مِّن رَّسُولٍ

36:31; 43:8.

Commentary:

The verse shows that when disbelievers addressed the Holy Prophet saying, O thou to whom this Exhortation has been sent down, thou art surely a madman (v. 7), they really used the words in jest. So what it meant in the present verse is that if disbelievers mock at the Holy Prophet, it is not a thing to be wondered at, for even Prophets whom they claim to accept were similarly mocked at by their forefathers.

Another significance of the verse is that whenever there comes a Prophet, God promises to protect his teachings, and this makes disbelievers wonder. They cannot bring themselves to believe that through his teachings he has any chance of success in the face of their opposition and, therefore, they treat him with contempt.

It is surprising that although all Prophets have been mocked at on account of their humble origins, yet whenever a new claimant appears he is expected by disbelievers to come with great pomp and splendour. Disbelievers seem to forget that if past Prophets had come with pomp and splendour, they would never have been treated with scorn. Incidentally, the verse draws our attention to the divine law that the fact that every new Messenger of God is, in the beginning, rejected and ridiculed is really a sign of the truth of his claim rather than of his falsehood.

15:12; 43:8.

Commentary:

The words of this verse are full of pathos. The Almighty Himself seems, as it were, to be full of grief over the rejection and mocking of His Prophets by men. While the Prophets grieved and pined for their peoples, the latter requited their grief with contempt and mockery.

While the verse means that every Prophet of God was rejected, mocked and jeered at by his people, it has a special reference to the Promised Messiah, signifying that in his time all Prophets will be rejected i.e. the very idea of Divine revelation will be doubted and denied.