مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ

5:43.

Commentary:

This and the preceding verse give the reasons why the Jews have been called apes and swine in 5:61. Whereas the ape imitates and mimics, the swine eats filth and is aggressive in attack, beside being extra filthy in some of its habits.

2:75; 57:17.

6:123; 8:49; 16:64; 29:39.

Commentary:

The words لولا (why not) are here used not to express mere interrogation, but also to express feelings of pity. Thus the verse signifies, "They ought to have humbled themselves before God; but it is a pity that they did not."

The afflictions were really a mercy from God, but, instead of turning to God, the people became hard-hearted. When misfortunes befell them, they ascribed them not to their own iniquities but to the Prophets.

The words, all that they did, refer to the hostile activities of disbelievers.

8:25.

6:109; 10:13; 27:5.

Commentary:

In the foregoing verses it was pointed out that man-made teachings are always defective. Now, the Quran proceeds to show that man-made teachings cannot stand against Divine teachings.

The verse purports to put the question: "If there is a teaching which is really from God, will it not be better than that devised by man?" Now, this is a question which every man, even a disbeliever, will have to reply in the affirmative. Indeed, human reason cannot have the boldness to deny it. The question has thus been put to make disbelievers conscious of a great truth.

The expression, he is in utter darkness whence he cannot come forth, refers to the man who devises laws with the aid of reason alone— reason that is fettered by numberless limitations to which man is subject. The laws made by men are always subject to change owing to their intrinsic defectiveness. A law is made today but it has to be changed tomorrow on account of the defects which by experience are found in it. Then the new law is again changed for the same reason, and this process goes on indefinitely and sometimes even a sort of a circle comes into being. Thus the case of such men as devise their laws with the aid of human reason alone is like one who is in darkness from which he will never come out.

The words, made to seem fair, imply that Satan and his associates adorn the evil doings of men. In the beginning it is Satan who misleads men by inciting them to evil. But when a man goes on doing evil deeds, his evil deeds gradually begin to appear good to him. This is the law of God meant as a punishment. It is to this later adornment of deeds under the law of God that the Quran refers in 6:109 above.

3:12; 5:11; 7:37; 21:78.

Commentary:

The verse serves as a great warning for all men. One should not live on pious hopes. Only good works count when rewards are meted out.

17:111.

Important Words:

الاسماء الحسنی (perfect attributes). The word اسماء is the plural of اسم (for which see 1:1 & 2:32), meaning, (1) name; and (2) attribute. الحسنی which is the feminine of الاحسن means, that which is better or that which is best; the final good state or condition. So الاسماء الحسنی means, best names, or best attributes, or perfect attributes. The term is specifically used to denote the attributes of God.

یلحدون (deviate from the right way) is derived from لحد which means, he or it declined or deviated from the right course, or he or it inclined. الحد also means the same. الحد فی الدین means, he deviated or swerved from the right way with respect to religion; he impugned religion. الحد also means, he disputed or wrangled. الحد به means, he brought a reproach upon him; or he held him in light estimation; or he despised him; or he said of him what was false (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The proper name of God is only Allah, all the rest being, strictly speaking, not His names but attributes. The verse tells us the secret as to how our prayers can be readily accepted. While praying, we should invoke such attributes of God as are directly related to the object of our prayer. This will make our prayer more susceptible of acceptance, because, by so doing, we would excite the jealousy of God with regard to the relevant attribute of His, with the result that the prayer, if otherwise acceptable, will not be suffered to go in vain. The Quran specifically mentions as many as 69 Divine attributes, but there are others which may be inferred and yet others which are found mentioned in the Hadith.

The verse next proceeds to enjoin the believers to have nothing to do with those who devise for God attributes which are not attributable to Him. Says the verse: Leave alone those who deviate from the right way with respect to His attributes. When God possesses all the best attributes mentioned in the Quran or the Hadith, what need is there to devise other attributes for Him? Such attributes cannot be free from error. An instance of such an ill-devised attribute is عادل (Just) which Christians attribute to God. The Quran says that God certainly is not unjust but at the same time it scrupulously avoids the ascription of the attribute of عادل (Just) to Him, for the ascription of this attribute to God would imply that His justice should demand that He must always punish sinners. But He is not bound to do so, because He is Forgiving and Merciful and He can pardon any sinner. In fact, God is not like a judge bound by the Law to deal with men according to their deeds. But He is مالك or Master of His creatures and Master of His law as well. He can forgive the sins of His servants as and when He pleases. By calling God "just", the Christian Church had to enlist the aid of a so-called redeemer who, by his supposed death on the cross, should atone for the sins of men to satisfy God’s attribute of justice.

2:175; 3:78,188; 16:96.

Commentary:

See note on 2:42.

16:97-98; 24:39; 39:36.

Commentary:

See the preceding verse with which the present one is linked up.

30:34; 39:9, 50.

