Ruku 184 ع

41:52.

Commentary:

See the next verse.

41:51.

Commentary:

Both attitudes of foolish elation and of abject despair described in this and the previous verses are assumed by those who give themselves up to disbelief and turn their backs on Divine revelation. They are carried away by the smallest change in their fortunes, whether for good or ill. If some distress happens to afflict them, they give way to despair, while they become foolishly elated with pride if some success or happiness comes their way. This is due to their lack of proper understanding of the law of God, which is to the effect that this life is subject to change and that sorrows and periods of good fortune come upon man to try his mettle and make him improve his moral and spiritual condition. But a disbeliever who fails to understand the purpose of God, instead of benefiting by his state of prosperity or affliction, often lets it overwhelm him.

41:9; 84:26; 95:7.

Commentary:

This verse is a continuation of the preceding one and points out that although people lacking in true belief become elated or give way to despair at the smallest change in their circumstances, such is not the case with true believers. They do not allow sorrow or joy to get the better of them, but keep them under strict control. Sorrow cannot make them give way to despair and despondency. They remain patient under adversity and face it with courage. Nor can prosperity make them proud or haughty. On the contrary, they turn the favours of God to good account and increase in piety and righteousness.

The words, It is they who will have forgiveness and a great reward, describe the true recompense of believers. As they remain patient under adversities and afflictions which befall them in consequence of their own mistakes and faults, God rewards their patience by forgiving their errors and by covering up their faults and weaknesses. Similarly, as they do not become conceited and proud by reason of the favours which God confers on them, but employ them for righteous ends, therefore God adds to His favours by conferring upon them still greater blessings.

17:74.

17:94; 25:9.

13:8.

Important Words:

فلعلك (thou art now perhaps). The word لعل is used to denote either a state of hope or of fear, whether that state pertains to the speaker or to the addressee or to someone else. In the Quranic expression فلعلك تارك بعض مایوحی الیك (thou art now perhaps going to abandon part of that which has been revealed to thee) the word لعل has been used to signify that "the people imagine that thou art now perhaps going to abandon, etc." (Mufradat). See also 2:22.

کنز (treasure) is the noun-infinitive from کنز (kanaza). They say کنز المال i.e. he buried the property or treasure in the earth; he collected the property and treasured it, or he hoarded it or stored it in secret. کنز الرمح means, he stuck or fixed the spear in the ground. کنز التمر means, he stored or packed up the dates (in the receptacle). کنز (kanz) means, treasure; property buried in the earth; any property whereof the portion that should be given in alms is not given; property that is preserved in a receptacle; anything abundant and collected together; gold and silver; a treasure of knowledge or science; that in which property is preserved or that in which property is buried or hoarded in secret (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

It is a peculiarity of Quranic diction that sometimes it omits to give the question and only gives the answer, the question being implied in the answer itself. The present verse constitutes an example of this style. In the previous verse believers were promised forgiveness and a great reward. Thereupon disbelievers asked the Holy Prophet in a jeering and ironical manner, "You say your followers will get a great reward and their sins will be forgiven. We know nothing about the forgiveness of their sins. But where is the promised reward of which we do not see the slightest sign? You do not have even the money which you need so badly, nor do the angels descend from heaven to help you." The Quran turns the tables upon the disbelievers and answers their irony, with an irony, saying, "How weighty indeed is the objection of these people and perhaps, o Prophet, from fear of being unable to answer it, you would hide a part of Our revelation which contains prophecies regarding the prosperity and triumph of Islam!" meaning that such a thing can never be.

The verse is capable of another interpretation also. In this case the word لعل would be taken to refer to the hope of disbelievers that the Holy Prophet may, out of fear of their objections, suppress part of the Divine revelation. The verse declares such hopes to be vain and futile, for the Holy Prophet was "only a warner," and the function and duty of a warner is only to issue the warning and deliver his message faithfully; he has no right to suppress any portion of the message. Again, by using the words "only a Warner" the verse also hints that the Holy Prophet did not claim to be God so that the treasures of the earth might be under his control; he was only a human being. If it be said here that believers who were promised "a great reward" (see the preceding verse) were also human beings like the Holy Prophet, it should be remembered that they were promised the reward not immediately but after they had established their title to it by displaying patience and steadfastness under trials and hardships for a considerable time. So disbelievers could demand from the Holy Prophet clear and palpable signs of the prosperity promised to him only when the promised time had come and not earlier. To come attended with power and glory in the very beginning is a sign of personal authority which belongs to God alone and not to any human being."

