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Wisdom from Quran


Joseph, a case study


Why does God condemn adultery ?


         [17:32] You shall not commit adultery; it is a gross sin, and an evil behavior.

No violence is involved!, and the two parties are fully in agreement on the action they are doing, moreover they are not harming others directly while doing it ? this is Satan's argument, let's consider this example of Joseph that God teaches us in Quran.

Joseph's story is composed of two parts:

The first part talks about the jealousy that lead his brothers to throw him into a well because they thought that his father favoured him on them. Hatred and violence in this world is but a replay of the first important scene in history, when Satan said to God " I am better than he", Satan thought God favored Adam over him, and therefore he is doing everything he can in this world to destroy and take revenge from the human being.

Joseph's brothers said:

[12:8] They said, "Joseph and his brother are favored by our father, and we are in the majority. Indeed, our father is far astray.
Satan said before them:

[17:62] He said, "Since You have honored him over me, if You respite me till the Day of Resurrection, I will possess all his descendants, except a few."



In this article however we focus on a different part of his story, what happened between him and the wife of the governor of Egypt who bought him from the traders who found him in the well.

[12:21] 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.
[12:22] When he reached maturity, we endowed him with wisdom and knowledge. We thus reward the righteous.

[12:23] The lady of the house where he lived tried to seduce him.
 She closed the doors and said, "I am all yours."
He said, "May GOD protect me.
 He is my Lord, who gave me a good home.
The transgressors never succeed."

[12:24] She almost succumbed to him, and he almost succumbed to her, if it were not that he saw a proof from his Lord.
We thus diverted evil and sin away from him, for he was one of our devoted servants.

[12:25] The two of them raced towards the door, and, in the process, she tore his garment from the back. They found her husband at the door. She said, "What should be the punishment for one who wanted to molest your wife, except imprisonment or a painful punishment?"

[12:26] He said, "She is the one who tried to seduce me." A witness from her family suggested: "If his garment is torn from the front, then she is telling the truth and he is a liar.

[12:27] "And if his garment is torn from the back, then she lied, and he is telling the truth."

[12:28] When her husband saw that his garment was torn from the back, he said, "This is a woman's scheme. Indeed, your scheming is formidable.

[12:29] "Joseph, disregard this incident. As for you (my wife), you should seek forgiveness for your sin. You have committed an error."

[12:30] Some women in the city gossiped: "The governor's wife is trying to seduce her servant. She is deeply in love with him. We see that she has gone astray."

[12:31] When she heard of their gossip, she invited them, prepared for them a comfortable place, and gave each of them a knife. She then said to him, "Enter their room." When they saw him, they so admired him, that they cut their hands. They said, "Glory be to GOD, this is not a human being; this is an honorable angel."

[12:32] She said, "This is the one you blamed me for falling in love with. I did indeed try to seduce him, and he refused. Unless he does what I command him to do, he will surely go to prison, and will be debased."

[12:33] He said, "My Lord, the prison is better than giving in to them. Unless You divert their scheming from me, I may desire them and behave like the ignorant ones."

[12:34] His Lord answered his prayer and diverted their scheming from him. He is the Hearer, the Omniscient.


From the above verses, we may learn very important lessons:


1- Joseph on being seduced said: "May GOD protect me. He is my Lord, who gave me a good home. The transgressors never succeed.". Joseph at this moment of truth, remembered immediately the real source of everything, God.

Joseph acknowledged the fact that it was God and not the governer who provided him with a good home to stay in. On remembering this important fact, Joseph knew that only God can provide the real thing, thus adultery wouldn't benefit him in the least, on the contrary it would set him on a road of never ending thirst and dissatisfaction, God illustrates this condition in the following verse:

[24:39] As for those who disbelieve, their works are like a mirage in the desert. A thirsty person thinks that it is water. But when he reaches it, he finds that it is nothing, and he finds GOD there instead, to requite him fully for his works. GOD is the most efficient reckoner.

Why is that? because God put a system that insures satisfaction and perfect happiness for his servants, this system is marriage, a system that secures a balanced society, full of warmth and compassion from every member in the family towards other members, and from every family towards other families in the society.

Satan knows that the family is the main pocket of resistance to his agenda, he wants to destroy the family by spreading adultery (dating!), homosexuality, and pornography, things that are void of any meaning or feeling. Transgression begins when we think that things in themselves can give us satisfaction and happiness, and not God.
Nothing can give us anything without God's permission, and God's permission is given only when we follow His system.


2- (She almost succumbed to him, and he almost succumbed to her, if it were not that he saw a proof from his Lord.)

Joseph was reminded by a proof that he saw from His Lord, these days we have a new reminder similar to that of Joseph's, a reminder that reminds us of God when we are about to sin, and also strengthens our hearts when we are on the straight path, this reminder is discussed in the section of (Miracle of 19).


3- ("My Lord, the prison is better than giving in to them. Unless You divert their scheming from me, I may desire them and behave like the ignorant ones.")

Again Joseph acknowledges the fact that ignorance is the state of not recognizing that only God can provide and not the things and people themselves.

 Joseph said the physical prison is better than GIVING IN to them, because giving in to them, will actually throw him into a spiritual prison with Satan himself as its master. Satan uses things and people as magnets to attract and enslave the human being under his command, he wants to control us all, and by means of things and people, he may establish a bond between us and these material things and people to the extent that we become driven, not in control of our minds and souls, and consequently Satan can keep destroying us and others and advance his evil agenda without any fear of resistance.

Anytime you say YES to Satan and his evil, you are actually saying NO to righteousness and God. Remember how many times you wasted precious moments of your life on self indulging and satisfying your lusts by things and people who are void of any real power to grant you anything?, usually addicts report feeling DRIVEN when they are indulging in their addictions, are you one of these people?. If you are, know that Satan has no power whatsoever over you, his power is limited to inviting you, you give him control over you by accepting his invitation.

[14:22] And the devil will say, after the judgment had been issued, "GOD has promised you the truthful promise, and I promised you, but I broke my promise. I had no power over you; I simply invited you, and you accepted my invitation. Therefore, do not blame me, and blame only yourselves. My complaining cannot help you, nor can your complaining help me. I have disbelieved in your idolizing me. The transgressors have incurred a painful retribution."

Nobody is actually driven or controlled, you are totally FREE to accept or refuse the devil's invitation to idolize things and people. If you believe this message, you will start saying NO to whispers of sinful lusts, you will start excercising your God given right of Free Will, once you reclaim your free will, everything will start working again for you, and you will be showered with the real blessings from God.

[79:40] As for the one who reverenced the majesty of his Lord, and enjoined the self from sinful lusts.
[79:41] Paradise will be the abode.

Isn't it time to wake up from the illusion, and recognize that only God can grant you the real thing?. Adultery, sexual transgression and pornography are but distractions that Satan uses to drive us away from God, and from the REAL system, the only system that has the Meaning component, which is the component missing from Satan's kingdom.

The meaning, which God grants us when we follow His system of marriage is Love and contentment, things that no money can buy because it belongs to God and only God can provide us with.

[5:5] Today, all good food is made lawful for you. The food of the people of the scripture is lawful for you, and your food is lawful for them. Also, you may marry the chaste women among the believers, as well as the chaste women among the followers of previous scripture, provided you pay them their due dowries. You shall maintain chastity, not committing adultery, nor taking secret lovers. Anyone who rejects faith, all his work will be in vain, and in the Hereafter he will be with the losers.




Love, what money can't buy, only God can provide:

[30:21] Among His proofs is that He created for you spouses from among yourselves, in order to have tranquility and contentment with each other, and He placed in your hearts love and care towards your spouses. In this, there are sufficient proofs for people who think.


Conclusion:

By following Satan's system and pursuing the illusion (Adultery, homosexuality, pornography...etc), we are actually bringing ourselves psychological (dissatisfaction) and physical (disease) misery because of relating the power to things and people and making them ends in themselves thus idolizing them instead of worshiping God alone. On the other hand, if we believe that only God has the power to provide us with the real thing, the real meaning, and follow God's system of marriage, we will have what we wish for in this life and in the hereafter as well, perfect happiness as per God's promise.

[5:100] Proclaim: "The bad and the good are not the same, even if the abundance of the bad may impress you. You shall reverence GOD, (even if you are in the minority) O you who possess intelligence, that you may succeed."

[10:62] Absolutely, GOD's allies have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve.
[10:63] They are those who believe and lead a righteous life.
[10:64] For them, joy and happiness in this world, as well as in the Hereafter. This is GOD's unchangeable law. Such is the greatest triumph.