وَلَمَّا دَخَلُوا۟ مِنْ حَيْثُ أَمَرَهُمْ أَبُوهُم مَّا كَانَ يُغْنِى عَنْهُم مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ مِن شَىْءٍ إِلَّا حَاجَةً فِى نَفْسِ يَعْقُوبَ قَضَىٰهَا وَإِنَّهُۥ لَذُو عِلْمٍ لِّمَا عَلَّمْنَٰهُ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ
“And when they entered in the manner which their father had enjoined, it would have naught availed them as against Allah; it was but a need of Jacob's soul which he thus satisfied; and lo! he was a lord of knowledge because We had taught him; but most of mankind know not.” — M. M. Pickthall
Taberî transmits that the reason Ya'kub told his sons to enter the city from different gates was for their protection against the evil eye (nazar); this occurred as a decree that Allah had predetermined concerning them. He also transmits two views regarding the phrase 'lezû ilm': one is that Ya'kub possessed the knowledge that was taught to him, and the other is that he was a person who acted according to what he knew.
خشية العين عليهمZemahşerî connects this phrase to Ya'kub's recommendation that his sons enter not together but dispersed/through separate gates; despite their dispersed entry, he points out that evil things befell them such as being accused of theft, disgrace, and the arrest of their brothers when the cup was found in the beast of burden. He interprets the exception clause as a munkatı' (severed) exception; according to this, the phrase 'illâ hâceten' means Ya'kub's compassion for his sons and his demonstration of this compassion through the advice he gave them.
استثناء منقطع . على معنى : ولكن حاجة وهي شفقته عليهم وإظهارها بما قاله لهم ووصاهم به يعني قولهAccording to this exegete, the exception in the verse is a munkatı' exception according to Zeccâj's view; that is, Ya'kub's request to send his sons through different gates was for the purpose of fulfilling a need within himself. Various interpretations close to one another have been transmitted regarding what this need was, such as fear of the evil eye, the envy of the Egyptians, the possibility of the Egyptian ruler harming them, and fear of them not returning. Furthermore, according to Vâhidî's view, the letter 'ما' in the phrase 'مما علمناه' can be interpreted as masdariyya or ism-i mevsûl, and this leads to different interpretations regarding the source of Ya'kub's knowledge.
فقال الزجاج : إنه استثناء منقطع ، والمعنى : لكن حاجة في نفس يعقوب قضاها ، يعني أن الدخول على صفة التفرق قضاء حاجة في نفس يعقوب قضاهاAccording to Kurtubî, Ya'kub's command to his sons to enter the city from different gates is an exhortation based on his own opinion; Mujâhid cited fear of the evil eye ('ayn) as the reason, while some later scholars stated that it was feared that the Egyptian king or his officials would harm them out of jealousy or apprehension upon seeing their number and strength. Nahhas preferred this second view and said that the interpretation of 'ayn' (nazar) had no meaning here. Furthermore, from this verse the ruling has been drawn that a Muslim must protect his brother from things that could harm him and show him the way to salvation.
قال مجاهد : خشية العين وقد تقدم القول فيه وقيل : لئلا يرى الملك عددهم وقوتهم فيبطش بهم حسدا أو حذرا قاله بعض المتأخرين واختاره النحاس وقال : ولا معنى للعين ها هناAccording to this exegete, the text transmits the view that explains the reason Ya'kub told his sons to enter the city from different gates as protection from the evil eye/nazar, and also conveys that the phrase 'lezû ilm' is interpreted as 'a person possessing knowledge that was taught to him' or 'a person possessing the knowledge that we taught him.'
قالوا هي دفع إصابة العين لهم قال قتادة والثوري لذو علم يعلمه وقال ابن جرير لذو علم لتعليمنا إياهAccording to Beydâvî, Ya'kub advised his sons to enter not from a single gate but from different gates because he feared that they would be struck by the evil eye in Egypt due to their beauty and fame. This precaution was given for the purpose of alleviating a concern within his soul (his compassion and desire for protection); however, he knew that he did not have the power to change Allah's decree, for precaution does not prevent fate. Ya'kub's foresight is due to the knowledge and revelation granted to him, but most people do not know the secret of fate.
وما أغني عنكم من الله من شيء مما قضى عليكم بما أشرت به إليكم فإن الحذر لا يمنع القدر.Common ground
Most of the exegetes (Taberî, Kurtubî—from Mujâhid—, Ibn Kesîr, Beydâvî) connect Ya'kub's recommendation to his sons to enter from different gates with fear of the evil eye/nazar. Furthermore, there is linguistic agreement among Zemahşerî, Râzî, and Beydâvî that the exception clause ('illâ hâceten) is a munkatı' (severed) exception and that it is directed toward alleviating a concern or need within Ya'kub himself.
Differences
In Kurtubî, Nahhas finds the nazar interpretation weak and prefers the view of apprehending the Egyptian administration's jealousy/possibility of harm; Râzî, on the other hand, lists multiple possibilities side by side such as the evil eye, the envy of the Egyptians, the malice of the ruler, and fear of not returning. These differences arise partly from the difference in method between transmission-based (Mujâhid, Katâda) and language/rhetoric-focused (Zemahşerî, Râzî, Beydâvî) approaches. The phrase 'lezû ilm' is interpreted in two ways in Taberî and Ibn Kesîr as Ya'kub possessing taught knowledge or acting according to what he knew, while Râzî addresses this from a linguistic perspective (the masdariyya/mevsûl nature of the letter 'ما').
Historical context
Early exegetes (Taberî, Ibn Kesîr) relied more on transmission chains (Mujâhid, Katâda, Sawrî), while in later periods (Zemahşerî, Râzî, Beydâvî) linguistic and rhetorical analysis (type of exception, i'rab possibilities) came to the fore; Kurtubî combined transmission with the interpretation of later scholars and drew a juridical conclusion. While the basic reading (fear of the evil eye) remained fixed, the method of justifying the interpretation evolved from transmission toward linguistic analysis.
This verse reminds us that even when a senior figure takes precautions for those dear to him, he ultimately leaves the outcome to divine decree, that is, he balances prudent action with submission. The effort to protect one's brother/loved one from possible harm and show him the right path can be considered, in contemporary times, as a moderate example for social solidarity and mutual responsibility consciousness. Furthermore, the mention of knowledge and precaution together serves as a brief reminder of the importance of possessing knowledge being combined with prudent and cautious conduct.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar