ٱلْيَوْمَ

3:124; 8:66.

Important Words:

نـھر (river). The verb نـھر means, it flowed with force. They say نـھر الدام i.e. the blood poured forth with force. نـھر الماء means, the water poured forth in the land and cut out a channel for itself. النـھر (an-nahr) means, a body of flowing water, i.e. stream or river; channel through which such water flows. النھر (an-nahr) means, (1) plenty and abundance; (2) a river channel; (3) a river (Aqrab).

الجنود (forces) is the plural of الجـند. They say جند الجنود i.e. he collected or gathered together his forces. الجند means, a force or an army ; helpers (Aqrab).

جالوت (Jalut) is derived from جال i.e. he ran about without stopping. They say جال الفرس فی المیدان i.e. the horse galloped about in the field, sometimes going this way and sometimes that way. جال القوم جولة means, the people drew back and then made a joint onslaught. جال بعضھم علی بعض means, they assailed or assaulted one another in battle, etc. (Aqrab & Taj). Thus جالوت is an attributive name meaning, a person or a people who is unruly and moves about attacking and assaulting others. In the Bible the parallel name is Goliath (1 Sam. 17:4) which means, "running, ravaging and destroying spirits" or "a leader or a giant" (Enc. Bib. and Jew. Enc.). The Bible uses the name about one individual but really the word signifies a party of ruthless freebooters, though it may also be applied to certain individuals symbolizing the characteristics of the party. The Quran appears to have used it in both these senses in the verses under comment.

Commentary:

Self-control and discipline are the key to most successes, and possession of these qualities is necessary to successfully meet God’s trials. The present verse speaks of one such trial. The exception of a handful of water was made with a twofold purpose: (1) to afford the marching force an essential physical relief by permitting them to moisten their parched throats, but at the same time to prevent them from drinking freely, which would have damped their spirits and made them negligent of the enemy; and (2) to make the trial all the more tantalizing, for in many cases it is easier to withhold from a thing altogether than to use it in a strictly limited measure. The Bible mentions the incident in Judg. 7:5-6.

The concluding clause, i.e. how many a small party has triumphed over a large party by Allah’s command, contains a mighty lesson of hope for the righteous. When God wills a thing, numbers do not matter. The truth of this statement has been borne out by history in all ages.

The Jalut spoken of in this verse does not signify a person but a people, while the word جنود (forces) points to the helpers and associates of these people. The Bible refers to Jalut under the name of Midianites who pillaged and harassed the Israelites and destroyed their land for several years (Judg. 6:1-6). The Amalekites and all the eastern tribes assisted the Midianites in their raids (Judg. 6:1) and formed "the forces" referred to in the verse.

2:174; 6:146.

5:91.

3:20, 86.

2:174; 6:146; 16:116.

Important Words:

المیتة (an animal which dies of itself). Though generally speaking everything that is dead is میتة in its specific sense, the word signifies an animal that has died of itself without being properly slaughtered (Lane). See also 2:174.

المنخنقة (that which has been strangled) is derived from خنق. They say خنقه i.e. he squeezed his or its throat that he or it might die; he squeezed his or its throat so that he or it died; he strangled or throttled or choked him or it. اختنق or انخنقmeans, he or it became throttled or strangled or choked. شاة منخنقة means, a goat or sheep strangled or throttled (Lane).

الموقوذة (that which has been beaten to death) is derived from وقذه. They say وقذه i.e. he beat or struck him or it violently till he or it became relaxed and was at the point of death; he broke his or its skull, wounding the brain; he beat him or it till he or it died. شاة موقوذة means, a goat or sheep beaten to death either with a stick or staff or stones, etc. (Lane).

المتردیة (that which has been killed by a fall) is derived from ردی. They say ردی الرجل i.e. the man perished. رداه بحجر means, he threw stones at him and hit him. تردی means, he or it fell or tumbled down into a well or a pit. It also means, he or it fell down from a mountain, or a height and died. المتردیة means, that (a goat, etc.) which falls from a mountain or a height, or falls down a well, or a pit and dies (Lane).

النطیحة (that which has been gored to death) is derived from نطح. They say نطحه i.e. he (a ram, etc.) smote him or it with his horn. النطیحة means, a sheep or goat smitten with the horn and so killed (Lane).

