Part of The Story of Yusuf and al-'Aziz's Wife (series completed)
· Lesson 7 of 25
The story of Joseph, peace be upon him, with the wife of Al-Aziz | Episode (7) | The wrongdoers will not succeed
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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The story of Yusuf, peace be upon him, with the wife of al-'Aziz.
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"Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed."
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The sudden trial that befell Yusuf, peace be upon him,
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through the schemes of the wife of al-'Aziz and her explicit invitation to immorality,
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required quick wit and sagacity to overcome and remain safe from.
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For hesitation in resisting her could have caused a young man to fall into her traps and be swept away with her.
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This is what the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, guided us toward,
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when Jarir ibn 'Abdullah asked him about a sudden, unintentional glance.
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He said, "Turn your gaze away."
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Narrated by Ahmad.
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He had looked suddenly at a woman,
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without intending to look.
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Rather, he was surprised by her presence before him.
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So the Prophet, peace be upon him, commanded him to turn his gaze away from her,
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because one is not held accountable for that initial glance.
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However, if he does not do so and continues to look,
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he has fallen into temptation and sin.
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This quick and wise action
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requires faith present in a vigilant heart,
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which compels the Muslim to act correctly in critical situations.
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This is what the Prophet of Allah, Yusuf, peace be upon him, did.
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For he was surprised by the scheme of the wife of al-'Aziz
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to cause him to fall into indecency.
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So he repelled her from himself quickly by saying,
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"I seek refuge in Allah."
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“And she, in whose house he was, asked of him an evil act. She bolted the doors and said: Come! He said: I seek refuge in Allah! Lo! he is my lord, who hath treated me honourably. Lo! wrong-doers never prosper.” (12:23)
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"Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed."
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He sought refuge in Allah from her temptation,
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and whoever seeks refuge in Allah,
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Allah will grant him refuge and protect him.
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Then he reminded her of a deterrent that prevents a rational person from this indecent act,
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which is the kindness al-'Aziz had shown him.
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Such kindness should not be met with evil and betrayal.
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He followed this by stating that this evil, in return for kindness,
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is an injustice to the benefactor.
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And "Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed."
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These points, with which he repelled the temptation of the wife of al-'Aziz,
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stemmed from the knowledge that Allah had taught him, as in His saying:
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“And And when he reached his prime We gave him wisdom and knowledge. Thus We reward the good.” (12:22)
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"Thus do We reward the doers of good."
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Therefore, whenever a Muslim learns the matters of his religion,
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he recognizes the entry points of his enemy, Iblis,
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and closes them.
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He recognizes the consequences of disobeying Allah’s command,
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so he fears Him and commits to obeying Allah.
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Yusuf’s mention of the deterrent against returning evil to one who has been kind
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serves as a reminder to the wife of al-'Aziz, who sought to seduce Yusuf,
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that she should likewise remember her husband’s kindness to her,
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and not repay it by betraying his honor
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and being unfaithful in his absence.
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Our noble Prophet
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taught us that a husband’s kindness to his wife is a great matter,
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which it is difficult for a woman to fully repay.
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And that her failure to thank him with her tongue leads her to Hell.
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So how much worse is it if she does evil with her actions,
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and does not guard his honor in his absence?
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There is no doubt that the sin in that is immense.
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The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said:
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"I was shown the Fire,
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and I have never seen a more terrifying sight than today."
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"And I saw that the majority of its inhabitants were women."
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They asked, "Why, O Messenger of Allah?"
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He said, "Because of their ingratitude."
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It was asked, "Do they disbelieve in Allah?"
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He said, "They are ungrateful to their husbands and ungrateful for kindness."
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"If you were to treat one of them kindly for an entire lifetime,
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then she saw something from you [that she disliked],
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she would say, 'I have never seen any good from you at all.'"
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Narrated by al-Bukhari.
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He also said, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him:
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"Beware of being ungrateful to those who show you kindness."
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"Beware of being ungrateful to those who show you kindness."
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One of them said,
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"O Messenger of Allah,
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I seek refuge in Allah, O Prophet of Allah, from being ungrateful for the blessings of Allah."
