Who Bought Yusuf in Egypt?
من اشترى يوسف عليه السلام في مصر؟
Al-Aziz of Egypt, the chief minister, bought him, and he told his wife to look after him and care for him, as they might take him as a servant or adopt him, because they had no son of their own. “The man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife, ‘Take good care of him, perhaps he may be useful to us or we may adopt him as a son.’ This is how We established Yusuf in the land, so that We might teach him the interpretation of dreams. Allah’s Will always prevails, but most people do not know” (Surah Yusuf 12:21).
اشتراه عزيز مصر وأمر زوجته بإكرامه، لعله ينفعهم كنفع الخادم للمخدوم، أو يستمتع به استمتاع الوالد بالولد، لأنه كان لا يولد له. وَقَالَ الَّذِي اشْتَرَاهُ مِن مِّصْرَ لِامْرَأَتِهِ أَكْرِمِي مَثْوَاهُ عَسَىٰ أَن يَنفَعَنَا أَوْ نَتَّخِذَهُ وَلَدًا ۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ مَكَّنَّا لِيُوسُفَ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلِنُعَلِّمَهُ مِن تَأْوِيلِ الْأَحَادِيثِ ۚ وَاللَّـهُ غَالِبٌ عَلَىٰ أَمْرِهِ وَلَـٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ ﴿٢١﴾ (سورة يوسف: 21).
1. Who “Al-Aziz” Actually Was | من هو العزيز؟
“Al-Aziz” was a title, not a personal name, referring to Egypt’s chief minister or treasurer, a position of major political and economic authority under the ruling king. This detail matters for the rest of the story, since it explains how a household of enormous social standing could later place Yusuf in a position to eventually rise to comparable power himself.
“العزيز” لقب لا اسم شخصي، ويشير إلى الوزير الأول أو أمين خزانة مصر، وهو منصب ذو سلطة سياسية واقتصادية كبرى تحت الملك الحاكم. ولهذا التفصيل أهمية في بقية القصة، إذ يوضح كيف تمكن بيت بهذه المكانة الاجتماعية الرفيعة من وضع يوسف لاحقا في موقع يؤهله بدوره للوصول إلى سلطة مماثلة.
2. A Household That Wanted a Child | بيت أراد ولدا
Al-Aziz’s instruction to his wife reveals the couple’s own circumstance, childlessness, which shaped how Yusuf was initially received into their home, with genuine warmth rather than as ordinary property. This context becomes important later in the surah, when the same household dynamic sets the stage for the trial Yusuf would face involving Al-Aziz’s wife.
تكشف وصية العزيز لزوجته عن ظرف الزوجين أنفسهما، وهو عدم الإنجاب، وهو ما شكّل استقبال يوسف الأولي في بيتهما بدفء حقيقي لا بوصفه مجرد ملكية عادية. ويكتسب هذا السياق أهمية لاحقا في السورة، حين تمهد ديناميكية البيت نفسها للابتلاء الذي سيواجهه يوسف مع زوجة العزيز.
3. A Purchase That Was Really a Placement | صفقة كانت في حقيقتها تمكينا
The same verse that names this sale also states plainly that Allah established Yusuf in the land through it, in order to teach him dream interpretation, the gift explored more fully in What Did Allah Teach Yusuf That No One Else Knew? What looked like an ordinary transaction from the outside was, in the Quran’s own framing, the beginning of Yusuf’s rise rather than merely another stage of his hardship.
الآية نفسها التي تذكر هذه الصفقة تنص أيضا صراحة على أن الله مكّن يوسف في الأرض من خلالها، ليعلمه تأويل الأحاديث، وهي الموهبة التي تناولناها بتوسع في مقال ماذا علّم الله يوسف مما لا يعلمه غيره؟ فما بدا من الخارج مجرد صفقة عادية كان، في تأطير القرآن الكريم نفسه، بداية صعود يوسف لا مجرد مرحلة أخرى من محنته.
Frequently Asked Questions | الأسئلة الشائعة
Who bought Yusuf in Egypt?
Al-Aziz, Egypt’s chief minister.
What did Al-Aziz instruct his wife to do?
To treat Yusuf with honor, since they had no son of their own.
Was this purchase purely coincidental?
No, the Quran states it was how Allah established Yusuf in the land to later teach him dream interpretation.