Topic: Joseph’s Dream
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قَالَ تَزْرَعُونَ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ دَأَبًا فَمَا حَصَدتُّمْ فَذَرُوهُ فِى سُنۢبُلِهِۦٓ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِّمَّا تَأْكُلُونَ
Important Words:
دابا (working hard and continuously). See 3:12.
Commentary:
Joseph, while interpreting the dream, not only advised the people to lay up corn for the years of famine but also suggested to them the way in which they could safely do so, viz. by leaving the corn in the ear, for that was the safest way of preserving it. It is quite possible that Joseph should have deduced this method of preserving corn from the words of the dream itself, for after being shown seven fat and seven lean cows, the king was shown seven green and seven dry ears, and from this repetition Joseph might have deduced the remedy for the impending calamity.
1551
Important Words:
دابا (working hard and continuously). See 3:12.
Commentary:
Joseph, while interpreting the dream, not only advised the people to lay up corn for the years of famine but also suggested to them the way in which they could safely do so, viz. by leaving the corn in the ear, for that was the safest way of preserving it. It is quite possible that Joseph should have deduced this method of preserving corn from the words of the dream itself, for after being shown seven fat and seven lean cows, the king was shown seven green and seven dry ears, and from this repetition Joseph might have deduced the remedy for the impending calamity.
ثُمَّ يَأْتِى مِنۢ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ سَبْعٌ شِدَادٌ يَأْكُلْنَ مَا قَدَّمْتُمْ لَهُنَّ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِّمَّا تُحْصِنُونَ
Arabia, in the Holy Prophet’s time, was visited with a terrible famine which lasted for seven long years. It was so severe that people were forced to eat carrion (Bukhari).
Commentary:
Joseph explains that the seven years of famine would be so severe that all that the people had stored up during the first seven years of plenty would be eaten up except very little which they might have saved, for fear lest the famine should become prolonged or for the purpose of seed.
Here we have another point of resemblance between Joseph and the Holy Prophet. Just as in the time of Joseph, Egypt was visited with a severe seven-year famine, so in the Holy Prophet’s time Arabia had a terrible famine which lasted for seven long years. It was so severe that some people were forced to eat carrion. At last, the Holy Prophet was requested to pray to God for the removal of the famine. He prayed to God and the famine left the land after the people had been reduced to a most pitiable plight (Bukhari and Muslim). This is the twelfth point of resemblance between these two noble Prophets.
1552
Commentary:
Joseph explains that the seven years of famine would be so severe that all that the people had stored up during the first seven years of plenty would be eaten up except very little which they might have saved, for fear lest the famine should become prolonged or for the purpose of seed.
Here we have another point of resemblance between Joseph and the Holy Prophet. Just as in the time of Joseph, Egypt was visited with a severe seven-year famine, so in the Holy Prophet’s time Arabia had a terrible famine which lasted for seven long years. It was so severe that some people were forced to eat carrion. At last, the Holy Prophet was requested to pray to God for the removal of the famine. He prayed to God and the famine left the land after the people had been reduced to a most pitiable plight (Bukhari and Muslim). This is the twelfth point of resemblance between these two noble Prophets.
1384
Arabia, in the Holy Prophet’s time, was visited with a terrible famine which lasted for seven long years. It was so severe that people were forced to eat carrion (Bukhari).
