وَكَذٰلِكَ مَكَّنّا لِيوسُفَ فِي الأَرضِ يَتَبَوَّأُ مِنها حَيثُ يَشاءُ ۚ نُصيبُ بِرَحمَتِنا مَن نَشاءُ ۖ وَلا نُضيعُ أَجرَ المُحسِنينَ

That is how We established Joseph in the land that he may settle in it wherever he wished. We confer Our mercy on whomever We wish, and We do not waste the reward of the virtuous.

EXEGESIS

Yatabawwaʾu (settle) is derived from the root tabawwuʾ, which originally carries the connotation of returning, and refers to the act of setting up a home to which one can then return.[1] This etymology reflects the deeper understanding of settlement as not merely occupying a space but establishing a permanent home.

Nuṣību (we confer) is derived from the root ṣawāb, which conveys the idea of correctness, meaning when something happens as it naturally should, without deviation or error (just as a mistake represents a departure from what is right).[2] This root also carries the sense of precision and attainment, like an arrow striking its intended target.[3] In the phrase nuṣību bi-raḥmatinā (We confer Our mercy), the verb implies divine intention and accuracy. God directs His mercy with purposeful precision, ensuring it reaches exactly whom He wills. Thus, the term combines the notions of correctness, purposeful action, and fulfilment, emphasising that divine mercy is neither arbitrary nor misapplied, but bestowed with perfect discernment.

EXPOSITION

That is how We established Joseph in the land: this can be considered as the fulfilment of what was promised and begun in verse 21. Being sold to slavery in Egypt may have seemed a devastating blow, but looking back at it now one could realise how that was a necessary part of God’s plan to establish Prophet Joseph (a) in the land and bring God’s grace and mercy to him.

Although the king’s appointment of Prophet Joseph (a) to a position of power might seem like the immediate cause of his establishment, the verse emphasises that it was ultimately Allah who orchestrated these circumstances. This divine establishment was not achieved through coercion and nor did it negate any free will, but rather through a masterful and subtle guidance of events towards the intended outcome. This reality is later echoed in Prophet Joseph’s (a) own reflection: Indeed, my Lord is all-attentive (laṭīf) in bringing about what He wishes (verse 100), where laṭīf signifies one who achieves their will not through force, but with delicacy and subtle influence.

That he may settle in it wherever he wished: Prophet Joseph (a) may do there as he pleases and go where he pleases.[4] This is to be understood especially in contrast to his previous years in that land when he was either a slave or prisoner.[5] Now he was free at last to do and come and go as he himself saw fit.

It has also been suggested that this means he had several houses in different parts of Egypt in which he stayed, for the purpose of visiting them to see to his administrative duties.[6]

However, a more precise interpretation suggests that the king granted Prophet Joseph (a) the authority to select any district, whether within the city or beyond its limits, to establish his estate. Rather than imposing a location upon him, Prophet Joseph (a) was permitted to choose the most fertile and desirable region, which is why he ultimately settled in Goshen,[7] renowned as one of Egypt’s most prosperous areas. This privilege not only reflects Prophet Joseph’s (a) high status but also aligns with his strategic foresight, as Goshen’s fertile lands would later sustain his family during times of famine.

We confer Our mercy on whomever We wish: while God does as He wishes, His will is not wanton or pointless. This mercy conferred to Prophet Joseph (a) was certainly a reward for his pious diligence and endless patience and unshaking faith.

This statement can also be seen as a pair to another earlier statement in verse 21, where God declared Allah has [full] command of His affairs. When God wishes to confer His mercy on someone, there is no obstacle that may withhold that.[8]

And We do not waste the reward of the virtuous: no good deeds done for His sake will go unnoticed by God and He will not ignore granting full and complete recompense, but will in fact exceed that with His boundless mercy. This divine promise carries profound assurance that every act of righteousness performed in devotion to God is preserved, valued, and repaid in full measure, and indeed multiplied beyond what is deserved. Far from being overlooked or diminished, the good deeds of the righteous are met with God’s overflowing generosity, transcending human expectation.

