إِنَّمَآ أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَعْبُدَ رَبَّ هَٰذِهِ ٱلْبَلْدَةِ ٱلَّذِى حَرَّمَهَا وَلَهُۥ كُلُّ شَىْءٍ ۖ وَأُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ
30:44; 106:4.
Commentary:
One of the major causes of the opposition of Meccans to the Holy Prophet was that they believed that if idol worship disappeared from Arabia, Mecca (or the Ka‘bah) being the repository of all their well-known idols will lose its importance and consequently they will also lose the prestige and influence they had enjoyed in Arabia as the custodians of the Ka‘bah. The present verse disabuses their minds of this false notion and purports to say that being the centre of a world movement and of the last message for all mankind, Mecca, far from losing its importance, will, on the contrary, immeasurably add to its prestige and will continue to be respected and revered till the end of time.
The Meccans feared that if idol-worship disappeared from Arabia, the Ka‘bah, being the repository of all their well-known idols, will lose its importance and with it they will lose their prestige and influence as its custodians. The verse disabuses their minds of this false notion and purports to say that being the Centre of a World Movement and of the Message for all mankind, Mecca, far from losing its importance, will, on the contrary, add to its prestige and will continue to be respected and revered till the end of time.