Search Results for "رُسُلُهُمْ"

3:185; 5:33.

Commentary:

The word القری (the towns) again refers here to ancient towns fallen into ruin. The Quran reverts to their mention in order to emphasize the seriousness of a Prophet’s rejection and to introduce the narration of yet another by-gone people, the rejecters of Moses.

By using the words, some of whose news, the verse makes it clear that the Quran has not given the entire history of by-gone peoples but only the relevant parts of it. Nevertheless, no book of history contains more reliable information about the peoples of ‘Ad and Thamud than does the Quran, and students of history have admitted that what the Quran tells us is the only authentic and reliable knowledge that we possess about these ancient peoples, and all other stories current about them may be only so many myths. As regards Lot, later Jewish writers have admitted that he was a Prophet of God, as the Quran represents him to be, though the Bible does not seem to accord him this rank.

The verse hints that as the Holy Prophet represents in his person all the Prophets that have gone before him, therefore his rejecters will be visited with all the various forms of punishment that befell the rejecters of former Prophets.

The opponents of God’s Prophets are in the habit of rejecting their claims on the basis of mere hearsay and make-believe. The result of such a hasty rejection is that the hearts of the rejecters become sealed and they become deprived of the power to understand the arguments and signs which God shows to establish the truth of His Messengers. The verse thus throws light on how the hearts or minds of disbelievers are sealed. They are sealed only when disbelievers refuse to make use of their God-given power of reasoning and understanding.

14:10; 50:13-15.

10:45; 29:41; 30:10.

Important Words:

المؤتفکات (cities which were over-thrown) is derived from افك. They say افکه i.e. he changed his or its manner of being or state; he turned him or it away or back. They say ائتفکت البلدة باھلھا i.e. the land or town was or became overturned or subverted with its inhabitants. مؤتفکات therefore means, ties overthrown or subverted. It also means, the winds that turn over the surface of the earth, or the winds that blow from different quarters, now from this and now from that (Lane).

Commentary:

This verse explains the words, those before you, occurring in the preceding verse. The reference in words, cities which were overthrown, is to the towns to which Prophet Lot was sent and which were turned upside down on account of their transgression and depravity. The catastrophe was caused by a violent earthquake. The overthrown habitation were according to the Bible, the two towns of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19:24 & 25). The site is believed to be that of the Dead Sea (Jew. Enc. under Sodom). The Quran speaks of the place as being situated on or near a "permanent way" (15:75-77).

6:7; 20:129; 21:12.

Important Words:

القرون (the generations) is the plural of القرن which gives a number of meanings: (1) part or division of time; (2) people of one time; (3) a generation coming after another; (4) a people that is destroyed so as to leave no remnant behind it; a century (Aqrab and Lane).

Commentary:

This verse brings to light some eternal divine truths. One is that it is always a life of wrongdoing i.e. the contravention of the law of nature or that of Shari‘ah that brings about the downfall and destruction of a people. The entire history of the world bears eloquent testimony to this great truth. The other divine law hinted at in this verse is that Divine punishment does not overtake a people unless a Prophet of God first appears among them to warn them of their evil ways and of the Divine punishment that will come upon them, if they do not follow him and give up their wicked practices. Thus it is the mercy of God and not His punishment that is meant to be emphasized in this verse, because we are told that when God sees that a certain people have made themselves deserving of His punishment on account of their evil lives, He, out of His great mercy, sends to them a Prophet so that they may follow him and, by reforming themselves, escape the impending punishment and become heirs to His favours. It is only when they reject the Divine Messenger and instead of mending their ways, begin to persecute him that God sends down punishment on them.

Punishments again are of two kinds: (1) those that are the result of contravention of the laws of nature, and (2) those that come when the law of Shari‘ah is flouted. The latter class of punishments never occur unless a people begin to lead wicked lives and unless a Prophet is first made to appear among them. Punishments of this kind are known by certain characteristics. For instance, (a) their occurrence is generally foretold by previous announcements based on Divine revelation; (b) they assume the form of an unusual and extraordinary upheaval in nature such as a succession of earthquakes or the widespread outbreak of virulent epidemics; and (c) they occur after a Warner has made his appearance. The other class of punishments, such as the rise and fall of nations from natural causes, are due only to the contravention of the ordinary laws of nature. These must always be distinguished from the first-mentioned class of punishments.

