Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (4/218)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

deviation from religion; had they meant that, they would have disbelieved in him. Rather, what they meant was an error in managing worldly affairs. They were saying: We are more beneficial to him in worldly matters, in maintaining his livelihood and tending his livestock; therefore, we are more deserving of his love than Joseph. Thus, he is mistaken in directing his affection to him.

“Kill Joseph or cast him out to some land, and your father’s full attention will be yours. Then afterwards you may become righteous people.” (9) “One of them said, ‘Do not kill Joseph, but throw him into the depths of the well, so that some travellers may pick him up, if you must do something.’” (10)

“Kill Joseph”: The identity of the one who made this suggestion is disputed. Wahb said: It was Simeon. Ka‘b said: It was Dan.

“Or cast him out to some land”: that is, to a land far from his father (1). It was also said: to a land where wild beasts would devour him.

“Your father’s full attention will be yours”: that is, it will be devoted to you alone and unobstructed by his preoccupation with Joseph (2). “Then afterwards”: that is, after killing Joseph. “You may become righteous people”: repentant—that is, repent after you have done this, and Allah will forgive you. Muqatil said: Your relationship with your father will be set right.

“One of them said, ‘Do not kill Joseph’”: this was Judah. Qatadah (3) said: It was Reuben, Joseph’s maternal cousin; he was the oldest among them and had the soundest judgment concerning him. The first view—that it was Judah—is more correct. He forbade them from killing him and said: Killing is a grave and enormous sin.

“But throw him into the depths of the well”: Abu Ja‘far and Nafi‘ recited “the depths of the well” in the plural, while the rest recited it in the singular: that is, into the bottom and darkness of the well. A depth is any place that conceals something from you and causes it to disappear. A well is an unlined pit, because it has merely been dug out—that is, cut into the ground—and has not been lined.

“So that some travellers may pick him up”: that is, take him. Picking something up means taking it from a place where one does not expect to find it (4). “Some travellers”: that is, some wayfarers, who would take him to another region, so that you might be rid of him. “If you must do something”: that is, if you are resolved to carry out your plan. At that time, they had reached maturity, but had not yet become Prophets.

It was also said that they had not reached maturity, but this is unsound, as indicated by their saying, “Then afterwards you may become righteous people” (5).

(1) In manuscript A: “far off.” (2) In manuscript B: “from.” (3) In manuscript B: “Muqatil said it.” (4) In manuscript B: “he perceives it.” (5) Al-Suddi and Muqatil ibn Sulayman said that they intended to restore their standing with their father. This appears to have been their intention at that time, and they were not prophets then. The majority held that “righteous” means through repentance, which is the more apparent meaning of the wording and is also supported by their situation: they were believers who resolved upon a grave act and consoled themselves with repentance. See Ibn Atiyyah, al-Muharrar al-Wajiz, 4:443. Ibn Kathir inclined toward the first view, stating in his Tafsir, 2:470-471: “Know that there is no proof that Joseph’s brothers were prophets; rather, the apparent sense of this context indicates the opposite. Some people claim that revelation came to them afterward, but this is questionable, and whoever makes such a claim requires evidence. They cite only Allah’s saying: ‘Say: We believe in Allah, and in what has been sent down to us, and what was sent down to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the asbat [tribes].’ This allows for another possibility, since the clans of the Children of Israel are called asbat, just as the Arabs are called qaba'il [tribes] and non-Arabs shu'ub [peoples]. Allah mentions that He revealed to the prophets among the tribes of the Children of Israel, referring to them collectively because they were numerous. Yet every tribe descended from one of Joseph’s brothers, and there is no proof that these particular individuals received revelation. And Allah knows best.”

