The Lives of Prophets Part 1;
اَلْحَمْدُ لله ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلى سَيِّدِنَا محمد وَعَلَى اَلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلِّمْ
In sha Allah Ho Tala(إن شاء الله تعالى), we'll talk tonight about Khateeb Ul Ambiyaa(خطيب الأنبِيَاء)
the Speaker of the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء), the orator of the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء).
This Nabi(نَبِي) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى has given him eloquence in speech.
He had beautiful words of wisdom and advice, Naseeha(نَصيحة) that he delivered to his people.
His story is short but it is full of meanings for all of us
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى did not mention to us the story of any Nabi(نَبِي), except because there are lessons for us to learn.
This Nabi(نَبِي) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى is Syedina(سيدنا) Shoaib عليه السّلام.
Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام, we do not know exactly where he lies in terms of the chronological order.
He is from the descendants of Ibrahim عليه السّلام.
There are some scholars who say
that Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) is the one, whom Qur'an talks about that Musa(موسى) married his daughter
but Qur'an does not specifically stated, it was Shoaib(شُعَيب).
It just says that Musa(موسى) went to Madyan(مدين) and he got married, to his wife in Madyan(مدين).
So some of the Ulama(علماء) concluded that it might be Shoaib(شُعَيب) because Shoaib(شُعَيب) was the Nabi(نَبِي) of Madyan(مدين).
So that's why I'll talk about Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) tonight after Saydina Ibrahim(سيِدنَااِبْراهِيْم) being from the descendants of Ibrahim(اِبْراهِيْم),
but we don't know where exactly it comes in terms of the time order, but that's not a problem.
It wouldn't do us any benefit to know the timeline of these events
and it won't do us any harm not to know when it happened because the essence of the lessons are there.
Whether it happened long time before Musa(موسى) or it happened in the time Musa(موسى) it doesn't make a difference
and Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام made Da'wah(دعوة) to his people in Madyan(مدين).
Madyan(مدين) is the town, the area.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
وَإِلىٰ مَديَنَ أَخاهُم شُعَيبًا ۚ
And to the people of Madyan(مدين), their brother Shoaib(شُعَيب).
What does brother here mean?
It means he is part of them, he's from those people.
But in another Ayah(آية), Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
كَذَّبَ أَصْحَٰبُ لْـَٔيْكَةِ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ۝إِذ قالَ لَهُم شُعَيبٌ
The people of the Aikah(لْـَٔيْكَةِ) disbelieved in the messengers, when Shoaib(شُعَيب) was sent to them.
Over here in this Ayah(آية) it didn't say Brother,
even though in Surat-Ash'Shuara(سورة الشعراء) and this is from Surat-Ash'Shuara(سورة الشعراء)
when it talks about Aad(عاد) it says;
أخاهم هودَا
their brother Hud(هود),
when it talks about Thamud(ثمود) it says;
أخاهم صالح
there brother Saleh(صالح),
when it talks about Lut(لوط),
أخاهم لوط
brother Lut(لوط)
but it didn't say their brother Shoaib(شُعَيب).
Why?
Ibn Kathir(اِبْنِ كَثِيْر) says;
Because in that Ayah(آية) Allah was saying the people of Aikah(لْـَٔيْكَةِ).
Aikah(لْـَٔيْكَةِ) is a large tree, which they used to worship.
So Allah said: The people of Aikah(لْـَٔيْكَةِ)
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى did not want to attribute Brotherhood to the people of Aikah(لْـَٔيْكَةِ)
because Aikah(لْـَٔيْكَةِ) is a God that is taken besides Allah.
So Allah said: Shoaib(شُعَيب) without saying their brother,
but when Allahسُبحانه وتعالى said;
إلى مدين
when we sent to Madyan(مدين), Allahسُبحانه وتعالى said: Their brother, Shoaib(شُعَيب)
and this is a small note in terms of the difference in the Ayaat(آيات).
قالَ يا قَومِ اعبُدُوا اللَّهَ ما لَكُم مِن إِلٰهٍ غَيرُهُ ۖ قَد جاءَتكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِن رَبِّكُم ۖ
Worship Allah you have no other God but Him.
قَد جاءَتكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِن رَبِّكُم ۖ
You have a clear sign from Allah.
فَأَوفُوا الكَيلَ وَالميزانَ وَلا تَبخَسُوا النّاسَ أَشياءَهُم
So give full measure and full weight and wrong not men in their things.
Madyan(مَدْيَن) was on the trade route of Hijaz(حجاز) and Ash-Sham(ألشَّام).
It was a financial centre and the people of Madyan(مَدْيَن) were rich.
Their job was their work, or their trade was business.
But they were unfair in their business dealings.
And they used to cheat and they would not give full measure.
Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام said;
فَأَوفُوا الكَيلَ وَالميزانَ
Give full measure and full weight,
وَلا تُفسِدوا فِي الأَرضِ
And do not cause corruption in the land.
The people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) even though they were wealthy,
they were still cheating thinking that this is their source of Rizq(رزق)
and that is Tadfeef Al-Mizan(تدفيف الميزان)
so you would put a weight and tell the person this is one pound but it's not it's less than that.
And they would also cheat in transactions.
We find that every Nabi(نَبِي) came with the same message and that is;
لا اله إلَّا الله
There is no God but Allah
but then the details of the message were different according to the situation of the people.
Last night when we talked about the people of Lut(لوط), their disease and illness was their lust.
So we find that Lut(لوط) was dealing with that problem.
The people of Madyan(مَدْيَن) their problem was in their business transactions, in their Muamalat(معاملات),
they were cheating when it comes to money; they did not follow the law of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
And with the people of Aad(عاد) they had certain diseases
with the people of Thamood(ثمود) they had certain diseases
with Musa(موسى) and the story of Musa عليه السّلام we find that he was dealing with the dictatorship
and the oppression of Firaun(فرعون) on one side, and then he was dealing with the problems of his own Ummah(امة),
the Muslims of that time Banu Israel(بنواسرائيل) on the other hand.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى mentions to us these stories in Qur'an
because we are going to need every one of them because we are going to run into similar situations.
That's why Allahسُبحانه وتعالى is mentioning the stories in Qur'an.
So we are going to deal with problems similar to the problems that Lut(لوط) faced
and these are the lust and the sexual desire put in places where it shouldn't be.
We are going to run into situations where people are cheating in business.