9:70; 40:32; 50:13-15.

Important Words:

نبأ (tidings) is the noun-infinitive, from نبأ (naba’a). They say انباہ ایاہ i.e. he informed him of it. نبأ means, information or a piece of information; an announcement; news or tidings; an account; a narrative or story; an announcement of great utility, from which results either great knowledge or predominance of opinion; news which fills the heart of a person with horror and makes it tremble (Lane, Aqrab & Kulliyat).

ایدیھم (their hands). ایدی is the plural of ید which among other things means, the arm from the shoulder-joint to the extremities of the fingers; palm of the hand; honour; dignity; power; predominance or mastery; good or favour done to a person (Aqrab & Lane). See also 5:65; 9:29.

Commentary:

The words, and those after them. None knows them now save Allah, clearly indicate that Prophets were also raised among nations other than the progeny of Abraham, for, as the verse makes clear, the tribes of ‘Ad and Thamud were followed by some about whom None knows now save Allah, whereas the Prophets that appeared among the progeny of Abraham have been mentioned both in the Quran and the Bible. So the words, None knows them now save Allah, evidently refer to Prophets other than those that appeared among the descendants of Abraham. The words signify that the Prophets referred to have not been mentioned in any of the revealed Books which have remained partially or wholly intact.

The words, they turned their hands to their mouths, have been taken by some commentators to mean that disbelievers turned their hands to their own mouths in amazement at the high-sounding claims of the Prophets. To express wonder in this way is really a form of derision. In this sense the expression would mean that disbelievers treated the Prophets of God with contempt. The words may, however, also mean that disbelievers put their hands on their mouths in a way so as to wish the Prophets to be silent and cease talking about their claims. It is a general practice that when a person desires another person to keep silent, he sometimes puts his hand or occasionally one of his fingers on his own mouth as a sign for the other person to keep silent.

Taking the word ید in the sense of favour or gift, the expression would mean that disbelievers threw the favours of the Prophet in their faces, telling them to keep their teachings to themselves as they (the disbelievers) did not want them. The words that follow support this meaning.

6:15; 12:102; 35:2; 39:47.

11:28; 23:25.

Important Words:

فاطر (Maker) is the active participle from فطر. They say فطرہ i.e. he clove, split, rent or cracked it; He (God) created it, or produced it or brought it into existence, namely, for the first time, it not having existed before; originated it; commenced or began it. فاطرالسموات means, the Originator or Creator of the heavens. Ibn ‘Abbas says, "I did not know what was the meaning of فاطرالسموات until two Arabs of the desert came to me, disputing together respecting a well, and one of them said, انا افطرتھا i.e. 'It was I who originated or began it.' " فطرالعجین; means, he made the dough into bread, or baked it, without leavening it, he kneaded the dough and made it into bread or baked it immediately (Lane & Aqrab). From the Quran it appears that there are four stages of creation: (a) the stage when nothing existed and the process of creation began for thefirst time, nothing having existed before; (b) the stage when matter had come into existence but had not yet taken a definite material form; (c) the stage when, as the result of combination, matter began to acquire diverse properties, the consummation of this process being known by the name of the law of nature; and (d) the last stage when, in accordance with the law of nature, the process of procreation or repetition in creation began, viz. man was born out of man and grain out of grain, etc. The attribute of فاطر (Maker) points to the second stage.

Commentary:

The verse gives the creation of the heavens and the earth as an argument to prove the Divine origin of the teaching given to the Prophets. The Prophets are here represented as saying to their opponents: "It is by the command of Allah that we preach. We say nothing of our own accord. How can you entertain doubt about the fact that God can send down revealed guidance? He is the Creator of heaven and earth, and it is unreasonable to think that, after having created man, He should have left him without guidance. Equally, it is inconsistent with reason to think that, whereas God has made ample provision for the material welfare and advancement of man by creating heaven and earth, He should have neglected to provide for his spiritual welfare."

