قَالُوا يَا أَبَانَا مَا لَكَ لَا تَأْمَنَّا عَلَى يُوسُفَ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَنَاصِحُونَ ﴿۱۱﴾ أَرْسِلْهُ مَعَنَا غَدًا يَرْتَعْ وَيَلْعَبْ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ ﴿۱۲﴾ قَالَ إِنِّي لَيَحْزُنُنِي أَنْ تَذْهَبُوا بِهِ وَأَخَافُ أَنْ يَأْكُلَهُ الذِّئْبُ وَأَنْتُمْ عَنْهُ غَافِلُونَ ﴿۱۳﴾ قَالُوا لَئِنْ أَكَلَهُ الذِّئْبُ وَنَحْنُ عُصْبَةٌ إِنَّا إِذًا لَخَاسِرُونَ ﴿۱۴﴾

﴾11﴿ Qaaloo yaaa abaanaa maa laka laa ta'mannaa 'alaa Yoosufa wa innaa lahoo lanaa sihoon
﴾12﴿ Arsillhu ma'anaa ghadany yarta' wa yal'ab wa innaa lahoo la haafizoon
﴾13﴿ Qaala innee la yahzununeee an tazhaboo bihee wa akhaafu any ya'kulahuz zi'bu wa antum 'anhu ghaafiloon
﴾14﴿ Qaaloo la in akalahuzzi'bu wa nahnu 'usbatun innaaa izal lakhaasiroon

﴾11﴿ They said, 'O our father, why do you not trust us concerning Joseph, while indeed we are his well-wishers
﴾12﴿ Send him with us tomorrow so that he may eat, play, and surely, we will watch over him
﴾13﴿ He said, Indeed, you make me sorrowful by taking him away from me, and I fear that a wolf might devour him while you are unaware of him
﴾14﴿ They said, if a wolf devours him, while we are a united group, surely at that time we would be among the losers

[11] In this verse, their deception in front of their father is described. The phrase (wa innā lahu lanaāṣiḥūn)—“and indeed, we are sincere advisers to him”—indicates that they were truly lying, which is why they emphasized their sincerity so much. This is evidence that envy prepares a person to lie.
Ibn Ishaq stated that their action involved many sins: severing family ties, disobeying their father, lacking compassion for the younger one, betraying a trust, breaking a promise, lying—and all of these were the result of envy.
[12] In this verse, the brothers request from their father to take Yusuf (peace be upon him) to the desert. The word (yal‘ab)—“so he may play”—indicates that playing for recreation is permissible in Shari‘ah.
Within this deception lies their scheme to achieve their hidden goal. The phrase (wa innā lahu laḥāfiẓūn)—“and indeed, we will surely protect him”—is also a lie, and they make this promise with the intention of deceiving their father.
[13] In this verse, the sorrow of Ya‘qub (peace be upon him) over the separation from Yusuf (peace be upon him) is mentioned, as well as his fear for Yusuf’s possible destruction, specifically the possibility that a wolf might devour him—since wolves are common in the wilderness.
This is evidence that even prophets (peace be upon them) experience worldly fear and sorrow, and these emotions occur through natural causes and means.
[14] In this verse, the brothers of Yusuf (peace be upon him) emphasize their ability to protect him. This is a second response to the statement of Ya‘qub (peace be upon him); the first concern—rooted in their envy and anger—was not directly answered.
(‘uṣbah) refers to a strong group, typically of at least ten people, and they were ten excluding Binyamin.
In (lakhāsirūn)—“surely we would be losers”—they imply: “We herd goats and sheep in the desert and defend them from wolves, so how could we fail to protect a child?” But the truth is, they could indeed prevent harm from a wolf, yet they themselves were the greater threat to their brother.