ماذکیتم (that which you have properly slaughtered). ذکی (dhakka) is derived from ذکی (dhaka). They say ذکت النار i.e. the fire blazed or burned brightly. ذکت الارض means, the land was or became clean and pure. ذکی النار (dhakka) means, he made the fire blaze or burn brightly. ذکی العقل means, it (medicine, etc.) sharpened the intellect. ذکی الشاة means, he slaughtered the goat in the manner prescribed by the Law of Islam (Lane).

النصب (idols) is derived from نصب which means, he set up or he fixed. النصب according to some is singular, the plural of which is انصاب; and according to others, it is plural, of which the singular is نصاب. The word means, signs or marks set up to show the way; stones set up and worshipped to the exclusion of, or in preference to, God; anything that is so worshipped; stones which the pagan Arabs set to sacrifice or slay animals before them, the name of some deity being pronounced in the killing of such animals; idol or idols; but whereas idols were generally carved and had some form or shape, النصب were simple uncarved stones (Lane & Aqrab).

ازلام (divining arrows) is the plural of زلم and is derived from the verb زلم (zalama), meaning, he cut off the protruding part of a thing, such as the nose; he made his gift small in quantity as though he had cut off something from it. زلم السھم means, he cut or pared the arrow to make it proportionate and good-looking. زلم means, an arrow without a head and without feathers. ازلام (the plural of زلم) were those divining arrows by means of which pre-Islamic Arabs sought to know what was allotted to them. On some of these arrows the word "command" and on others "prohibition" were written, while others were left blank, and all these were kept together in a suitable vessel. When anyone wanted to do a certain thing or go on a journey, he would take out one of the arrows without looking at them and then act according to the instruction of "command" or "prohibition" as the case might be. If the blank arrow came out, the experiment was repeated, till an arrow bearing the word "command" or "prohibition" was taken out (Lane).

الیوم (this day) here really signifies "now". See 1:4.

مخمصة (hunger) is derived from مخمص. They say خمص البطن i.e. the belly was or became empty, i.e. hungry. خمصت القدم means, the foot rose from the ground or was hollow in the middle of the sole, so that it did not touch it. خمصه الجوع means, hunger rendered him lank in the belly. مخمصة therefore, means, emptiness of the belly; hunger (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse shows that the Quran does not consider the prosperity and predominance of Islam to be dependent on territorial conquest and the extension of material power, but on its being a perfect and complete religion. it draws the attention of Muslims to the fact that now that all the teachings needed for the moral and spiritual regeneration of man have been embodied in the Quran, it is up to them to win the premier place in the comity of nations by acting upon them and holding fast to them.

The words ikmal (perfecting) and itmam (completing) which are noun-infinitives from اکملت and اتممت (have I perfected and completed) occurring in the clause, This day have I perfected your religion for you and completed My favour upon you, are full of meaning and convey two different and distinct senses. The former, (i.e. perfection) relates to quality, and the latter, (i.e. completion) to quantity. The use of the word اکملت (I have perfected) with regard to the teaching of the Quran thus shows that doctrines and commandments affecting the physical, moral and spiritual development of man have been embodied in the Quran in their most perfect form; while the word اتممت (I have completed) shows that nothing which was needed by man has been left out. Again, the former, i.e. perfection, pertains to command-ments relating to the physical side of man or his external self, while the latter, i.e. completion, relates to his spiritual side or his inner self, viz. the completion of the spiritual blessings which follow the observance of the outward Law.

Thus, the verse hints that as the Divine Law has been perfected and completed in the Quran it shall not be superseded by any other Law. The Laws that preceded the Quran were meant for particular peoples and limited periods, being suited to their special requirements only. Similarly, the Prophets that preceded the Holy. Prophet of Islam were only sent to particular nations. This was quite in the fitness of things. The means of communication between different countries were then in a very undeveloped state and people living in one country knew little or nothing of the countries that lay far off from them. Moreover, nations of the earth were then in different stages of development, some being very backward and others only partially developed and the mind of man had not attained its full growth and development. Hence, the circumstances then obtaining required that separate Messengers be sent to separate nations who should give them such teachings as suited their particular needs and requirements. This state of things, however, was not to last forever, the Oneness of God presupposed oneness of mankind and it was quite natural that, when the God-given faculties of man became fully developed and the means of communication also improved so that intercourse between different nations became easier and more common, God should raise a Prophet for the whole of mankind and give him a perfect Law which should fulfil all the needs and meet all the problems of humanity