We are going to run into situations of oppressive governments like Firaun(فرعون).
We are going to run into the problem of dealing with our own Muslim brothers, who are not keeping the rule of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى
just like Musa(موسى) was dealing with Bani Israel(بني أسرائيل)
and we are going to run into problems similar to every other story of the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) mentioned in Qur'an.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى is mentioning for us, these stories for us to learn the lessons of how to deal with these particular situations.
The issue of business is a very, very important part of religion.
That we are taking very, very, very lightly
because we find that there are some people who are the best in terms of their attendance to Salah(صلاة)
and their attachment to the Faraid(فرائض) of Islam
and their application to many of the Sunnan(سنن) of Rasool Allah ﷺ they are the best in that
and on the other side they're the best in cheating, and Tadfeef Al-Mizan(تدفيف الميزان) and wronging others in business.
How could these two sides exist in the same person?
In the Masjid(مسجد), we could be in that state of devotion to worship,
and just as we cross our feet outside of the door of the Masjid(مسجد), a completely different personality.
Inside the Masjid(مسجد) the Lord is Allah outside the Masjid(مسجد) the Lord is the dollar.
Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) was dealing with this problem and then we will find something interesting.
The response of his people was similar to the response of the people you will speak to today,
when they are not keeping the right business transaction, so we'll get into that.
They also used to tax anybody who's passing through.
As-Sidi(ألسِّدِّي), one of the Mufassireen(مفسرين), he says these are the first people to start taxation and tariffs, Customs.
Whenever somebody is passing through Madyan(مَدْيَن), you have to pay customs.
As-Sidi(ألسِّدِّي) says these are the first people to start that
before you would travel in and out and nobody would tax you and take from you customs.
Anybody who's passing going to Al-Hijaz(حجاز)
going from Ash-Sham(ألشَّام) to Hijaz(حجاز) has to pay a tax
if you're going from al Hijaz(حجاز) to Ash-Sham(ألشَّام), you have to pay them a tax.
In addition to that, they would rob sometimes some of these caravans that are going on the way
and they would also prevent the people from becoming Muslim and listening to the message of Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب),
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
وَيا قَومِ أَوفُوا المِكيالَ وَالميزانَ بِالقِسطِ ۖ وَلا تَبخَسُوا النّاسَ أَشياءَهُم وَلا تَعثَوا فِي الأَرضِ مُفسِدينَ۝
بَقِيَّتُ اللَّهِ خَيرٌ لَكُم إِن كُنتُم مُؤمِنينَ ۚ
And O my people give full measure and weigh in injustice and reduce not the things that are due to the people
and do not commit mischief in the land causing corruption;
that which is left by Allah for you is better for you.
Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) is telling them: Do not cheat and give full measure.
He is telling them give full measure
and then give the Zaka'at(زكوة) and give the Sadaqah(صدقة) and what will remain of that is better for you.
Because people without Eeman(ايمان) tend to think that
if I cheat I will be able to make more money.
That's the logic that we think with, when we don't have Eeman(ايمان).
Shoaib(شُعَيب) was telling them: No! That's wrong.
When you cheat and you make more money, you're not really making more money; you are losing.
If you give full measure you give the people what is due to them
and then you give out for your money the obligations that you have towards the poor.
What will remain to you even though it seems less, but it is better for you.
Then the bigger amount that you can make through cheating.
بَقِيَّتُ اللَّهِ خَيرٌ لَكُم
What will remain for you is better for you
and we find that this is approved through Ayaat(آيات) of Qur'an and through Ahadith(احاديث) of Rasool Allah ﷺ.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
يَمْحَقُ اللّهُ الْرِّبَا
Riba(رباء) interest is one of the things that increases your money.
If you are getting interest, you're taking interest; you're making more money,
but Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
يَمْحَقُ اللّهُ الْرِّبَا وَيُرْبِي الصَّدَقَاتِ
Subhaan Allah(سُبْحَان الله)
when you're dealing with interest, this is talking about the one who's taking interest.
When you take interest you're making more money; when you're giving Sadaqah(صدقة) you're losing money
but the Ayah(آية) says;
يَمْحَقُ اللّهُ الْرِّبَا وَيُرْبِي الصَّدَقَاتِ
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى destroys and decreases interest
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى increases and expands Sadaqah(صدقة); charity.
It's the exact opposite of what we think.
Why?
Because we're missing a very, very important element in wealth and that is the issue of Barakah(بركة).
We think always in terms of numbers, exact numbers $200 is more than 100.
We are not including in the calculation, the concept of Barakah(بركة).
Barakah(بركة) is a secret that Allahسُبحانه وتعالى puts in the money.
So, the $100 could not only be more than 200, it could be more than 1000
because it has that secret element in it; called Barakah(بركة), blessing.
So $1 that has Barakah(بركة) could go a long way
and $1 that does not have Barakah(بركة) could cause you destruction.
And we see that a lot;
you see that some people, they're living off a small amount of money,
but they're having a very blessed and pleasant life, they're happy and they are content from an inside.
And you see that somebody else has a lot, but they're living a life of misery.
Why?
Because Barakah(بركة) is missing.
So Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) is telling his people,
بَقِيَّتُ اللَّهِ خَيرٌ لَكُم إِن كُنتُم مُؤمِنينَ ۚ
That which is left by Allah for you is better for you; if you are believers, and I'm not set over you as a guardian.
I'm not the Guardian over you; you are responsible for your own dealings and transactions.
What did the people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) say?
And this is you will find something similar in this and what the people would say today when you discuss such an issue with them.
قالوا يا شُعَيبُ أَصَلاتُكَ تَأمُرُكَ أَن نَترُكَ ما يَعبُدُ آباؤُنا أَو أَن نَفعَلَ في أَموالِنا ما نَشاءُ ۖ
إِنَّكَ لَأَنتَ الحَليمُ الرَّشيدُ۝
They said;
O Shoaib(شُعَيب) does your prayer command that we leave off what our fathers used to worship,
or that we leave off doing, what we like to do with our money.
They're stating two things in this response.
First of all, they're saying, O Shoaib(شُعَيب);
Your Salah(صلاة), they're talking about the Salah(صلاة) of Shoaib(شُعَيب)
they are telling Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام what does prayer have to do with the religion of our fathers
and what does prayer have to do with business?
The explanation of this is;
Number one, what does Salah(صلاة) have to do with the religion of our fathers?
