Commentary on Surah Joseph, Son of Jacobโpeace and blessings be upon them both
It is Meccan.
โ1โ3โ โIn the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. Alif-Lฤm-Rฤ. These are the verses of the clear Book. We have sent it down as an Arabic Quran so that you may understand. We relate to you the best of accounts through what We have revealed to you in this Quran, although before it you were surely among those unaware.โ
Allah Most High informs us that the verses of the Quran are โthe verses of the clear Bookโโthat is, the Book whose wording and meanings are plain and manifest.
One aspect of its clarity and lucidity is that He sent it down in the Arabic tongue, the noblest and clearest of languages, [which makes plain all the beneficial truths that people need] (1). All this clarification and explanation is โso that you may understandโโthat is, so that you may understand its prescribed limits, its fundamental and subsidiary teachings, and its commands and prohibitions.
When you understand these things with certainty and your hearts become imbued with knowledge of them, this bears fruit in outward action and submission to the Quran. โSo that you may understandโ also means that your intellects may grow as noble and sublime meanings repeatedly pass through your minds, enabling you to advance from one state to others that are higher and more perfect.
โWe relate to you the best of accountsโ because they are truthful, smoothly expressed, and splendid in meaning. โThrough what We have revealed to you in this Quranโโthat is, through what is contained in this Quran, which We have revealed to you and by which We have favored you above all other prophets. This is purely an act of grace and kindness from Allah.
โAlthough before it you were surely among those unawareโโthat is, you did not know what the Book was or what faith was before Allah revealed to you. Rather, We made it a light by which We guide whomever We will of Our servants.