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Popular and/or Featured Works
Muhammad Asad   
And the man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife: "Make his stay [with us] honourable; he may well be of use to us, or we may adopt him as a son. And thus We gave unto Joseph a firm place on earth; and [We did this] so that We might impart unto him some understanding of the inner meaning of happenings. For, God always prevails in whatever be His purpose: but most people know it not
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
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 Joseph in the land, so that We might teach him the interpretation of dreams. Allah’s Will always prevails, but most people do not know.
Safi Kaskas   
The man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife, "Look after him well. He may be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son." In this way We gave Joseph a firm place on earth, and [We did this] so that We could teach him the inner meaning of things. God always prevails in His purpose, but most people do not know this.

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Source Arabic and Literal tools
Arabic   
وَقَالَ ٱلَّذِی ٱشۡتَرَىٰهُ مِن مِّصۡرَ لِٱمۡرَأَتِهِۦۤ أَكۡرِمِی مَثۡوَىٰهُ عَسَىٰۤ أَن یَنفَعَنَاۤ أَوۡ نَتَّخِذَهُۥ وَلَدࣰاۚ وَكَذَ ٰلِكَ مَكَّنَّا لِیُوسُفَ فِی ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَلِنُعَلِّمَهُۥ مِن تَأۡوِیلِ ٱلۡأَحَادِیثِۚ وَٱللَّهُ غَالِبٌ عَلَىٰۤ أَمۡرِهِۦ وَلَـٰكِنَّ أَكۡثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا یَعۡلَمُونَ ۝٢١
Transliteration (2021)   
waqāla alladhī ish'tarāhu min miṣ'ra li-im'ra-atihi akrimī mathwāhu ʿasā an yanfaʿanā aw nattakhidhahu waladan wakadhālika makkannā liyūsufa fī l-arḍi walinuʿallimahu min tawīli l-aḥādīthi wal-lahu ghālibun ʿalā amrihi walākinna akthara l-nāsi lā yaʿlamūn
Word for Word
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh, Ms. Kauser Katri, and more
  
And said the one who bought him of Egypt to his wife, "Make comfortable his stay. Perhaps that (he) will benefit us or we will take him (as) a son." And thus We established Yusuf in the land that We might teach him from (the) interpretation of the events. And Allah (is) Predominant over His affairs, but most (of) the people (do) not know.

Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning
Muhammad Asad   
And the man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife: "Make his stay [with us] honourable; he may well be of use to us, or we may adopt him as a son. And thus We gave unto Joseph a firm place on earth; and [We did this] so that We might impart unto him some understanding of the inner meaning of happenings. For, God always prevails in whatever be His purpose: but most people know it not
M. M. Pickthall   
And he of Egypt who purchased him said unto his wife: Receive him honourably. Perchance he may prove useful to us or we may adopt him as a son. Thus we established Joseph in the land that We might teach him the interpretation of events. And Allah was predominant in His career, but most of mankind know not
Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)   
The man in Egypt who bought him, said to his wife: "Make his stay (among us) honourable: may be he will bring us much good, or we shall adopt him as a son." Thus did We establish Joseph in the land, that We might teach him the interpretation of stories (and events). And Allah hath full power and control over His affairs; but most among mankind know it not
The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab   
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 Joseph in the land, so that We might teach him the interpretation of dreams. Allah’s Will always prevails, but most people do not know.
Safi Kaskas   
The man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife, "Look after him well. He may be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son." In this way We gave Joseph a firm place on earth, and [We did this] so that We could teach him the inner meaning of things. God always prevails in His purpose, but most people do not know this.
Wahiduddin Khan   
The Egyptian who bought him said to his wife, Lodge him honourably, he may prove of benefit to us, or we may even adopt him as our son. Thus We established Joseph in the land, so that We might teach him the true meaning of events. God has power over all things. However, most people do not know this
Shakir   
And the Egyptian who bought him said to his wife: Give him an honorable abode, maybe he will be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son. And thus did We establish Yusuf in the land and that We might teach him the interpretation of sayings; and Allah is the master of His affair, but most people do not know
Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar   
One from Egypt who bought him said to his woman: Honor him as a guest with a place of lodging. Perhaps he will profit us or we will take him to ourselves as a son. And, thus, We established Joseph firmly in the earth that We teach him the interpretation of events. God is One Who is Victor over His command, except most of humanity knows not.
T.B.Irving   
The person from Egypt who [eventually] bought him told his wife: ´Let his stay here be dignified; perhaps he will benefit us or we´ll adopt him as a son." Thus We established Joseph in the land and taught him how to interpret events. God was Dominant in his affair, even though most men do not realize it.