ثُمَّ يَأْتِى مِنۢ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ عَامٌ فِيهِ يُغَاثُ ٱلنَّاسُ وَفِيهِ يَعْصِرُونَ
دوسرے مترجموں نے اس کے یہ معنے کیے ہیں کہ اُن پر بارش نازل ہوگی۔ مسیحی مصنفین یہ اعتراض کرتے ہیں کہ مصر کے اس علاقہ میں تو بارش ہوتی نہیں۔ یہ قرآن کی لاعلمی ہے۔ لیکن اول تو یہ غلط ہے کہ وہاں کبھی بھی بارش نہیں ہوتی۔ کیونکہ تھوڑی بارش وہاں ہو جاتی ہے۔ دوسرے یُغَاثُ کے معنے فریاد سنی جانے کے بھی ہوتے ہیں اور اس پر کوئی اعتراض پڑتا ہی نہیں۔ یہ لوگ دیکھتے نہیں کہ اللہ تعالیٰ کا ایک نام مُسْتَغَاث بھی ہے کیونکہ وہ لوگوں کی فریاد سنتا ہے۔
یہاں یَعْصِرُوْنَ ہے جس کے عام معنے انگور نچوڑنے کے ہوتے ہیں۔ لیکن لغت میں اس کے معنے عطیے دینے کے بھی لکھے ہیں‘ جو خوشی کے موقعہ پر دیئے جاتے ہیں۔ قحط کے بعد فراخی کے سالوں میں سارے ملک نے عید منانی ہی تھی اور ایک دوسرے کو تحفے دینے ہی تھے۔ اس لئے ہم نے یَعْصِرُوْن کے یہ معنے کیے ہیں کہ وہ ایک دوسرے کو تحفے دیں گے۔
In their ignorance of the meaning of the word Yughathu which besides meaning, 'They will be rained upon' also means, 'They will be relieved of their distress' or 'They will be aided and helped,' some Christian writers have objected that as it very seldom rains in Egypt and that the fertility of its soil depends upon the flooding of the Nile, the Quranic statement is against the elementary facts of geography. Obviously, the latter two meanings quite agree with the text of the Qur’an. But if the word be taken in the first-mentioned sense, even then there is no ground for any objection, for though the fertility of the soil of Egypt depends on the flooding of the Nile, the flooding of the Nile itself depends on rain on the mountains in which lies its source.
Ya‘sirun is derived from ‘Asira which means, (l) he pressed or squeezed the thing so as to force out its juice, etc.; (2) he aided or succoured or saved or preserved (him); (3) he gave something to someone or did some benefit to someone (Lane).
Important Words:
یغاث (shall be relieved) is derived from غاث (aorist یغیث) and غاث (aorist یغوث) and اغاث. They say غاث الله البلاد (aorist یغیث) i.e. God watered the country with rain; sent down rain on the land. غاثه (aorist یغوث) or اغاثه means, he aided or helped him; he removed from him trouble or affliction. اغاثنا المطر means, the rain gave us relief. (Lane & Aqrab).
یعصرون (give presents) is derived from عصر which means: (1) he pressed or squeezed the thing so as to force out its juice, etc.; (2) he took or collected the produce of the earth; (3) he aided or succoured or saved or preserved (him); (4) he gave something to someone or did some benefit to someone (Lane).
Commentary:
Thinking in their ignorance that the verb is used only in the sense "they shall be rained upon," some Christian critics of the Quran have objected that as it very seldom rains in Egypt and the fertility of its soil depends entirely on the flooding of the Nile, therefore the statement that "the people shall be rained upon" betrays the ignorance of the Revealer of the Quran of even the elementary facts of geography. But these critics, instead of exposing the ignorance of the Quran, have betrayed their own ignorance of the Arabic language. The verb as shown under Important Words is used in three different senses, i.e. (1) sending down rain; (2) helping and aiding; and (3) relieving and removing trouble. Of these the latter two quite agree with the text of the Quran. But even if the word be taken in the first-mentioned sense there is no ground for objection, for though it is true that the fertility of the soil in Egypt depends on the flooding of the Nile, the flooding of the Nile itself depends on the rain on the mountains where lies its source. So if Joseph is represented here as saying that after seven years of famine, rains would fall, he obviously meant to say that rains would fall in such parts of the land as would cause the swelling of the Nile, which would bring relief to the famine-stricken people of Egypt.
The objection that the Quran has used an ambiguous and equivocal word is also devoid of all substance. The ambiguity lies in the critics’ own minds. The Quran has every right to use any word in the sense in which it is used in the Arabic language. If the critics of the Quran are not conversant with the particular use of a certain word, they should blame their own ignorance and not the Quran. In fact, the beauty of the Quranic style lies in the fact that it has used a word which applies with equal appropriateness to the times both of Joseph and the Holy Prophet, whose respective peoples were visited with a severe seven-year famine. Of the three meanings of the word یغاث given under Important Words, the first applied to the time of the Holy Prophet and the latter two to that of Joseph. Thus instead of exposing any weakness in the diction of the Quran, the use of this word emphasizes its excellence.