The words, Allah is Guardian over all things, are intended to point to the fact that all these promises will certainly come to pass. The Holy Prophet will assuredly get both مغفرة (lit. covering up) and a great reward, and the angels of God will undoubtedly descend to bring his work to completion and make null and void the machinations of his enemies. Not only will he himself be favoured with a great reward, but his followers and disciples also would become rulers and kings. Any fair-minded and impartial person can see that both these promises were literally fulfilled.

Some hostile critics of Islam have pretended to infer from this verse that the Holy Prophet was actually prepared to abandon a portion of the Quran out of fear of the objections of his opponents. But the context spurns this baseless interpretation. Can any reasonable person imagine that the demand for the descent of helping angels or for the possession of a treasure was such that, on account of it, the Holy Prophet should, in any way, have become prepared to suppress part of Divine revelation, or that he was unaware of the fact that he was only a warner whose duty was to deliver the Message, whatever it might be? Again, did he not know that God had clearly spoken to him saying He Himself was "Guardian over all things"? So the words, thou art now perhaps going to abandon part of that which has been revealed to thee, contain only a vain hope on the part of the disbelievers that the Prophet might give up part of his revelation; they do not at all find any intention or readiness on his part to do so. Do not these critics know that when at Mecca a deputation of the Quraish waited on the Holy Prophet and asked him to give up preaching against their idols and threatened to crush him and his tribe in case he refused to do so, the prompt answer he gave was that even if they put the sun on his right and the moon on his left he would not swerve a hair’s breadth from the teachings which God had given him? Could he, whom the threats or cajolery of the Quraish at a time when he was extremely weak could not induce to give up his preaching, have become so unnerved by these silly objections as to become ready to conceal a part of the DivineWord?

The verse that follows also gives the lie to such an inference, for it contains a challenge to the world to produce ten Surahs like any ten Surahs of the Quran. If there had been any doubt in the Prophet’s mind concerning any portion of the Quran, could that very portion possibly have been followed by a challenge like this? This challenge shows that he believed in the truth of every word of the Quran with a conviction firm as a rock.

2:24; 10:39; 17:89; 52:34-35.

Commentary:

This verse corroborates the interpretation put on the previous one. The latter gave two answers to the disbelievers’ vain hope that the Holy Prophet might abandon a portion of the Quran for fear of their objections, viz.: (1) that the Holy Prophet was only a Warner; he did not lay claim to Godhead that he might be required to have with him treasures and angels; (2) that he was only the bearer of a Message from God and his duty was confined to delivering that Message to the people. Now disbelievers could have replied to these arguments by saying that his claim to have come from God was but an empty assertion and that he was an impostor, as he was not attended with any special power. The verse under comment answers this objection by saying that although the Holy Prophet did not possess treasures of gold or silver, yet he possessed vast spiritual treasures the like of which were not possessed by the whole world collectively; and that those treasures were embodied in the Quran. So if they objected that the Holy Prophet was not a true Prophet and that certain portions of his Message were defective and needed to be altered, then let them bring forward a work comparable not to the whole of the Quran, but only to ten such chapters of it as they deemed to be defective. If, however, they could not produce a book comparable even to these so-called defective portions, which they thought needed to be changed, then they would have to admit that the Prophet of Islam did indeed possess a treasure the like of which none could produce. For full discussion of this subject, see under 2:24 where all similar verses of the Quran have been collectively treated.

4:167.

Commentary:

Naturally the question arises here whether the challenge contained in the preceding verse was confined to the lifetime of the Holy Prophet or whether it extended even to the later ages. This question has been answered in the present verse by the use of the plural pronoun "you" in the clause, And if they do not respond to you, thus showing that the challenge was not confined to the time of the Holy Prophet but extended to all time. If the challenge had been confined only to the lifetime of the Holy Prophet, the words used would have been "if they do not respond to thee" and not as they are. The use of the plural pronoun shows that Muslims in every age can deliver this challenge to disbelievers and the verse guarantees that the Quran will ever stand unrivalled in its manifold excellences.