The words, He calls you that He may forgive you your sins, and grant you respite till an appointed term, refute an objection of disbelievers that God was too dignified and exalted to invite humble beings like themselves to Him. They are told that it is indeed inconsistent with the dignity of God to call humble beings to His aid, but it is not at all below His dignity to come to their help. Nay, such an act is quite in keeping with His supreme dignity. God had therefore sent His Messengers that, through them, He might satisfy the moral and spiritual needs of man and grant him a new and higher life.

The expression, you are but men like ourselves;…Bring us then some clear proof, contains another objection of disbelievers that, if God at all was to have raised Messengers, they should have been beings befitting His dignity and not weak and humble men like themselves. The answer is given in the succeeding verse.

18:111; 41:7.

3:165; 6:125.

Commentary:

This verse constitutes a reply to the objections of disbelievers mentioned in the preceding verse.

The reply is to the effect that a Messenger of God who is sent for the guidance of men and to serve as a model or exemplar for them must be a man like themselves; for, without being a human being like themselves, he could not be a model for them. If he were a "co-partner" of God or a so-called "son" or an angel or any other superhuman being, he could not be a model for men. So God chooses of His servants whom He pleases. There is none to set limits to His powers and choice.

The words, And it is not for us to bring you a proof except by the command of Allah, do not mean that the Messengers of God could not adduce a proof in support of their claim. They are meant only to answer the demand of disbelievers that the Prophets should prove their power and superiority over them. They are told by the Messengers that power and victory all come from God and that, as human beings, they (the Messengers) possess no superiority over them.

7:89.

Commentary:

This verse contains a subtle reference to a deep-rooted desire of the opponents of God’s Messengers in all times. They ardently wish the Prophets to incline towards them a little and abstain from a wholesale denunciation of their beliefs that there may thus come about something like a compromise between the two parties. This desire of disbelievers has also been expressed in 68:10. But the Prophets always flatly refuse to agree to any such compromise and adhere unflinchingly to their principles, without deviating an hair’s breadth from them. It is after disbelievers see that the Prophets accept no compromise that they launch a campaign of bitter persecution against them and thus either seek to force them back into their faith or compel them to leave their country, which includes extirpation by any other means. This is how disbelievers have treated God’s Prophets throughout the ages—the same offer of compromise on their part, the same disdainful rejection of this offer by the Prophets and the same campaign of bitter persecution launched against the latter by their opponents.

In the words, We will surely destroy the wrongdoers, God has, as it were, turned the tables upon disbelievers. They had threatened the Prophets with expulsion from "our land" if they did not recant their faith. To this threat God replies by saying that, as the land is His and not theirs, so if it comes to dispossessing the wrongdoers, it will be they that will be destroyed. The verse thus implies a prophecy of the ultimate destruction of the enemies of the Holy Prophet and of his triumphant return to Mecca.

12:110; 22:47; 35:45; 47:11.

4:41; 9:70; 10:45; 18:50; 29:32.

Important Words:

أثاروا (tilled) is derived from ثار which means, it was or became raised or stirred up; it spread; it rose. ثار الماء means, the water flowed forth with force; it gushed forth. أثارہ means, he raised or roused him or it. أثار الارض means, he tilled the ground or land; he cultivated it by ploughing and sowing. أثار الفتنة بینھم means, he excited mischief amongst them (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse indicates that there had lived in the past people who had attained to a very high stage of civilization and culture; particularly they had made great progress in the art of architecture, mining and cultivation. Recent researches in archaeology have borne testimony to this fact. The Quran had referred to this fact fourteen hundred years ago.

6:35; 22:43; 40:6; 54:10.

16:45.

Commentary:

The verse continues the theme of the preceding verses and consoles and comforts the Holy Prophet by saying that it is a tragedy of human affairs that the very people who are called to God by their Prophets reject and persecute such Prophets, and that the Holy Prophet is not an exception to this rule. Like them he will receive mockery and abuse from his people.

23:45; 41:15.

Commentary:

As man has been endowed with great faculties of head and heart and as he has to render an account of his deeds in the life hereafter, God sent His Messengers to guide him to the goal of his life. But man, in his ingratitude and conceit, defies and opposes Divine Messengers, thereby incurring Divine punishment.