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. A narration is attributed to Ziyād ibn al-Mundhir, that Imam al-Bāqir (a) said: ‘When the governor’s wife was in need [after her fall from grace], she was told: “Why don’t you go to Joseph and seek his counsel?” Others said: “We fear what he would do to you.” She replied: “No, I do not fear someone who fears God.” When she entered and saw Joseph in his position of authority, she said: “Praise be to God, who makes slaves into kings due to obedience, and who makes slaves of kings due to disobedience.” Joseph married her and found that she was still a virgin. He said: “Isn’t this better, isn’t this more beautiful [that we engage in this relationship within the framework of marriage]?” She replied: “I was tested in four ways because of you: I was the most beautiful of my time, you were the most beautiful of your time, I was a virgin, and my husband was impotent.”’[9]

Note: This hadith is not unproblematic. It continues further and talks of a letter supposedly written by Prophet Jacob (a) to Prophet Joseph (a) in which Prophet Jacob (a) says that his grandfather Prophet Abraham (a) was ordered to sacrifice his father, Prophet Isaac (a). Ṭūsī, who reports this hadith, then comments that while there are some reports indicating that Prophet Isaac (a) was the sacrifice of Prophet Abraham (a), the consensus of the scholars who follow the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt is that Ishmael (a) was the sacrifice. Furthermore, the hadith as narrated by Ṭūsī has more than one weak reporter in its chain. Notably, Ṣadūq reports the hadith from Wahab ibn Munabbih, who claims that he ‘found it in some of the books of God’, and it is likely that he is the true source of this story.[10]

2. In addition to the first hadith cited earlier, numerous opinions are also attributed to first- and second-generation Muslims which assert that Prophet Joseph (a) later married the governor’s wife, along with other details found in those narrations which are difficult to authenticate and have been omitted for brevity.[11]
3. There is a similar report attributed to Imam al-Hādī (a) in Tafsīr al-Qummī that also claims Prophet Joseph (a) married the governor’s wife. In that version she asks Prophet Joseph (a) to make a supplication for her, that God may make her young again and she becomes young and then Prophet Joseph (a) marries her.[12]

Note: This report is notably lengthy and contains highly problematic elements in its opening section, such as the claim that Gabriel withdrew the light of prophethood from Prophet Joseph (a) and his descendants as a punishment for not prostrating to his father. For further discussion on this theological issue, refer to the analysis of verse 100. Ālūsī asserts that the scholars of hadith reject the reports about Prophet Joseph (a) marrying her as being baseless. He similarly rejects the claims that she was miraculously made a young virgin again.[13] It is further claimed that after they were married, she bore him two sons: Ephraim and Misha.[14] The Bible tells of Joseph (a) marrying another woman, Asenath, who bore him two sons. In any case, if we assume Joseph (a) married her, this should mean that the governor had either died[15] or divorced his wife.

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. Pharaoh said to Joseph, ‘I am Pharaoh, and without your consent no man will lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.’ Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphenath­Paneah, and he gave him a wife, Asenath the daughter of Potiphera priest of On. And Joseph went out over all the land of Egypt.[16]
2. Before the years of famine came, two sons were born to Joseph, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore to him. Joseph called the name of the firstborn Manasseh, ‘For God,’ he said, ‘has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s house.’ The name of the second he called Ephraim, saying, ‘For God has caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.’[17]

[1] Tibyan, 6/158.
[2] Tahqiq, 6/355, ṣ-w-b.
[3] Raghib, p. 354, ṣ-w-b.
[4] Tabrisi, 5/372.
[5] See also Tabari, 13/5.
[6] Sharawi, p. 7002.
[7] As per the Bible. See for example Genesis 45:10, 46:28, 47:1, 47:6, 47:27, 50:8.
[8] Mizan, 11/202.
[9] Amali.T, pp. 456-457, h. 1020.
[10] See Amali.S, pp. 52-53. This report is somewhat different to the one in Ṭūsī’s, but the portion which is quoted is similar.
[11] See for example what is reported from ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd in Thalabi, 5/232; Baghawi, 2/498. See also Tabari, 13/5, who quotes it from Ibn Isḥāq. Qurṭubī reports it from Ibn Abbas and then an even more detailed and longer version from Wahab ibn Munabbih (Qurtubi, 9/213-214). See also Suyuti, 4/25.
[12] Qummi, 1/357.
[13] Alusi, 7/7.
[14] Alusi, 7/7. See also Tabrisi, 5/371.
[15] As is mentioned in an unreliable report in Qummi, 1/357.
[16] Genesis 41:44-45.
[17] Genesis 41:50-52.