Yusuf (12:39-40)

Issues in the Verses:

It means "my two companions in prison."

It is also possible that since they accompanied him in prison for a short time, they were attributed to him as companions. If a brief companionship is sufficient to be called a companion, then one who has known and loved God for his entire life is more deserving of retaining the name of a knowing, loving believer.

When the Prophet (peace be upon him) claimed prophethood in the previous verse, and establishing prophethood depends on establishing divinity (Uluhiyyah), it was necessary for him to begin in this verse by confirming the principles of divinity.

Most people acknowledged the existence of a Divine Being who is All-Knowing and All-Powerful. The issue was that they fashioned idols in the likeness of celestial spirits, worshipped them, and expected benefit or harm from them. Therefore, the effort of most prophets was directed at prohibiting the worship of idols. This was also the case in the time of Joseph (peace be upon him). For this reason, he began here by mentioning proofs demonstrating the falsehood of worshipping idols, citing various types of evidence and arguments.

Arguments Against Idol Worship:

The verse: {متفرقون خير أم الله الواحد القهار} (Are separate [gods] better, or Allah, the One, the Irresistible?)

The reasoning: Allah Almighty clarified that a multiplicity of gods leads to disorder and corruption in this world, as stated: {لو كان فيهما آلهة إلا الله لفسدتا} (If there were therein gods besides Allah, there would have been ruin in both [heavens and earth]). A plurality of gods causes corruption and disorder, whereas the oneness of the God necessitates order and proper arrangement. After establishing this meaning in other verses, He says here: {متفرقون خير أم الله الواحد القهار ما}. The meaning is a rhetorical question intended as a refutation.

These idols are made, not makers; they are overpowered, not overpowering. If a person wishes to break and destroy them, he can overpower them. Thus, they are overpowered and have no effect; no benefit or harm is expected from them. The God of the worlds is an active, irresistible, capable being who can deliver benefits and repel evils and calamities.

Therefore, the meaning is: Is the worship of overpowered, humiliated gods better, or the worship of Allah, the One, the Irresistible?

• {ءأرباب} (gods) refers to plurality.
• In contrast, Allah is One.
• {متفرقون} (separate/various) refers to their differences in size, smallness, color, and shape—all resulting from the sculptor or maker shaping them.
• In contrast, Allah is Irresistible (Qahhar).

Thus, this verse encompasses these two apparent types of evidence through the method explained.

The oneness of Allah necessitates worshipping Him alone. If He had a second, we would not know who created us, sustained us, and repelled evils and calamities from us. Doubt would arise: Are we worshipping this one or that one?

This points to the falsehood of idol worship. Even if we assume these idols could benefit or harm, since they are numerous, we would not know if our benefit or the repulsion of harm came from this idol, that idol, or their combined effort. Doubt would arise about which one deserves worship. However, when the worshipped being is One, this doubt is removed, and certainty is established that none deserves worship except Him, and no creature has a deity other than Him. This is a subtle point derived from the verse.

Even if we grant the premise of the talisman-makers that these idols benefit and harm, it is undisputed that they do so only at specific times and according to specific effects. Allah Almighty, however, is capable of all possibilities and is absolutely Irresistible, His will and power being effective over absolutely everything possible. Therefore, engaging in His worship is more appropriate.

The condition for being Al-Qahhar (The Irresistible) is that no one else can overpower Him, and He must overpower everything else. This necessitates that the Deity must be Necessary Existent (Wajib al-Wujud) by His very essence. If He were merely possible (contingent), He would be overpowered, not overpowering. He must also be One, because if there were two necessary existents, neither would be irresistible over the other.

Therefore, the Deity can only be Al-Qahhar if He is Necessary by essence and One. If the object of worship must possess these qualities, it necessitates that the Deity is something other than the spheres, the stars, light, darkness, the intellect, or the soul. Those who cling to the stars have separate gods that are not described as irresistible, and the same applies to natures, souls, intellects, and spirits. This single phrase is sufficient to establish this absolute Monotheism, which is a high station.