The words, then know that it has been revealed replete with Allah’s knowledge, mean that if the opponents of Islam do not accept this challenge, it will clearly establish that the Quran comprises the special knowledge of God, and contains matters which are beyond human ken, being undiscoverable by man; hence their inability to produce a book like it.

The expression, that there is no god but He, indicates that the inability of men of all ages to produce a book like the Quran will also prove that there is no god beside Allah; for, if there had been other gods, they and their votaries would have accepted the challenge and, by producing through their cumulative efforts a work like the Quran, would have demonstrated the hollowness of this challenge. Complete silence on their part is sure evidence of the fact that there is no God beside Allah and that He has no equal.

It is disbelievers who are addressed in the closing words, Will you then submit, and they are asked whether they will not join the fold of Islam now that this unaccepted challenge has proved that the Quran is indeed the Word of God.

2:201; 17:19.

Commentary:

It is clear from this verse that those who desire the present life and its riches and strive after it get their full share of it. No one is deprived of what he strives after. The worldly prosperity and material advancement of Christian nations is sometimes adduced as an evidence of the truth of Christianity. This verse exposes the falsity of this inference. The attainment of worldly prosperity is no proof of the fact that one is following the right religion, for God has appointed laws for every kind of progress and anyone who observes the laws appointed for the material progress of man can attain worldly felicity. The mere attainment of worldly prosperity, unless it is attended by other clear signs, is therefore no proof of godliness. It must, however, be remembered that in this life one gets the reward of only those deeds which one does purely for this world. It is to this important point that the words, their works in this life, refer.

The expression, they shall not be wronged therein, means that disbelievers will not be deprived of the rewards of their work in this life, simply for refusing to believe in God’s Messengers. Disbelievers are not punished in this life for mere disbelief or mere denial of truth for which punishment is reserved in the next life. In this world they are only punished when they make mischief and create disorder and persecute believers.

17:19.

Commentary:

Disbelievers are here told that if they do not embrace Islam, they will of course not be deprived of worldly goods which they might have earned by the sweat of their brow, but they will surely remain deprived of God’s blessings.

The pronoun ھا (this) in فیھا (in this) may refer to either the present life mentioned in the previous verse or the Hereafter in the verse under comment. In the former case, the clause, that which they wrought in this life shall come to naught, would mean that, as they had been rewarded in the present life for the works which they did for this life, therefore these works would prove of no avail to disbelievers in the life to come. In the latter case, the clause would mean that, as their deeds for the present life were in accordance with the laws of God, therefore, they got their reward for them; but as the deeds which they did for the next life were in defiance of Divine laws, therefore they would do them no good and would fail to serve the purpose for which they were apparently meant.

47:15.

46:11; 61:7.

2:148; 10:95.

Commentary:

This verse embodies three important criteria by which the truth of the Quran and that of the Holy Prophet can be tested, and declares that he who satisfies these three criteria cannot be an impostor.

There are three classes of men whom a Divine Message can possibly concern:(1) the contemporaries of a Messenger of God, to whom the Message is directly addressed; (2) the generations yet unborn who are to receive the Message in the future; (3) the past generations to whom their Prophet gave the news that a Messenger was to come. If these three classes of witnesses bear testimony to the truth of a claimant to prophethood, there can remain no doubt about his truth. The faith of the last-mentioned class of people, i.e. those who expect the advent of a Messenger of God, has its basis in past prophecies about his advent, while the first-mentioned class, i.e. the contemporaries of a claimant, judge his claim (a) by the touchstone whether he possesses in his own person any proof which testifies to his truth, or (b) by the prophecies of earlier Scriptures about the advent of a Divine Messenger. Lastly, there is the second class of people, i.e. those yet unborn who in their time look upon the signs witnessed by the contemporaries of a claimant as mere stories, and confine their scrutiny to the change brought about by the claimant—the fruit of his reformatory efforts. In fact, succeeding generations attach more importance to the fruits of the labours of a Divine Messenger and to the results of his mission than to anything else. If his Message continues to bear fruit down to their time, they come to realize that it is a truly useful thing and concerns them as much as it did past generations.

