سُوْرَةُ يُوسُفَ
Surah Yusuf (12) — Ayah 3
نَحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ أَحْسَنَ ٱلْقَصَصِ بِمَآ أَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَيْكَ هَـٰذَا ٱلْقُرْءَانَ وَإِن كُنتَ مِن قَبْلِهِۦ لَمِنَ ٱلْغَـٰفِلِينَ ﴿3﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
We relate unto you (Muhammad صلى الله عليه و سلم) the best of stories through Our Revelations unto you, of this Qur’ân. And before this (i.e. before the coming of Divine Revelation to you), you were among those who knew nothing about it (the Qur’ân).
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
نَحْنُ
naḥnu
We
نَقُصُّ
naquṣṣu
relate
عَلَيْكَ
ʿalayka
to you
أَحْسَنَ
aḥsana
the best
ٱلْقَصَصِ
l-qaṣaṣi
of the narrations
بِمَآ
bimā
in what
أَوْحَيْنَآ
awḥaynā
We have revealed
إِلَيْكَ
ilayka
to you
هَـٰذَا
hādhā
(of) this
ٱلْقُرْءَانَ
l-qur'āna
the Quran
وَإِن
wa-in
although
كُنتَ
kunta
you were
مِن
min
before it
قَبْلِهِۦ
qablihi
before it
لَمِنَ
lamina
surely among
ٱلْغَـٰفِلِينَ
l-ghāfilīna
the unaware
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.
3. (O Prophet!) By revealing this Qur’an to you, We narrate to you the best of stories, though before this you were among those unaware [2].
[2]
The Question of the Quraysh of Makkah to You ﷺ at the Suggestion of the Jews: How Did the Children of Israel Reach Egypt?
The reason for the revelation of this Surah is that the disbelievers of Makkah said to the Jews, “Tell us a question that we can ask this Prophet, and he will not be able to answer it. The benefit of this will be that the secret of this Prophet will be exposed. He will not be able to answer, or he will ask for respite, and in the meantime, he will gather some information from here and there, which is not unlikely.” The Jews knew that this Prophet is unlettered, so after careful consideration, they told the disbelievers of Makkah a historical type of question, which was: “Sayyiduna Ibrahim ؑ, Sayyiduna Ishaq ؑ, and Sayyiduna Yaqub (Israel) all resided in the region of Syria and Palestine. Then how did the Children of Israel reach Egypt, from where Sayyiduna Musa ؑ was sent to free them from the slavery of the Egyptians?” When the disbelievers of Makkah asked you ﷺ this question, this entire Surah was revealed at that very moment, and this Surah continued to flow from your ﷺ tongue. In reality, neither you ﷺ nor the people of Makkah were aware of the answer to this question at that time, and in this answer, the entire story of the life of Sayyiduna Yusuf ؑ was also included, along with clear indications towards many such matters that were common between the disbelievers of Makkah and the brothers of Yusuf, and in it were many signs of admonition for the disbelievers of Makkah. Thus, this entire Surah, in a way, served as a prophecy regarding the Quraysh of Makkah, and all those signs of admonition were fulfilled. For example:
The Reason for the Revelation of This Surah and the Proof of Your Prophethood:
The first lesson of admonition was that you ﷺ immediately answered their question, thereby proving that you ﷺ are indeed a Prophet of Allah, because apart from divine revelation, there was no possible source of information for you. Yet, even then, these people did not believe in you ﷺ and remained stubborn. Secondly, just as the brothers of Yusuf intended to kill or exile their brother in order to remove the thorn that pricked them and clear their own path, in exactly the same way, the disbelievers of Makkah also intended to kill or exile you ﷺ.
