وَيَدْعُ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ بِٱلشَّرِّ دُعَآءَهُۥ بِٱلْخَيْرِ ۖ وَكَانَ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ عَجُولًا
10:12.
Commentary:
This verse corroborates and explains the interpretation put upon the previous verse. It makes no mention of the Day of Judgement. The verses that follow also continue the same theme.
The expression ویدع الانسان بالشر دعاءہ بالخیر (And man asks for evil as he should ask for good), does not mean that there lives a man so foolish as to pray to God to send him evil. It only means that such is the condition of man that while by his words of mouth he prays to God to grant him good, by his actual bad deeds he invites the displeasure and punishment of God. Thus his actions belie his words.
The expression may also be interpreted as, "And man calls for evil as he should call for good." According to both renderings the verse signifies that when nations or individuals attain material wealth and rise to power and influence, they tend to neglect their duties and responsibilities and thus in the very hour of their power and glory they lay the foundations of their decay and death. At a time when they should have established peace and justice on earth by the help of the great resources placed at their disposal, they give themselves up to enjoyment and self-aggrandizement. The time of their power and glory is their testing time when they should particularly be on their guard. But such is the tragedy of human affairs that power and prosperity make man arrogant, defiant and heedless. The verse may also mean that man invites evil to himself with the same zeal and vehemence as God invites him to good. That is to say while God wishes man to inherit His blessings by doing good, he earns His displeasure by doing evil and thus invites his own ruin and destruction. In this case the action of دعاء (inviting to good) will be taken as referring to God.
The words, and man is hasty, signify that if man were to pause and consider before embarking upon any venture he would be spared many a fall. In fact, haste is at the root of most of man’s failures.
10:12.
The Arabic expression means that such is the condition of man that while by words of his mouth he prays to God to grant him good, by his actual evil deeds he invites the displeasure and punishment of God. Thus his actions belie his words. The expression may also be taken to mean that 'man calls for evil as he should have called for good.' According to both the renderings the verse signifies that when nations or individuals attain material wealth and rise to power and influence, they tend to neglect their duties and responsibilities and thus in the very hour of their power and glory they lay the foundations of their later decay and death. The verse may also mean that man invites evil to himself with the same zeal and vehemence as God invites him to good. In this case the act of inviting to good will be taken as referring to God.