قَالُوا تَاللَّهِ تَفْتَأُ تَذْكُرُ يُوسُفَ حَتَّى تَكُونَ حَرَضًا أَوْ تَكُونَ مِنَ الْهَالِكِينَ ﴿۸۵﴾ قَالَ إِنَّمَا أَشْكُو بَثِّي وَحُزْنِي إِلَى اللَّهِ وَأَعْلَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ ﴿۸۶﴾ يَا بَنِيَّ اذْهَبُوا فَتَحَسَّسُوا مِنْ يُوسُفَ وَأَخِيهِ وَلَا تَيْأَسُوا مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَا يَيْأَسُ مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكَافِرُونَ ﴿۸۷﴾ يَا بَنِيَّ اذْهَبُوا فَتَحَسَّسُوا مِنْ يُوسُفَ وَأَخِيهِ وَلَا تَيْأَسُوا مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَا يَيْأَسُ مِنْ رَوْحِ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْكَافِرُونَ ﴿۸۷﴾

﴾85﴿ Qaaloo tallaahi tafta'u tazkuru Yoosufa hattaa takoona haradan aw takoona minal haalikeen
﴾86﴿ Qaala innamaaa ashkoo bassee wa huzneee ilal laahi wa a'lamu minal laahi maa laa ta'lamoon
﴾87﴿ Yaa baniyyaz haboo fatahassasoo miny Yoosufa wa akheehi wa laa tai'asoo mir rawhil laahi innahoo laa yai'asu mir rawhil laahi illal qawmul kaafiroon
﴾88﴿ Falammaa dakhaloo 'alaihi qaaloo yaaa ayyuhal 'Azeezu massanaa wa ahlanad durru wa ji'naa bi bidaa 'im muzjaatin fa awfi lanal kaila wa tasaddaq 'alainaa innal laaha yajzil mutasaddiqeen

﴾85﴿ They said, By Allah, you will not cease to remember Yusuf (Joseph) until you become ill or you are among the dead
﴾86﴿ He said, I only reveal my sorrow and grief to Allah, the Exalted, and I know from Allah that which you do not know
﴾87﴿ O my sons, go and search earnestly for Yusuf (Joseph, peace be upon him) and his brother, and do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, no one despairs of the mercy of Allah except the disbelieving people
﴾88﴿ So when they entered upon him, they said, O mighty one, hardship has befallen us and our family, and we have brought a small amount of wealth. So give us full measure and be charitable to us. Indeed, Allah rewards those who are charitable

[85] This shows the compassion of the sons toward their father — that he should not fall ill or die from grief.
This is not jealousy over the mention of Yusuf (peace be upon him), because they had already repented.
In the word (تَفْتَأُ), there is an omitted "lā" (negation), and it carries the meaning of constancy — meaning: "you will never cease."
(حَرَضًا) refers to a person who becomes physically weak and close to death due to grief or illness.
[86] This is evidence that expressing sorrow to Allah Most High is the tradition of the prophets.
(بَثِّي) refers to intense grief — the kind that spreads and becomes known involuntarily. This word alludes to the sorrow over Yusuf (peace be upon him),
while (حُزْنِي) points to the separation from Binyamin.
"And I know from Allah what you do not know" — this refers either to the interpretation of Yusuf’s (peace be upon him) dream, which indicates their reunion,
or to the certainty in the acceptance of a humble and desperate supplication to Allah Most High.
[87] (تَحَسَّسُ) means to seek something using the senses, and it is mostly used in the context of good.
(تَجَسَّسُ) means to seek something secretly, and it is mostly used in the context of evil.
This verse is proof that despairing of the mercy of Allah Most High is an act of disbelief (kufr).
Further clarification on this matter is found in verse 56 of Surah Al-Hijr.
[88] From this verse up to verse 93 is the tenth section, in which the following events are mentioned: the third arrival of Yusuf’s (peace be upon him) brothers in Egypt, their request for assistance from the ‘Aziz of Egypt (Yusuf, peace be upon him), their recognition of him, their confession of his virtue and of their own wrongdoing, his forgiveness of them, and finally, his sending of a shirt to their father as a means of comfort.
In verse 88, there is proof that complaining to people is permissible in times of extreme hardship — but patience is still better.
(مُزْجَاةٍ) means something that is pushed away or insignificant; here, it refers to a small amount — not that it is counterfeit. Counterfeit items aren’t typically accepted in fair transactions, so that interpretation isn’t valid.
(فَأَوْفِ) — the meaning here is: give us the same measure of grain that you previously gave, even though we bring little money. This request for kindness is what they called "charity" (تَصَدُّق), referring to leniency in price.
Because they saw Yusuf’s (peace be upon him) actions reflecting the traits of a believer, they said: "Indeed, Allah rewards the charitable."
Benefit: Charity (تَصَدُّق) may be asked from someone who is in need of reward. However, this is why some scholars like Hasan and Mujahid considered it disliked (makrūh) to ask Allah with the words: “O Allah, give charity to me” (اللهم تصدق علي).
Even though Ibn Kathir and Ibn Jarir have narrated this, it is objected to — because a hadith does mention: “Charity that Allah has given you.” (صدقة تصدق الله بها عليكم) — implying that such wording can be acceptable in certain contexts.