Transliteration:( Qaala innee ureedu an unkihaka ihdab nataiya haataini 'alaaa an taajuranee samaaniya hijaj; fa in atmamta 'ashran famin 'indika wa maaa ureedu an ashuqqa 'alaik; satajiduneee in shaaa'al laahu minas saaliheen )
He said, "I intend to marry you to one of these two daughters on the condition that you serve me for eight years. [71] But if you complete ten years, [72] it will be from you. I do not wish to put you in difficulty. [73] You will, if Allah wills, find me among the righteous." [74] (Kanzul Imaan Translation)
From this we understand a few points:
Although the sunna method is that the proposal for marriage should come from the boy, if it comes from the girl's side it too would be acceptable.
This verse is a proof for the current custom of engagement, because in engagement the promise of marriage takes place, not the marriage itself.
In marriage, nomination of both boy and girl is necessary, while in engagement this is not obligatory.
One must look for a pious boy for a girl, not merely a wealthy one. Hazrat Moosa (On whom be peace) was a traveler and not wealthy, but after seeing his religious disposition, Hazrat Shuabe (On whom be peace) gave his daughter in marriage.
To stipulate conditions for marriage is permissible. Thus, eight years of employment was not a dowry but a marriage condition. Therefore, he said "work for me". The dowry is the property of the wife, not of the father.
Dowry can only be in terms of wealth. Allah Almighty says, “seek them in exchange of your property” (S4 V24). Allah Almighty further says, “And give the women their dowries willingly” (S4 V4). Dowries must be given to the women themselves.
This means I would be grateful to you. This condition is not from me. The great Sufis state: Outwardly, Hazrat Moosa (On whom be peace) was kept to do the duty of a shepherd, but in truth, the purpose was to keep him under his blessed companionship, to give him prophetic training.
How true are the words of Dr. Iqbal: "If you find a true guide like Hazrat Shuabe, you would reach Allah Almighty without much difficulty." Therefore, this verse is strong proof of the period of forty-day seclusion at the tomb of a saint or staying in service in the house of your religious guide.
So that I can make ten years obligatory upon you (Statement of Ulama). The purpose is not to burden you by keeping you at my house, but the actual purpose is to make someone out of you. Keeping you as a shepherd is just an excuse (Statement of Saints).
Thus, the promise I am making to you I shall fulfill (Statement of Ulama), or thus by staying with me you shall become pious, i.e., worthy of being a Prophet of Allah Almighty. The company of a pious person makes you pious:
“If you want your good fortune to brighten like the light, then spend your nights in the company of the pious.”
From this we learn that for the expression of the bounty of Allah Almighty, it is permissible to describe your own virtues. Also, do not place much trust in what you say but rather rely on Allah Almighty. Therefore, Hazrat Moosa (On whom be peace) said, "If Allah Almighty wills."
The tafsir of Surah Qasas verse 27 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Qasas ayat 25 which provides the complete commentary from verse 25 through 29.
(28:27) Her father said to Moses:[38] “I want to marry one of these two daughters of mine to you if you serve me for eight years. But if you complete ten years, that will be of your own accord (but not an obligation). I do not intend to treat you harshly. If Allah wills, you will find me an upright man.”
38. It is also not necessary that the father should have said this to Moses (peace be upon him) immediately at the daughter’s counsel. One feels that he must have formed this opinion after due consideration. He must have thought: “No doubt he is a noble person, but employing a healthy and strong young man like him as a servant in a house where there are grown up daughters would not be the right thing. When he is a gentle, educated and civilized man of a noble family (as he must have come to know from the story told by Moses), why shouldn’t he be kept as a son-in-law in the house?” After reaching such a decision, he might have spoken to Moses at a suitable time.
Here again the Israelites have done a grave injustice to their illustrious Prophet, greatest benefactor and national hero. The Talmud says, “Moses lived with Reuel, and he looked with favor upon Ziporah, the daughter of his host, and married her.” Another Jewish tradition related in the Jewish Encyclopedia is to the effect: When Moses related his story to Jethro, the latter understood that he was the person at whose hand, according to prophecies, the kingdom of Pharaoh was to be destroyed. Therefore, he immediately imprisoned Moses so that he should hand him over to Pharaoh and get a reward. He remained imprisoned for seven or ten years in a dark underground cell, but Jethro’s daughter, Ziporah, whom he had first met at the well of water, kept visiting him in the cell secretly and providing him with food and drink;. They had even decided to marry. After seven or ten years Ziporah said to her father, “Years ago you put a man in the cell and then forgot him altogether. He should have died by now. But if he is still alive, he must be a godly person.” Hearing this when Jethro went to the prison, he found Moses alive and was convinced that he had miraculously remained so. Then he married Ziporah to him.
Have the Western orientalists who are ever on the lookout for the sources of the Quranic narratives ever cared to see this manifest difference that exists between the Quranic version and the Israelite traditions?
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