Abdul Hye   
And he (the man) from Egypt who bought him, said to his wife: “Make his stay comfortable, may be that he will profit us or we shall adopt him as a son.” Thus We established Joseph in the land and arranged to teach him the interpretation of events. And Allah has full power and control over His Affairs, but most of the people don’t know
The Study Quran   
The man from Egypt who bought him said unto his wife, “Give him honorable accommodation. It may be that he will bring us some benefit, or that we may take him as a son.” And thus did We establish Joseph in the land, that We might teach him the interpretation of events. And God prevails over His affair, but most of mankind know not
Talal Itani & AI (2024)   
The Egyptian who purchased him told his wife, “Make his stay comfortable; perhaps he can benefit us, or we could adopt him as a son.” And so, We established Joseph in the land, and We taught him the interpretation of events. God’s command is always executed, but most people don’t know.
Talal Itani (2012)   
The Egyptian who bought him said to his wife, 'Take good care of him; he may be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son.' We thus established Joseph in the land, to teach him the interpretation of events. God has control over His affairs, but most people do not know
Dr. Kamal Omar   
And that who purchased him from (a place within) Egypt, said to his wife: “Make dignified his place of stay, may be he will profit us or we shall adopt him as a son.” And thus We established Yusuf in the land (of Egypt), and so that We may teach him the understanding of the Ahadees. And Allah is irresistible regarding His command (and Plan), but the majority of mankind do not know
M. Farook Malik   
The Egyptian who bought Joseph said to his wife: "Be kind to him. He may prove useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son." Thus We established Joseph in the land and arranged to teach him the understanding of affairs. Allah has full power over His affairs, though most people do not know
Muhammad Mahmoud Ghali   
And he who traded him, being of Misr, (Egypt) said to his wife, "Give him honorable lodging; it may be that he will profit us, or it may be that we take him to ourselves (as) a son." And thus, We established Yusuf (Joseph) in the land, and that We may teach him some of the interpretation of discourses. And Allah is Overcomer with (Literally: Over) His Command, but most men do not know
Muhammad Sarwar   
The Egyptian who bought him said to his wife, "Be kind to him, perhaps he will be of some benefit to us or we may adopt him." Thus, We settled Joseph in the land so that We could teach him the interpretation of dreams. God has full control over His affairs but most people do not know
Muhammad Taqi Usmani   
And the one who bought him from Egypt said to his wife, .Make his stay graceful. He may be useful for us. Or, we may adopt him as a son. And thus We established Yusuf in the land, so that We should teach him the interpretation of events. Allah is powerful in (enforcing) His command, but most of the people do not know
Shabbir Ahmed   
The one who bought him in Egypt said to his wife, "Receive him honorably. Take good care of him. May be he can help us or we can adopt him as a son." We, thus, established Joseph in Egypt and arranged for him proper education and training. He was gifted with a great insight into events. Allah's Command always prevails although most people won't understand the stages of cause and effect
Dr. Munir Munshey   
The one in Egypt who bought him, took him to his wife saying, "Take good care of him! He might bring us some benefits or we might adopt him as a son!" Thus, We provided a home for Yusuf in that land, so that We may teach him the interpretation of dreams and events. Allah has dominating controlis over His commands, but most people do not know
Syed Vickar Ahamed   
And he (the man) in Egypt who bought him, said to his wife: "Make his stay (respectful and) honorable: Maybe he will bring us a lot of good, or we shall make him an adopted-son." Like this We made a place for Yusuf (Joseph) in the land, so that We might teach him the interpretations (the true meaning) of the stories (and events). And Allah has full power and control on His affairs; But most of mankind do not know it
Umm Muhammad (Sahih International)   
And the one from Egypt who bought him said to his wife, "Make his residence comfortable. Perhaps he will benefit us, or we will adopt him as a son." And thus, We established Joseph in the land that We might teach him the interpretation of events. And Allah is predominant over His affair, but most of the people do not know
[The Monotheist Group] (2011 Edition)   
And the one from Egypt who bought him said to his wife: "Make his stay generous, perhaps he will benefit us or we may take him as a son." And it was thus that We established Joseph in the land and to teach him the interpretation of dreams. And God has full power over matters, but most of mankind do not know
Abdel Haleem   
The Egyptian who bought him said to his wife, ‘Look after him well! He may be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son.’ In this way We settled Joseph in that land and later taught him how to interpret dreams: God always prevails in His purpose, though most people do not realize it
Abdul Majid Daryabadi   
And he who bought him in Misr said unto his wife: make his dwelling honourable: belike he may profit us or we may take him as a son. And Thus We made a place for Yusuf in the land, and it was in order that We may teach him the interpretation of discourses. And Allah is Dominant in His purpose, but most of men know not
Ahmed Ali   
The Egyptian who bought him instructed his wife: "House him honourably. He may be of use to us. We may even adopt him as a son." So, We firmly established Joseph in the land, and taught him the interpretation of dreams. God dominated in his affairs, though most men do not know
Aisha Bewley   
The Egyptian who had bought him told his wife, ´Look after him with honour and respect. It´s possible he will be of use to us or perhaps we might adopt him as a son.´ And thus We established Yusuf in the land to teach him the true meaning of events. Allah is in control of His affair. However, most of mankind do not know.
