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In a state of purity: from the evils of this world, from want of faith and want of grace. Purity from such evil is the mark of true Islam, and those who die in such purity will be received into Felicity with a salutation of Peace.
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Lit., "for the angels to come to them, or for God's judgment (amr) to come" - i.e., for the Day of Resurrection. The full meaning of this passage is forthcoming from 6:158 , revealed at the same period as the present surah.
That is, until death comes to them, or some Punishment in this life, itself, which precludes them from repentance, and the Mercy of Allah.
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See 6:10 and the corresponding note. Similar phrases occur in many places in the Qur'an, always with reference to a derision of divine messages and, particularly, of predictions relating to God's chastisement of reprobate sinners. As so often, the Qur'an points out here that this "chastisement" or "suffering" ('adhab) is but a natural, unavoidable consequence of deliberate wrongdoing: hence, he who becomes guilty of it is, in reality, "doing wrong to himself" or "sinning against himself" inasmuch as he destroys his own spiritual integrity and must subsequently suffer for it.
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Lit., "apart from Him". See in this connection 6:148 and the corresponding note [141]. (The arbitrary, unwarranted prohibitions and taboos alluded to in that verse as well as in the present one are discussed in {6:136-153} and explained in my notes.) The derision of God's messages by the deniers of the truth is implied in their questioning His grant of free will to man - that is to say, the ability to choose between right and wrong, which is the basis of all morality.
I.e., the apostles could not force anyone to make the right choice.
The old, old argument: if Allah is All-Powerful, why did He not force all persons to His Will? This ignores the limited Free-will granted to man, which is the whole basis of Ethics. Allah gives man every opportunity of knowing and understanding things, but He does not force him, for that would be against the whole Plan on which our present Life is constituted.
The Pagan Arabs prescribed various arbitrary prohibitions in the matter of meat; see vi. 143-145. These, of course, are not recognised by Islam, which also removed some of the restrictions of the Jewish Law; vi. 146. The general meaning, however, is far wider. Men erect their own taboos and prohibitions, barriers and restrictions, and ascribe them to Religion. This is wrong, and more consonant with Pagan practice than with Islam.
Clear Message: Mubin: in three senses; (1) a Message clear and unambiguous; (2) one that makes all things clear to those who try to understand, because it accords with their own nature as created by Allah; (3) one preached openly and to everyone.
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Or "at every period", since the term ummah has this significance as well. In its wider sense, it may also be taken here to denote "civilization", thus comprising a human groupment as well as a period of time.
For this rendering of the term at-taghut, see surah {2}, note [250]. It is to be borne in mind that, in Qur'anic terminology, "worship of God" invariably implies the concept of man's sense of responsibility before Him: hence, the above commandment comprises, in the most concise formulation imaginable, the sum-total of all ethical injunctions and prohibitions, and is the basis and source of all morality as well as the one unchanging message inherent in every true religion.
I.e., who availed themselves of the guidance offered by Him to all human beings.
Lit., "upon whom error came to be inevitably established (haqqa 'alayhi)" or "against whom [a verdict of] error became inevitable": i.e., one whose heart "God has sealed" in consequence of his persistent, conscious refusal to submit to His guidance (see surah {2}, note [7], as well as surah {14}, note [4]).
Even though Allah's Signs are everywhere in Nature and in men's own conscience, yet in addition Allah has sent human Messengers to every People to call their attention to the Good and turn them from Evil. So they cannot pretend that Allah has abandoned them or that He does not care what they do. His divine Grace always invites their will to choose the right.
While some people accept the guidance of the divine Grace, others so surrender themselves to Evil that it must necessarily follow that Evil obtains a grip over them. They have only to travel through Time or Space to see the end of those who abandoned their lights and surrendered to Evil and Error. For haqqat and the meaning of haqq in this connection cf. xv. 64.
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See preceding note; also 8:55 and the corresponding note [58].
When once Allah's Grace is rejected by any one, such a person loses all help and guidance. Such persons are then outside Allah's Grace, and therefore they are outside guidance.
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Lit., "And" - but since this conjunction is obviously meant to elaborate the preceding statement, it is best rendered as above.
This categorical denial of resurrection - implying as it does a denial of God's ultimate judgment of good and evil - is characteristic of a mental attitude which refuses to admit the reality, or even possibility, of anything that lies beyond the range of man's actual or potential observation. Since such an attitude is an outcome of an intrinsically materialistic outlook on life and the "false pride" referred to in verses {22-23} above, it is anti-religious in the deepest sense of this word even if it is accompanied by a vague - because non-consequential - belief in the existence of God.
The strongest oath of the Pagan Arabs would be by the Supreme Allah; less strong oaths would be by their subordinate deities, or their ancestors, or other things they valued or held sacred.