In fact, they to be specific, they said: Does your prayer command that we leave off what our fathers used to worship?
They’re telling Shoaib(شُعَيب), go and pray in your room or in your office and close your office.
What does your prayer have to do with our religion?
Why do you pray and then come and tell us don't worship the religion of our fathers?
What does your prayer have to do with this?
You have your religion, we have ours; your Salah(صلاة) should not involve in this.
They want to separate between the religion of Shoaib(شُعَيب) and their religion.
So they're telling him, to stay and do whatever you want in your religion, but don't bother us.
Don't come and tell us that we're wrong?
What does Salah(صلاة) have to do with the religion of our fathers?
In your Salah(صلاة), your Salah(صلاة) is telling you that we should give up our religion?
And we find this similar in the response given by the Non-believers.
They would say that, keep your religion but don't try to propagate it on us and don't tell us about your religion.
You keep your religion and we'll keep ours and we'll be friends and we'll get along.
Now on the religion of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى we have to give out the message of Risala(رسالة), the message of Islam.
The second thing that they stated, they said what does your Salah(صلاة) have to do with business?
What does your Salah(صلاة) have to do with business?
What do we call this today?
What do we call this concept today?
Secularism;
This is secularism;
separation between the religion and the aspects of life.
They said: Your Salah(صلاة), this is a ritual this is Ibadah(عبادة), what does it have to do with business?
This is a worship between you and your God
but this business is something that has to do with this Duniyah(دُنِيَّا) and this world.
We should separate between the two things
leave what is for God for God and what is for Caesar for Caesar.
So, the concept of secularism is not new that people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) knew it a long time ago,
and the Jahiliyyah(جَاهلِيَّة) of today, the ignorance of today is not any different than the ignorance, a few 1000 years ago.
It's is the same thing.
So, they said that your Salah(صلاة) shouldn't tell us what to do in our business.
This is up to us and that is the problem with mankind when they don't want to follow the law of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
The law of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى is not something that you keep in the Masjid(مسجد), or you keep as an individual,
the law of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى applies to every aspect of our life.
All our lives should fall within the Hukum(حكم) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
The religion of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى controls everything in our livelihood; in the day and in the night
whether it is politics, or it is economics or trade or banking, these other aspects of economics,
whether it is the civil law, whether it is the social relations, whether it is international law and the relations between nations,
the religion of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى controls all of this.
Now we're living at a time when there is an attempt to separate between the religion of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى and all of these aspects
and to turn it into an issue of individual application inside that has no presentation in the outside
that has no manifestation in our actual life.
So if you want to keep your religion between you and yourself, that's fine
but if you want to apply the religion and it's gonna affect the people around you and affect your family and affect the society,
No; that's unacceptable
and that is secularism
and that is what Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) tried to fight.
Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام insisted on these points and kept on making Da'wah(دعوة) to them
because they didn't want to understand what he's saying and they didn't attempt to learn it.
They said;
قالوا يا شُعَيبُ ما نَفقَهُ كَثيرًا مِمّا تَقولُ وَإِنّا لَنَراكَ فينا ضَعيفًا ۖ
O Shoaib(شُعَيب)! We do not understand a lot of what you're saying, we don't understand.
This is not because Shoaib(شُعَيب) wasn't clear.
Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) was Khateeb Ul-Ambiyaa(خطيب الأنبِيَاء), he was the Speaker of the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء), the prophets.
He was very clear and very eloquent
and he would drive the information to them as clear as possible
but they didn't want to understand so they didn't understand.
They did not want to because they were shutting their ears.
They said; We don't understand what you're saying.
And then they said;
وَإِنّا لَنَراكَ فينا ضَعيفًا ۖ
And we see you as a weak man.
They only understand the language of force.
You're weak man.
وَإِنّا لَنَراكَ فينا ضَعيفًا ۖ
We see you as weak, Daef(ضعيف)
and the only reason, they're not getting rid of him, by killing him is;
وَإِنّا لَنَراكَ فينا ضَعيفًا ۖ وَلَولا رَهطُكَ لَرَجَمناكَ ۖ وَما أَنتَ عَلَينا بِعَزيزٍ۝
Were it not or for your family, we should certainly have stoned you and you are not powerful against us.
Shoaib عليه السّلام was from a noble strong family.
Why?
Because Rasool Allah ﷺ says;
After Saydina Lut(سيدنالوط), Allahسُبحانه وتعالى has sent every messenger in a strong family.
We talked about Lut(لوط) last night when he said: I wish that I could lean on a source of power
because Saydina Lut(سيدنالوط) didn't have any family members with him.
He was alone in Sadum(سدوم).
So, Rasool Allah ﷺ says;
أما بعث الله النبي بعد لوط إلَّا في منعتٍ مِن قومه
Any prophet that was sent after Lut(لوط) was sent in a strong family.
So Shoaib(شُعَيب) was sent in a strong family.
So, the people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) are saying;
If it wasn't for your family, we would kill you and stone you and get rid of you and you can't do anything.
We have no respect for you as an individual and if it's not for the sake of your family, we would kill you.
The message is clear, we don't respect you, you're worthless in our eyes.
It's only for the sake of your family that we're sparing your life.
Look at the response of Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام.
He said;
قالَ يا قَومِ أَرَهطي أَعَزُّ عَلَيكُم مِنَ اللَّهِ وَاتَّخَذتُموهُ وَراءَكُم ظِهرِيًّا ۖ
O my people, is my family have more weight to you than Allah?
You say that you don't want to kill me for my family?
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى you're not afraid of Him at all?
So you're keeping me alive not for the sake of Allah just because of my family.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى you're not including him in the equation at all.
He's telling them why should you respect me for my family, respect me for Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
Fear Allah.
وَاتَّخَذتُموهُ وَراءَكُم ظِهرِيًّا ۖ
And you have cast Allah away behind your backs.
They have put Allahسُبحانه وتعالى behind their backs,
they're completely ignoring the law of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى completely
and this is expected from people, who are wealthy and rich and strong.
Because Rasool Allah ﷺ says;
أو غنن متغيَّ
Wealth that will make you arrogant.
When people have money, they feel that they could get everything they want.
They could buy everything.
They could buy material goods,
they can buy happiness,
they can buy power,
they can buy fame,
they can buy political positions,
people think they can buy anything they want with their money.
