Comparing the Old Testament (Gen. 37-50) and Qur'an (Sur. 12) versions of the story of Joseph shows us some similarities and differences in the evolution of the two religions and in their varying beliefs.  The Old Testament is a detailed record of the happenings of God's chosen people, the Jews, and of the covenant God made with Abraham, and later with Jacob, to give them the promised land.  As such, the story of Joseph explains how the Israelites came to live in Egypt, shows how they prospered under God's guidance, and prepares for Moses's leading the chosen people out of Egypt in the Exodus.  In contrast, the Qur'an contains God's later revelations to the prophet Muhammad, which correct the earlier beliefs of Jews and Christians in the Old and New Testaments.  As such, the primary motive of the Qur'an is to exhort the believers to live a good life according to the dictates of the one true God.  Thus, in the Qur'an the OT prophets are forerunners of Muhammad and, like Muhammad, give Muslims examples of how to behave.  In most cases the Qur'an assumes the readers' familiarity with the Old Testament narratives and merely alludes to Old Testament events and characters to remind readers of the moral lesson.

The narrative of Jacob and Joseph is the only Old Testament story fully retold in the Qur'an.   The Old Testament Joseph, descended directly from the prophets Abraham and Jacob, confidently uses guile and cunning to further the Israelites' cause.  He is not tempted by Potiphar's wife; he quickly becomes Pharaoh's vizier:  clearly God has given Joseph power over the Egyptians, even over Pharaoh.  The Qur'anic Joseph is humanly tempted by Potiphar's wife and by her lustful women friends, but Allah saves him from evil and from the wiles of Satan; Joseph insists that the women swear that he is innocent and restore his good name before he agrees to leave prison.   Satan is never mentioned in the OT, and the OT Joseph continues to trick his brothers, whereas the Qur'anic Joseph treats them kindly and is straightforward with them.   He is an example of how to behave. 

In the OT, Jacob is distraught over the loss of Joseph, and later of Benjamin.  The OT God speaks to Jacob directly many times, and reiterates His promise to give the Israelites the chosen land if they go into Egypt.  The Qur'anic Jacob, on the other hand, though he never speaks with God directly, is an example of steadfast piety.  Unlike the OT Jacob, he never loses hope in Allah's power. 

In Genesis, God speaks directly to Abraham and Jacob and guides Joseph to power in Egypt.  In the Qur'an, the end of Surah 12 emphasizes that Allah has spoken with Muhammad directly (rather than with the Israelite leaders) to transmit the story of Joseph to believers.  Thus the end of Surah 12 points out a major difference between the two religions. Muslims believe that anyone who accepts the Qur'an as the word of God and Muhammad as God's prophet will be among the saved.  Being chosen is therefore a matter a belief rather than of being born one of the Israelites.  That is why the Qur'an's story of Joseph is full of warnings to unbelievers and apocalyptic exhortations to us sinners about the Day of Judgment soon to come.  The OT story, on the other hand, has no warnings to hearers or readers to be good, and no mentions of Satan.  Jews believe that they are the chosen people, and although they accept converts, they do not seek them out.

Finally the Old Testament Jews put themselves over the Egyptians (or Arabs), and Joseph makes the Egyptians Pharaoh's slaves during their time of famine.  Joseph also tricks Pharaoh into letting the Jews live in the best places.  In the OT, the Israelites, the descendents of Isaac and Jacob, are the chosen people and the Arab descendents of Hagar and Ishmael are the outsiders.  The Qur'anic Joseph much more modestly attributes all his successes to Allah.  Clearly, Surah 12 points out, Joseph's goodness foreshadows Muhammad's greatness.  Since in the Qur'an the OT characters are not the leaders of the chosen people, only Joseph is mentioned by name; the Qur'anic story is much shorter and more direct than the OT version.  Allah has given Muhammad and all readers the story of Joseph to give Muslims the true Word.  Thus in the Qur'an, the descendents of Hagar and Ishmael, whom the OT Abraham cast out into the desert, are the chosen people, and the Jews are the outsiders.   

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