In point of importance, pride of place belongs to internal evidence, that is, the evidence which a claimant possesses in his own person, because such evidence serves as a clear proof not only for the contemporaries of the claimant but also for the generations to come and because it relieves seekers after truth of the trouble of turning to other things for guidance, it being in itself a sufficient proof of the truth of the claimant. This kind of proof is referred to in the words, Can he who possesses a clear proof from his Lord be an impostor?

The second evidence, which is also second in importance, of the truth of a Divine claimant pertains to the results produced by his Message and the fruits of his labours; for in the absence of this evidence, the practical value of a Message claimed to be Divine becomes doubtful in the eyes of later generations. In fact, the intrinsic truth of a Message does not constitute a sufficient incentive for acting upon it. It has to be shown that it is also meant for the recipient and for the age in which he lives and that it has not been superseded by a later Message. The fact that a Message continues to bear fruit suffices to establish the fact that it is as practicable and as useful at present as it was in the past. This kind of evidence is referred to in the words, and a witness from Him shall follow him.

Last in point of importance is the evidence which relates to prophecies holding hope of a future reformer and a future Message. The evidence of such prophecies is also useful, for it keeps the minds of men prepared for the acceptance of the Message, although naturally only those people benefit by it in whose time the expected Message actually makes its appearance. This kind of evidence is hinted at in the words, and who was preceded by the Book of Moses, a guide and a mercy.

All these three kinds of evidence have been adduced in this verse in support of the Holy Prophet and the Quranic Message. The Quran possesses strong internal evidence of its Divine origin; the Scriptures that preceded it bear clear witness to its truth; and it was also to bear fruit in the future in a way that nobody could have any reasonable ground to reject it. Similarly, the Holy Prophet who brought this Message also possesses this triple evidence which clearly proves him to be a true Messenger of God.

The words, a witness from Him (God) shall follow him (the Holy Prophet), also point to the appearance of a great Reformer in the Latter Days who was to come as "a witness" to bear testimony to the truth of the Holy Prophet. It is worth noting that the person who was to appear after the Holy Prophet to bear testimony to his truth has been called a شاھد (a witness) and it is evident that a witness is needed only when the continued practicability and usefulness of a Message is called in question. It is evident, therefore, that after the advent of the Holy Prophet a Messenger was needed only at a time when there should arise about the Quran the question whether it was still worthy of being acted upon. It is well known that such a question never arose about the Quran during the last 1350 years, and it is only in the present time that doubts have begun to be expressed about this claim of the Quran with persistence from all quarters. There is a section of Muslims themselves who hold the view that some teachings of the Quran, particularly with regard to the five daily Prayers, the amputation of the hands of a thief, polygamy, purdah, usury, etc., need alteration or amendment. Then there are the followers of claimants like Baha’ullah, who believe that the Law of Islam has become abrogated and they seek to introduce a new Law in its place. Last of all, the so-called higher critics of the west question the authenticity of some historical facts mentioned in the Quran as well as the practicability of some of its teachings. Such a state of affairs never existed before the present age and therefore, truly speaking, no "witness" was needed before now.

The words منه (from Him) in the expression, a witness from Him, clearly show that the promised witness was to be a heavenly Messenger. This heavenly Messenger is Ahmad, the Promised Messiah, Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement,who appeared at a time when the teachings of Islam had begun openly to be declared unpractical and impracticable and the object of whose advent was to bear witness to the truth of Islam by means of clear proofs and fresh heavenly signs.

It should also be remembered that the words, a witness from Him shall follow him, promised the appearance of a person who was to invite men to accept and follow the Quran and not of one who was to abrogate its teachings. Thus, incidentally, the verse furnishes an irrefutable argument against the claims of Baha’ullah.

The third evidence in support of the truth of the Quran and of the Holy Prophet lies in the fact that their advent was predicted by previous Prophets. The Book of Moses forms the most conspicuous example of it. It contains clear prophecies about the Holy Prophet and the Quran. Among others, the reader is referred to Deut. 18:18.

