The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 209
PT. 12 YUSUF CH. 12 إِذْ قَالَ يُوْسُفُ لِأَبِيهِ يَا بَتِ إِنِّي رَأَيْتُ Remember the time when. 5 أَحَدَ عَشَرَ كَوْكَبًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ father, I saw in a dream eleven رَأَيْتُهُمْ لِي سَجِدِينَ Joseph said to his father, ‘O my stars and the sun and the moon, I saw them making obeisance to me. '1509 "12:101. was thus to serve as evidence of his truth. Another reason is that, as the Holy Prophet was the like of Joseph it was necessary that he himself should know the latter's life history. The Holy Prophet has been referred to here as of those not possessed of requisite knowledge. His lack of requisite knowledge about Joseph was intended to hint that, firstly, the whole truth about Joseph was to be found neither in the Bible nor in the Talmud; and, secondly, that the Holy Prophet was not aware that events similar to those which happened to Joseph were to occur in his own life. The account of the Quran differs from that of the Bible in many respects but, as will appear from the following pages, wherever the two accounts differ, it is the Bible that has erred. 1509. Important Words: (Joseph) was the eleventh son of the Prophet Jacob, otherwise known as Israel, and the elder of the two sons of Rachel. The meaning given to the name is "shall add" i. e. "The Lord shall add to me another son" (Gen. 30:24). A somewhat detailed account of his life is given in the present Surah. It should, however, be added that Joseph possesses the unique characteristic among all Prophets of God that not only was he himself a Prophet of God but his father, Jacob, his grandfather, Isaac, and his great-grandfather, Abraham, were all God's chosen Messengers. The Holy Prophet referred to this characteristic of Joseph in one of his well-known sayings when, on being asked by some of his Companions as to who was the noblest of men, he is reported to have replied, "Truly the noblest of men is the Prophet Joseph who was the son, grandson and great- grandson of a Prophet of God" (Bukhārī, Kitāb Bad'ul-Khalq). It may also be noted here that, though Joseph was buried in Egypt, his remains were later removed by Moses to Palestine when the Israelites were commanded by God to leave Egypt (Enc. Bib. ). 1417 كوكب stars is derived from) كوكبا (kaukaba) which means, it (iron) glistened; was lustrous, or bright. 55 (kaukabun) of which the plural is 51,5 means, a star; an asterism; a constellation; the source or spring of a well; the lustre or brightness of iron, etc. ; a sword; a whiteness in the eye; a tract which differs in colour from the land in which it lies; a youth nearly of the age of puberty; also a youth who has attained the period of