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He said, "Yes,
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one of you may remain unmarried for a long time,
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and her spinsterhood may drag on,
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then Allah grants her a husband,
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and provides her with children and the comfort of her eyes.
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Then she becomes angry,
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and swears by Allah that she has never seen an hour of good from him at all."
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"That is from being ungrateful for the blessings of Allah, the Almighty and Majestic."
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"And that is from being ungrateful to those who show kindness."
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Narrated by Ahmad.
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And he said, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him:
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"Allah does not look at a woman who is not grateful to her husband,
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while she cannot do without him."
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Narrated by al-Nasa'i in al-Kubra.
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If this is the punishment for one who denies her husband’s kindness with her tongue,
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then what is the punishment for one who denies kindness through heinous actions?
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Thus, Yusuf, peace be upon him,
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reminds her indirectly
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that it was her duty to be grateful for her husband’s kindness to her,
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especially as she was the wife of the 'Aziz of Egypt.
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And people like them
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would spare no effort in showering their wives with wealth and palaces.
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Then he reminded her of another matter,
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which is that the denier of kindness is a wrongdoer,
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and that "the wrongdoers will not succeed."
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He says this to her while remembering the kindness of al-'Aziz toward him,
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which is far less than the kindness of al-'Aziz toward his wife.
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This means that her injustice toward al-'Aziz is very great through this act.
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My dear sister,
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be absolutely certain that the wrongdoer will not be granted success,
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whether the injustice comes from you or from your husband.
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The wrongdoer will not succeed in his pursuit.
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So beware, and again beware, of falling into injustice.
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And be confident of this.
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Yusuf, peace be upon him, was very confident of this,
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to the point that he threatened the wife of al-'Aziz with this phrase:
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"Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed."
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This truth is what Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, establishes,
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and it is the established Sunnah that does not change or alter,
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which is:
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the lack of success for the wrongdoer.
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Even if it appears to us on the surface or at first that he is victorious and tyrannical,
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striking out with no one standing in his way.
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This is general for everyone who does evil to one who has been kind to him,
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and repays kindness with evil.
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He is a wrongdoer,
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and he will not succeed in this world or the Hereafter,
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and he will not attain his goal through this injustice.
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This truth, from another perspective,
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is good news for every oppressed person,
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that the wrongdoer will not succeed in this world or the Hereafter,
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that he will not achieve his goal from his injustice,
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and that sooner or later, his injustice will turn back upon him.
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The people who show the greatest kindness to others
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are the scholars, the callers to Islam, and the reformers,
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who have spent their time and lives teaching people,
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calling them, and advising them,
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and bringing them out of the darkness of ignorance into the light of Islam,
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and from the servitude of creation to the servitude of Allah,
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and from the hardships of life to the happiness of this world and the Hereafter.
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They have never spared any effort in that.
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So how have people repaid them?
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If we look at the history of the scholars in this Ummah,
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both contemporary and ancient,
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one finds that the scholars were met with kindness and reverence by the people of virtue,
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who knew their status and position in the Shari'ah.
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Just as they were met with ingratitude and verbal abuse,
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or with imprisonment, pursuit, and torture,
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by those to whom the description of injustice and tyranny on earth applies.
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Yet, Allah’s retribution against them is certain and beyond doubt.
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Abu al-Qasim ibn 'Asakir, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
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"Know, my brother—may Allah grant me and you success in attaining His pleasure,
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and make us among those who fear Him and revere Him as He ought to be revered—
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that the flesh of the scholars is poisonous,
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and Allah’s habit of exposing those who disparage them is well-known.
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And whoever lets his tongue loose against the scholars with slander,
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Allah will afflict him before his death with the death of the heart."
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“Make not the calling of the messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knoweth those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them.” (24:63)
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“Make not the calling of the messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knoweth those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them.” (24:63)
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And if this is the case for verbal abuse against them,
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then what is the state of those who imprisoned, killed, or tortured them?
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"Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed."
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The hadith has a continuation.
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We will continue in a future meeting, if Allah wills.
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The story of Yusuf with the wife of al-'Aziz.