Ali Ünal   
The man who bought him in Egypt said to his wife: "Give him honorable, good lodging. It may be that he will prove useful to us or we may adopt him as a son." Thus did We establish Joseph in the land (Egypt), that We would impart to him knowledge and understanding of the inner meaning of events, including dreams. God always prevails in whatever be His Will, but most people do not know (that it is so)
Ali Quli Qara'i   
The man from Egypt who had bought him said to his wife, ‘Give him an honourable place [in the household]. Maybe he will be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son.’ Thus We established Joseph in the land and that We might teach him the interpretation of dreams. Allah has [full] command of His affairs, but most people do not know
Hamid S. Aziz   
And the man from Egypt who had bought him said to his wife, "Make his stay with us honourable; it may be he will be of use to us, or we may adopt him as a son." Thus did We establish Joseph in the land that We might teach him the interpretation
Ali Bakhtiari Nejad   
And the one from Egypt who bought him told his wife: “Dignify his accommodation, perhaps he benefits us, or we adopt him as a son.” And that is how We established Joseph in the land and in order to teach him the interpretation of events (and dreams). God dominates over His affair, but most people do not know.
A.L. Bilal Muhammad et al (2018)   
The man in Egypt who bought him said to his wife, “Make his stay honorable. Maybe he will bring us much good, or we will take him as a son.” Thus did We establish Joseph in the land that We might teach him the interpretation of stories and events, and God has full power and control over His affairs, but most among humanity do not know
Musharraf Hussain   
The Egyptian who bought him said to his wife, “Look after him well. He could be useful to us, or else we could adopt him as a son.” That’s how We settled Yusuf in the land of Egypt, and taught him to interpret dreams; Allah had complete control of Yusuf ’s situation, but most people are ignorant.
Maududi   
The man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife: "Take good care of him, possibly he might be of benefit to us or we might adopt him as a son." Thus We found a way for Joseph to become established in that land and in order that We might teach him to comprehend the deeper meaning of things. Allah has full power to implement His design although most people do not know that
[The Monotheist Group] (2013 Edition)   
Andhe from Egypt who had bought him said to his wife: "Make his stay generous, perhaps he will benefit us or we may take him as a son." And it was thus that We established Joseph in the land and to teach him the interpretation of the narrations. And God has full control over his situation, but most of the people do not know.
Mohammad Shafi   
And the man from the city who bought him said to his wife, "Make his stay comfortable. Maybe he will be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son." And thus did We establish Joseph in the land and taught him the interpretation of events. And Allah is in complete control of what He does, but most people know not

Controversial or status undetermined works
Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelvi)   
And the man of Egypt who bought him said to his wife, 'keep him honorably, perchance he may profit us, or we may take him as son. And thus We established Yusuf in the land and in order that We may teach him to draw conclusions of the discourses. And Allah is Dominant over His affairs, but most men know not.
Rashad Khalifa   
The one who bought him in Egypt said to his wife, "Take good care of him. Maybe he can help us, or maybe we can adopt him." We thus established Joseph on earth, and we taught him the interpretation of dreams. GOD's command is always done, but most people do not know.