Reasons for the Similarity Between the Story of Yusuf and the Quraysh:
Thirdly, the very schemes that the brothers of Yusuf adopted to remove Yusuf ؑ from their path, Allah made those very schemes the means of Yusuf’s ؑ rise and honor. Similarly, the very schemes that the disbelievers of Makkah adopted to destroy the Prophet of Islam and Islam, from those very schemes, Islam gained rise and honor, and those very schemes became the cause of the death of the disbelievers of Makkah and disbelief. Fourthly, when Allah Almighty granted Sayyiduna Yusuf ؑ authority, and his brothers, regretful and ashamed, came to him, he forgave them by saying ﴿لَا تَثْرِيْبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْيَوْمَ﴾. In the same way, after the conquest of Makkah, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forgave his sworn enemy brothers by saying exactly these words. Furthermore, instead of making them prisoners of war, he said ﴿اَنْتُمُ الطُّلَقَاء﴾, making them not even feel that they were a defeated and conquered people. And the very important lesson that is obtained from this detail is that when Allah wills to elevate someone, no matter how much his envier and opponent try to destroy him, their efforts cannot succeed. Rather, as the saying goes, “The enemy stirs up evil, but it turns out to be good for us,” Allah turns the direction of those very schemes in such a way that those very schemes become the means of that person’s elevation.
[2]
The Question of the Quraysh of Makkah to You ﷺ at the Suggestion of the Jews: How Did the Children of Israel Reach Egypt?
The reason for the revelation of this Surah is that the disbelievers of Makkah said to the Jews, “Tell us a question that we can ask this Prophet, and he will not be able to answer it. The benefit of this will be that the secret of this Prophet will be exposed. He will not be able to answer, or he will ask for respite, and in the meantime, he will gather some information from here and there, which is not unlikely.” The Jews knew that this Prophet is unlettered, so after careful consideration, they told the disbelievers of Makkah a historical type of question, which was: “Sayyiduna Ibrahim ؑ, Sayyiduna Ishaq ؑ, and Sayyiduna Yaqub (Israel) all resided in the region of Syria and Palestine. Then how did the Children of Israel reach Egypt, from where Sayyiduna Musa ؑ was sent to free them from the slavery of the Egyptians?” When the disbelievers of Makkah asked you ﷺ this question, this entire Surah was revealed at that very moment, and this Surah continued to flow from your ﷺ tongue. In reality, neither you ﷺ nor the people of Makkah were aware of the answer to this question at that time, and in this answer, the entire story of the life of Sayyiduna Yusuf ؑ was also included, along with clear indications towards many such matters that were common between the disbelievers of Makkah and the brothers of Yusuf, and in it were many signs of admonition for the disbelievers of Makkah. Thus, this entire Surah, in a way, served as a prophecy regarding the Quraysh of Makkah, and all those signs of admonition were fulfilled. For example:
The Reason for the Revelation of This Surah and the Proof of Your Prophethood:
The first lesson of admonition was that you ﷺ immediately answered their question, thereby proving that you ﷺ are indeed a Prophet of Allah, because apart from divine revelation, there was no possible source of information for you. Yet, even then, these people did not believe in you ﷺ and remained stubborn. Secondly, just as the brothers of Yusuf intended to kill or exile their brother in order to remove the thorn that pricked them and clear their own path, in exactly the same way, the disbelievers of Makkah also intended to kill or exile you ﷺ.
Reasons for the Similarity Between the Story of Yusuf and the Quraysh:
Thirdly, the very schemes that the brothers of Yusuf adopted to remove Yusuf ؑ from their path, Allah made those very schemes the means of Yusuf’s ؑ rise and honor. Similarly, the very schemes that the disbelievers of Makkah adopted to destroy the Prophet of Islam and Islam, from those very schemes, Islam gained rise and honor, and those very schemes became the cause of the death of the disbelievers of Makkah and disbelief. Fourthly, when Allah Almighty granted Sayyiduna Yusuf ؑ authority, and his brothers, regretful and ashamed, came to him, he forgave them by saying ﴿لَا تَثْرِيْبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْيَوْمَ﴾. In the same way, after the conquest of Makkah, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ forgave his sworn enemy brothers by saying exactly these words. Furthermore, instead of making them prisoners of war, he said ﴿اَنْتُمُ الطُّلَقَاء﴾, making them not even feel that they were a defeated and conquered people. And the very important lesson that is obtained from this detail is that when Allah wills to elevate someone, no matter how much his envier and opponent try to destroy him, their efforts cannot succeed. Rather, as the saying goes, “The enemy stirs up evil, but it turns out to be good for us,” Allah turns the direction of those very schemes in such a way that those very schemes become the means of that person’s elevation.
