وَجَآءُوٓ أَبَاهُمْ عِشَآءً يَبْكُونَ 16
Translations
And they came to their father at night, weeping.
Transliteration
Wa jaa'u abahum 'ishaa'an yabkun
Tafsir (Explanation)
The brothers came to their father in the evening, weeping and claiming that a wolf had devoured Yusuf while they were tending their flocks. According to classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this represents a pivotal moment of deception wherein the brothers fabricate a false story to conceal their jealous act of throwing Yusuf into the well. Their tears were part of their calculated deceit, demonstrating how they manipulated their father's emotions through feigned grief to make their lie more convincing.
Revelation Context
This ayah occurs within the narrative of Surah Yusuf (the only surah dedicated entirely to one prophet's story), which details Yusuf's trials and tests. The context shows the brothers returning home after committing their crime, marking the beginning of their father's long suffering and Yusuf's separation from his family—events that would test both the father's and son's patience and faith over many years.
Related Hadiths
While no specific hadith directly references this ayah, Surah Yusuf is called 'Ahsan al-Qisas' (the best of stories) in Surah 12:3. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) emphasized this surah's lessons on patience and trust in Allah during trials, as narrated in various hadith collections regarding the virtue of reciting this surah.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a sobering reminder that deception, no matter how elaborate or emotionally manipulative, ultimately cannot escape divine knowledge and justice. For modern readers, it warns against allowing jealousy to corrupt our hearts and teaches that honesty and integrity are essential values, even when facing difficult circumstances.
Related Ayahs
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ إِلَّا رِجَالًا نُّوحِىٓ إِلَيْهِم مِّنْ أَهْلِ ٱلْقُرَىٰٓ ۗ أَفَلَمْ يَسِيرُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَيَنظُرُوا۟ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَـٰقِبَةُ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ ۗ وَلَدَارُ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ خَيْرٌ لِّلَّذِينَ ٱتَّقَوْا۟ ۗ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ
And We sent not before you [as messengers] except men to whom We revealed from among the people of cities. So have they not traveled through the earth and observed how was the end of those before them? And the home of the Hereafter is best for those who fear Allāh; then will you not reason?
وَمَا تَسْـَٔلُهُمْ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ أَجْرٍ ۚ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِّلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
And you do not ask of them for it any payment. It is not except a reminder to the worlds.
قَالُوا۟ فَمَا جَزَٰٓؤُهُۥٓ إِن كُنتُمْ كَـٰذِبِينَ
They [the accusers] said, "Then what would be its recompense if you should be liars?"
وَجَآءُو عَلَىٰ قَمِيصِهِۦ بِدَمٍ كَذِبٍ ۚ قَالَ بَلْ سَوَّلَتْ لَكُمْ أَنفُسُكُمْ أَمْرًا ۖ فَصَبْرٌ جَمِيلٌ ۖ وَٱللَّهُ ٱلْمُسْتَعَانُ عَلَىٰ مَا تَصِفُونَ
And they brought upon his shirt false blood. [Jacob] said, "Rather, your souls have enticed you to something, so patience is most fitting. And Allāh is the one sought for help against that which you describe."