Hasan Al-Fatih Qaribullah   
The Egyptian that bought him said to his wife: 'Make his stay honorable. He may benefit us, or take him for our son. ' As such We established Joseph in the land, so that We might teach him the interpretation of visions. Allah prevails in His affairs, though most people do not know
Maulana Muhammad Ali   
And the Egyptian who bought him said to his wife: Make his stay honourable. Maybe he will be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son. And thus We established Joseph in the land, and that We might teach him the interpretation of saying. And Allah has full control over His affair, but most people know not
Muhammad Ahmed & Samira   
And said who bought him from (the) city/border/region/Egypt to/for his woman (wife): "Be generous/kind (in) his home/residence , perhaps he benefits us, or we take him (as) a child (son)." And like that, We highly positioned/secured to Joseph in the earth/Planet Earth, and to teach/instruct him from interpreting/explaining the information/speeches , and God (is) defeater/conqueror on His order/command/matter/affair, and but most (of) the people do not know
Bijan Moeinian   
The person who bought him in Egypt [was so enchanted with him that he] said to his wife: “Take good care of him; he may prove himself to be worthy of being adopted as our son.” This was the way that I set the stage for Joseph to get established and taught him the knowledge of unknown. God is in control but most people do not realize it
Faridul Haque   
And the Egyptian who purchased him said to his wife, "Keep him honourably - we may derive some benefit due to him or we may adopt him as our son"; and this is how we established Yusuf in the land, and that We might teach him how to interpret events; and Allah is Dominant upon His works, but most men do not know
Sher Ali   
And the man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife, `Make his stay among us honourable. Maybe we will benefit from him or we may adopt him as a son.' And thus did WE establish Joseph in the land, and WE did so that WE might also teach him the interpretation of things. And ALLAH has full power over HIS decree, but most men know not
Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri   
And the man in Egypt who purchased him (named Qatfir, the finance minister of the King of Egypt Riyan b. Walid, commonly known as ‘Aziz [of Egypt,]) said to his wife (Zulaykha): ‘Make his stay honourable. He may bring us profit, or we may adopt him as a son.’ Thus We established Yusuf (Joseph), and strengthened his position in the land (of Egypt), so that We might teach him how to infer from the events (i.e., the interpretation of dreams). And Allah is the Master of His work, but most people do not know
Amatul Rahman Omar   
And (Joseph was taken to Egypt and resold there;) the man from Egypt who bought him (from the travellers) said to his wife, `Make his stay honourable. He may prove useful to us or we may adopt him as a son.' In this way did We grant Joseph an honourable position in the country and (We did it) that We might impart to him knowledge of the interpretation of some (Divine) sayings. And Allah has full power over His decree, but most people do not know (this)
Muhsin Khan & Muhammad al-Hilali   
And he (the man) from Egypt who bought him, said to his wife: "Make his stay comfortable, may be he will profit us or we shall adopt him as a son." Thus did We establish Yoosuf (Joseph) in the land, that We might teach him the interpretation of events. And Allah has full power and control over His Affairs, but most of men know not

Non-Muslim and/or Orientalist works
Arthur John Arberry   
He that bought him, being of Egypt, said to his wife, 'Give him goodly lodging, and it may be that he will profit us, or we may take him for our own son.' So We established Joseph in the land, and that We might teach him the interpretation of tales. God prevails in His purpose, but most men know not
George Sale   
And the Egyptian who bought him said to his wife, use him honourably; peradventure he may be serviceable to us, or we may adopt him for our son. Thus did we prepare an establishment for Joseph in the earth, and we taught him the interpretation of dark sayings: For God is well able to effect his purpose; but the greater part of men do not understand
Edward Henry Palmer   
And the man from Egypt who had bought him said to his wife, 'Honour his abiding here; it may be he will be of use to us, or we may adopt him as a son.' Thus did we establish Joseph in the land; and we did surely teach him the interpretation of sayings; for God can overcome His affairs, though most men do not know
John Medows Rodwell   
And he who bought him - an Egyptian - said to his wife, "Treat him hospitably; haply he may be useful to us, or we may adopt him as a son." Thus did we settle Joseph in the land, and we instructed him in the interpretation of dark sayings, for God is equal to his purpose; but most men know it not
N J Dawood (2014)   
The Egyptian who bought him said to his wife: ‘Be kind to him. He may prove useful to us, or we may adopt him as our son. Thus We established Joseph in the land, and taught him to interpret dreams. God has power to accomplish His will, though most may not know it

New, Partial, or In Progress Translations
Fode Drame   
And the man who bought him in Egypt said to his wife, “Make his stay graceful perchance he will be of good use to us or we can adopt him as a son.” Thus We established Joseph in the land and so that We may teach him interpretation of the inspiration and Allah has dominion over His commandment but most people know not.
Munir Mezyed   
The man, who bought him was from Egypt, said to his wife: ‘Make his stay honorable. May be he will be beneficial to us, or we may adopt him to be our son.’ This is how We did establish Joseph in the land so as to teach him the interpretation of the events (i.e. dreams and visions). And Allâh has full power over His Affairs. But most of them don’t posses enough knowledge of the Truth.