The Book of Moses is here called "a guide" because it serves as a guide to the truth of Islam. It is "a mercy" in the sense that it has made it easy for men to accept the truth in four different ways: (1) by means of prophecies which point to the truth of the Holy Prophet; (2) by laying down criteria by means of which the truth of a Prophet can be tested; (3) by enabling men to compare the teachings of the two Books; and (4) by helping to explain the fundamentals of the Law.

The word احزاب (opposing parties) generally signifies the parties that oppose the Prophets. As the Holy Prophet was raised for the whole of mankind, the words would here signify the followers of all the religions of the world other than Islam.

The words, be not thou in doubt about it, are addressed to the reader and not to the Holy Prophet. These words are preceded by the words, those who consider these matters believe therein, to point out that as there has already come into existence a party of men who believe in the Quran and the Holy Prophet, it is highly unreasonable to think that, whereas the evidences mentioned above have succeeded in bringing into existence a party of firm believers, the Prophet himself to whom those evidences were revealed should remain in doubt about their Divine origin. These words, therefore, cannot be said to have been addressed to the Holy Prophet. They are undoubtedly addressed to each and every reader of the Quran.

6:22; 10:18; 61:8.

39:61.

Commentary:

The verse tells us that it is quite easy to distinguish a true claimant from a false one. Those who falsely lay claim to prophethood are most unjust and the unjust are under God’s curse. So it is not difficult to distinguish between true and false prophets. One can know false prophets from their very appearance and their very circumstances.

The word الاشھاد (witnesses) may here refer to true Prophets who will give the lie to their rejecters by pointing to the accursed condition of false prophets and inviting comparison with them.

3:100; 7:46; 14:4; 16:89.

Commentary:

The purport of this verse is that the enemies of truth not only hinder men from the path of God but also adopt ways and means by which the beauty of God’s word may be spoiled or may remain hidden; and, instead of appearing attractive, it may look hideous and repulsive. This is the greatest weapon in the armoury of the enemies of truth.

26:213.

Commentary:

Those who forge lies against God (see v. 19) can never succeed in their wicked plans but only become involved in the meshes of their own schemes and stratagems.

God cannot be their friend and helper because of their fabricating lies against Him, and as God, the Lord of the universe, is angry with them, their own friends and sympathizers can be of no help to them.

The word یضاعف (will be doubled) being derived from ضعف (for which see 3:131), which means both "the double of a thing" or "an unlimited addition," is used here in both these senses. The punishment of disbelievers will be doubled in the sense that they will be punished both for their own sins and for the sins of those whom they misled. In the second sense, the verse means that their punishment will continue to increase absolutely; for by preaching and disseminating a false teaching they sowed the seeds of evil in the world, and as long as that evil subsists their punishment will continue.

Surprise is expressed in the words, They can neither hear, nor can they see, at those who falsely claim to be Divine Messengers. It is pointed out that although both true and false prophets have passed before them, yet they would not try to see what a miserable end the false prophets came to nor would they listen to the stories of their lives.

7:54; 10:31.

Important Words:

For the meaning of the word خسر (khasira) see 6:13. The word is really intransitive, though for the sake of convenience it has been translated here as transitive.

16:110.

Important Words:

لاجرم (undoubtedly). They say جرمه i.e. he cut it or he cut it off. جرم لاھله means, he acquired or earned for his family. جرم also means, he committed a fault or sin or crime. The expression لاجرم means, there is no avoiding (lit. cutting) it; or it is absolutely necessary; verily or truly. It also sometimes gives the sense of "nay" (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse purports to say that though disbelievers may do a slight harm to the Prophets of God in this life, in the life to come they alone will suffer.

2:83; 3:58; 4:58; 13:30; 22:57; 29:8; 30:16; 42:23.

Important Words:

اخبتوا (humbled themselves) is derived from خبت. They say خبت ذکرہ meaning, the mention of him or it was or became concealed, i.e. he or it was or became obscure and of no repute or became concealed. اخبت الی الله means, he was or became lowly, humble or submissive in heart and obedient to God; or he humbled or abased himself to his Lord; or he trusted his Lord. خبت (khabtun) means, a low or depressed tract of land; or a wide and low tract of ground; or a soft tract of ground which is easy to walk through (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse makes it clear that in order to attain to the highest stages of spiritual progress, mere faith and good works are not sufficient; perfect conviction, complete submission and full trust in God and sincere love for Him are also essential. Just as a child is happy and satisfied only when it is in the lap of its mother, similarly he who desires to make real spiritual progress should humble himself before God, place complete trust in Him and always turn to Him for help.

