Tafsir of Al-Qasas 28:37

"And Musa said, 'My Lord is more knowing of who has brought guidance from Him'" — he (peace be upon him) intended by the relative pronoun [referring to] himself. Ibn Kathir recited "Qala" (He said) without the conjunction "wa" (and), because it is a response to their statement: "It is magic," and a response is not conjoined with a "wa" or anything else. The justification for the conjunction in the recitation of the remaining seven [reciters] is that the intention is to recount both statements so that the observer of the account may weigh them against each other, thereby distinguishing the true from the corrupt.

"And [who will have] the best outcome of the home" — meaning the praiseworthy outcome in the home, which is the worldly life. Its outcome is that a person’s life concludes in a manner that leads them to Paradise through the grace and generosity of Allah Almighty. The justification for intending the praiseworthy outcome from the absolute term "outcome" is that it is the very thing to which Allah Almighty has called His servants, having instilled in them intellects that guide them to it, empowered them with it, removed their excuses, provided them with incentives, and urged them toward it. Thus, as if for this reason, it is the intended [goal] from all servants and the purpose of their creation. This is what Ibn al-Munayyir chose, in agreement with the consensus.

It is narrated that someone asked him: "What prevents you from saying that 'the outcome' means 'the outcome of good' [by deriving it from] the attachment of the outcome to its possessors with the particle lam (for), as in this verse and His Almighty’s saying, 'And the disbelievers will know for whom is the outcome of the home,' and His glory’s saying, 'And the outcome is for the righteous'? For the outcome of good is what belongs to them, whereas the outcome of evil is against them, not for them." He replied: "I would have had a statement regarding that, were it not for the occurrence of [verses] like, 'They have the curse, and they have the worst of the home,' where it did not say 'upon them.' Thus, the usage of the lam in place of 'ala (upon) is evidence that one should discard the argument that the lam implies the intention of the 'outcome of good.'"

It may be said: The lam is explicit in denoting benefit, and that is sufficient to understand that what is meant by "the outcome" is the "outcome of good." One must accept, in the likes of the verse brought by Ibn al-Munayyir, that it is a form of mockery. This is analogous to what they said—that glad tidings are only for good, yet ["give them glad tidings of"] "a painful punishment" is a form of mockery.

Al-Tayyibi also said in defense: "I say, the verse does not preclude that. The context of the curse and the 'worst' prevents the intention of good. The particle lam was brought merely to indicate that both [the curse and the worst of the home] are realities established for them and inseparable from them, and this is supported by the fronting [of the prepositional phrase], which signifies exclusivity. So ponder this."

Hamzah and al-Kisa'i recited "yakun" with a ya [the prefix for the masculine], because the raised noun is metaphorically feminine and separated from its verb.

"Indeed, the wrongdoers will not succeed" — meaning they will not attain what they seek, nor will they be saved from what they fear. The gist of the speech of Musa (peace be upon him) is: My Lord is more knowing than you of the condition of the one whom He deemed worthy of the greatest success, having made him a prophet, sent him with guidance, and promised him a good outcome. If he were, as you claim, a liar, a magician, or a fabricator, He would not have deemed him worthy of that, for He is Self-Sufficient and Wise; He does not send liars, nor does He appoint magicians as prophets, nor do the wrongdoers succeed in His presence.