Sahib Mustaqim Bleher   
And the one who bought him from Egypt said to his wife: look after him well. Perhaps he will benefit us or we will adopt him as a son. This is how We plotted for Yusuf (Joseph) on earth and in order to teach him of the interpretation of meanings, and Allah prevails in His affairs but most people don´t know.
Linda “iLHam” Barto   
A man in Egypt bought (Joseph). He said to his wife, “Make his stay comfortable. Maybe he will bring us a blessing, or maybe we will adopt him as a son.” That is how We established Joseph in that land. We began to teach him the interpretation of dreams. Allah has complete power over His affairs. Most people among humanity do not even realize it.
Fadel Soliman, Bridges‘ Translation   
Yet the man from Egypt who purchased him said to his wife, “Tend graciously to his dwelling; hopefully he may be useful to us, or we may take him as a son.” And thus We established Joseph in the land, and so that we might teach him of the interpretation of dreams. And Allah always prevails in His affairs, yet the majority of mankind does not know.
Irving & Mohamed Hegab   
The person from Egypt who [eventually] bought him told his wife: 'Let his stay here be dignified; perhaps he will benefit us or we'll adopt him as a son." Thus We established Joseph in the land and taught him how to interpret dreams. Allah (God) is Dominant in his affair, even though most people do not realize it.
Samy Mahdy   
And the one who purchased him from Egypt said to his woman, “Lionize his dwelling; perhaps he may benefit us, or we take him as a son.” And We thus enabled Joseph in the earth, and to teach him among the narrations’ interpretation. And Allah is an overcomer upon His command, but most of the people are not knowing.
Sayyid Qutb   
The man from Egypt who bought him said to his wife: Be kind to him. He may well be of use to us, or we may adopt him as our son.' Thus We established Joseph in the land, and We imparted to him some under- standing of the real meaning of statements. God always prevails in whatever be His purpose; though most people may not know it.
Ahmed Hulusi   
The Egyptian who bought him told his wife, “Look after him well... I hope he will benefit us, or maybe we will adopt him as a son”... And thus We established Joseph there, and taught him to READ the essence of life’s events... The command of Allah will prevail! But most of the people are not aware!
Sayyed Abbas Sadr-Ameli   
And he of Egypt who bought him said to his wife: 'Receive him honorably, maybe he will profit us, or we shall adopt him as a son. ' Thus did We establish Yusuf in the land, and that We might teach him the interpretation of tales(dreams). And Allah is predominant over His affair; but most people do not know.
Al-muntakhab fi tafsir al-Qur‘an al-Karim   
Being divinely gifted with the letter of credit nature has written upon his face honoured wherever presented, he was outbid in the slave market by a high court Egyptian official (AZIZ) who said to his wife: " Treat him kindly and with honour and respect to enjoy his stay; he may prove useful to us and helpful in effecting a purpose, or we may adopt him as a son." Thus did We establish him firmly in the land, wherefore We imparted to him the knowledge of interpreting visions and sense impressions in sleep and what they prefigure of future events. Allah prevails upon His edict which inevitably produces its intended effect and answers its purpose, but most people do not realize this fact
Mir Aneesuddin   
And the Egyptian who purchased him said to his wife, “Give him an honourable home, may be he will be profitable to us or we may take him (as an adopted) son.” And thus We established Yusuf in the land that We may teach him the interpretation of events. And Allah is Dominating in His affair but the majority of mankind does not know.

Obsolete and/or older editions
Yusuf Ali (Orig. 1938)   
The man in Egypt who bought him, said to his wife: "Make his stay (among us) honourable: may be he will bring us much good, or we shall adopt him as a son." Thus did We establish Joseph in the land, that We might teach him the interpretation of stories (and events). And God hath full power and control over His affairs; but most among mankind know it not
OLD Literal Word for Word   
And said the one who bought him of Egypt to his wife, "Make comfortable his stay. Perhaps that (he) will benefit us or we will take him (as) a son." And thus We established Yusuf in the land that We might teach him (the) interpretation of the events. And Allah (is) Predominant over His affairs, but most (of) the people (do) not know
OLD Transliteration   
Waqala allathee ishtarahu min misra liimraatihi akrimee mathwahu AAasa an yanfaAAana aw nattakhithahu waladan wakathalika makkanna liyoosufa fee al-ardi walinuAAallimahu min ta/weeli al-ahadeethi waAllahu ghalibun AAala amrihi walakinna akthara alnnasi la yaAAlamoona