يَخْرُجُ

5:14; 6:44; 57:17.

Important Words:

یشقق (cleave asunder) which is originally یتشقق is derived from شق meaning, he cut it open or he clove it.

تشقق means, it clove or broke asunder (Aqrab).

Commentary:

The murder of the innocent Muslim referred to in the preceding verses sealed the fate of the Medinite Jews who thereafter became more and more hardened, their hearts becoming like stones or even worse.

The verse goes on to say that even lifeless things like stones are useful, but the Jews, although rational beings possessing understanding and descended from holy men, have become so hardened as virtually to become worse than stones. Stones have functions to perform; but as they possess no volition, their work can bring them no reward. Deeds are in fact of two kinds, firstly those which are performed through volition or exercise of will, and secondly those which are performed not through volition but under some natural law. According to Islam, it is only the deeds of the former class that bring reward; but the deeds of the latter class, though unable to bring a reward, are also sometimes useful. Most of the Jews, however, had become so depraved that, far from performing any act of virtue out of a desire to be virtuous, they did not even involuntarily perform anything that might be called virtuous. They had become worse than stones; for even from stones there comes out water which people profit by.

It has, however, been added that these remarks do not apply to the whole nation; for some of the Israelites were, no doubt, swayed by the fear of God. Of these the Quran says: Of them (the hearts) there are some that humble themselves for fear of Allah. It may be noted that the pronoun ھما (them) in the clause, and indeed of them there are some that humble themselves for fear of Allah, stands for قلوب (hearts) and not for حجارة (stones). The fact that of the two pronouns in the verse the first refers to حجارة (stones) and this one to قلوب (hearts) need not create any doubt. The Quran contains many instances of what is termed انتشار ضمائر i.e. where similar pronouns occurring in the same verse stand for different nouns. For example, we read in 48:10: That you may believe in Allah and His Messenger and may help him and honour him, and glorify Him morning and evening. In this verse the pronoun 'him' refers to the Holy Prophet in the first two places and to God in the third.

The sentence, for of stones indeed there are some out of which gush forth streams, and of them there are some out of which flows water when they cleave asunder, signifies that even among lifeless things there are grades, some being more useful than others; and the Quran hints that we should recognise the difference in the grade and usefulness of all things. Everything must have its due, whether small or great.

Important Words:

جبّارین (haughty and powerful) is the plural of جبار which is derived from جبر. They say جبرالعظم (jabaral-‘azma) or جبّرالعظم(jabbaral-‘azma), i.e. he set the bone; he reduced it from the fractured state. جبرالرجل (jabaral-rajula) or جبّرالرجل (jabbaral-rajula) means, he restored the man from the state of poverty and weakness to that of wealth and strength. جبرت الیتیم means, I put the affairs of the orphan into good order. جبّره means, he compelled and forced him against his will. جبّار means, one who magnifies himself and behaves proudly, haughtily and insolently; one who slays when in anger or one who slays unjustly; one who domineers over others by absolute force and power; one extravagant in acts of wrongdoing, disobedience and rebellion; one huge, tall and strong; a giant. When used about God, الجبّار means, One Who can force His creatures to obey His commands; the Supreme, the Unattainable, the High above His creatures; the Restorer of the poor and the weak to wealth and power; the Reformer of the people by raising them from a low state to a high one (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

Compare this insolent and cowardly attitude of the companions of Moses to the willing and almost unbelievable sacrifices of the Companions of the Holy Prophet, who were ever eager to jump into the very jaws of death at the bidding of their Master.

Commentary:

The word مقیم rendered here as "lasting" does not mean "never ending" but simply very long and not merely transitory. See also 11:108, 199.

Commentary:

Rain produces different effects upon different plots of land according to their nature and quality; so does Divine revelation affect different men in different ways. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said that there are three kinds of land: (a) the good level land which, when watered by rain, absorbs the rain water and yields good vegetation and brings forth abundant fruit; (b) the land which, being low-lying and rocky, only collects the water of rain but does not absorb it and so brings forth no vegetation but provides drinking water for man and beast; (c) the high stony ground which neither collects the water of rain nor absorbs it, being useless both for the purpose of vegetation and as a storage for rainwater. Similarly, men are of three kinds: (1) Those who not only accept but also profit by Divine revelation. They are like the good level land which receives rain and yields good produce. (2) Those who do not themselves profit by the Divine revelation, but receive it and keep it stored up for others to benefit thereby. They are like that piece of land which yields no produce, but from which men and beasts benefit by the water collected during the rain. (3) Those who neither derive any benefit from the Divine revelation themselves nor keep it stored for the use of others. They are like that piece of land which neither yields any produce nor hoards up water so that men and beasts may drink from it.

Commentary:

The subject of the bee has been further elaborated in this verse. It says that God inspires the bee to collect its food from different fruits and flowers and then, by means of the mechanism provided in its body and by the methods revealed to it by God, it converts the collected food into honey. That honey possesses different colours and flavours but all its different varieties are highly useful for men. This fact suggests that revelation has continued to descend on Prophets at different times and that the teachings of one Prophet differed in detail from the teachings of another, nevertheless all these revelations had this essential common quality that they proved a means of moral and spiritual regeneration for the peoples for whom they were designed.