A person could start thinking that with my money, I don't need anyone
because I can buy everything with my money,
I don't even need Allahسُبحانه وتعالى, sometimes that happens,
and the people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) were in that state.
They felt that they don't need anybody, they don't need anyone, they don't even need Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
so they were so arrogant.
They have put Allahسُبحانه وتعالى and the commandments of Allah behind their backs.
So, this is the message of Shoaib(شُعَيب).
I'll recite to you some of the sayings of Shoaib(شُعَيب) that were mentioned the Qur'an.
In these two Ayaat(آيات) Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) has six pieces of advice that he's giving everyone.
I'll read the Ayaat(آيات) he said;
قالَ يا قَومِ أَرَأَيتُم إِن كُنتُ عَلىٰ بَيِّنَةٍ مِن رَبّي وَرَزَقَني مِنهُ رِزقًا حَسَنًا ۚ
وَما أُريدُ أَن أُخالِفَكُم إِلىٰ ما أَنهاكُم عَنهُ ۚ
إِن أُريدُ إِلَّا الإِصلاحَ مَا استَطَعتُ ۚ
وَما تَوفيقي إِلّا بِاللَّهِ ۚ عَلَيهِ تَوَكَّلتُ وَإِلَيهِ أُنيبُ۝
وَيا قَومِ لا يَجرِمَنَّكُم شِقاقي أَن يُصيبَكُم مِثلُ ما أَصابَ قَومَ نوحٍ أَو قَومَ هودٍ أَو قَومَ صالِحٍ ۚ
وَما قَومُ لوطٍ مِنكُم بِبَعيدٍ۝
وَاستَغفِروا رَبَّكُم ثُمَّ توبوا إِلَيهِ ۚ
إِنَّ رَبّي رَحيمٌ وَدودٌ۝
Oh my people; Tell me, if I have a clear evidence from my Lord,
and He has given me good sustenance from himself.
I wish not in contradiction to you to do that which I forbid you.
I only desire reform so far as I am able to the best of my power
and my guidance cannot come except from Allah in Him I trust and unto him I repent
and O my people, let not my Shiqaaq(شقاق) cause you to suffer the fate similar to that the people of Nuh(نوح) or Hud(هود) or Saleh(صالح)
and the people of Lut(لوط) are not far from you
and ask forgiveness of your Lord and turn unto Him in repentance.
Verily, my Lord is Most Merciful and most loving.
In these three Ayaat(آيات), there are six pieces of advice.
Number one,
وَما أُريدُ أَن أُخالِفَكُم إِلىٰ ما أَنهاكُم عَنهُ ۚ
I wish not in contradiction to you to do that which I forbid you.
Shoaib(شُعَيب) is saying: I do not want to do something that is contradicting my words.
If I say something, I must do it
and that is a very important quality of the believer and the opposite is a quality of the hypocrites.
They say things and they don't act upon them.
And they say things and they do the opposite
and this is a very, very dangerous thing
because Rasool Allah ﷺ says in the authentic Hadith(حديث)
that in hellfire there would be a man who's running around his intestines and he is running around them.
So the people of hellfire will come to him and they would say you have harmed us
and then they would tell him, weren't you in Duniyah(دُنِيَّا) telling us to do good and you were preventing us from doing evil?
This man used to do,
أمر بالمعروف ونهي عن المنكر
He used to enjoin the people to the good and he would forbid them from doing evil.
Why was he punished?
He would tell them because I used to tell you to do the good and I won't do it
and I used to prevent you from doing evil and I would do it
and that's his punishment.
Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) is saying;
وَما أُريدُ أَن أُخالِفَكُم إِلىٰ ما أَنهاكُم عَنهُ ۚ
I do not want to tell you something and then I don't fulfill it and do it.
I'm applying the same standards on you that I apply on myself.
I'm doing the same thing that I'm telling you to do.
In fact, this story is mentioned that Imam Malik(إمام مالك) did it and in some other narration, it says that its Al-Hassan Al-Basri(ألحسن ألبصري).
They said that they came to him and they told him;
There are too many slaves can you please encourage the people to free them?
So whether it was Imam Malik(إمام مالك) or Hassan Al Basri(حسن ألبصري), he listened to that advice.
The first Jumu'ah(جُمعه) came, he didn't speak about freeing slaves.
The second Jumu'ah(جُمعه) came, he didn't speak about it.
The third Jumu'ah(جُمعه) came he didn't speak about it
and then a while later, a few weeks after, they were they told him about this.
He made a khut'bah(خطبة) and he told the people in that khut'bah(خطبة) simply in a very simple way;
Free the slaves.
They said: Immediately after the Khut'ba(خطبة) people were freeing all of the slaves they had
even though he said it, in a very simple manner
but the people took that advice and they act upon it and everybody was freeing the slaves.
They came to him and they told him first of all, why did it take you, too long to remind the people.
Because look at the result of it, why didn't you do this before?
Why didn't you tell the people to do this a long time ago.
Look at the response that the people showed.
He said: Because I did not want to tell the people to do something I'm not doing.
And since I didn't have any slaves myself,
I collected money until I had enough money to buy a slave
and then I bought a slave and I freed him and then I stood on the Mimbar(ممبر).
So when I spoke to the people, the people took my advice because it's coming from the heart and its sincere.
So, the people acted upon it.
So we need to enjoin others to do what we are doing ourselves.
The second advice,
إِن أُريدُ إِلَّا الإِصلاحَ مَا استَطَعتُ ۚ
I want to do good as much as I can and as much as possible.
A very important rule! I want to do as much good as I can.
This rule implies two things;
Number one, we should do the best of our capacity as much as we can, u can.
you should exhaust your energy and your effort to do good.
Don’t keep good for your spare time.
Don’t keep good to the month of Ramadan(رمضان).
Don’t keep good when it's easy to do it.
Do good always as much as you can.
There is no seasons for good and seasons for evil.
Sometimes we say I am going to fulfill these duties of Allah
and then I am going to fulfill these desires of mine, even if they are evil,
No.
We should do good all the time.
The second thing it implies is,
if you're not able to change the situation a 100 percent.
If you're only able to change it 5 percent then do so,
ما لا يدرك كل لا يترك جُلُّ
If you're not able to do it completely, then don’t leave it completely.
That's is a very important Fiqh(فقه) principle.
If you're not able to do it completely then don’t leave it completely.
If your are to do a portion of it then do it.
