The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 256
CH. 12 YUSUF PT. 13 was suppressing his sorrow. 1584 86. They said, 'By Allah, thou wilt not cease talking of Joseph until thou art wasted away or thou art of those who perish. '1585 that their past sufferings would serve as a prelude to future prosperity. 1584. Important Words: (became white) is derived from which again is derived from ụ. They say a̸s i. e. he surpassed him in whiteness. means, he whitened a thing or made it white. means, he filled the skin with water or milk; or, contrarily, he emptied it. means, it was or became white. The expression فَهُوَ كَظِيمُ تَكُونَ حَرَضًا أَوْ تَكُونَ مِنَ الْهَلِكِينَ eyes never means their becoming blind. (2) The Quran represents Jacob as displaying extraordinary patience, hinted at in his words when told that Joseph had been devoured by a wolf and also when Benjamin and Judah failed to return to him (vv. 19 & 84). Now, it is a strange sort of patience if he became blind on account of weeping for his sons. (3) It does not at all become a Prophet of God that he should go on bewailing and weeping for any worldly thing, however great, till he becomes blind. (4) The present verse itself tells us that Jacob was i. e. he had succeeded in repressing his grief. This shows that he neither wept excessively nor became blind on account of it. (5) The expression In view of the meaning of the words is used in Arabic only to express a given under Important Words the verse cannot mean that Jacob became blind on account of excessive is used regarding a عيناه من الحزن person who is stricken with grief and means, the world became dark for him or his eyes became white with grief. (Lane & Biḥār). Commentary: ابيضت عيناه من weeping. The expression only means that his eyes became white because of grief; or (according to one meaning of the word) his eyes became filled with tears on account of grief. The interpretation of these words that Jacob's eyes became blind is evidently wrong for the following reasons: (1) Arabic idiom does not bear it out, for the becoming white of person's great grief and sorrow, and is blind through weeping and wailing. never used about a person's becoming 1585. Important Words: 1464 (art wasted away) is the noun- infinitive from which means, he became in a corrupt or disordered state, being sick and diseased; or he became heavily oppressed by disease; or he became emaciated by grief or by excessive love; or he became constantly affected by grief so as to