سُوْرَةُ يُوسُفَ
Surah Yusuf (12) — Ayah 25
وَٱسْتَبَقَا ٱلْبَابَ وَقَدَّتْ قَمِيصَهُۥ مِن دُبُرٍ وَأَلْفَيَا سَيِّدَهَا لَدَا ٱلْبَابِ ۚ قَالَتْ مَا جَزَآءُ مَنْ أَرَادَ بِأَهْلِكَ سُوٓءًا إِلَّآ أَن يُسْجَنَ أَوْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ ﴿25﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
So they raced with one another to the door, and she tore his shirt from the back. They both found her lord (i.e. her husband) at the door. She said: "What is the recompense (punishment) for him who intended an evil design against your wife, except that he be put in prison or a painful torment?"
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَٱسْتَبَقَا
wa-is'tabaqā
And they both raced
ٱلْبَابَ
l-bāba
(to) the door
وَقَدَّتْ
waqaddat
and she tore
قَمِيصَهُۥ
qamīṣahu
his shirt
مِن
min
from
دُبُرٍۢ
duburin
the back
وَأَلْفَيَا
wa-alfayā
and they both found
سَيِّدَهَا
sayyidahā
her husband
لَدَا
ladā
at
ٱلْبَابِ ۚ
l-bābi
the door
قَالَتْ
qālat
She said
مَا
mā
What
جَزَآءُ
jazāu
(is) the recompense
مَنْ
man
(of one) who
أَرَادَ
arāda
intended
بِأَهْلِكَ
bi-ahlika
for your wife
سُوٓءًا
sūan
evil
إِلَّآ
illā
except
أَن
an
that
يُسْجَنَ
yus'jana
he be imprisoned
أَوْ
aw
or
عَذَابٌ
ʿadhābun
a punishment
أَلِيمٌۭ
alīmun
painful
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
25. So they both raced to the door, and she tore his shirt from behind. They found her husband [25] at the door. She said, "What is the punishment for one who intended evil for your wife except that he be imprisoned or [26] given a painful punishment?"
[25] When Zulaikha tried to arouse the emotions of Sayyiduna Yusuf (peace be upon him) through flirtation, he moved towards the door so that he could open it and go outside, and Zulaikha ran after him and tried to pull him back towards herself. In this struggle, Zulaikha grabbed Sayyiduna Yusuf’s (peace be upon him) shirt from behind and pulled it, so the shirt was torn from the back. However, Yusuf (peace be upon him) succeeded in opening the door, and when the door opened, suddenly the Aziz of Egypt was standing at the door. He himself saw with his own eyes that both were coming out of a closed room—Yusuf in front and Zulaikha behind—and this was sufficient evidence for the possibility of some wrongdoing, or at least such a suspicion could certainly arise.
[26]
Zulaikha’s Trick:
When Zulaikha saw her husband standing at the door, suddenly an idea occurred to her and she put the entire blame for this act on Sayyiduna Yusuf (peace be upon him). Then, not only did she stop at this, but also tried to have him punished by saying that it was he who intended evil against her. With such a trick, she achieved two aims with one arrow: first, she tried to prove herself chaste, even though she herself was the real root of the wrongdoing; and second, since Sayyiduna Yusuf (peace be upon him) had rejected her desire and she considered it an insult, she wanted to have him punished by her husband in return, and in order to cover up her own crime and prove herself innocent, she demanded severe punishment or imprisonment for Yusuf (peace be upon him).
[25] When Zulaikha tried to arouse the emotions of Sayyiduna Yusuf (peace be upon him) through flirtation, he moved towards the door so that he could open it and go outside, and Zulaikha ran after him and tried to pull him back towards herself. In this struggle, Zulaikha grabbed Sayyiduna Yusuf’s (peace be upon him) shirt from behind and pulled it, so the shirt was torn from the back. However, Yusuf (peace be upon him) succeeded in opening the door, and when the door opened, suddenly the Aziz of Egypt was standing at the door. He himself saw with his own eyes that both were coming out of a closed room—Yusuf in front and Zulaikha behind—and this was sufficient evidence for the possibility of some wrongdoing, or at least such a suspicion could certainly arise.
[26]
Zulaikha’s Trick:
When Zulaikha saw her husband standing at the door, suddenly an idea occurred to her and she put the entire blame for this act on Sayyiduna Yusuf (peace be upon him). Then, not only did she stop at this, but also tried to have him punished by saying that it was he who intended evil against her. With such a trick, she achieved two aims with one arrow: first, she tried to prove herself chaste, even though she herself was the real root of the wrongdoing; and second, since Sayyiduna Yusuf (peace be upon him) had rejected her desire and she considered it an insult, she wanted to have him punished by her husband in return, and in order to cover up her own crime and prove herself innocent, she demanded severe punishment or imprisonment for Yusuf (peace be upon him).
