The story of Joseph (Yusuf)
📖 In short
The Qur'an calls the story of Joseph, peace be upon him, “the best of stories”. A boy whose brothers are jealous of him is thrown into a well; he stays patient, truthful and trustworthy until he is put in charge of Egypt's storehouses, and in the end he forgives his brothers.
نَحْنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ أَحْسَنَ الْقَصَصِ بِمَا أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ هَٰذَا الْقُرْآنَ🤩 Did you know?
- Surat Yusuf is the only surah that tells a prophet's whole story from beginning to end.
- Surat Yusuf has 111 verses.
- Joseph had 11 brothers, who were the eleven stars in his dream.
- Joseph planned to store wheat for seven years, and saved the people from hunger.
🔎 Find out more
🌟 The dream
When he was young, Joseph dreamed that eleven stars, the sun and the moon bowed down to him. His father Jacob told him: “Don't tell your dream to your brothers”, because he was afraid they would be jealous.
🔍 In the well
The brothers were jealous of Joseph because their father loved him so much, so they threw him into a well. A caravan passed by, its travelers pulled him out and took him to Egypt, where he lived in the house of a great minister.
💡 Patience and trustworthiness
Joseph was put in prison unjustly, but he was patient, calling those with him to God and explaining their dreams. Then he explained the king's dream about seven years of plenty and seven dry years, so the king put him in charge of the food stores.
🎯 Beautiful forgiveness
In the dry years his brothers came to Egypt asking for food; he recognized them but they didn't recognize him. In the end he told them: “No blame on you today”, and God brought him back together with his father.
📚 Key words
- The dream
- A dream someone has while asleep
- Envy
- Wishing someone would lose a blessing they have
- No blame
- No blame and no telling off
🌱 Put it into practice today
Think of someone who upset you and then said sorry, and tell them, as Joseph told his brothers: “No blame on you”, then play together.
🧩 Test yourself
1 Where did the brothers throw Joseph?
2 How many stars did Joseph see in his dream?
3 What did Joseph do with his brothers in the end?