And this is very positive, this is a very positive way of working
because in this world there is no clear black and white, things interwind and intermingled together
and most of the things are gray there is no clear white and clear black.
Most of the things are mixed up good and bad, black and white together, right and wrong, everything is mixed.
Sometimes we cannot change the situation 100 percent so we say leave it alone.
If I am not able to change it, leave it alone.
For example I am giving Da'wah(دعوة) to somebody, a Non-Muslim
but then somebody sees very evil.
He says: No! No! No! There is no use in this man, Leave him alone! Just Leave him alone.
Well if you're not able to change him 100 percent at least try to change him 5% and at least make him a little bit closer to Islam,
Just a little bit closer, one step.
He doesn’t have to be Muslim for you to receive the reward.
By Just you giving that message and bringing him a step closer, you are receiving a reward.
So it doesn’t have to be either black or white or I am not doing to do it.
No! Do as much as you can.
And especially now with the state of the Ummah(امة) there is a problem in everything that we are doing.
So there are good and bad in everything around us or most of the things around us.
We cannot change things radically 100% in one day, it's just impossible.
It won't happen.
So we need to have a gradual change that will take a while but it’s a step by step process.
Sometimes we are in a hurry we want a revolution that will change everything upside down
suddenly tomorrow in the morning 8:00 O’clock in the morning, we'll have Khilafah(خِلَافَه)
it doesn’t happen that way.
It took Rasool Allah ﷺ thirteen years I Guarantee it will take us longer.
But the issue is we need to build, we need to build and it’s a step by step process and it’s a brick by brick.
It's not a radical sudden change it is a long, long path.
The path of Islam is long and it needs a lot of patience, patience, patience.
So we need to always deal with that mentality of being positive.
If we can't change it all, change it a little bit but always carry with you, good and be a key of good.
Because Rasool Allah ﷺ says;
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى has some of his servants they are keys for good.
That means that these people where ever they go, when they leave behind them good.
There is blessings following them where ever they go.
And there are some peoples, who are keys for evil,
مفاتح ألشر
These people wherever they go they cause problems and they leave evil
that’s how their personality is, they just have a crooked personality that is going to cause problems wherever they go.
And there are some people who would always leave good behind them
because they are always doing good.
Wherever they go they are going to make a change.
We need to deal with that perception that
this process of change is a step by step thing that will take a while and it needs a lot of patience.
إِن أُريدُ إِلَّا الإِصلاحَ مَا استَطَعتُ ۚ
This is a wisdom that we learn from Syedina(سَيِّدِنَا) Shoaib عليه السلام.
Number 3;
وَما تَوفيقي إِلّا بِاللَّهِ ۚ
My success and my guidance depends on Allah.
Whenever we change something to good,
whenever we do good, it is coming from Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
The Toufeeq(توفيق) comes from Allah.
The concept of Toufeeq(توفيق) is a little bit similar to Barakah(بركة).
It’s a little bit similar.
I'll give you an example,
you have two students they have exams in the month of Ramadan(رمضان).
One of them says; I have to study day and night for this exam.
So, I am going to leave Taraweeh(تراويح), I am going to leave the Masjid(مسجد), I just can't do it.
I mean this study of mine is Ibadah(عبادة) and I have to just forget about everything else, I don’t have time for Zikr(زكر) of Allah.
So, this person goes and studies day and night.
And these two students are engineering students for example.
The other student he wants to study he wants to study very hard
but because he has so much love of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى in his heart
he wants to go the Masjid(مسجد),
he wants do attend the Salah(صلاة),
he wants to go to pray the Taraweh(تراويح),
he wants to be with the Muslims,
He wants to make Zikr(زكر).
So his heart is leading him to that direction so he is going to that direction.
He is studying much, much less than the other student.
His study, he is squeezing in a few hours in the day
but the rest of his time is going for Ibadah(عبادة) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
Because it’s the blessed month of Ramadan(رمضان).
Both of them are studying a certain problem in Calculus or materials or physics
or hydrology or anything, engineering, electronics, anything.
A subject that has problems and they are both studying this problem in the same time.
So this student who is keeping the orders of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى and Allah wants to give him Toufeeq(توفيق),
he is solving that problem when he goes to the problem which takes him half an hour to solve.
Then he is done with the problem and he goes to the next one.
The other student starts solving that problem and he gets stuck somewhere in the problem,
sometimes in the middle of a problem there is something that you don’t turn your attention to, and you get stuck in that problem
and you spend hours and hours and hours and you're not able to get out of that loop.
So, that student got stuck in the problem and he is going around in circles for hours and hours and hours
and the other one finished the problem and he is praying Tarawih(تراويح) in the Masjid(مسجد)
and he is making Zikr(زكر) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى and Itikaaf(إعتكاف) that night.
Why?
One of them had Toufeeq(توفيق) and the other one didn’t.
One of them has Toufeeq(توفيق) this concept of Toufeeq(توفيق) and the other one doesn’t.
Toufeeq(توفيق) is from Allah it's not on how much you studied or how much you work.
These are Asbaab(أسباب) it's true that in general the more you work the more you get.
That’s a general rule and it is a Sunnah(سنة) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى
but there is also something else there is another rule and that is the rule of Toufeeq(توفيق),
we need to understand that Allah has laws Allah has established Laws in this world.
The harder you work, the more fruits you would get
and there is also another Law is that if you have the Toufeeq(توفيق) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى
Allah will make things easy on you.
And these laws work together but we have to understand that both laws exist.
So Shoaib(شُعَيب) is saying;
وَما تَوفيقي إِلّا بِاللَّهِ ۚ
My Toufeeq(توفيق) is coming from Allah.
Five;
عليه توكلت
I put my trust in Allah,
always whenever we do something, we have to put our trust in Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
What does Tawakul(توكل) mean?
Because it is a concept, that is taken in extremes.
Somebody who takes the concept of Tawakul(توكل) to the extreme by thinking that
putting my trust in Allah means that I will worship Allahسُبحانه وتعالى and forget about Rizq(رزق)
and forget about tying my camel and forget about preparing for war,
like for example, one brother had the wrong concept of Tawakkul(توكل)
and we were talking about the Battle of Badr(بدر);
So, he told me, he said the Muslims 313 soldiers in the Battle of Badr(بدر).
He said they went to fight the non believers and they didn't have any weapons with them but two of them had sticks.
I told him they went to fight with sticks. He said: Yes.