But the mere existence of a perfect Law cannot prevent the moral degeneration of humanity. So in spite of the presence of the Quran, it was necessary that heavenly Reformers should continue to appear in the world in times of degeneration, and, being inspired of God, should give new life to corrupt and degenerate humanity. In fact, the promise about the appearance of such Reformers is implied even in the words, This day have I completed My favour upon you, for if religion has been completed, it does not stand to reason that when mankind should consign God to oblivion and forget the object of their creation, God should make no provision for their regeneration. In that case, His favour upon them cannot be said to have been "completed". Thus, the very comple-tion of God’s favour upon Muslims requires that He should raise among them such Reformers as should breathe a new life into them, whenever their spiritual and moral degeneration demands it. Says the Holy Prophet, "God will raise among the Muslims at the head of each century a Reformer who would regenerate their religion for them" (Dawud, ch. on Malahim).

It may also be noted here that the perfection and completion of God’s religion and favour has been mentioned side by side with the law relating to eatables in order to point out that the use of lawful food forms one of the most important bases of good morals which in time provide a pedestal for spiritual progress.

Important Words:

For the meaning of the word محصنین (contracting valid marriage) and مسافحین (committing fornication) and اخدان (secret paramours). See 4:25, 26.

Commentary:

The verse declares that if a person from among the People of the Book invites a Muslim to dinner, it is lawful for the latter to accept the invitation and partake of the food of the former, provided, of course, the food does not include anything forbidden by Islam. Similarly, a Muslim is allowed to invite the People of the Book to dinner.

Some commentators have taken the word طعام (food) in the clause, the food of the People of the Book is lawful for you, in the sense of "flesh of animals used as food." In this sense, the verse would signify that Muslims are allowed to partake of the flesh of an animal slaughtered by one from among the People of the Book, provided, of course, the name of God has been pronounced on the slaughtered animal.

The words, And lawful for you are chaste believing women and chaste women from among those who were given the Book before you, are intended to hint that whereas Islam permits marriage of Muslim men with non-Muslim women from among the People of the Book, it certainly prefers that Muslim men should ordinarily marry only Muslim women.

The words یکفر بالایمان rendered as "rejects the faith" may either mean "turns apostate" which is its primary significance; or it may mean "is ungrateful respecting faith". For the meaning of the particle با see 1:1.

6:22; 7:38; 10:18; 11:19; 61:8.

46:21.

Commentary:

The verse gives another reason of the fact that the Quran is the revealed Word of God. If this Book, says the verse, is not the Word of God, then he who has forged this lie against God is the most guilty of men and cannot escape Divine punishment. But the verse also reminds deniers or rejecters that if the Quran is not a forged Book but the Word of God, as it actually is, then they are as great offenders as the one who forges a lie against God. In this case, it will be they who will be visited with Divine punishment.

The second sentence, i.e. or says, It has been revealed to me while nothing has been revealed to him, may be taken as an explanation or elaboration of the first sentence, i.e. who forges a lie against Allah; or the first sentence is general, while the second is particular. For instance, falsely to ascribe any teaching to God will come under the first category, and to claim falsely that God has spoken to him particular words will come under the second.

By saying, I will send down the like of that which Allah has sent down, a disbeliever only borrows the phraseology of those whom he addresses, viz. believers. Being a disbeliever in Divine revelation, he does not believe that God sends down anything, so he only quotes the expression made use of by believers concerning Divine revelation. Another instance of such usage is to be met with in 5:44.

The words, if thou couldst only see, signify that if anyone should witness the torment which the deniers of Prophets undergo when their souls leave their bodies, he would at once realize how severe is the torment of those who reject a Divine Messenger. This torment is not to be identified with the ordinary agonies of death, which are shared, under the general law of nature, by righteous and unrighteous alike, but to the specific punishment that clings to the rejecters of Prophets from the very moment of their death. The "punishment of disgrace" mentioned in the latter part of the verse refers, as the words "this day" indicate, not to the punishment of Hell but to the punishment which sinners begin to undergo immediately after death and before the Day of Resurrection. This is known as عذاب القبر (‘Adhabul-Qabr), i.e. punishment in the grave, in Islamic religious terminology, قبر or grave being the name given to the place where souls are kept after death but before Resurrection. Says the Holy Prophet: "When anyone dies, a window is opened out for him in the grave facing Heaven or Hell as the case may be" (Majah, ch. on Qabr). This is, of course, not the final retribution but only preparatory to it.