عَنِ الدِّينِ، وَلَوْ أَرَادُوهُ لَكَفَرُوا بِهِ، بَلِ الْمُرَادُ مِنْهُ: الْخَطَأُ فِي تَدْبِيرِ أَمْرِ الدُّنْيَا، يَقُولُونَ: نَحْنُ أَنْفَعُ لَهُ فِي أَمْرِ الدُّنْيَا وَإِصْلَاحِ أَمْرِ مَعَاشِهِ وَرَعْيِ مَوَاشِيهِ، فَنَحْنُ أَوْلَى بِالْمَحَبَّةِ مِنْهُ، فَهُوَ مُخْطِئٌ فِي صَرْفِ مَحَبَّتِهِ إِلَيْهِ. ﴿اقْتُلُوا يُوسُفَ أَوِ اطْرَحُوهُ أَرْضًا يَخْلُ لَكُمْ وَجْهُ أَبِيكُمْ وَتَكُونُوا مِنْ بَعْدِهِ قَوْمًا صَالِحِينَ (٩) قَالَ قَائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ لَا تَقْتُلُوا يُوسُفَ وَأَلْقُوهُ فِي غَيَابَةِ الْجُبِّ يَلْتَقِطْهُ بَعْضُ السَّيَّارَةِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ فَاعِلِينَ (١٠) ﴾ . ﴿اقْتُلُوا يُوسُفَ﴾ اخْتَلَفُوا فِي قَائِلِ هَذَا الْقَوْلِ؛ فَقَالَ وَهْبٌ: قَالَهُ شَمْعُونُ. وَقَالَ كَعْبٌ: قَالَهُ دَانُ. ﴿أَوِ اطْرَحُوهُ أَرْضًا﴾ أَيْ: إِلَى أَرْضٍ يَبْعُدُ (١) عَنْ أَبِيهِ. وَقِيلَ: فِي أَرْضٍ تَأْكُلُهُ السِّبَاعُ. ﴿يَخْلُ لَكُمْ﴾ يَخْلُصْ لَكُمْ وَيَصْفُ لَكُمْ. ﴿وَجْهُ أَبِيكُمْ﴾ عَنْ (٢) شَغْلِهِ بِيُوسُفَ، ﴿وَتَكُونُوا مِنْ بَعْدِهِ﴾ مِنْ بَعْدِ قَتْلِ يُوسُفَ، ﴿قَوْمًا صَالِحِينَ﴾ تَائِبِينَ، أَيْ: تُوبُوا بَعْدَمَا فَعَلْتُمْ هَذَا يَعْفُ اللَّهُ عَنْكُمْ. وَقَالَ مُقَاتِلٌ: يَصْلُحْ أَمْرُكُمْ فِيمَا بَيْنَكُمْ وَبَيْنَ أَبِيكُمْ. ﴿قَالَ قَائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ لَا تَقْتُلُوا يُوسُفَ﴾ وَهُوَ يَهُوذَا، وَقَالَ [قَتَادَةُ] (٣) : رُوبِيلُ، وَكَانَ ابْنَ خَالَةِ يُوسُفَ، وَكَانَ أَكْبَرَهُمْ سِنًّا وَأَحْسَنَهُمْ رَأْيًا فِيهِ. وَالْأَوَّلُ أَصَحُّ أَنَّهُ يَهُوذَا، نَهَاهُمْ عَنْ قَتْلِهِ، وَقَالَ: الْقَتْلُ كَبِيرَةٌ عَظِيمَةٌ. ﴿وَأَلْقُوهُ فِي غَيَابَةِ الْجُبِّ﴾ قَرَأَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ، وَنَافِعٌ: "غَيَابَاتِ الْجُبِّ" عَلَى الْجَمْعِ فِي الْحَرْفَيْنِ، وَقَرَأَ الْبَاقُونَ "غَيَابَةِ الْجُبِّ" عَلَى الْوَاحِدِ، أَيْ: فِي أَسْفَلِ الْجُبِّ وَظُلْمَتِهِ. وَالْغَيَابَةُ: كُلُّ مَوْضِعٍ سَتَرَ عَنْكَ الشَّيْءَ وَغَيَّبَهُ. وَالْجُبُّ: الْبِئْرُ غَيْرُ الْمَطْوِيَّةِ لِأَنَّهُ جُبَّ، أَيْ: قُطِعَ وَلَمْ يُطْوَ. ﴿يَلْتَقِطْهُ﴾ يَأْخُذْهُ، وَالِالْتِقَاطُ: أَخْذُ الشَّيْءِ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُهُ (٤) ، ﴿بَعْضُ السَّيَّارَةِ﴾ أَيْ: بَعْضُ الْمُسَافِرِينَ، فَيَذْهَبُ بِهِ إِلَى نَاحِيَةٍ أُخْرَى، فَتَسْتَرِيحُوا مِنْهُ، ﴿إِنْ كُنْتُمْ فَاعِلِينَ﴾ أَيْ: إِنْ عَزَمْتُمْ عَلَى فِعْلِكُمْ، وَهُمْ كَانُوا يَوْمَئِذٍ بَالِغِينَ، وَلَمْ يَكُونُوا أَنْبِيَاءَ بَعْدُ. وَقِيلَ: لَمْ يَكُونُوا بَالِغِينَ، وَلَيْسَ بِصَحِيحٍ؛ بِدَلِيلِ أَنَّهُمْ قَالُوا: "وَتَكُونُوا مِنْ بَعْدِهِ قَوْمًا صَالِحِينَ" (٥) .

(١) في "أ": بعيد. (٢) في "ب": من. (٣) في "ب": مقاتل قاله. (٤) في "ب": يحس به. (٥) قال السدي ومقاتل بن سليمان: إنهم أرادوا صلاح الحال عند أبيهم، وهذا يشبه أن يكون قصدهم في تلك الحال، ولم يكونوا حينئذ أنبياء. وقال الجمهور: "صالحين" معناه بالتوبة، وهو الأظهر من اللفظ، وحالهم أيضا تعطيه، لأنهم مؤمنون بنوا على عظيمة وعلّلوا أنفسم بالتوبة. انظر: المحرر الوجيز لابن عطية: ٤ / ٤٤٣. ومال الحافظ ابن كثير إلى الرأي الأول، فقال في التفسير: (٢ / ٤٧٠-٤٧١) : "اعلم أنه لم يقم دليل على نبوة إخوة يوسف، وظاهر هذا السياق يدل على خلاف ذلك. ومن الناس من يزعم أنهم أُوحي إليهم بعد ذلك، وفي هذا نظر، ويحتاج مدعي ذلك إلى دليل. ولم يذكروا سوى قوله تعالى: (قولوا آمنا بالله وما أنزل إلينا وما أنزل إلى إبراهيم وإسماعيل وإسحاق ويعقوب والأسباط) وهذا فيه احتمال لأن بطون بني إسرائيل يقال لهم: الأسباط، كما يقال للعرب: قبائل، وللعجم: شعوب، يذكر تعالى أنه أوحى إلى الأنبياء من أسباط بني إسرائيل فذكرهم إجمالا لأنهم كثيرون، ولكن كل سبط من نسل رجل من إخوة يوسف، ولم يقم دليل على أعيان هؤلاء أنهم أوحي إليهم. والله أعلم".