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The story of our master “Joseph”, peace be upon him, is one of the most important stories of the prophets and messengers. The story contains a clear lesson for anyone who understands, and its verses came as confirmation of everything that came in the heavenly books revealed before the Holy Qur’an.
The story of our master “Joseph”, peace be upon him, was mentioned in the Holy Qur’an in an entire Surah named after him, peace be upon him (Surat Yusuf). As for mentioning the name of the Prophet of God “Joseph”, peace be upon him, in the Holy Qur’an, it was mentioned twenty-six times, twenty-four of which are in Surat Yusuf alone.
Surah Yusuf was revealed to our Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, before his migration from Mecca to Medina. He met some of the Jewish infidels of Mecca and discussed among themselves the matter of the Prophet of God Muhammad. The Jews told the infidels of Mecca to ask Muhammad why the family of Jacob moved from the Levant to Egypt. So Surah Yusuf was revealed to the Prophet of God Muhammad, containing the complete story of the life of our master Joseph.
The story:
We know the reason behind the Prophet of God, Joseph, peace be upon him, entering prison. The Prophet of God, Joseph, entered prison, preferring that to doing what would not please his Creator, the Almighty, the Most High. Prison was to him like a strong fortress against the trials that had intensified, and this same prison was the path of Joseph, peace be upon him, to the kingdom that God, the Almighty, the Most High, had placed in his hands.
The Prophet of God, Joseph, was imprisoned with other people, and he quickly gained their love and their complete trust through his noble morals, high self-esteem, sound mind, and penetrating insight. He was the reference for interpreting the dreams they saw within the prison walls.
The Prophet of God, Joseph, peace be upon him, was calling everyone in prison to the One, Almighty God. He was showing them the oneness of God Almighty and that He is more deserving of being worshipped than any other god, who is unable to benefit or harm himself, as gods have no control over their own affairs. One day, two young men from his prison companions asked him about a dream that each of them had seen. One of them saw in his dream that he was pressing grapes and making wine from them, while the other saw in his dream that he was carrying bread on his head and birds were eating from it.
The Prophet of God, Joseph, peace be upon him, began interpreting the dreams of each of them. He told the first that he would be the wine cupbearer for his master, and he told the other that he would be crucified and that birds would eat from his head. He concluded his interpretation by saying that both matters were a decree from God that could not be reversed or averted.
Joseph, peace be upon him, asked the young man who expected his salvation to mention his matter to his master (the Aziz of Egypt) to release him and set him free. When the young man went out, he became busy with life matters and forgot about Joseph, peace be upon him. The King of Egypt saw a vision that made him lose sleep, and he did not find anyone among his entire entourage to interpret it for him. While the King of Egypt was in distress and boredom and everyone around him was unable to interpret his vision, Joseph’s companion who had survived remembered his companion’s matter, so he quickly went to the prison and met Joseph, peace be upon him, and asked him to interpret the King of Egypt’s vision. As soon as he mentioned its interpretation to him, he quickly returned to the King of Egypt and put its interpretation in his hands. The king approved of it, and he sent for Joseph immediately to be his advisor and assistant in managing the affairs of the country.
The Prophet of God, Joseph, peace be upon him, refused to leave prison unless the king investigated the matter of his imprisonment. Indeed, the women appeared in the king’s council to uncover the facts and circumstances of Joseph’s imprisonment, peace be upon him. The king investigated the reason behind his imprisonment, and the wife of the Aziz had no choice but to confess the truth of what had happened. She told her husband that she was the one who had seduced Joseph and asked him to commit adultery with her, but he refused and preferred imprisonment to doing so.
The desire of the King of Egypt to meet “Joseph” became stronger after all the evidence of “Joseph’s” innocence, chastity and chivalry became clear. The King of Egypt found in our master “Joseph”, peace be upon him, a man of sound opinion, honest advice and good management. Hope filled his heart to accept “Joseph” to be by his side so that he could establish a great kingdom on strong pillars and foundations.
Thus, our master “Joseph”, peace be upon him, became the Aziz of Egypt, next to the King of Egypt, and he supervised all the economic resources of the state and managed all its exports and imports.
Days passed and Joseph, peace be upon him, was the ruler of Egypt, taking care of all its economic affairs. A famine struck the land of Canaan, where his father, the Prophet of God, Jacob, and his brothers were. Thanks to the measures taken by Joseph, peace be upon him, Egypt had prepared well for the matter, saving much of what it had planted and harvested. During that period, Egypt was a destination for those who came to it seeking provisions and food.
The brothers of Joseph, peace be upon him, went to Egypt to seek provisions, as many do. God Almighty decreed that they would meet their brother Joseph, who had become dear to Egypt. He recognized them, but they did not recognize him. The events unfolded as Joseph told them that he was their brother and asked them to take his shirt to their father and throw it over his face so that he would regain his sight. Then they would come to Egypt with all their family.
Indeed, the Prophet of God, Jacob, peace be upon him, and his sons and all his family came to Egypt, and as soon as they entered upon Joseph, they prostrated themselves before him. This was the interpretation of the vision he had seen as a child, so he lifted his father up to the place designated for him in celebration of him, and turned to his Creator, glory be to Him, praising and thanking Him for what He had bestowed upon him and for His abundant gifts.
For more stories of the prophets and messengers on our humble website, we can:
Stories of the Prophets The story of our master Yunus, peace be upon him, and the lessons learned from it
Also/ Stories of the Prophets in Ramadan The story of the Prophet of God Idris, peace be upon him, the first to write with a pen
Research on the stories of the prophets entitled “Our Master Muhammad” and the call to Islam outside Mecca
