Verse 64
Jonah • makkah
View Aspects
Commentary:
This verse gives a description of اولیاء الله (friends of God) referred to in the preceding verse. They are (1) perfect in faith and (2) observe the highest standard of righteousness. The Holy Prophet has also given a description of the "friends of God," which may be taken as an explanation of this verse and may therefore be given here. He is reported to have said: "On the Day of Judgement the 'friends of God' will be brought in the presence of God in three classes. First of all, a person from among the first group will be presented to God Who will say to him, 'O My servant, wherefore didst thou do good works?' To this question he will reply, 'O my Lord, Thou didst create Heaven, its trees and its fruits, its flowing streams and beautiful maids, its manifold bounties and sundry other things. Thou hast prepared these for those who are obedient to Thee. So in order to attain these blessings, O my Lord, I passed my nights praying and my days fasting.' Upon this God will say to him, 'O My servant, thou didst good works in order to get Heaven. So here it is, enter it and please thyself. It is an act of grace on My part that I have saved thee from the Fire, and it is an act of grace on My part that I have granted thee Heaven. So enter it and those that are with thee.' Then a person from among the second group will be presented before God Who will say to him, 'O My servant, wherefore didst thou do good works?' To this he will reply, 'O my Lord! Thou didst create Hell and its burning fire, its hot winds and boiling water, and Thou didst prepare many other dreadful things for those who are disobedient to Thee. So out of the fear of these things, I stood up praying at night and fasted during the day.' Then God will say to him, 'O My servant, thou didst good works, fearing Hellfire; so I have liberated thee from it and it is an act of grace on My part that I caused thee to enter Heaven.' So he and those with him will enter Heaven. Then a person out of the third group will be presented before God Who will say to him, 'O My servant, wherefore didst thou do good works?' To this he will reply by saying, 'O my Lord, I did all I did solely out of love for Thee and out of a yearning to meet Thee. By Thy glory, I stood up praying at night, and fasted during the day, out of a yearning for Thee.' Then God will say to him, 'Thou didst good works out of love for Me and out of a yearning for Me. So have your reward.' Then the Lord of Glory and Majesty will manifest Himself to him and say, 'Here I am, have a look at Me,' and will say, 'As an act of grace, I liberate thee from the Fire and I grant thee Paradise. I will send to thee My angels to visit thee and will Myself greet thee with the greeting of peace.' Upon this he and his companions will enter Paradise" (Kathir, v. 5, p. 122). It is, of course, apparent that the person chosen from each group will be the best man in the group and will be presented to God as its representative.
There are also other sayings of the Holy Prophet bearing on the different grades of the "friends of God." The following saying is quoted by Abu Dawud on the authority of Abu Hurairah: "Of the servants of God there are some whom even the Prophets and the Martyrs envy." On being asked by his Companions who were those lucky people, the Holy Prophet said, "They are men who love one another only for God’s sake. The goods of this world or the ties of kinship are not the incentives of their love. Their faces will shine with light and they will be seated on luminous pulpits. When others will be fearful, they will be free from fear, and when others will bewail their past misfortunes, they will enjoy peace of mind" (Dawud).
The statement that even the Prophets envy such persons does not mean that such persons are superior to Prophets, for the Prophets are themselves the best "friends of God." It simply means that the Prophets are particularly pleased with the condition of these persons and desire that such friends of God should be found in large numbers among their own followers.
1339
Commentary:
This verse gives a description of اولیاء الله (friends of God) referred to in the preceding verse. They are (1) perfect in faith and (2) observe the highest standard of righteousness. The Holy Prophet has also given a description of the "friends of God," which may be taken as an explanation of this verse and may therefore be given here. He is reported to have said: "On the Day of Judgement the 'friends of God' will be brought in the presence of God in three classes. First of all, a person from among the first group will be presented to God Who will say to him, 'O My servant, wherefore didst thou do good works?' To this question he will reply, 'O my Lord, Thou didst create Heaven, its trees and its fruits, its flowing streams and beautiful maids, its manifold bounties and sundry other things. Thou hast prepared these for those who are obedient to Thee. So in order to attain these blessings, O my Lord, I passed my nights praying and my days fasting.' Upon this God will say to him, 'O My servant, thou didst good works in order to get Heaven. So here it is, enter it and please thyself. It is an act of grace on My part that I have saved thee from the Fire, and it is an act of grace on My part that I have granted thee Heaven. So enter it and those that are with thee.' Then a person from among the second group will be presented before God Who will say to him, 'O My servant, wherefore didst thou do good works?' To this he will reply, 'O my Lord! Thou didst create Hell and its burning fire, its hot winds and boiling water, and Thou didst prepare many other dreadful things for those who are disobedient to Thee. So out of the fear of these things, I stood up praying at night and fasted during the day.' Then God will say to him, 'O My servant, thou didst good works, fearing Hellfire; so I have liberated thee from it and it is an act of grace on My part that I caused thee to enter Heaven.' So he and those with him will enter Heaven. Then a person out of the third group will be presented before God Who will say to him, 'O My servant, wherefore didst thou do good works?' To this he will reply by saying, 'O my Lord, I did all I did solely out of love for Thee and out of a yearning to meet Thee. By Thy glory, I stood up praying at night, and fasted during the day, out of a yearning for Thee.' Then God will say to him, 'Thou didst good works out of love for Me and out of a yearning for Me. So have your reward.' Then the Lord of Glory and Majesty will manifest Himself to him and say, 'Here I am, have a look at Me,' and will say, 'As an act of grace, I liberate thee from the Fire and I grant thee Paradise. I will send to thee My angels to visit thee and will Myself greet thee with the greeting of peace.' Upon this he and his companions will enter Paradise" (Kathir, v. 5, p. 122). It is, of course, apparent that the person chosen from each group will be the best man in the group and will be presented to God as its representative.
There are also other sayings of the Holy Prophet bearing on the different grades of the "friends of God." The following saying is quoted by Abu Dawud on the authority of Abu Hurairah: "Of the servants of God there are some whom even the Prophets and the Martyrs envy." On being asked by his Companions who were those lucky people, the Holy Prophet said, "They are men who love one another only for God’s sake. The goods of this world or the ties of kinship are not the incentives of their love. Their faces will shine with light and they will be seated on luminous pulpits. When others will be fearful, they will be free from fear, and when others will bewail their past misfortunes, they will enjoy peace of mind" (Dawud).
The statement that even the Prophets envy such persons does not mean that such persons are superior to Prophets, for the Prophets are themselves the best "friends of God." It simply means that the Prophets are particularly pleased with the condition of these persons and desire that such friends of God should be found in large numbers among their own followers.