Yusuf said, `Take this shirt of mine,

[فَأَلْقُوهُ عَلَى وَجْهِ أَبِى يَأْتِ بَصِيرًا]

(and cast it over the face of my father, his vision will return),' because Ya`qub had lost his sight from excessive crying,

[وَأْتُونِى بِأَهْلِكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ]

(and bring to me all your family.) all the children of Ya`qub.

[وَلَمَّا فَصَلَتِ الْعِيرُ]

(And when the caravan departed) from Egypt,

[قَالَ أَبُوهُمْ]

(their father said...), Ya`qub, peace be upon him, said to the children who remained with him,

[إِنِّى لأَجِدُ رِيحَ يُوسُفَ لَوْلاَ أَن تُفَنِّدُونِ]

`(I do indeed feel the smell of Yusuf, if only you think me not senile.), except that you might think me senile because of old age.' `Abdur-Razzaq narrated that Ibn `Abbas said, "When the caravan departed [from Egypt], a wind started blowing and brought the scent of Yusuf's shirt to Ya`qub. He said,

[إِنِّى لأَجِدُ رِيحَ يُوسُفَ لَوْلاَ أَن تُفَنِّدُونِ]

(I do indeed feel the smell of Yusuf , if only you think me not senile.) He found his scent from a distance of eight days away!'' Similar was also reported through Sufyan Ath-Thawri and Shu`bah and others reported it from Abu Sinan. Ya`qub said to them,

[لَوْلاَ أَن تُفَنِّدُونِ]

(if only you think me not senile.) Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, `Ata, Qatadah and Sa'id bin Jubayr commented, "If only you think me not a fool!'' Mujahid and Al-Hasan said that it means, "If only you think me not old.'' Their answer to him was,

[إِنَّكَ لَفِى ضَلَـلِكَ الْقَدِيمِ]

(Certainly, you are in your old Dalal.) meaning, `in your old error,' according to Ibn `Abbas. Qatadah commented, "They meant that, `because of your love for Yusuf you will never forget him.' So they uttered a harsh word to their father that they should never have uttered to him, nor to a Prophet of Allah.'' Similar was said by As-Suddi and others.

[فَلَمَّآ أَن جَآءَ الْبَشِيرُ أَلْقَاهُ عَلَى وَجْهِهِ فَارْتَدَّ بَصِيرًا قَالَ أَلَمْ أَقُلْ لَّكُمْ إِنِّى أَعْلَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ مَا لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ - قَالُواْ يأَبَانَا اسْتَغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَآ إِنَّا كُنَّا خَـطِئِينَ - قَالَ سَوْفَ أَسْتَغْفِرُ لَكُمْ رَبِّى إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ ]

(96. Then, when the bearer of the good news arrived, he cast it (the shirt) over his face, and his vision returned. He said: "Did I not say to you, `I know from Allah that which you know not''') (97. They said: "O our father! Ask forgiveness (from Allah) for our sins, indeed we have been sinners.'') (98. He said: "I will ask my Lord for forgiveness for you, verily, He! Only He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.'')