When the women in the city discussed the news, it reached the wife of the Aziz. She wanted to cut them off from their discussion.

(… أَرْسَلَتْ إِلَيْهِنَّ…) (… she sent for them…): She invited the women into the Aziz’s palace and sat among them.

(… وَأَعْتَدَتْ لَهُنَّ مُتَّكَأً…) (… and prepared for them a banquet…): The word (banquet) refers to a place where a person can lean and sit comfortably.

(… وَآتَتْ كُلَّ وَاحِدَةٍ مِّنْهُنَّ سِكِّينًا…) (… and gave each one of them a knife…): She presented to them, as we understand from the Quranic context, fruits and a knives for cutting them.

(…وَقَالَتِ اخْرُجْ عَلَيْهِنَّ…) (… and said [to Joseph], “Come out before them.”…): She asked Yusuf (PBUH) to enter, even though he was her servant, and so Yusuf (PBUH) entered.

(… فَلَمَّا رَأَيْنَهُ أَكْبَرْنَهُ وَقَطَّعْنَ أَيْدِيَهُنَّ…) (… And when they saw him, they greatly admired him and cut their hands…): When he entered and they saw him with such beauty and striking appearance, they were greatly astonished.

(… وَقَطَّعْنَ أَيْدِيَهُنَّ…) (… and cut their hands…): Due to their intense astonishment at the beauty of Yusuf (PBUH), they cut their own hands; that is, they wounded their hands.

(... وَقُلْنَ حَاشَ لِلَّهِ مَا هَٰذَا بَشَرًا إِنْ هَٰذَا إِلَّا مَلَكٌ كَرِيمٌ ) (…  and said, “Perfect is Allah! This is not a man; this is none but a noble angel.”):  They said: ‘It is inconceivable that he is just a human; rather, he must be a noble angel.