See that's the wrong understanding of Tawakul(توكل)
you think that the Sahabah(صحابه) would go and fight the battle without with bare hands without no weapons.
How are they going to win?
They would slap people around and other army has swords and arrows and everything
and they're going fighting with their hands.
So that's wrong understanding of Tawakul(توكل)
and these are the ones Umar Ibn Al-Khattab(عمرابن الخطاب) hit with his stick when he came in the Masjid(مسجد).
He told them what are you doing?
This was midday in the official business hours.
They’re inside the Masjid(مسجد) in Madina.
Umar Ibn Al-Khattab(عمرابن الخطاب) came and said what are you doing in the Masjid(مسجد)?
They said;
نحن متوكلون
We are the ones who have Tawakul(توكل).
He hit them with the stick and said;
You understand and know that the sky does not rain gold and silver.
Who's gonna feed you?
You're gonna stay here in the Masjid(مسجد) and ask for Sadaqah(صدقة) when you're strong and able to go out and work.
So, this is not the right understanding of Tawakul(توكل).
The other extreme is somebody who is suffering from the limited vision of this world
and is surrounded from every side with the material world
and can only believe what he sees with his eyes and he has no understanding of the unseen, Al-Ghaib(ألغيب).
He follows the laws of nature in this world
and is completely keeping out the issue of Tawakul(توكل) and Ghaib(غيب).
He believes that if he has one more child, he's gonna go broke.
Why?
Because who's gonna feed that child?
That is somebody who doesn't understand that there's an unseen, there's Allahسُبحانه وتعالى, Who is controlling all events
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى has already written down the Rizq(رزق) of everyone 50,000 years before the heavens and the earth were created.
You are not the one who's providing Rizq(رزق) for your children, it's Allahسُبحانه وتعالى
somebody who is missing Salat-Ul-Jumuah(صلاةالجمعه), you tell him why?
I have to work.
We have to work that's true but Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
إِذا نودِيَ لِلصَّلاةِ مِن يَومِ الجُمُعَةِ فَاسعَوا إِلىٰ ذِكرِ اللَّهِ
If you hear the call of prayer in the day of Jumu'ah(جُمعه) go to and fulfill the order of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى .
So this person would disobey Allahسُبحانه وتعالى to follow his ration of this materialistic world.
So we have to have Tawakul(توكل),
Tawakul(توكل) simply put is these two Ahadith(احاديث)
one Hadith(حديث) is;
عقلها وتوكل
A companion came to Rasool Allah ﷺ and asked him about his camel.
He said: When I come in, should I leave my camel untied and go in and pray.
Is that Tawakul(توكل)?
Rasool Allah ﷺ said: No.
Tie your camel first and then have Tawakul(توكل) on Allah.
This Hadith(حديث) is two words
but look at the deep meaning that it gives of Tawakul(توكل).
Tie your camel and then Tawakul Al Allah(توكل على الله).
And then put your trust in Allah.
In other words, you fulfill the means possible, in this world, you do your best,
you tie the camel
because that is something in your control.
You can control tying the camel,
but then you leave the other things that are not under your control
you leave them to Allahسُبحانه وتعالى and you put your trust in Allah.
You do not control the other factors.
You do not control the weather.
You do not control; if somebody will come and steal the camel you don't have control those things.
But you don't live in terror and paranoia because of those things.
No.
You are confident because you did your part but you leave the rest on Allah.
The other Hadith(حديث);
أَنَّكُمْ تَوَكَّلْتُمْ عَلَى اللَّهِ حَقَّ تَوَكُّلِهِ لَرَزَقَكُمْ كَمَا يَرْزُقُ الطَّيْرَ، تَغْدُوا خِمَاصاً وَتَرُوْحُ بِطَاناً
If you have the right Tawakul(توكل) on Allah,
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى would provide for you like he's providing for the birds.
They leave in the morning hungry, they come back at night full.
If you have the right Tawakul Al Allah(توكل على الله), he is gonna provide for you.
The bird leaves in the morning hungry, it doesn't have a refrigerator.
It doesn't have a storage, it does not have a bank account.
We have bank accounts that have enough money to feed us for the rest of our lives and the lives of our children and our grandchildren
and we are still afraid and we still have fear in our hearts
and we're still not fulfilling the commandments of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى
because we're afraid that we're going to starve to death because of hunger,
even though we have enough money to feed ourselves and our descendants for generations.
I mean, how much food do you need to survive?
Seven dates a day multiply seven by 365 days a year.
You need a jar of oil, olive oil and you need 365 loaves of bread
and you need to have a storage a few barrels of water and that's it.
You can live and survive and that's gonna cost $100, $200.
We have 1000s and 1000s in our account.
So Rasool Allah ﷺ says: If you have the Tawakul(توكل) on Allah; you would be fed and provided by Allah.
Like the birds when they leave in the morning and they come at night full.
Who's providing for them? Allah.
But notice there's something else in the Hadith(حديث).
The people who take the understanding of Tawakul(توكل) to the extreme, they missed this point.
This other thing that would balance the understanding of Tawakul(توكل) is that
the birds did not stay in their nest.
They went out in the morning and they came out back at night.
They were working all day.
The birds, they did not stay in their nests from morning till night.
Allah will not feed them that way.
They had to leave early in the morning and they came back at sunset.
So, they did a lot of work but then Allahسُبحانه وتعالى did provide for them.
And this is the understanding and this is the concept of Tawakul(توكل).
وَيا قَومِ لا يَجرِمَنَّكُم شِقاقي أَن يُصيبَكُم مِثلُ ما أَصابَ قَومَ نوحٍ أَو قَومَ هودٍ أَو قَومَ صالِحٍ ۚ وَما قَومُ لوطٍ مِنكُم بِبَعيدٍ۝
And O my people let not my Shiqaaq(شقاق) cause you to suffer the fate similar to that of the people of Nuh(نوح) or Hud(هود) or Saleh(صالح)
and the people of Lut(لوط) are not far off from you.
The people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) were despising Shoaib(شُعَيب), they hate Shoaib عليه السّلام.
They disliked him.
Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب) was telling them;
Do not cause this personal problem that you have with me, prevent you from the truth and your salvation.
Just because you dislike me, just because you have developed a sour relationship with me
doesn't mean that you should prevent yourself from this good,
this good belongs to Allah it’s not mine.