6:44; 16:64; 27:25; 29:49.

14:23; 59:17.

Important Words:

جار (protector) is derived from جار which means, he declined or deviated. جاورہ means, he became his neighbour, or he lived in his neighbourhood. جاورہ also means, he bound himself to him by a covenant to protect him. جار means, a neighbour; a person whom one protects; one who seeks protection; also a protector (Lane).

نکص (he turned). نکص عن الامر means, he receded or retired or drew back from the thing or the affair; or he recoiled or shrank from it in fear. نکص علی عقبیه means, he turned back from a thing to which he had applied himself (Lane).

Commentary:

For the meaning of the word "Satan", see 2:15. The word here means, one who misleads or gives evil advice. The person referred to in the verse is reported to be Suraqah bin Malik bin Ju‘sham who incited the Meccans against the Muslims but who afterwards embraced Islam.

The Meccan army was still at Mecca when some of the Quraishite leaders gave expression to the fear that Banu Bakr, a branch of Banu Kananah, who were hostile to the Quraish, might surprise Mecca during their absence or attack the Meccan army from the rear. Their fears were allayed by Suraqah, a chief of Banu Kananah, who assured them that his tribesmen would do them no harm (Jarir, x. 13).

The words, I see what you see not, signify that when Suraqah saw the grim determination of the Muslims, fear took hold of him; for on seeing them he was convinced that the Muslims would win or die. This was exactly what ‘Utbah and ‘Umair also saw and felt when they told the Meccans that the Muslims looked like so many "seekers of death" (Tabari). Suraqah uttered the words, I fear Allah, not because he really feared God at that time but because he wished to find an excuse to flee from the battlefield.

Important Words:

ساوی (I shall betake myself). آوی is derived from اوی. They say اوی الیه i.e. he betook himself to or repaired or resorted to it; he betook himself to it or repaired to it for lodging, covert or refuge. اوی الی البیت means, he took up his abode in the house; he lodged or dwelt in it. The Quranic expression, اذ اوی الفتیة الی الکھف means, when the young men betook themselves to the cave for refuge. ماوی means, a place to which one repairs for lodging, covert or refuge (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse shows that the place where Noah lived was surrounded by mountains. This is why his son said that he would take shelter in a mountain. The word جبل (a mountain) used as a common noun points to the fact that there was a chain of mountains on one of which Noah’s son wished to take shelter. In fact, the place appears to have been a valley with mountains rising on all sides. That such a place should become quickly flooded with heavy rain is not extraordinary.

The words, which will shelter me from the water, show how bigoted men shut their eyes to stark realities to the last. The flood is rising, but Noah’s son still entertains doubt about the truth of his father’s Message.

The expression, And the wave came in between the two, is intended to hint that God spared Noah the pain of seeing his son being drowned before his eyes. He was drowned behind the screen of a high wave.

Commentary:

In the words, I may take him specially for myself, the King seems to administer a veiled rebuke to Potiphar, hinting that, whereas he (Potiphar) had failed to treat with honour a man like Joseph, he himself would now bestow on him the honour he deserved by admitting him to his special favour. This was the attitude of the King before he had spoken to Joseph. But when he had talked with him, he became still more enamoured of him and hastened to confer high rank upon him. In the Bible we read: And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, "According unto thy word shall all people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou"… "and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had" (Gen. 41:40-43).

Important Words:

تثریب (blame) is derived from ثرب. They say, ثربه i.e. he stripped the beast of the fat covering the bowels; he stripped the man of his garment. تثریب means, removing the fat over the bowels; act of blaming or reproving or punishing for an offence or a crime; severe blaming or reproving that takes away brightness of countenance; reminding a man of his offences and crimes and exposing the foulness of his deeds to him (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse throws interesting light on the nobility of Joseph’s character. He did not keep his brothers in suspense nor even give them time to crave his forgiveness, but at once removed all their fears and apprehensions as concerning the treatment he would now extend to them; by telling them forthwith that his pardon was unreserved and unqualified. This magnanimous treatment of his brothers by Joseph is alone sufficient to immortalize him.

