Surah Al-Qasas (28) — Ayah 26

(Ayah 26) ➊ { قَالَتْ اِحْدٰىهُمَا يٰۤاَبَتِ اسْتَاْجِرْهُ:} One of the two said, "Father! Hire him, so that we may be relieved from the hardship of herding sheep as women." It is not necessary that she said this to her father at the very first meeting of Musa (peace be upon him) with him. Hospitality for three days is a right, so it is most likely that during this period, the girls and their father closely observed the noble qualities of Musa (peace be upon him), and then the girl said this to her father.

➋ { اِنَّ خَيْرَ مَنِ اسْتَاْجَرْتَ الْقَوِيُّ الْاَمِيْنُ:} In Tafsir Ibn Kathir it is stated: "Umar, Ibn Abbas, Shurayh Qadhi, Abu Malik, Qatadah, Muhammad bin Ishaq, and several others said that her father asked, 'How did you know this?' She said, 'He lifted that stone which could not be lifted by fewer than ten men, and when I came with him, I was walking ahead of him, he said to me, "Walk behind me, and when the path needs to be changed, indicate to me with a pebble, I will understand which way to go."'" The researcher of Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Hikmat bin Basheer, said that the statement of Umar and Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) has been narrated by Ibn Abi Hatim with an authentic chain. [ ابن أبي حاتم : ۱۶۸۴۳ ] The statements of other Imams have also been narrated by Tabari (27609) or Ibn Abi Hatim with an authentic chain, but these are not narrated from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), so their source is only Israelite traditions.

➌ The best person whom you can hire is the one who is strong and trustworthy. This is the principle that must be kept in mind when assigning responsibility to someone. The reality is that at one time, both these qualities are found in very few people. If a person has the ability and strength for the work, he is weak in trustworthiness, and if he is trustworthy, he lacks strength and ability. Nowadays, governments assess ability through exams and interviews before appointing someone to a position, but not trustworthiness, resulting in countless dishonesty and betrayal, which has ruined both the economy and society of Muslim countries.

➍ From this, one can gauge the girl's exceptional insight and her ability to judge the character of men. Ibn Abi Hatim has narrated with an authentic chain that Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The three most insightful people among mankind are: Abu Bakr's insight regarding Umar (may Allah be pleased with them), the insight of the Aziz of Egypt regarding Yusuf (peace be upon him), when he said to his wife: «{اَكْرِمِيْ مَثْوٰىهُ }» [ یوسف : ۲۱ ] 'Keep his residence honorable,' and the insight of the woman in the story of Musa (peace be upon him), who said: «{ يٰۤاَبَتِ اسْتَاْجِرْهُ اِنَّ خَيْرَ مَنِ اسْتَاْجَرْتَ الْقَوِيُّ الْاَمِيْنُ }» [ القصص : ۲۶ ] 'O my father! Hire him, for the best person you can hire is the strong, trustworthy one.'" [ ابن أبي حاتم : ۱۶۸۳۸ ]

26-1. Some commentators have written that the father asked the daughters, "How did you know that he is both strong and trustworthy?" To which the daughters replied that the well from which he gave water has such a heavy stone placed on it that it usually takes ten men to lift it, but we saw that this man lifted the stone by himself and then put it back. Similarly, when I was bringing him by calling him, since I alone knew the way, I was walking ahead and he was behind me, but when the wind blew my shawl away, this man said, "You walk behind, I will walk ahead so that my gaze does not fall on any part of your body. To indicate the way, throw a pebble from behind." And Allah knows best (Ibn Kathir).

One of the women said, "O my father! Hire him. Indeed, the best man you can hire is the strong and trustworthy one." [36]

[36]
The Recommendation to Employ Sayyiduna Musa (peace be upon him):

Prophet Shu‘ayb (peace be upon him) had no sons. He had only two daughters, who had to do both indoor and outdoor work. Therefore, Shu‘ayb (peace be upon him) was already seeking a respectable man whom he could employ. During the few days of Sayyiduna Musa’s (peace be upon him) stay, all the members of the household formed and agreed upon the opinion that if this foreign young man agreed to stay with them, it would be very suitable. Thus, one of the two daughters said to her father that if he wished to employ someone, perhaps he would not find anyone better than this man. Because he is young and strong, he can do both light and heavy work. Secondly, he is trustworthy. And she said these things based on her own observation. Sayyiduna Musa (peace be upon him) had drawn the bucket from the well alone, which usually two men could barely pull. Then, when the girl went to bring him home, she realized how modest, honest, God-fearing, and trustworthy he was.

Essential Conditions for Employment:

Incidentally, from this verse it is also understood that two things must be considered for employment: first, whether the person being employed is competent for the job or not. In other words, does he have prior knowledge and experience of the work? And if it is laborious work, is his physical condition and strength sufficient to perform it? Secondly, he should be honest and trustworthy. And this honesty and trustworthiness can never be found in those who are irreligious and forgetful of God.

The Corruption of Ignoring These Conditions:

Now, it is surprising that when someone hires a private or domestic servant, he considers both these things, but for government jobs, only the first condition, i.e., competence, is considered, while the second condition is completely ignored. And perhaps the reason for this is that this second condition is also lacking in the officers who hire employees. The result is that bribery becomes widespread, which is related to the employees. People’s rights are usurped and lost. A tyrannical type of government is established, and so many complaints and problems arise for the public that their solution becomes impossible. And the only reason for this is that the second condition of honesty and trustworthiness among the conditions of employment is not considered worthy of attention at all.