Yusuf (Joseph)

41. “O’ my (two) mates of the prison! as for one of you, he shall pour out wine for his lord to drink; whereas the other will be crucified and the birds shall eat on his head. The matter is decreed about which you do enquire.”

The Arabic term /rabb/ is also applied for governor, as well as lord in the Arabic phrase: /rabbud dar/ which means: the lord of the house or the owner. Therefore, the phrase /fayasqi rabbahu xamra/ means: ‘he gives wine to his lord.’

From here on, he begins interpreting the dreams of those two prisoners, but before this Yusuf had preached them Monotheism and then he expressed his miracle for them. He began with the interpretation of the butler.

It has been narrated that the first prisoner had also seen three bunches of grapes in his dream. Hadrat Yusuf said that they meant that that prisoner would remain in prison for three more days and he would return to his original profession on the fourth day.

The other prisoner on the other hand, who had been the King’s cook, had seen three bags instead. Yusuf said that they also meant that he would stay in prison for three more days, but his end was much more gloomy. The king would take him out of the prison after that and had him hanged where the birds could eat on his head.

The verse from the tongue of Yusuf says:

“O’ my (two) mates of the prison! as for one of you, he shall pour out wine for his lord to drink; whereas the other will be crucified and the birds shall eat on his head. The matter is decreed about which you do enquire.”

It is said that the latter, on hearing the interpretation, said that he had not dreamed at all and he had been only joking. Yusuf (as) then told him that his fate had been decreed and what was said had to be fulfilled.

From these accounts it is evident that Yusuf (as) had received the news from the invisible world revealed to him; not as the dreams other people usually interpret.