This large-hearted and generous forgiving of his brothers by Joseph constitutes his greatest and most outstanding resemblance to the Holy Prophet. Like Joseph, the Holy Prophet, too, gained honour and power in flight and banishment; and when after years of exile he entered his native town as a conqueror, at the head of ten thousand Companions, and Mecca lay prostrate at his feet, he asked his people what treatment they expected from him. "The treatment that Joseph accorded to his brethren," they replied, "Then no reproach shall lie on you this day," promptly returned the Holy Prophet. This noble treatment by the Prophet of his erstwhile bloodthirsty enemies, the Quraish of Mecca, who had left no stone unturned to compass his death and destroy him root and branch stands unparalleled in the whole annals of human history.

28:63, 75.

Commentary:

Sometimes man suffers material loss or a calamity afflicts him but that loss or calamity does not bring disgrace or humiliation to him. At another time he suffers disgrace and humiliation but no loss. The verse means to say that when punishment overtakes the opponents of the Holy Prophet they would suffer both disgrace and the loss of their material possessions.

6:43; 22:53.

6:44; 8:49.

Commentary:

The verse purports to say that the disbelievers of Mecca like disbelievers of former Prophets have been lulled by Satan into a false sense of security. Like their predecessors and prototypes, they labour under the delusion that they would not have to answer for their wrongdoings. They feel themselves to be secure while a terrible punishment is about to overtake them.

17:72; 45:30; 69:20, 26, 27.

Commentary:

The expression, Read thy book, used figuratively means, "take thy punishment". The words, Sufficient is thy own soul this day as reckoner against thee, clearly show that punishment is not something that comes from outside but it takes its birth within man himself. In fact, the punishments and rewards of Heaven and Hell will only be so many embodiments and representations of the deeds, good or bad, of man. Thus in this life man is the architect of his own destiny and in the next he will be his own rewarder or punisher.

Commentary:

The verse means to say that the faculties of seeing and hearing of disbelievers will become much more keener and sharper on the Day of Judgement, because the veil will be lifted from their eyes and ears and they will realize that they were in the wrong; but that realization being too late will prove to be of no use to them.

Commentary:

Some commentators of the Quran are of the view that Mary was commanded completely to abstain from talking. But that is not the case. Like Zachariah she was directed to abstain from talk as far as possible, but not completely, and to devote all her time in the remembrance of God. The expression فقولی (and say) itself shows that the command about abstaining from talk was not unqualified. A new baby had been born and as the birth of a new child was likely to attract the casual visitor or the passer-by and induce him to ask the mother unnecessary and vexatious questions about its parentage etc.; so in order to cut

short the possible embarrassing conversation Mary was commanded to say that she had vowed a fast to the Gracious God that she would indulge in no useless talk. Thus while on the one hand her silence conserved her physical strength, on the other she could have more time to devote to the remembrance of God.

Important Words:

کید (plan) means, a plan, a wile, an artifice, artful contrivance; device; a plot; a stratagem, art; cunning, ingenuity or skill (Lane).

Commentary:

The magicians were told that they could use any device, artifice or wile to defeat Moses. This implied a confession that with Pharaoh and his people the end justified the means.

In the verse an appeal has also been made to the magicians’ self-interest. They are told that if they were successful against Moses, it would be all to their good.

Commentary:

In answer to the disbeliever’s protestation as to why he was raised up blind while he was possessed of sight in the former life, God would say that he had become spiritually blind in that world on account of his having led a life of disbelief and sin, and as his soul was to serve as a body for another much more spiritually developed soul in the afterlife, therefore he was born blind in the Hereafter.

The verse possesses another interpretation: As a disbeliever does not develop within himself divine attributes and remains a stranger to them, on the Day of Resurrection when those attributes will be manifested in their full splendour and glory, he—being stranger to them—will not be able to recognize them and will thus stand like a blind man, having had no recollection or remembrance of them.

21:14-15.