The usual Pagan creed is: 'If there is a God, it does not follow that He will raise us up; why should He?' The answer is twofold: (1) Allah has promised it, and Allah's promise is true; (2) He must finally manifest the Truth to them, convict them of their falsehood, and enforce their personal responsibility (xvi. 39).
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I.e., in the first instance, the truth of resurrection and judgment as such, and, in general, the final answers to all the metaphysical problems which perplex man during his life on earth.
See the last note.
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Allah's "Word" is in itself the Deed, Allah's Promise is in itself the Truth. There is no interposition of Time or Condition between His Will and its consequences, for He is the Ultimate Reality. He is independent of the proximate or material causes, for He Himself creates them and establishes their Laws as He pleases.
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For an explanation of this rendering of alladhlna hajaru, see surah {2}, note [203], and surah {4} note [124]. That the "forsaking of the domain of evil" has here a purely spiritual connotation is obvious from its juxtaposition with the "denial of the truth" referred to in the preceding verses.
See note [28] above.
The verb 'alima, which primarily denotes "he knew", has also the meaning of "he came to know", i.e., "he understood"; and since - as pointed out by Baghawi, Zamakhshari and Razi - the pronoun "they" in the phrase law kanu ya'lamun relates to the deniers of the truth spoken of in the preceding passages, the rendering "if they could but understand" is here clearly indicated - the more so as it provides a self-evident connection with the subsequent, objective clause.
There is no merit in suffering exile (hijrat) in itself. To have any merit, it must be; (1) in the cause of Allah, and (2) after such an oppression as forces the sufferer to choose between Allah and man. When these conditions are fulfilled, the exiles are entitled to the highest honour, as having made a great sacrifice in the cause of Allah. Such were the early Muslim exiles to Abyssinia; such were the later exiles to Madinah before the Prophet himself left his home in Makkah and went to Madinah; and such were the exiles who went with the Prophet or followed him. At all these stages, his approval or advice was always obtained, either specifically or generally.
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I.e., if they could really understand the spiritual motivation of the believers, they (the deniers of the truth) would themselves begin to believe.
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This passage has a double purport: firstly, it connects with the statement enunciated in verse {36} to the effect that God's apostles have appeared, at one time or another, within every civilization, and that, consequently, no substantial human groupment has ever been left without divine guidance; secondly, it answers the objection frequently raised by unbelievers that Muhammad could not be God's message-bearer since he was "a mere mortal man". (As regards the Qur'anic doctrine that no created being, not even a prophet, has ever been endowed with "supernatural" powers or qualities, see 6:50 and 7:188 , as well as the notes relating to those verses; also note [94] on 6:109 .)
Lit., "reminder" - because every divine message is meant to remind one of the truth. The people to be asked for enlightenment in this respect are apparently the Jews and the Christians (Tabari, Zamakhshari).
Allah's prophets were always men, not angels; and their distinction was the inspiration they received.
If the Pagan Arabs, who were ignorant of religious and other history, wondered how a man from among themselves could receive inspiration and bring a Message from Allah, let them ask the Jews, who had also received Allah's Message earlier through Moses, whether Moses was a man, or an angel, or a god. They would learn that Moses was a man like themselves, but inspired by Allah. "Those who possess the Message" may also mean any men of Wisdom, who were qualified to have an opinion in such matters.
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The above sentence is addressed, parenthetically, to all who question the divine origin of the Qur'an on the grounds mentioned in note [45] above. For an explanation of the term zubur ("books of divine wisdom"), see surah {21}, note [101].
Sc., "through revelation" - implying that moral values are independent of all time-bound changes and must, therefore, be regarded as permanent.
As the People of the Book had received "Clear Signs" and inspired Books before, so also Allah's Message came to the Prophet Muhammad through the Qur-an, which superseded the earlier revelations, already corrupted in the hands of their followers.
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To my mind, by "evil schemes" are meant here systems of God-denying philosophy and of perverted morality.
I.e., destroy them utterly.
Cf. xvi. 26. The wicked plot against Prophets of Allah in secret, forgetting that every hidden thought of theirs is known to Allah, and that for every thought and action of theirs they will have to account to Allah. And Allah's punishment can seize them in various ways. Four are enumerated here. (1) They may be swallowed up in the earth like Qarun, whose story is told in xxviii. 76-81. He was swallowed up in the earth while he was arrogantly exulting on the score of his wealth. (2) It may be that, like Haman, the prime minister of Pharaoh, they are plotting against Allah, when they are themselves overwhelmed by some dreadful calamity; xi. 36-38, xxix. 39-40. The case of Pharaoh is also in point. He was drowned while he was arrogantly hoping to frustrate Allah's plans for Israel; x. 90-92. For (3) and (4) see the next two notes.
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