This is what caused the Yahood(يهود) in Madina to disbelieve in Rasool Allah ﷺ
because Rasool Allah ﷺ was not a Jew.
They threw themselves in hellfire because Rasool Allah ﷺ was not one of them.
Jealousy and hatred prevented them from the truth even though they knew that he is the messenger of Allah.
Shoaib(شُعَيب) was telling them: Don't make this thing between us, prevent you from being Muslim
and don't let this between us, cause the same fate of Hud(هود) and Saleh(صالح) and other nations
don't let the fate that happened to them happen to you.
Just because you don't get along with me.
And then he told them;
وَما قَومُ لوطٍ مِنكُم بِبَعيدٍ۝
And the people of Lut(لوط) are not far away from you.
The Muffasireen(مفسرين) say, this could either mean, these two meanings.
وَما قَومُ لوطٍ مِنكُم بِبَعيدٍ۝
And the people of Lut(لوط) are not far away from you,
either they're not far away from you in terms of distance
and that's true because the people of Madyan(مَدْيَن) were close from the people of Lut(لوط) in terms of proximity; distance.
The second meaning is that we're not far away in terms of time.
So they're were not far apart in terms of time.
Either one of these meaning could be right or both of them.
So they knew the fate of the people of Lut(لوط) they knew what happened to Lut(لوط)
nevertheless, they did not believe and then he said;
وَاستَغفِروا رَبَّكُم ثُمَّ توبوا إِلَيهِ ۚ إِنَّ رَبّي رَحيمٌ وَدودٌ۝
Seek forgiveness from Allah and this is the advice that every Nabi(نَبِي) has given to his followers.
Ask Allah for forgiveness.
So we all say;
نستغفرالله العظيم
O Allahسُبحانه وتعالى forgive us all for our sins.
They threatened Shoaib عليه السّلام, they said;
وَقالَ المَلَأُ الَّذينَ كَفَروا مِن قَومِهِ لَئِنِ اتَّبَعتُم شُعَيبًا إِنَّكُم إِذًا لَخاسِرونَ۝
The chiefs; see the chiefs, always the trouble comes from the leadership.
The Chiefs of those, who disbelieved among his people said to their people;
If you follow Shoaib(شُعَيب), be sure then you will be of the losers.
They started telling the people don't follow Shoaib(شُعَيب), otherwise you would lose.
The punishment of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى came on them.
فَأَخَذَتهُمُ الرَّجفَةُ فَأَصبَحوا في دارِهِم جاثِمينَ۝
So the earthquake seized them and they lay dead prostrate in their homes.
The Mufassireen(مفسرين) say, the punishment of the people of Shoaib(شُعَيب) happened this way.
Clouds came over their heads and then the wind stopped.
So the air seized to move it was still
that was a punishment,
because without air circulation humidity builds up the air is stuffy and hot.
They were living under that air for days.
The earth is still it's not moving at all, no breeze.
This is a condition that we could never go through because it never happens always air is moving.
But imagine air is still it's not moving at all and humidity is building up and clouds over their heads.
So it's filled with humidity and that was a preparation for the punishment of the earthquake that came and shook them and destroyed them all.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
الَّذينَ كَذَّبوا شُعَيبًا كَأَن لَم يَغنَوا فيهَا ۚ
Those who belied Shoaib(شُعَيب), became as if they had never lived here before.
After that earthquake, you come and see the town of Madyan(مَدْيَن), it looks like a ghost town as if nobody was living there before.
This financial district so as to say, or financial centre became nothing.
الَّذينَ كَذَّبوا شُعَيبًا كانوا هُمُ الخاسِرينَ۝
Allah Akbar(ألله أكبر).
Those who belied Shoaib(شُعَيب) they were the losers.
The leaders were saying; If you follow Shoaib(شُعَيب) you would be of those, who are losers.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
Those, who disbelieved in Shoaib(شُعَيب) they were the losers.
And he said;
فَتَوَلّىٰ عَنهُم وَقالَ يا قَومِ لَقَد أَبلَغتُكُم رِسالاتِ رَبّي وَنَصَحتُ لَكُم ۖ فَكَيفَ آسىٰ عَلىٰ قَومٍ كافِرينَ۝
When they were dead Shoaib(شُعَيب) looked at their bodies and started speaking to their dead bodies.
Shoaib(شُعَيب) said;
O my people, I have indeed conveyed my Lord's message unto you and I have given you good advice.
He's telling his people when they're dead, I have fulfilled my mission.
I have done my part and Allah has fulfilled His Promise on me, and He has fulfilled His promise on you.
I have conveyed the message to you and you refuse to follow it
and then he said;
فَكَيفَ آسىٰ عَلىٰ قَومٍ كافِرينَ۝
Then how can I feel sorry for the disbelieving people.
He's looking at their dead bodies and he is telling them I have no sorrow for you.
Why?
Because how can I have sorrow in my heart for the disbelievers.
The ones, who displeased Allah I am displeased with them,
the ones whom Allahسُبحانه وتعالى was angry with, I despise them,
and I have no sorrow for you.
This is the story of Syedina Shoaib(سَيِّدِنَا شُعَيْب).
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى as we mentioned, has given Ibrahim عليه السّلام, the glad tidings of Is'haq(إسحاق) and Yaqub(يعقوب)
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says about Is'haq(إسحاق),
وَبَشَّرْنَاهُ بِإِسْحَاقَ نَبِيًّا مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ۝
And we gave him the glad tidings of Is'haq(إسحاق) a Prophet and of the righteous
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
وَبَشَّرُوهُ بِغُلَامٍ عَلِيمٍ۝
And we have given him the glad tidings of a knowledgeable child.
So Allah has described Is'haq(إسحاق) as being knowledgeable Aleem(عليم)
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى described him as being Minas-Saliheen(من الصالحين) a righteous
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى said;
كان نبيًا
He is a prophet.
Ishaq عليه السّلام had a child and that child is Sayidina Yaqub(سيدنا يعقوب).
Yaqoob عليه السّلام has another name also, and that is Israel(اسرائيل).
إِلّا ما حَرَّمَ إِسرائيلُ عَلىٰ نَفسِهِ مِن قَبلِ أَن تُنَزَّلَ التَّوراةُ ۗ
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى has mentioned, the name Israel(اسرائيل) in the Qur'an
and the Mufasireen(مفسرين) say that Israel(اسرائيل) means Abdullah(عبدالله),
the servant of Allah, that's the explanation that they give to the word Israel(اسرائيل).
So when we say Bani Israel(بني أسرائيل) the children of Israel(اسرائيل), we're talking about the sons of Yaqoob(يعقوب)
and when we talk about the 12 tribes, we're talking about the tribes that are the descendants of the 12 Sons of Yaqoob(يعقوب).
Yaqoob عليه السّلام had 12 sons.
The best of them is Yusuf عليه السّلام.
Who is a Nabi(نَبِي) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
Some scholars tend to believe that the other 11 brothers will also Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء)
and they use as an evidence to support that the fact that Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
قُولُوٓاْ ءَامَنَّا بِٱللَّهِ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْنَا وَمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَىٰٓ إِبْرَٰهِۦمَ وَإِسْمَٰعِيلَ
وَإِسْحَٰقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ وَٱلْأَسْبَاطِ وَمَآ أُوتِىَ مُوسَىٰ وَعِيسَىٰ وَمَآ أُوتِىَ ٱلنَّبِيُّونَ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ
لَا نُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَحَدٍۢ مِّنْهُمْ وَنَحْنُ لَهُۥ مُسْلِمُونَ۝
This Ayah(آية) is saying that we believe in what has been revealed to.
And it mentions the names of Ibrahim(اِبْراهِيْم) and obviously revelation is given to the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء).
Ibrahim(اِبْراهِيْم), Ismail(اِسْماعِيْل), Is'haq(إسحاق), Yaqoob(يعقوب) and Al-Asbat(ألأسباط)
and what was given to Eesa(عيسى) and Musa(موسى).
So they say that Al-Asbat(ألأسباط) is talking about the 12 Son of Yaqoob(يعقوب)
but the others Scholars respond and say;
No.
Al-Asbat(ألأسباط) does not mean the 12 Sons of Yaqoob(يعقوب) but it means the 12 tribes
and Allahسُبحانه وتعالى combined them all in the word Al-Asbat(ألأسباط) to include all of the prophets that came in the 12 tribes; of Bani Israel(بني أسرائيل).
Because we know that many, many prophets were sent to the children of Israel(اسرائيل), and they were among the 12 tribes.
Therefore Al-Asbat(ألأسباط) over here is not referring to the fathers of the tribes but it's referring to all the tribes
and Ibn Kathir(اِبْنِ كَثِيْر) supports this opinion because he says that
the things that were done by the brothers of Yusuf(يوسف) are not appropriate for the Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء).
So he says that they are not Ambiyaa(أنبِيَاء) only Yusuf(يوسف) was a Nabi(نَبِي)
and Yusuf(يوسف) is the only one out of them who specifically mentioned by name in Qur'an as a Nabi(نَبِي) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى.
The story of SadyinaYusuf(سَيِّدنا يوسُف) is unique in Qur'an
because the whole story from the beginning to the end was mentioned in one Surah(سورة)
and it takes almost all of the Surah(سورة)
with the exception of a few verses in the beginning and a few verses in the end the whole Surah(سورة) is talking about Sadyina Yusuf(سَيِّدنا يوسُف)
to give us a complete story and experience of a Nabi(نَبِي) of Allahسُبحانه وتعالى from the beginning till the end.
And the story of Yusuf(يوسُف) one of the Salaf(سلف), he says;
Anybody who is going through trouble and problems and is feeling sorrow;
If he reads the Surah(سورة) of Yusuf(يوسُف) it will eliminate it
because it's a story of someone who went through difficulty,
but because he armed himself with Taqwa(تقوى) and Sabr(صبر) righteousness and patience, eventually he was victorious.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
نَحنُ نَقُصُّ عَلَيكَ أَحسَنَ القَصَصِ بِما أَوحَينا إِلَيكَ هٰذَا القُرآنَ وَإِن كُنتَ مِن قَبلِهِ لَمِنَ الغافِلينَ۝
We relate unto Muhammad(محمد) the best of stories through our revelation on to have this Qur'an
and before this, you were among those who knew nothing about it.
إِذ قالَ يوسُفُ لِأَبيهِ يا أَبَتِ إِنّي رَأَيتُ أَحَدَ عَشَرَ كَوكَبًا وَالشَّمسَ وَالقَمَرَ رَأَيتُهُم لي ساجِدينَ۝
Yusuf( يوسُف) said;
And Yusuf(يوسُف) in English Joseph.
O my father; Verily I saw in a dream 11 stars and the sun and the moon;
I saw them prostrating themselves for me.
Yusuf(يوسُف) was very young at the time he was a child.
He saw this dream 11 planets and the Sun and the Moon are making Sujood(سجود), prostration to him.
So he told his father about this Dream.
His father told him;
قالَ يا بُنَيَّ لا تَقصُص رُؤياكَ عَلىٰ إِخوَتِكَ فَيَكيدوا لَكَ كَيدًا ۖ
Oh my son relate not this vision of yours to your brothers.
He said: Don't tell your brothers about this vision.
Why?
Lest they arrange a plot against you.
The father knew that this dream means that Yusuf(يوسُف) will attain very high levels
and that everyone in his family will be under him
and the father knew that this is something the brothers will not accept
because they were already jealous of Yusuf(يوسُف) and we'll see how bad their jealousy was
and then he said;
إِنَّ الشَّيطانَ لِلإِنسانِ عَدُوٌّ مُبينٌ۝
Verily Satan is an enemy to humans.
Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ) is the one, who places these disputes among us; it is from Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ).
من عمل الشيطان
And Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
وَقُل لِّعِبَادِي يَقُولُوا الَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ ۚ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ يَنزَغُ بَيْنَهُمْ ۚ إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ كَانَ لِلْإِنسَانِ عَدُوًّا مُّبِينًا۝
Tell my servants to say a good word between themselves, say a good word
because Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ) causes problems amongst you because Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ) is your enemy.
Allahسُبحانه وتعالى is telling us, “say good words”.
The good word is a weapon against Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ) because Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ) is using your words against you.
He's using your words to bring problems.
If we look at problems, most of them are caused because of what we say.
So Allahسُبحانه وتعالى says;
وَقُل لِّعِبَادِي يَقُولُوا الَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ
Say the best always speak the best and that will keep away from you a big part of the plot of Shaytan(شَيْطَانْ).
صَلَّى الله عَلى سَيَّدِنَا محمد وَعَلى اَلِهِ وَ صَحْبِهِ وَسَلِّمْ