Commentary:

The verse purports to say that disbelievers cry for help and repent and lament after Divine punishment has actually overtaken them but then it is too late because punishment comes upon a people only after they have seen heavenly signs and after the falsity of their position has been convincingly brought home to them by sound and solid arguments and they continue to persist in rejecting the truth and persecuting their Prophet.

7:86; 11:85.

17:37; 24:25; 41:21-23.

Commentary:

The verse means to say that when the guilt of disbelievers will be established and proved to the hilt they will become dumbfounded, their mouths will, as it were, become sealed and they will not be able to say anything in their defence and in extenuation of their guilt, and their hands and feet will also bear witness against them—these being the principal instruments of man’s actions, good or bad. Elsewhere the Quran says: "Their ears and their eyes and their skins will bear witness against them" 41:21.

Scientific research has established the fact that every action, even every spoken word, leaves its impression and is preserved in the atmosphere. Instruments are increasingly being invented which reveal and reproduce the nature and form of action or of spoken word. The speech and movements of a person can now be exactly reproduced by the tape-recorder and even on the screen by television, thousands of miles away. This is how the tongue and limbs of man even in this world have begun to bear witness for or against him.

Commentary:

The present and the next three verses describe the state of complete bliss which the righteous will enjoy in this and the next world. The verse incidentally shows that life in the next world, as generally misunderstood, will not be a life of inaction and inertness but of constant work and progressive spiritual advance.

Commentary:

The verse portrays the complete surrender and submission to Divine judgement of the guilty leaders and also of their beguiled and deceived followers. They will offer no defence but will only indulge in mutual recrimination as the following verses show.

3:6; 14:39.

18:45; 48:15; 82:20.

Commentary:

The verse signifies that disbelievers will be brought face to face with the evil consequences of their wicked deeds on the Day of Reckoning. These deeds were never hidden from God but on the Day of Judgement they will appear in an embodied form before the eyes of the disbelievers themselves. The words "this day" may signify the Last Judgement Day, or the hour of reckoning of disbelievers in this very life. This hour of reckoning came upon the disbelieving Quraish on the day of the Fall of Mecca when the realization dawned upon them that "the kingdom was Allah’s—the One, the Most Supreme."

14:52; 45:23; 74:39.

Commentary:

The "believing man "warns the people of Pharaoh that their wealth and sovereignty should not delude them into a false sense of security and complacency because if they opposed Moses, Divine punishment would seize them. The verse also shows that power, prestige and wealth constitute the greatest obstacles in the way of truth being accepted by disbelievers.

37:34.

Commentary:

The fact that both the accomplices are equal partners in a crime and, therefore, are equal sharers in punishment, can be of no use or benefit to either of them because it lessens neither their individual responsibility nor the punishment which each of them incurs and suffers.

10:63; 39:62.

Commentary:

In the hour of decision the righteous servants of God do not regret their past actions nor do they have any anxiety for the future.

17:14; 83:7-10.

Commentary:

The words, "every people will be summoned to its Book," suggest that the "Hour" referred to in the previous verse signifies the hour of the reckoning of a people in this very life, because in this life nations are judged by their deeds and are punished or rewarded accordingly.

7:52.

Commentary:

The expression یومکم ھذا (this your day) means, "this day of your promised discomfiture and defeat".

Important Words:

بصر (eye) means, eye; the light whereby the organ of sight perceives the things; knowledge; discernment; intelligence (Lane & Aqrab).

حدید (sharp) is derived from حد which means, he turned away or averted a person from a thing. حد شیئا عن غیرہ means, he distinguished or separated by some mark a thing from another. حد السکین means, he sharpened the knife. حد بصرہ الیه means, he looked sharply or attentively at him. رجل حدید means, a man sharp of intellect or understanding (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse means that in the next world the veil will be lifted from the eyes of man and his vision and mental perception will become clearer and sharper. He will see the consequences of his actions in an embodied form which were hidden from his eyes in this world and will realize that which he used to regard merely as an illusion, was a hard and stark reality.

66:9.

Commentary:

The words, "their light," mean the light of their faith and good actions which on the "day of distress and darkness", (i.e. for disbelievers) will lead believers to their goal. Thus their faith and good works will assume the form of light on the 'Day of Resurrection.' "Light" may also mean the light of Divine realization and the capacity to seek and achieve the pleasure of God in this very life. For "divine light" see 6:123.