said, 'Joseph and his brother are more beloved to our father than we, while we are a group. Indeed, our father is in clear error.'" "Kill Joseph or throw him out to some land; your father's face will be free for you, and you will be after him a righteous people." "A speaker among them said, 'Do not kill Joseph, but throw him into the bottom of the well; some travelers may pick him up if you are going to do anything.'"

The majority read: "signs" in the plural, while Ibn Kathir alone read: "a sign" in the singular. This is the reading of Mujahid, Shibl, and the people of Mecca. The first reading means that every situation of his is a sign, so he gathered them. The second reading means that as a whole, he is a sign, even if it is detailed in meaning. The weight of "sign" is either fa'lah or fa'lah or fa'ilah, depending on the disagreement about it. Al-Zajjaj mentioned that in a different copy of Uthman’s Mushaf, it is written: "a lesson for those who ask." Abu Hatim said: It is in the Mushaf of Ubayy ibn Ka'b.

And His saying: "for those who ask" necessitates an encouragement to learn these stories. For indeed, the intended meaning is: "a sign for the people." He described them by asking, as each one should ask about the like of these stories, as they are the place of lessons and admonition. It is also correct to describe the people by asking, as the reason for the revelation of the surah was the question of a questioner, as has been narrated. And their saying: "and his brother" refers to "Benjamin," who is younger than Joseph. He is also called: "Yamin." It is said that he was Joseph's full brother and their mother died. The indication that they are full brothers is the specification of brotherhood for them by saying "his brother," which is a non-definitive indication. The love of Jacob for Joseph, peace be upon him, and Benjamin was due to their youth and the death of their mother. This is from "the love of the young is human nature." It has been said to the daughter of Al-Hasan: Which of your sons do you love most? She said: The youngest until he grows up, the absent until he returns, and the sick until he recovers.

And their saying: "and we are a group" means: We are a gathering that harms and benefits, protects and weakens. That is: love and consideration should be due to us. The group in the language is: the gathering. It is said: from ten to fifteen, and it is said: from ten to forty. Al-Zajjaj said: ten and those like them. In Al-Zahrawi, it is said: three are a few, and if they increase, they are a group up to nine, and if they increase, they are a group. It is not said for less than ten: a group.

And their saying: "indeed, in clear error" means: they are in disagreement and error in the love of Joseph and his brother. This is the meaning of error, and indeed, its value diminishes or increases according to the matter in which agreement occurs. And "clear" means: it appears to the observer. Abu Amr, Asim, and Ibn Amer read: "clear, kill" with a kasra on the tanween in connection due to the meeting of the two silent letters of the tanween and the qaf. Nafi, Ibn Kathir, and Al-Kisai read: "clear, kill" with a kasra on the noon and a damma on the tanween, following the damma of the ta and taking care of it.

And His saying: "Kill Joseph" is the verse. This was the statement of some of them: "or throw him out" means: distance him. From this is the saying of Urwah ibn Al-Ward:

And whoever is like me, having dependents and being in need, will be deceived and will throw himself into every situation.

And the distant ones are the far ones, and "land" is a second object by omitting the preposition, because "threw" does not take two objects except in this way. And a group said: it is an accusative of place, and that is an error because the place should be ambiguous, and this here is not so; rather it is a land restricted by being far or distant and the like, thus its ambiguity is removed. And it is known that Yusuf was not without being in a land, so he clarified that it is a distant land, not the one he is in, which is close to his father.

And his saying: "Your father's face will be free for you" is a metaphor, meaning: if Yusuf is lost, his love will return to you. And this is similar to the saying of the Arab when his mother loved him after his brothers were killed, and she had not loved him before: "The bereavement has made her compassionate towards him." The pronoun in "after him" refers to "Yusuf" or "his killing" or "his throwing." And "righteous ones," said Al-Suddi and Muqatil ibn Sulayman: they meant the righteousness of their condition with their father, and this resembles their intention in that situation, and they were not prophets at that time. And the majority said: "righteous ones" means with repentance, and this is the most apparent from the wording, and their condition also supports it, for they are believers who spread on greatness and justified themselves with repentance. And the one among them who spoke, it was said: he is Rubil - the eldest of them - as said by Qatadah and Ibn Ishaq. And it was said: Judah is the most prudent of them, and it was said: Shimon is the most courageous of them, as said by Mujahid. And this is an addition from him to his brother, certainly, for what Allah intended of executing His decree. And "the absence" is what is hidden from you of places or has concealed something else from you. And the majority read: "the absence of the pit," and Nafi alone read: "the absences of the pit," and Al-A'raj read: "the absences of the pit" with a strong 'ya.' Abu Al-Fath said: "It is a name that came on (Fa'ala), and Abu Ali used to relate it to what Sibawayh mentioned of the flowing and the like, and I found from that: the current for the wave, and the pottery for the clay."

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

And in the similarity of "the absence" to these examples, there is a consideration because "the absence" is governed by a verb. And Al-Hasan read: "in the absence of the pit" on the pattern of (Fa'la), and likewise it was written in the Mushaf of Ubayy ibn Ka'b. And from this wording is the saying of the poet:

If one day my absence concealed me, Then walk with my pace among the tribe and the family.

And "the pit" is the well that has not been filled because it was dug from the earth only.

And the majority read: "some will pick him up" with the 'ya' from beneath on the wording of "some." And Al-Hasan Al-Basri, Mujahid, Qatadah, and Abu Rajaa read: "you will pick him up" with the 'ta.' And this is from the perspective that "some" is added to "the caravan" so it gained the femininity of the relation. And from this is the saying of the poet:

I see the passing of the years has taken from me, As the secrets have taken from the crescent.

And from it is the saying of another:

When a lord among them dies, a lord arises, So the people of the villages and churches submit to him.

And the saying of Ka'b:

All of Nizar was humbled by its fall. When he meant by "Nizar" the tribe, and examples of this are many. It has been narrated that a group of Bedouins found Yusuf, peace be upon him. And "the pit" is the plural of "sayar," which is a form for exaggeration. It was said regarding this pit: that it is the well of Bayt al-Maqdis, and it was said otherwise. It was said that there was no water where they threw him, but Allah brought him forth in it until people sought it for drawing water. It was said: rather, there was much water in it that would drown Yusuf, so a stone rose from the bottom of the pit until Yusuf was firmly established upon it. It has been narrated that they threw him with a rope into the pit, and he held on with his hands until they tied his hands and removed his shirt and threw him then. They intended to crush him with stones, but their brother prevented them from that by suggesting to throw him.