13:17; 35:20-21.

Commentary:

This verse beautifully contrasts faith and disbelief. A believer is here represented as one who is in perfect possession of the faculties of sight and hearing, while the disbeliever is likened to a blind and deaf man. Certainly there is a world of difference between them. The epithets "blind" and "deaf" for disbelievers have not been used by way of abuse, but are meant to throw light on the real nature of disbelief.

The difference between a spiritually blind man and one who can see is that the former cannot see the spiritual light that comes from God, while the latter can. Similarly, whereas the former gropes, stumbles and falters on the way to his destination, the latter sees his way clear to it and reaches it directly. Moreover, a blind man cannot distinguish a friend from a foe, and might mistake one for the other, while the seeing man can never make such a mistake.

Similar differences exist between those who follow a true religion and those who reject it. The follower of a true religion knows the Will of God, which serves as a beacon of light for the spiritual wayfarer. But one who rejects truth loses his spiritual vision and thus is deprived of the means to know the Will of his Creator. Similarly, he who has accepted truth, being a seeker after Divine revelation, does not stumble or stagger on the way to his destination, but arrives at it straight away. On the contrary, those who seek to find truth by the unaided help of their own reasoning faculties may sometimes succeed in finding it, but after a good deal of stumbling and groping in the dark. The difference is well illustrated by the statutory prohibition in the United States of America of alcoholic drink in the past few years. Islam prohibited drinking outright, with the result that the Muslim world totally abandoned it. The non-Muslim world has only now begun to realize its evils after an experiment extending over hundreds of years. Another vital difference between a believer and a disbeliever is that the former takes his stand on the firm rock of some recognized truth about which there exists no dispute in his mind, but the latter does not know where he stands, with the result that in order to refute a truth, he sometimes happens to attack even those principles to which he himself subscribes. This is why the Quran repeatedly reminds its opponents that, while attacking Islam, they very often attack their own beliefs and principles.

Believers and disbelievers have also been here compared to the hearing and the deaf. The difference between a man who has ears and one who is deaf is that the former, being able to hear what others have to say, benefits by their experience, while the latter can derive no such benefit. This constitutes one of the chief differences between Islam and other Faiths, and between Muslims and non-Muslims. The teachings of Islam comprise all truths—even those that are found in other religions—and a Muslim is enjoined to get hold of truth wherever he finds it and to make it his own, while a non-Muslim remains contented with his own antiquated and outworn ideas and turns a deaf ear to all others. It is to this peculiarity of Islam that the Holy Prophet has alluded in his famous saying: "A word of wisdom is the lost property of a believer; he gets hold of it wherever he finds it" (Tirmidhi, ch. on ‘Ilm).

In short, the sign of a true religion is that it is catholic and broad-minded and embraces in itself all truths; while a false religion is characterized by narrow-mindedness and perversity. Thus, the very thing which is criticized by the opponents of Islam as one of its defects is claimed here as an excellence. Islam has been accused of plagiarism, but it answers this charge by saying that it is not like a deaf man who cannot hear and therefore is incapable of benefiting by the knowledge and experience of others, but, like a person who is in perfect possession of the power of hearing, it listens to what others have to say and thus supplements and perfects its own store of knowledge. This is why the Quran has not only collected in itself all such teachings of other divinely inspired religions as are fundamentally good and beneficial but has also added to them such new truths as are not to be found in any other Faith.

The epithets "hearing" and "deaf" point to another contrast also. In Islam, the door of Divine revelation is open, and spiritually speaking only such an ear can be said to be gifted with the faculty of "hearing" as listens to the voice of God. In fact, it is for the purpose of hearing the sweet voice of God that the ear has been primarily created. So the ear which does not hear the voice of

God is a deaf ear. Similarly, it is to point to this great difference that believers and disbelievers have been respectively likened to "the seeing" and "the blind." In Islam the door of heavenly signs and miracles is ever open and he alone can be truly said to be "seeing" who sees the fresh signs of God. The eye which refuses to see the signs of God is indeed a blind eye.