Quran Universe
12:64

قَالَ هَلۡ ءَامَنُكُمۡ عَلَيۡهِ إِلَّا كَمَآ أَمِنتُكُمۡ عَلَىٰٓ أَخِيهِ مِن قَبۡلُ فَٱللَّهُ خَيۡرٌ حَٰفِظٗاۖ وَهُوَ أَرۡحَمُ ٱلرَّـٰحِمِينَ

Qala hal amanukum AAalayhi illa kama amintukum AAala akheehi min qablu faAllahu khayrun hafithan wahuwa arhamu alrrahimeena

He said, "Should I entrust you with him except [under coercion] as I entrusted you with his brother before? But Allah is the best guardian, and He is the most merciful of the merciful."

Word by word
  1. قَالَHe said
  2. هَلۡShould
  3. ءَامَنُكُمۡI entrust you
  4. عَلَيۡهِwith him
  5. إِلَّاexcept
  6. كَمَآas
  7. أَمِنتُكُمۡI entrusted you
  8. عَلَىٰٓwith
  9. أَخِيهِhis brother
  10. مِنbefore
  11. قَبۡلُbefore
  12. فَٱللَّهُBut Allah
  13. خَيۡرٌ(is) the best
  14. حَٰفِظٗاۖGuardian
  15. وَهُوَand He
  16. أَرۡحَمُ(is the) Most Merciful
  17. ٱلرَّـٰحِمِينَ(of) the merciful
Yusuf · 12:64Makkah

Allah is the best guardian, the Most Merciful.

Ya'qub moves his trust from his sons to his Lord

Ya'qub's answer
trust you againas I did with Yusuf
no, rather
Allahbest guardianmost merciful
Where he put his trust
their promisewe will guard him
Allah's guardingthe only sure guard

Ya'qub asked: shall I trust you with him as I trusted you with his brother? Then he turned to Allah. Ibn Kathir says he meant: Allah is the most merciful to me, in my old age and my longing, and I ask Him to return my son to me.

Your child gets in the car with friends for the first time. Your teenager flies abroad. You cannot control the road. You can say: Allah is the best guardian, and mean it.

I have to control everything to keep the people I love safe.

I do what I can, and leave the guarding to the One who guards best.

Try this

Next time someone you love leaves the house, say: Allah is the best guardian.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 12:63)

So, when they returned to their father, they said: "O our father! No more measure of grain shall we get (unless we take our brother). So send our brother with us, and we shall get our measure and truly, we will guard him. (63)He said: "Can I entrust him to you except as I entrusted his brother [Yusuf] to you aforetime? But Allah is the Best to guard, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy. (64)

Yusuf's Brothers ask Ya'qub's Permission to send Their Brother Binyamin with Them to Egypt

Allah says that when they went back to their father,

قَالُوا يَا أَبَانَا مُنِعَ مِنَّا الْكَيْلُ 

(they said: "O our father! No more measure of grain shall we get...") 'after this time, unless you send our brother Binyamin with us. So send him with us, and we shall get our measure and we shall certainly guard him.' Some scholars read this Ayah in a way that means, 'and he shall get his ration.' They said,

وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ

(and truly, we will guard him.), 'do not fear for his safety, for he will be returned back to you.' This is what they said to Ya'qub about their brother Yusuf,

أَرْسِلْهُ مَعَنَا غَدًا يَرْتَعْ وَيَلْعَبْ وَإِنَّا لَهُ لَحَافِظُونَ

("Send him with us tomorrow to enjoy himself and play, and verily, we will take care of him.")[12:12] This is why Prophet Ya'qub said to them,

هَلْ آمَنُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ إِلَّا كَمَا أَمِنتُكُمْ عَلَىٰ أَخِيهِ مِن قَبْلُ

(Can I entrust him to you except as I entrusted his brother [Yusuf] to you aforetime?) He asked them, 'Will you do to him except what you did to his brother Yusuf before, when you took him away from me and separated me from him?'

فَاللَّهُ خَيْرٌ حَافِظًا ۖ وَهُوَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ

(But Allah is the Best to guard, and He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.) Ya'qub said, 'Allah has the most mercy with me among all those who show mercy, He is compassionate with me for my old age, feebleness and eagerness for my son. I invoke Allah to return him to me, and to allow him and I to be together; for surely, He is the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.'