Tafsir of Yusuf 12:49

"In it the people will be aided" (yughāthu)—that is, rain will reach them, as stated by Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, and the majority of scholars. It is derived from the triliteral verb ghātha (to rain), which has a yā’ as its third radical. An example of this is the saying of the Bedouin woman: "We have had our livestock rained upon" (ghuthnā), and the saying of some, "The harm of the fleas," meaning the fleas have come. It has also been said that it is derived from al-ghawth (relief), meaning salvation. It is said, "Allah Almighty has aided us" (aghāthanā) when He provides us with the removal of calamities once they have loomed over us; thus, it is a quadriliteral verb with a wāw as its third radical.

"And in it they will press" (ya‘ṣirūn). This is derived from the well-known concept of pressing: they will press that which is intended to be pressed, such as grapes, sugarcane, olives, sesame, and similar fruits, due to their abundance. The reason for mentioning this—as some researchers have stated—despite the possibility of being content with mentioning the rain, which habitually necessitates such growth, just as one is content with it in place of mentioning their processing of grains, is either because the rain's necessity for these is not the same as its necessity for grains (as the ripening of these fruits depends on factors other than rain) or because of consideration for the state of the inquirer, regarding his own specific condition, as glad tidings to him. This is the point upon which the excellence of his precedence [in using the word ya‘ṣirūn] over the people—in the recitation of Hamza and al-Kisā’ī with the tā’ (ta‘ṣirūn)—revolves.

It is related from Ibn Abbas that the interpretation of this is "they will milk" (yaḥlubūn). It is as if this is taken from the well-known pressing because milking involves pressing the udder to extract the milk. The repetition of "in it" is either—as has been said—to signal the difference in what occurs during that year in terms of time and designation, or because the context is one of enumerating the benefits of that year. For this reason, it was placed before the verb in both instances because the context is to clarify that both this and that will occur in that year, not to clarify that they will occur in that year, as the delay would imply. It is also possible that the precedence of the "pressing" is to imply that their rain in those years [of drought] is as if it were non-existent compared to that year of theirs, and that the delay [of the prepositional phrase] in the latter case is for the sake of rhyme, while in the first, it is a state.

Ja‘far ibn Muhammad (may Allah be pleased with them both), al-A‘raj, and ‘Īsā of Basra recited yu‘ṣarūn in the passive voice. From ‘Īsā, it is also related as tu‘ṣarūn with the tā’ in the passive voice, derived from the phrase, "Allah Almighty ‘aṣarahu," meaning He saved him—that is, Allah Almighty will save them from the severity they are in. This is appropriate to the statement, "The people will be aided." From Abū ‘Ubaydah and others, the active form is also taken from ‘aṣr in the sense of salvation. In al-Baḥr, al-‘aṣr and al-‘aṣrah (with a ḍamma) are interpreted as salvation. They cited the poem of Abū Zubayd regarding ‘Uthmān (may Allah be pleased with him): "Thirsty, seeking aid, and not being aided; yet he was the savior of the distressed." Ibn al-Munīr said: "Its meaning is ‘aṣīrūn—the clouds have 'pressed' upon them, meaning the time has come for the winds to press them so that they might rain." Thus, it is based on the connection of the verb, as in "I squeezed (‘aṣartu) the lemon onto the food." The [object] was omitted, and the verb was connected directly, or the verb ‘aṣartu implies the meaning of "it rained," so it was made transitive in that same way. In al-Ṣiḥāḥ, it says: "The people were 'pressed' (‘uṣirū)," meaning it rained upon them. From this is the recitation of some, "and in it they will be rained upon" (yu‘ṣarūn). The literal meaning suggests the term is set for this, so it does not need implied meaning. al-Naqqāsh related that it was recited as yu‘aṣṣirūn with a ḍamma on the yā’, a kasra on the ṣād, and a tashdīd on the ṣād, from ‘aṣṣara (intensified) to indicate abundance. Zayd ibn ‘Alī (may Allah be pleased with them both) recited "and in it you will be pressed" (tu‘ṣṣirūn) with a kasra on the tā’, the ‘ayn, and the ṣād, with a tashdīd on the ṣād. Its root is ya‘taṣirūn, where the tā’ was assimilated into the ṣād, its vowel moved to the ‘ayn, and the vowel of the tā’ was made to follow the vowel of the ‘ayn. It is possible that it is from "pressing grapes and the like," or from i‘taṣara in the sense of "to be saved," as in the verse: "If my throat were constricted by anything other than water, I would be as one choking; with water, I find salvation."

Furthermore, the rulings of this blessed year, as Ibn Jarīr and others related from Qatādah, were knowledge that Allah Almighty granted him, which was not part of what he was asked about. Similar accounts are related from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), both implying that this came through revelation, which is the apparent meaning. He (peace be upon him) brought forth that which indicates his excellence at the end of his interpretation, contrary to what he did initially when answering the dream of his two companions, where he brought it at the beginning. The reason for this is clear. It is said that this glad tiding from him (peace be upon him) was not from revelation, but because it is the habitual norm that the end of drought is fertility, or because it is the divine custom to provide abundance for His servants after He constricts them. However, it is argued that if it were so, he would have been general in his glad tidings; for the cessation of drought requires its change to some form of fertility, not exactly what he mentioned, especially according to what some recitations imply of them helping one another, for that is not known except through revelation.

Furthermore, after he (peace be upon him) interpreted for them, guided them, and gave them glad tidings, he awaited the occurrence of what he had foretold. Ibn Abī Ḥātim related from Zayd ibn Aslam that he (peace be upon him) would thereafter prepare food for two men, bring it to the man, who would eat half and leave half, until the day when he brought it to him and he ate it all. He (peace be upon him) said: "This is the first day of the years of severity." Al-Balkhī argued based on his interpretation of this against the view of those who say that a dream is according to its first interpretation; for they had said, "Confused dreams," and if what they said had any influence, he (peace be upon him) would have turned away from interpreting it. There is discussion regarding this, for Abū Dāwūd and Ibn Mājah related from Abū Razīn: "A dream is on the wing of a bird as long as it is not interpreted; when it is interpreted, it occurs. Do not recount it except to the loving or the wise." Perhaps, if this is authentic, one must commit to the position that judging a dream as "confused dreams" and that it has no consequence is not interpretation at all; otherwise, the conflict between what is here and the report is problematic. Ibn al-‘Arabī said: "This should be restricted to dreams that allow for multiple aspects, so one interprets it according to one of them, and it occurs." They also used this as proof for the validity of the dreams of a disbeliever, which is clear. They have mentioned etiquettes for asking about dreams: among them, that it should not be at sunrise, sunset, or at night. They said that their interpretation in a dream is their interpretation in reality, so no further interpretation is needed. They spoke at length regarding what pertains to them, and most of what was said is not apparent to me in its mystery, and I know some of it to be no more than "confused dreams."