Quran Universe
12:23

وَرَٰوَدَتۡهُ ٱلَّتِي هُوَ فِي بَيۡتِهَا عَن نَّفۡسِهِۦ وَغَلَّقَتِ ٱلۡأَبۡوَٰبَ وَقَالَتۡ هَيۡتَ لَكَۚ قَالَ مَعَاذَ ٱللَّهِۖ إِنَّهُۥ رَبِّيٓ أَحۡسَنَ مَثۡوَايَۖ إِنَّهُۥ لَا يُفۡلِحُ ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ

Warawadathu allatee huwa fee baytiha AAan nafsihi waghallaqati alabwaba waqalat hayta laka qala maAAatha Allahi innahu rabbee ahsana mathwaya innahu la yuflihu alththalimoona

And she, in whose house he was, sought to seduce him. She closed the doors and said, "Come, you." He said, "[I seek] the refuge of Allah. Indeed, he is my master, who has made good my residence. Indeed, wrongdoers will not succeed."

Word by word
  1. وَرَٰوَدَتۡهُAnd sought to seduce him
  2. ٱلَّتِيshe who
  3. هُوَhe (was)
  4. فِيin
  5. بَيۡتِهَاher house
  6. عَنfrom
  7. نَّفۡسِهِۦhis self
  8. وَغَلَّقَتِAnd she closed
  9. ٱلۡأَبۡوَٰبَthe doors
  10. وَقَالَتۡand she said
  11. هَيۡتَCome on
  12. لَكَۚyou
  13. قَالَHe said
  14. مَعَاذَI seek refuge in Allah
  15. ٱللَّهِۖI seek refuge in Allah
  16. إِنَّهُۥIndeed,he
  17. رَبِّيٓ(is) my lord
  18. أَحۡسَنَ(who has) made good
  19. مَثۡوَايَۖmy stay
  20. إِنَّهُۥIndeed
  21. لَاnot
  22. يُفۡلِحُwill succeed
  23. ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَthe wrongdoers
Yusuf · 12:23Makkah

Doors closed, she called. He said, I seek refuge in Allah.

Saying no when everything is set up for yes

The room
doors closedno one to see
come, youthe invitation
he answers
refuge in Allahfirst words
His two reasons
my master was kindI will not betray him
wrongdoers failit leads nowhere good

The wife of the Aziz, in whose house he lived, closed the doors and called him to herself. His first words were I seek refuge in Allah. Then he said her husband had treated him well and he would never betray him.

A private message late at night. A hotel on a work trip. A door that locks and a phone that nobody checks. The first move is to turn to Allah, the second is to remember who trusts you.

No one would ever know, so it would not really hurt anyone.

Allah knows, and the people who trust me matter even when they cannot see.

Try this

Pick a short phrase, like audhu billah, to say the moment temptation knocks.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir

And she, in whose house he was, sought to seduce him (to do an evil act), and she closed the doors and said: "Come on, O you." He said: "I seek refuge in Allah! Truly, he is my Rabb! He made my living in a great comfort! Verily, the wrongdoers will never be successful. (23)

Wife of the 'Aziz loves Yusuf and plots against Him

Allah states that the wife of the 'Aziz of Egypt, in whose house Yusuf resided and whose husband recommended that she takes care of him and be generous to him, tried to seduce Yusuf! She called him to do an evil act with her, because she loved him very much. Yusuf was very handsome, filled with manhood and beauty. She beautified herself for him, closed the doors and called him,

وَقَالَتْ هَيْتَ لَكَ

(and (she) said: "Come on, O you.") But he categorically refused her call,

قَالَ مَعَاذَ اللَّهِ ۖ إِنَّهُ رَبِّي أَحْسَنَ مَثْوَايَ

(He said: "I seek refuge in Allah! Truly, he is my Rabb! He made my living in a great comfort!") as they used to call the chief and master a 'Rabb', Yusuf said to her, 'your husband is my master who provided me with comfortable living and was kind to me, so I will never betray him by committing immoral sins with his wife,'

إِنَّهُ لَا يُفْلِحُ الظَّالِمُونَ

(Verily, the wrongdoers will never be successful.) This was said by Mujahid, As-Suddi, Muhammad bin Ishaq and several others. The scholars differ in their recitation of,

هَيْتَ لَكَ

(Hayta Laka), whereby Ibn 'Abbas, Mujahid and several other scholars said that it means that she was calling him to herself. Al-Bukhari said; "Ikrimah said that,

هَيْتَ لَكَ

(Hayta Laka') means, 'come on, O you', in the Aramaic language." Al-Bukhari collected this statement from 'Ikrimah without a chain of narration. Other scholars read it with the meaning, 'I am ready for you'. Ibn 'Abbas, Abu 'Abdur-Rahman As-Sulami, Abu Wa'il, 'Ikrimah and Qatadah were reported to have read this part of the Ayah this way and explained it in the manner we mentioned, as 'I am ready for you'.