Exegesis of the Qur'an by the later scholars

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If one of the later scholars interprets Qur'anic verses with other verses, and his interpretation is convincing and compelling, do we reject his interpretation because the Salaf had an interpretation that differed from this?
If the later scholars interpret a verse with an interpretation that the earlier scholars did not address, and it does not contradict [the established understanding], then it is accepted. For example, the interpretation of many verses concerning the natural world with what has now been established, which was previously unknown.
However, if it contradicts what the Salaf held in a clear manner, such as interpreting (al-istiwaa' on the Throne) as (al-istiwlaa' on the Throne), then this must be rejected, and it is not permissible to accept it.

The questioner: The interpretation was in Surat Yusuf regarding Yusuf (peace be upon him),Where the Salaf said: that he was the minister of finance,And the contemporaries said: that he was not the minister of finance but rather the king or al-Aziz.

The Shaykh: As for al-Aziz, he is not al-Aziz;Because Allah said:

The wife of al-Aziz said

قَالَتْ امْرَأَةُ الْعَزِيزِ

[Yusuf:51] .

The questioner: But he became al-Aziz later on.

The Shaykh: Perhaps, so the question is whether he was a king or merely the minister of finance,If we look at His saying, the Exalted:

[Joseph] said, "Appoint me over the storehouses of the land. Indeed, I will be a knowing guardian."

قَالَ اجْعَلْنِي عَلَى خَزَائِنِ الأَرْضِ إِنِّي حَفِيظٌ عَلِيمٌ

[Yusuf:55] ,We said: that he is the minister of finance.

And if we look at the king's saying:

Bring him to me; I will appoint him exclusively for myself.

ائْتُونِي بِهِ أَسْتَخْلِصْهُ لِنَفْسِي

[Yusuf:54] We said: he is also a special advisor.

And if we look at his actions later on:

And [Joseph] said to his servants, "Put their merchandise into their saddlebags

وَقَالَ لِفِتْيَانِهِ اجْعَلُواْ بِضَاعَتَهُمْ فِي رِحَالِهِمْ

[Yusuf:62] , and similar actions,We said: perhaps in the end he became the king, either by the death of al-Aziz, or by his relinquishing the kingship, and Allah knows best.

The questioner: Excuse me, Shaykh! When he said:

Appoint me over the treasuries of the land

اجْعَلْنِي عَلَى خَزَائِنِ الأَرْضِ

[Yusuf:55] this contemporary exegete argued that the treasuries are: the supreme authority, and he cited many verses,Among them:

And to Allah belong the treasuries of the heavens and the earth

وَلِلَّهِ خَزَائِنُ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ

[Al-Munafiqun:7] ,

And there is not a thing but that with Us are its depositories

وَإِنْ مِنْ شَيْءٍ إِلَاّ عِنْدَنَا خَزَائِنُهُ

[Al-Hijr:21] so he argued that it is the supreme authority, and not merely the ministry of finance.

The Shaykh: This is an error on his part;Because His saying:

The treasuries of the heavens and the earth

خَزَائِنُ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ

[Al-Munafiqun:7] is a possessive and a possessed, and the possessive is not the same as the possessed, so the heavens are one thing, and their treasuries are another.

And his statement:

And there is not a thing but that with Us are its depositories

وَإِنْ مِنْ شَيْءٍ إِلَاّ عِنْدَنَا خَزَائِنُهُ

[Al-Hijr:21] is the same thing, so the possessive and the possessed are two different things.

Source shamela.ws

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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