Subsidiary Questions:

Question 1: Why are they called Arbab (gods) when they are not? Answer: Because their worshippers believed them to be so. Furthermore, the speech is framed hypothetically: "If they were gods, are they better than Allah, the One, the Irresistible?"

Question 2: Is it permissible to suggest a comparison between the idols and Allah, such that one asks, "Are they better or is Allah better?" Answer: This is framed hypothetically. The meaning is: "Even if we concede that they bring about some good, are they better than Allah, the One, the Irresistible?"

Addressing Apparent Contradiction:

The verse before this asks: {متفرقون خير أم الله الواحد القهار ما} (Are separate gods better, or Allah, the One, the Irresistible?), which implies the existence of these named entities. Immediately following, He says: {ما تعبدون من دونه إلا أسماء سميتموها أنتم وءاباؤكم ما أنزل الله بها من سلطان} (You worship nothing besides Him except names you have named—you and your fathers—for which Allah has sent down no authority). This implies the named entity does not exist. Is there a contradiction?

Answer: The essence (Dhat) of the idols exists, but the name "God" (Ilah) applied to them is not realized. This is explained in two ways:

1. Although the physical forms of the idols exist, they are not described with the attributes of divinity. Therefore, the reality designated by the name "God" does not actually exist.
2. It is narrated that idol worshippers were mushabbihah (those who liken God to creation). They believed that the true God was the Greatest Light, and the angels were smaller lights, so they fashioned these idols in the shape of those lights. Their true object of worship was those celestial lights. The mushabbihah conceive of a large body settled on the Throne and worship it—this imagined entity absolutely does not exist. Thus, it is correct that they worship nothing but mere names.

The Meaning of "Names" and Divine Authority:

Some idol worshippers claimed: "We do not say these idols are the creators of the world; we merely use the name 'God' for them, worshipping and honoring them because we believe Allah commanded us to do so."

Allah responded: As for naming them "gods," Allah has not commanded this, nor has He sent down any proof, evidence, argument, or authority for this naming. No one besides Allah has a command that must be accepted or an obligation that must be adhered to; command, decree, and obligation belong only to Him. Furthermore, He commanded that none be worshipped except Him, because worship is the ultimate form of reverence and glorification, fitting only for the One from whom ultimate beneficence originates—Allah Almighty. From Him come creation, life, intellect, sustenance, and guidance. God's favors are numerous, and the aspects of His kindness to creation are infinite.

After explaining these matters, He said: {ولاكن أكثر الناس لا يعلمون} (But most people do not know).

Interpretation: Most people attribute the occurrence of earthly events to celestial connections and planetary influences. This is because it is established in the intellect that every event must have a cause. When they observe that changes in the world—heat, cold, and the four seasons—occur when the Sun's position changes in the quadrants of the heavens, they link the four seasons to the Sun's movement. Then, observing that the conditions of plants and animals differ according to the four seasons, they link the emergence of vegetation and changes in animal life to the variation of the seasons.

Through this path, it became dominant in the nature of most people to believe that the director of events in this world is the Sun, the Moon, and the other stars. If Allah grants success to a person who ascends from this level and recognizes that these celestial bodies, in their essence and attributes, are dependent on an Originator, a Creator, an Irresistible Power, an All-Knowing, Wise Being—that person is exceedingly rare. This is why He said: {ولاكن أكثر الناس لا يعلمون}.

Verse 41:

{ياصاحبى السجن أمآ أحدكما فيسقى ربه خمرا وأما الا خر فيصلب فتأكل الطير من رأسه قضى الا مر الذى فيه تستفتيان} (O my two prison companions! As for one of you, he will give his master wine to drink; and as for the other, he will be crucified, and the birds will eat from his head. The matter about which you asked for a decision has been decreed.)