Joseph descended from Abraham. He was one of the twelve sons of Jacob, a grandson of Abraham by Isaac. The story begins with a dream in which Joseph sees eleven stars, a sun and a moon bow before him. In the Qur’an his father Jacob advises him not to tell his brothers about his dream, to avoid jealousy. For Joseph and his little brother Benjamin were their father’s favourites.

The brothers hatched a plan to get rid of Joseph by throwing him into a well. The Bible relates how the brothers – except for Benjamin and the well-meaning Ruben – sold him to passing traders for mere pennies. In the Qur’an, the traders were the ones who pulled the abandoned child from the well and sold it. The brothers told their father that his favourite son had been killed by wolves.

In both books Joseph is sold as a slave to one of the Egyptian notables. He is extremely good-looking. As a young man he is nearly seduced by the lady of the house, but he remains steadfast. When the rejected woman falsely accuses him, he is put in jail.

He is released after successfully interpreting a strange dream of the Pharaoh. The seven fat cows and the seven lean cows in the Pharaoh’s dream represent seven years of great fertility and prosperity, followed by seven years of failed harvests and famines. Joseph is released and appointed advisor to the Pharaoh.

At this point the Qur’an offers an added twist to the story. Joseph interpreted the Pharaoh’s dream while still in prison, and refuses to be released until the issue of the lascivious woman is resolved. She and her friends are heard by the king and admit to their wicked scheme. After his name had been cleared, and faith in him fully restored, Joseph is willing to accept the responsibility for the country’s economy.

By means of good planning, Egypt under the guidance of Joseph, successfully survives through the lean years. Others, including Joseph’s brothers, who were living the good life during the fat years, are now destitute and come to Egypt to buy grain. At first they do not recognise him, but later the family is joyfully reunited and Joseph forgives his brothers. Father Jacob, who in the Bible and the Qur’an is also called Israel, eventually also travels to Egypt. On his deathbed he pronounces his blessing on his twelve sons.

The Story of Joseph is told to great length and detail in both books. The following version was substantially abridged. Some scenes which occur in both books were left out for the sake of the storyline.

While most stories in the Qur’an are scattered over various surahs, Joseph’s story is contained in one chapter, which is named after its protagonist. The Biblical story is found in the final chapters of Genesis. Through its explanation of how the sons of Israel came to the land of Egypt, it creates a link with the next book, Exodus, which tells the story of how Moses led his people out of Egypt to freedom.