1
دوسرے مترجموں نے اس کے یہ معنے کیے ہیں کہ اُن پر بارش نازل ہوگی۔ مسیحی مصنفین یہ اعتراض کرتے ہیں کہ مصر کے اس علاقہ میں تو بارش ہوتی نہیں۔ یہ قرآن کی لاعلمی ہے۔ لیکن اول تو یہ غلط ہے کہ وہاں کبھی بھی بارش نہیں ہوتی۔ کیونکہ تھوڑی بارش وہاں ہو جاتی ہے۔ دوسرے یُغَاثُ کے معنے فریاد سنی جانے کے بھی ہوتے ہیں اور اس پر کوئی اعتراض پڑتا ہی نہیں۔ یہ لوگ دیکھتے نہیں کہ اللہ تعالیٰ کا ایک نام مُسْتَغَاث بھی ہے کیونکہ وہ لوگوں کی فریاد سنتا ہے۔
2
یہاں یَعْصِرُوْنَ ہے جس کے عام معنے انگور نچوڑنے کے ہوتے ہیں۔ لیکن لغت میں اس کے معنے عطیے دینے کے بھی لکھے ہیں‘ جو خوشی کے موقعہ پر دیئے جاتے ہیں۔ قحط کے بعد فراخی کے سالوں میں سارے ملک نے عید منانی ہی تھی اور ایک دوسرے کو تحفے دینے ہی تھے۔ اس لئے ہم نے یَعْصِرُوْن کے یہ معنے کیے ہیں کہ وہ ایک دوسرے کو تحفے دیں گے۔
1553
Important Words:
یغاث (shall be relieved) is derived from غاث (aorist یغیث) and غاث (aorist یغوث) and اغاث. They say غاث الله البلاد (aorist یغیث) i.e. God watered the country with rain; sent down rain on the land. غاثه (aorist یغوث) or اغاثه means, he aided or helped him; he removed from him trouble or affliction. اغاثنا المطر means, the rain gave us relief. (Lane & Aqrab).
یعصرون (give presents) is derived from عصر which means: (1) he pressed or squeezed the thing so as to force out its juice, etc.; (2) he took or collected the produce of the earth; (3) he aided or succoured or saved or preserved (him); (4) he gave something to someone or did some benefit to someone (Lane).
Commentary:
Thinking in their ignorance that the verb is used only in the sense "they shall be rained upon," some Christian critics of the Quran have objected that as it very seldom rains in Egypt and the fertility of its soil depends entirely on the flooding of the Nile, therefore the statement that "the people shall be rained upon" betrays the ignorance of the Revealer of the Quran of even the elementary facts of geography. But these critics, instead of exposing the ignorance of the Quran, have betrayed their own ignorance of the Arabic language. The verb as shown under Important Words is used in three different senses, i.e. (1) sending down rain; (2) helping and aiding; and (3) relieving and removing trouble. Of these the latter two quite agree with the text of the Quran. But even if the word be taken in the first-mentioned sense there is no ground for objection, for though it is true that the fertility of the soil in Egypt depends on the flooding of the Nile, the flooding of the Nile itself depends on the rain on the mountains where lies its source. So if Joseph is represented here as saying that after seven years of famine, rains would fall, he obviously meant to say that rains would fall in such parts of the land as would cause the swelling of the Nile, which would bring relief to the famine-stricken people of Egypt.
The objection that the Quran has used an ambiguous and equivocal word is also devoid of all substance. The ambiguity lies in the critics’ own minds. The Quran has every right to use any word in the sense in which it is used in the Arabic language. If the critics of the Quran are not conversant with the particular use of a certain word, they should blame their own ignorance and not the Quran. In fact, the beauty of the Quranic style lies in the fact that it has used a word which applies with equal appropriateness to the times both of Joseph and the Holy Prophet, whose respective peoples were visited with a severe seven-year famine. Of the three meanings of the word یغاث given under Important Words, the first applied to the time of the Holy Prophet and the latter two to that of Joseph. Thus instead of exposing any weakness in the diction of the Quran, the use of this word emphasizes its excellence.
1385
In their ignorance of the meaning of the word Yughathu which besides meaning, 'They will be rained upon' also means, 'They will be relieved of their distress' or 'They will be aided and helped,' some Christian writers have objected that as it very seldom rains in Egypt and that the fertility of its soil depends upon the flooding of the Nile, the Quranic statement is against the elementary facts of geography. Obviously, the latter two meanings quite agree with the text of the Qur’an. But if the word be taken in the first-mentioned sense, even then there is no ground for any objection, for though the fertility of the soil of Egypt depends on the flooding of the Nile, the flooding of the Nile itself depends on rain on the mountains in which lies its source.
1386
Ya‘sirun is derived from ‘Asira which means, (l) he pressed or squeezed the thing so as to force out its juice, etc.; (2) he aided or succoured or saved or preserved (him); (3) he gave something to someone or did some benefit to someone (Lane).