Topic: Towards Prophets

25:32.

Important Words:

زخرف (gilded). They say زخرف البیت i.e. he adorned, decorated or embellished the house. زخرف الکلام means, he arranged or put into a right state the speech or language; he embellished it with lies, etc. زخرف means, gold; any ornament or decoration or embellishment; also anything adorned, decorated or embellished; anything embellished with false colouring or with lies (Aqrab).

For غرورا (in order to deceive) see 4:121.

Commentary:

The words, men and jinn, which occur in many verses of the Quran do not refer to two different species of God’s creatures, but only to two classes of human beings, i.e. "men" denoting the masses or the common folk, and jinn standing for the big people who often remain aloof from the common people and do not mix with them, practically remaining concealed from public gaze. See also 6:101.

Those of the common people and the big people who lead the opposition to the Prophets of God have been styled Shayatin (evil ones), for an explanation of which see note on 2:15. This word shows that those who lead lives of sin before the advent of a Prophet generally increase in sinfulness as a punishment for their evil deeds, so that when a Prophet makes his appearance, they assume the role of arch-enemies to him and become leaders of opposition. It is a law of God, in both the physical and spiritual worlds, that the powers of man develop in the direction in which they are exercised. So, as such men employ their powers in the wrong way, the result is that at the advent of a Prophet they become still greater sinners and become leaders of men in opposing the truth. Again, in order to augment their mischief, these leaders suggest, as hinted in the words, gilded speech, such arguments to one another as appear to be sound and true but are really false and hollow, and their object in suggesting such things is to deceive the weak-minded.

19:48; 26:87; 60:5.

11:76.

Important Words:

اوّاہ (most tender-hearted) is the intensive adjective from اوہ. They say, اوہ or تأوہ i.e. he said, Ah! or Alas! he moaned or uttered a moan; or he gave prolonged utterance to distress or complaint. اواہ means, one who is often saying, Ah! or Alas! from a motive of love or pity or fear; one often moaning or mourning or sorrowing; compassionate or tender-hearted; one often praying; one who praises God greatly or glorifies Him much; one who addresses himself with earnest supplication to God, confident that his prayer will be accepted; one inviting much or often to what is good (Lane).

Commentary:

The preceding verse declares that praying for disbelievers, after it has become clear that they are inmates of Hell, is forbidden. The present verse explains a prayer which Abraham offered for his idolatrous father on the basis that he had made a promise to do so. Abraham, however, was not slow in dissociating himself from his father as soon as it became clear to him that he was an enemy of God. The verse ends with words expressive of high praise for Abraham. See also 6:75.

2:35; 7:20; 15:30-31; 17:62; 20:117; 38:73-75.

Commentary:

It is worthy of special note that at several places in the Quran where mention is made of the punishment which overtakes a people when they reject their Prophet, its object is to warn their successors that they should not repeat the errors of their predecessors. The example of Adam, our great progenitor whom Satan sought to seduce and involve in trouble, is set before disbelievers that they may benefit by it and not fall victims to the seductions of Satan and reject their Prophet.

7:23; 18:51.

Commentary:

الجنة (the garden) does not refer to Heaven or Paradise but only to the garden-like place where Adam was first made to live. The word cannot refer to heaven; first, because it was on the earth that Adam was made to live, as the words: "I am about to place a vicegerent in the earth" (2:31) indicate; and secondly, because heaven is a place from where no one having once entered it can ever be expelled (15:49), whereas Adam was compelled to leave the جنة referred to in this verse. Recent archaeological researches show that the place where Adam was made to dwell was the garden of Eden which lay near Babylon in Iraq, and which was given this name on account of the great fertility of its soil (Enc. Brit. under "Ur"). See also 2:35, 36.

The Bible also lends support to this view. It says: "And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom He had formed" (Gen. 2:8).

The verse means to warn Adam that if he succumbed to the blandishments held out to him by Iblis and accepted his advice, he would become deprived of جنة i.e. the life of bliss, comfort and spiritual contentment which he had formerly enjoyed.

6:113.