has had mercy on; verily, my Lord is forgiving and merciful!'

And the king said, 'Bring him to me. I will take him specially for myself.' And when he had spoken with him he said, 'Verily, to-day thou art with us in a permanent place of trust.’

He said, 'Place me over the treasures of the land; verily, I will be a knowing keeper.'

Thus did we stablish Joseph in the land that he might settle in what part thereof he pleased-we overtake with our mercy whom we will, nor do we waste the hire of those who do good; and surely the hire of the future life is better for those who believe and who have feared.

And his brethren came to Joseph, and they entered in unto him and he knew them, but they recognised not him. And when he had equipped them with their equipment he said, 'Bring me a brother that ye have from your father; do ye not see that I give good measure, and that I am the best of entertainers? But if ye bring him not to me, no measure shall ye have with me, nor shall ye come nigh me.' They said, 'We will desire him of our father, and we will surely do it.'

Then he said to his young men, 'Put their chattels in their packs, haply they may know it when they are come back to their family; haply they may return.'

And when they returned to their father, they said, 'O our father! Measure is withheld from us; so send with us our brother that we may get measure, and, verily, him we will keep!'

He said, 'Shall I entrust you with him, save as I entrusted you with his brother before? but God is the best of keepers, and He is the most merciful of the merciful.'

And when they opened their goods they found their chattels restored to them. Said they, 'O our father! What more can we crave? Here are our chattels restored to us, and we shall guard our brother, and shall have an additional measure beside that-a small measure.'

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10 The goods which they had brought to barter, or the money they had paid for the corn.

11 Commentators differ as to whether this means that what they had brought was insufficient, or whether the additional measure was a small

He said, 'I will by no means send him with you until you give me a compact from God that ye will surely bring him to me, unless ye be encompassed."12

So when they had given him their compact he said, 'God over what ye say has charge.'

And he said, 'O my sons! enter not by one gate, but enter by several gates; but I cannot avail you aught against God. Judgment is only God's; upon Him do I rely, and on Him do the reliant rely.'

And when they had entered as their father bade them, it availed them nothing against God, save for a want in Jacob's soul which it fulfilled; for, verily, he was possessed of knowledge, for that we had taught him;-but most men do not know.

And when they entered in unto Joseph, he took his brother to stay with him, and said, 'Verily, I am thy brother-then take not ill that which they have been doing.'

And when he had equipped them with their equipment he placed the drinking cup in his brother's pack; then a crier cried out, ' O ye caravan! verily, ye are thieves!'

They said, approaching them, 'What is it that ye miss?' Said they, 'We miss the goblet of the king, and whoso brings it shall have a camel-load, and I am guarantee thereof.'

They said, 'By God! Ye knew we came not to do evil in the land, and that we were not thieves.'

They said, 'And what shall be the recompense thereof if ye be liars?'

They said, 'The recompense thereof is he in whose pack it is found-he shall be the recompense thereof; thus do we recompense the unjust.'

And he began with their sacks before the sacks of his brother; then he drew it forth from his brother's sack. Thus did we devise a stratagem for Joseph. He could not take his brother by the king's religion" except God pleased; we raise the degrees of whomsoever we please, and over every possessor of knowledge is one who knows, quantity for Pharaoh to bestow, or whether Jacob utters the words meaning that it is not enough to induce him to part with his son. 12 By some unavoidable hindrance.

13 I. e. by the law of Egypt it was not lawful for Joseph to take his brother for a bondsman as a punishment for theft.

They said, 'If he has stolen, a brother of his has stolen before him.'

But Joseph kept it secret in his soul and disclosed it not to them. Said he, ‘Ye are in a bad case, and God knows best about what ye describe.'

They said, 'O prince! Verily, he has a father, a very old man; take then one of us instead of him; verily, we can see that thou art of those who do good.'

Said he,' (I seek) refuge in God from taking any save him with whom we found our property; verily, we should then be certainly unjust.'

And when they despaired of him they retired to consult privately. Said the eldest of them, 'Do ye not know that your father has taken a compact from God against you? Aforetime ye exceeded in the matter of Joseph-I will surely not quit the land until my father give me leave, or God judge for me, for He is the best of judges.

