Tafsir of Yusuf 12:74

{فما جزاؤه} The pronoun refers to the drinking cup (al-ṣuwāʿ). That is: What is the penalty for its theft?

{إن كنتم كاذبين} In your denial and your claim of innocence regarding it.

{قالوا جزاؤه من وجد في رحله} That is: The penalty for its theft is the enslavement of the one in whose saddlebag it is found. The law of the thief among the family of Jacob was that he be enslaved for a year; hence, they sought a legal ruling regarding its penalty.

{فهو جزاؤه} This is a confirmation of the ruling. It means: The taking of the thief himself is his penalty, and nothing else. It is like saying: "Zayd’s right is that he be clothed, fed, and favored; that is his right." This is to establish what you have mentioned regarding his entitlement and obligation.

It is also possible that {جزاؤه} is the subject (mubtadaʾ), and the conditional sentence is its predicate, with the explicit noun standing in place of the pronoun. The original structure is: "His penalty is [the one] who is found in his saddlebag, so he is him." The word "penalty" (jazāʾ) was placed in the position of "he" (huwa), similar to when you ask a companion, "Who is Zayd’s brother?" and he replies, "His brother is the one who sits next to him, so he is him." The first pronoun refers to "the one" (man) and the second to "the brother," then you say, "So he is his brother," placing the explicit noun in the position of the pronoun.

It is also possible that {جزاؤه} is the predicate of an omitted subject, meaning: "The matter asked about, its penalty is..." Then they issued the ruling by saying: "Whoever is found in his saddlebag, he is his penalty." This is like someone being asked about the penalty for hunting by a pilgrim, and he says, "The penalty for hunting by a pilgrim is [such and such]," then he recites: {And whoever among you kills it intentionally, then the penalty is an equivalent from the livestock} (Al-Ma'idah: 95).

{فبدأ بأوعيتهم قبل وعاء أخيه ثم استخرجها من وعاء أخيه كذلك كدنا ليوسف ما كان ليأخذ أخاه في دين الملك إلا أن يشاء الله نرفع درجات من نشاء وفوق كل ذي علم عليم}