And when they entered unto Joseph, he said, taking his brother into his arms, 'I am thy brother; so do not despair of that they have done.' 69 And when he provided them with their provision, he put the drinking-cup in his brother's saddlebag, and then a crier cried: O camel-riders! Lo! ye are surely thieves! 70 They turned back and asked: 'What have you lost' 71 The officials said: "We have lost the king's cup." (And their chief added): "He who brings it shall have a camel-load of provisions, I guarantee that." 72 They said: "By Allah! Indeed you know that we came not to make mischief in the land, and we are no thieves!" 73 "What should be the punishment," they were asked, "in case you are liars?" 74 Joseph's brothers replied, "In whosoever baggage it is found, that person will be your bondsman. Thus is the punishment of the unjust." 75 So he [Yusuf (Joseph)] began (the search) in their bags before the bag of his brother. Then he brought it out of his brother's bag. Thus did We plan for Yusuf (Joseph). He could not take his brother by the law of the king (as a slave), except that Allah willed it. (So Allah made the brothers to bind themselves with their way of "punishment, i.e. enslaving of a thief.") We raise to degrees whom We please, but over all those endowed with knowledge is the All-Knowing (Allah). 76 ۞ [As soon as the cup came to light out of Benjamin's bag, the brothers] exclaimed: "If he has stolen - well, a brother of his used to steal afore-time!" Thereupon Joseph said to himself, without revealing his thought to them: "You are far worse in this respect, and God is fully aware of what you are saying. 77 They said: "O powerful chief (al-aziz)! His father is an age-stricken man, (and in order that he may not suffer) seize one of us in his stead. We indeed consider you an excellent person." 78 He replied, "God forbid that we should take anyone other than the person on whom we found our property. In that case, we would clearly be wrongdoers." 79