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'Return ye to your father and say, “O our father! verily, thy son has committed theft, and we bore testimony to naught but what we knew; for of the unforeseen we were not keepers!"

Ask then in the city where we were, and of the caravan in which we approached it, for, verily, we tell the truth.'

Said he, Nay, your souls have induced you to do this thing. But patience is fair. It may be that God will give me them all together;-verily, He is knowing, wise.'

And he turned away from them and said, 'O my lament for Joseph!' and his eyes grew white with grief, for he repressed (his woe).

They said, 'By God! thou wilt not cease to remember Joseph till thou art at the point of death, or art of those who perish!'

Said he, 'I only complain of my emotion and my grief to God, for I know that from God which ye know nothing of.

O my sons! go and enquire concerning Joseph and his brother, and despair not of God's comfort; for, verily, none need despair of God's comfort save a misbelieving people!'

And when they entered in unto him they said, 'O prince! distress has touched both us and our families, and we have

brought trifling chattels. So give us full measure and bestow upon us in charity; verily, God rewards the charitable.' He said, 'Do ye know what ye did with Joseph and his brother, while ye were ignorant?'

They said, Art thou then indeed Joseph?' He said, 'I am Joseph, and this is my brother; God has been gracious towards us. Verily, whoso fears God and is patient,verily, God wastes not the hire of those who do good!'

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They said, By God! God has chosen thee over us; and we indeed were sinners.'

He said, 'No reproach against you to-day! God will pardon you, for He is the most merciful of the merciful. Take this my shirt, and throw it over the face of my father, he will become able to see; and bring me your families all together.'

And when the caravan departed, their father said, ‘ Verily, I find the smell of Joseph, unless ye think I dote!'

They said, 'By God! thou art in thy old error.' And when the herald of glad tidings came he threw it on his face, and he was restored to sight.

Said he, 'Did I not tell you that I know from God that of which ye know not?'

They said, 'O our father! ask pardon for us of our sins; -verily, we were sinners!'

He said, 'I will ask pardon for you from my Lord; verily, He is the pardoning and merciful.'

And when they entered in unto Joseph, he took his father to stay with him, and said, ' Enter ye into Egypt, if it please God, safe.' And he raised his father upon the throne, and they fell down before him adoring.

And he said, ‘O my sire! This is the interpretation of my vision aforetime; my Lord has made it come true, and He has been good to me, in bringing me forth out of prison, and bringing you from the desert, after Satan had made a breach between me and my brethren;-verily, my Lord is kind to whomsoever He will;-verily, He is the knowing, the wise!

'O my Lord! thou hast given me dominion, and hast taught me the interpretation of sayings; O originator of the heavens and the earth! Thou art my patron in this world

and the next; take me to Thyself resigned, and let me reach the righteous!'

That is one of the stories of the unseen which we inspire thee with, though thou wert not with them when they agreed in their affair, when they were so crafty.-And yet most men, though thou shouldst be urgent, will not believe.

Thou dost not ask them for it a hire; it is naught but a reminder to the world.

How many a sign in the heavens and the earth do they pass by and turn away there from!

Nor do most of them believe in God without associating (other gods) with Him.

Are they safe, then, from overwhelming vengeance coming on them from the torment of God? or from the Hour coming upon them suddenly while they do not perceive?

Say, 'This is my way; I call now unto God on clear proof, I and those who follow me; and celebrated be God's praises, for I am not of the idolaters.'

Nor did we ever send before thee any save men whom we inspired, of the people of the cities. Have they not journeyed on in the earth, and beheld how was the end of those before them? But the abode of the future is surely better for those who believe;—what! have they then no sense?

Until when the apostles despaired and they thought that they were proved liars, our help came to them, and whosoever we pleased was saved; but our violence is not averted from the sinful people.

Their stories were a lesson to those endowed with minds. It was not a tale forged, but a verification of what was before it, and a detailing of everything, and a guide and a mercy to a people who believe.

THE CHAPTER OF THE BELIEVER

In the name of the merciful and compassionate God. 'H. M. The sending down of the Book from God, the mighty, the knowing, the forgiver of sin and accepter of repentance, keen at punishment, long-suffering! there is no good but He! to whom the journey is!