Important Words:

مسرفین (the extravagant) is the plural of مسرف which is the active participle from اسرف which again is derived from سرفmeaning, he was ignorant; or he was unmindful or heedless. سرف الطعام means, the wheat or food became cankered or eaten away. اسرف means, he exceeded or transgressed the just or right limit or measure; he acted extravagantly or immoderately. They say فلان اسرف فی ماله meaning, such a one was hasty in respect of his property i.e. he expended his property extravagantly without keeping within proper bounds. اسرف فی القتل means, he exceeded the due bounds or just limits in slaying. اسراف, which is the noun-infinitive from اسرف, also signifies the committing of many faults, offences, or crimes and sins. مسرف means, one exceeding or transgressing the right limit or measure; one acting extravagantly; one unmindful, negligent or heedless; one denying or disacknowledging the favours or benefits or the Unity or the Prophets or the Law of God; a disbeliever or an unbeliever (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse describes the different attitudes which a man assumes when he is stricken with distress. Sometimes the blow is so hard that he falls to the ground. This state is described in the words, lying on his side. Again, sometimes distress renders a man restless and uneasy. This state is described in the words, sitting or standing, because the constant changing of posture is a sure sign of restlessness.

The verse means that, although disbelievers continue to demand that if the Prophet of Islam is really sent by God, they should be visited with punishment for their rejection of him, yet when Divine punishment actually overtakes them, they are seized with despair. It thus embodies two important lessons. The first is that we should not be hasty in attacking the motives of other people, because the verse clearly says that the disbelievers do not commit evil deeds deliberately, knowing them to be so, but only do what appears good in their eyes, i.e. their evil deeds are the result of faulty reasoning and defective vision. It may be asked here, why then will disbelievers be punished for doing what appears good in their eyes. The answer to that question is that the verse does not say that the evil deeds of each and every individual appear good in his sight but that it is only to the extravagant that they so appear. The offence of the disbelievers lies in the fact that they become extravagant, and so they justly deserve to suffer the consequences of an extravagant life.

The second important lesson contained in this verse is that the plea of good motives is not always acceptable and therefore it cannot always save a person from the consequences of his actions. It is only when the motives themselves become vitiated on account of corrupt living or when it is in our power to rectify our motives but we fail to do so, that we become deserving of punishment. In the law of nature, as against the law of Shari‘ah, motives count for nothing, the consequences being invariably determined by the nature of one’s actions. He who takes a fatal dose of poison must die, no matter what his motives are and no matter what kind of life he leads. But in the law of Shari‘ah due allowance is made for the circumstances in which a certain deed is done and for the motives that prompt it.

11:12; 39:11.

Commentary:

The verse means to say that the sums of money which will be offered to you as bribes will soon be spent but the boons and favours which God will confer on you will endure not only in this world but will extend to the next.

The words, according to the best of their works, mean that while rewarding Muslims, God will take into consideration their best works and will reward them according to those works. In fact, the good works which a man does are of various degrees; some being of a higher standard of excellence than others. For the purpose of rewarding Muslims God will not consider their deeds of the lower type nor even of the middling standard, but will take into consideration their best works and will reward them according to these. Nay, God’s reward will exceed even their best works, for it will be at least ten times as much as their best deeds (6:161). But this great reward, it is added, will be conferred only on those who do not waver under hardships nor barter away their faith for a paltry price.

3:196; 4:125; 20:113.

Commentary:

Whereas on the one hand the verse recognizes the equality of rights of men and women and promises both equal share in the favours that God will confer on them, on the other it tells disbelievers that, as they have degraded women, dominion and authority would be taken away from them and would be given to a people—Muslims—who will give women their due rights.

4:124; 6:161; 17:8; 41:47; 99:8-9.

Commentary:

The verse points to the divine law of compensation which in this life works in this way that whereas for good works God gives a reward many times greater than what the doer has earned, He punishes a bad deed with a punishment which is less than what the guilty person has incurred or at the most with a punishment proportionate to the evil deed which he has committed.

14:22; 40:48.

10:55.

Important Words:

أسروا (will conceal). أسر is one of those Arabic words which have contrary meanings. أسرہ means, he concealed it; he manifested it, he made it known (Lane). See also 10:55.

أعناق (necks) is the plural of عنق (‘unuqun) which is substantive noun from عنق (‘aniqa) which means, he was or became long and thick in the neck. عنق means, the neck; a company of men or a numerous company of men; the heads or chiefs of men or great ones. عنق النخل means, the trunks of palm-trees (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The words "with whom Allah is wroth" refer particularly to the Jews and hypocrites of Medina but they also possess a general application.

9:9.

Commentary:

The hypocrites make loud professions of their faith and repeatedly declare on solemn oaths that they are sincere believers. This they do in order to hoodwink honest and unsuspecting believers into thinking that they are sincere and faithful followers of Islam like themselves, and thus by winning the believers’ confidence they seek to create mischief among them. This is how they make their oaths a screen for their wicked designs.