سورة يوسف

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): قالَ قائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ لا تَقْتُلُوا یُوسُفَ [A speaker from among them said: Do not slay Yusuf] — it has been said: this statement was from "Lawi".

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): When Yaqub (peace be upon him) and his household and children reached Egypt, Yusuf (peace be upon him) sat upon his throne and placed the crown of kingship upon his head, because he wished his father to see him in that state. When his father entered [upon him], he did not rise out of respect for him. At that moment Jibra'il descended upon Yusuf (peace be upon him) and said to him: "O Yusuf (peace be upon him)! Bring out your hand!" When Yusuf (peace be upon him) brought out his hand, a light came forth from between his fingers. Yusuf (peace be upon him) said: "O Jibra'il! What was this light?" Jibra'il said: "This is [the light of] prophethood, which Allah has taken out from your progeny, because you did not rise out of respect for your father." Thus, Allah removed his light and erased prophethood from the progeny of Yusuf (peace be upon him) and placed it in the progeny of Lawi, the brother of Yusuf (peace be upon him). That was because when the brothers intended to kill Yusuf, Lawi said: لا تَقْتُلُوا یُوسُفَ وَ أَلْقُوهُ فِی غَیابَتِ الجُبِّ [Do not slay Yusuf, and cast him down into the bottom of the pit]. For this reason Allah appreciated his deed. And when Binyamin was detained in Egypt by the order of Yusuf (peace be upon him) and the brothers intended to return to Yaqub (peace be upon him), Lawi said: "I will not depart from this land until my father permits me or Allah judges concerning me, and He is the best of judges!" (Yusuf/80). For this reason Allah appreciated his deed, and as a result all the prophets of the Children of Israel were from the descendants of Lawi, son of Yaqub ibn Ishaq ibn Ibrahim (peace be upon him), and Musa (peace be upon him) too was from his descendants, being Musa ibn Imran ibn Yahsir ibn Wahith ibn Lawi ibn Yaqub ibn Ishaq ibn Ibrahim (peace be upon him).

Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him): So when they had taken him along and moved him far from his father, they reached a forest and said to one another: "We shall kill Yusuf (peace be upon him) in this very place and throw him under these trees, so that at night the wolf may come and eat him." Their eldest said: قالَ قائِلٌ مِنْهُمْ لا تَقْتُلُوا یُوسُفَ وَ أَلْقُوهُ فی غَیابَتِ الجُبِّ یَلْتَقِطْهُ بَعْضُ السَّیَّارَةِ إِنْ کُنْتُمْ فاعِلینَ [A speaker from among them said: Do not slay Yusuf, and cast him down into the bottom of the pit if you must do (it), (so that) some of the travellers may pick him up]. The brothers affirmed his words, and so they took Yusuf (peace be upon him) to the edge of a well and then cast him into the well. They supposed that Yusuf (peace be upon him) would drown in the water of the well.

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): Lawi said: أَلْقُوهُ فِی غَیَابَةِ الجُبِّ یَلْتَقِطْهُ بَعْضُ السَّیَّارَةِ إِن کُنتُمْ فَاعِلِینَ [Cast him down into the bottom of the pit if you must do (it), (so that) some of the travellers may pick him up]. So they brought Yusuf (peace be upon him) close to the edge of the well and said to him: "Take off your shirt." He wept and said: "O my brothers! Do not strip the garment from my body." One of the brothers drew a knife on him and threatened him, saying: "If you do not take off your shirt, we shall kill you." Yusuf (peace be upon him) took the shirt off his body, and then they lowered him into the well with a bucket and moved away from him. Yusuf (peace be upon him) in the well said: "O Allah of Ibrahim and Ishaq and Yaqub! Have mercy upon my weakness and helplessness and my young age."