At various places in the Quran the same words have been used with reference to the Quranic revelation as have been used here with reference to honey. Honey provides a cure for the physical diseases of man and the most essential quality of the Quranic revelation also is that it is a cure for the spiritual maladies of man. See 10:58, 17:83 & 41:45.

The words, and follow the ways of thy Lord, suggest that it is possible for every man to become a recipient of Divinerevelation. The only condition he has to fulfil for this purpose is that he should obediently follow the path designed by God and not let his natural instincts become corrupt and vitiated. If he keeps his nature pure and unsullied and is guided by his natural instincts, in the course of time he becomes the recipient of revelation which may be compared to honey in its purity and usefulness.

The verse also implies that when all creatures have been granted وحی according to their respective natural capacities, though those capacities are very limited, it is inconceivable that man, who has been endowed with far greater natural powers and for whom unlimited avenues of spiritual progress have been kept open, should have remained deprived of this great blessing.

5:38; 32:21.

8:15; 34:43.

Commentary:

The expression من غم may also mean, on account of غم (anguish), or غم being case in apposition with the pronoun ھا (ha), the expression may mean, whenever they will seek to get out of it, i.e. out of غم (anguish).

30:49.

13:14.

Important Words:

رکاماً (piles up) is derived from رکم. They say رکم الشیء i.e. he heaped up, piled up or accumulated the thing; he collected together the thing and put one part of it upon another. رکام means, clouds or sand collected together and piled up (Lane & Aqrab).

ودق (rain) is derived from the root ودق (wadaqa). They say ودق الیه i.e. he became near to him. ودق السماء means, it rained. ودق السیف means, the sword became sharp. الودق means, rain, violent or gentle (Lane & Aqrab).

سنا (flash) is infinitive noun from سنا (sana). They say سنت النار i.e. the fire became high in its light. سنا البرق means, the lightning shone, shone brightly or gleamed or shot up. سنا means, light, or the light of lightning; or light shining or diffusing itself and rising, a high light; shining of weapons (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse gives another simile about the spiritual development of man and about the changes and processes which it undergoes to reach its perfection. The knowledge of such changes and processes is essential to the spiritual pilgrim because without such knowledge he may not know what turnings and crossroads he may have to meet on the way and consequently may despair of success. The verse purports to say that man’s spiritual development is like the formation of clouds from vapours. It begins in this way. The sun of God’s love and grace shines upon that inexhaustible store of man’s capacity to receive and assimilate the Divine Word with which he has been endowed and then it raises vapours which are moved about by the winds of Divine mercy. Just as in the earlier stages the vapours are not visible, so does the change wrought in the pilgrim’s mind by the Sun of Divine love and grace remain unfelt in the earlier stages of his spiritual development with the result that the impatient spiritual wayfarer sometimes loses patience and gives up the endeavour in despair. The simile points out that like invisible vapours which assume a visible form, the change in man’s moral and spiritual progress under Divine mercy assumes a palpable form and begins to be dimly perceptible. But the character and nature of the change is still in a formative stage, where it has not yet attained fixity and strength enough to be helpful to others. The progress, however, continues till like vapours that condense and take the form of showers of rain and sometimes of hail, the God-intoxicated spiritual wayfarer, who has donned the mantle of a Divine Messenger, becomes بشیر i.e. the Bearer of good news for the believers and نذیر i.e. Warner for those who reject the heavenly messages. Even among the believers his influence is not uniform; some benefit by his precept and practice more than the others according to their natural aptitudes, as are the different parts of earth benefited by rain according to the nature of the soil.

Or the significance of the verse may be that for some the revealed Law serves as timely rain which proves highly beneficial and for others it takes the form of hail and storm which brings in its wake destruction and ruin.

5:93; 64:13.

Important Words:

جھد أیمانھم (their strongest oaths). جھد means, he strove or laboured; he exerted himself; he employed himself vigorously or with energy; he took extraordinary pains. جھد فی الامر means, he did his utmost or used his utmost power in prosecuting the affair. جھد (jahdun) means, utmost power or ability or extraordinary painstaking, etc. جھد أیمانھم means, the most solemn; strongest or most forcible or energetic oaths (Lane & Aqrab).

24:44.

Important Words:

کسفا (pieces) is derived from کسف (kasafa). They say کسف الثوب i.e. he cut up the cloth. کسف أمله means, his hope was blasted. کسفة means, piece, fragment, part (Aqrab).

ودق (rain) is infinitive-noun from ودق (wadaqa). They say ودق السماء i.e. the cloud rained. ودق السیف means, the sword became sharp (Aqrab).

5:38; 22:23.

Commentary:

The reference in the word "fire" in this verse seems to be to the punishment which the sinners suffer in this life, possibly the punishment of war. The words, "every time they desire to come forth therefrom, they will be turned back into it," support this inference. The whole of humanity, particularly the materialistic Western nations, have gone to rack and ruin by constant wars. Millions of lives have been lost in these wars and many more men have been maimed and mutilated, and property beyond calculation has been destroyed. And yet like the sword of Democles the dread of more terrible wars is constantly hanging over humanity’s head.