سُوْرَةُ الْقَصَصِ
Surah Al-Qasas (28) — Ayah 26
قَالَتْ إِحْدَىٰهُمَا يَـٰٓأَبَتِ ٱسْتَـْٔجِرْهُ ۖ إِنَّ خَيْرَ مَنِ ٱسْتَـْٔجَرْتَ ٱلْقَوِىُّ ٱلْأَمِينُ ﴿26﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And said one of them (the two women): "O my father! Hire him! Verily, the best of men for you to hire is the strong, the trustworthy."
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
قَالَتْ
qālat
Said
إِحْدَىٰهُمَا
iḥ'dāhumā
one of them
يَـٰٓأَبَتِ
yāabati
O my father
ٱسْتَـْٔجِرْهُ ۖ
is'tajir'hu
Hire him
إِنَّ
inna
Indeed
خَيْرَ
khayra
(the) best
مَنِ
mani
whom
ٱسْتَـْٔجَرْتَ
is'tajarta
you (can) hire
ٱلْقَوِىُّ
l-qawiyu
(is) the strong
ٱلْأَمِينُ
l-amīnu
the trustworthy
Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim — Hafiz Abdus Salam Bin Muhammad Bhutvi
Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim is a 4-volume Quran commentary by Hafiz Abdus Salam bin Muhammad Bhutvi, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar and Sheikh ul-Hadith from Pakistan. Based on over 45 years of teaching and research, this tafsir follows the methodology of Tafsir bil-Ma'thur — interpreting the Quran through authentic Hadith, statements of the Companions, and the understanding of the early generations (Salaf). It is distinguished by its complete avoidance of Israeliyyat (Judeo-Christian narratives) and unverified reports. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
(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 ]
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 ]
