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See note [71] on 39:69 .
The Day of Judgment is described as "the Day when Witnesses will stand forth". This description implies two things: (1) that there man will be judged justly; his past actions and his faculties and opportunities will be witnesses as to the use he made of them (xxiv. 24); in fact he will himself be a witness against himself (vi. 130); and the prophets and just men will bear witness to the fact that they preached and warned men (xxxix. 69; ii. 133).
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Lit., "the evil of the [otherworldly] abode". As regards the term la'nah, its primary significance is "estrangement" or "rejection"; in Qur'anic terminology it denotes "rejection from all that is good" (Lisan al-'Arab) and, specifically, "estrangement from Cod's grace" (Zamakhshari).
i.e., the Hellfire.
After the testimony mentioned in the last note, there will be no room for excuses, and if any were made, they could serve no purpose, unlike the state of matters in this world, where there is much make-believe, and Falsehood often masquerades as Truth and is accepted as such even by those who should know better.
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Moses was given a Revelation, and it was given in heritage to the Children of Israel, to preserve it, guide their conduct by it, and hold aloft its Message: but they failed in all these particulars.
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Sc., "and thus, too, have We bestowed Our revelation upon Muhammad". This connects with the opening words of verse {51}, "We shall indeed succour Our apostles and those who have attained to faith", thus explaining the purport of the preceding story of the believer who stood up for Moses. The reference to "those [of the children of Israel] who were endowed with insight" and therefore could benefit from the message of Moses, is undoubtedly meant to remind the followers of the Our'an that this divine writ, too, is for "those who are endowed with insight" (u-lu 'I-albab), for "people who think" (qawm yatafakkarun), and "people who use their reason" (qawm ya qilun).
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According to all classical commentators, the above passage is addressed in the first instance to the Prophet and, through him, to every believer. As regards the Prophet himself, see note [41] on the last sentence of 24:31 .
Like other prophets, Muḥammad (ﷺ) was infallible of sin. The verse here refers to misjudgments, such as the Prophet’s response to the blind man (80:1-10), Jonah’s departure from his city without Allah’s permission (21:87-88), and David’s suspicions of the two men who scaled the wall of his sanctuary (38:21-25). If the Prophet (ﷺ) himself is urged to seek forgiveness, then the believers are even more in need of praying for Allah’s forgiveness.
The Israelites corrupted or lost their Book; they disobeyed Allah's Law; and failed to proclaim and exemplify Allah's Message. That is why the new Revelation came to the holy Prophet. If, in the beginning, it was rejected and persecuted, there was no cause for discouragement; on the contrary, there was all the greater need for patience and perseverance.
Every mortal according to his nature and degree of spiritual enlightenment falls short of the perfect standard of Allah (xvi. 61), and should therefore ask Allah for forgiveness. What is merit in an ordinary man may be a human shortcoming in one nearest to Allah: see xxxviii. 24-25, and notes 4175-76. Prophets have a further responsibility for their People or their Ummat, and they ask in a representative capacity.
Cf. iii. 41. Evening and morning are the best times for contemplation and prayer. But the phrase "evening and morning" may mean "at all times".
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See note [25] above.
Lit., "which they will never [be able to] reach" or "fulfil". This is a reference to the conceit which makes many agnostics think that man is "self-sufficient" and that, therefore, there are no limits to what he may yet achieve, and no need to assume that he is responsible to a higher Power. Cf. in this connection {96:6-7}, which is one of the earliest Qur'anic revelations: "Nay, verily, man becomes grossly overweening whenever he believes himself to be self-sufficient." And since this "self-sufficiency" is entirely illusory, those who build their world-view on it "will never be able to satisfy their overweening conceit". (Cf. also the reference to "arrogant, self-exalting hearts" in verse {35} above.)
The Disputes are actuated by nothing but the desire for self-glory and self- aggrandizement. Their desire is not likely to receive fruition, but others should take warning from it.
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I.e., of the universe as a whole. By stressing the fact that man is only a small, insignificant part of the universe, the Qur'an points out the absurdity of the man-centred world-view alluded to in the preceding verse.
The heavens and the earth include mankind and all other creatures and millions of stars. Man is himself but a tiny part of creation. Why should he be so ego-centric? The whole is greater than a tiny part of it. And Allah Who created the whole of the Worlds is able to do much more wonderful things than can enter the imagination of man. Why should man be arrogant and doubt the Resurrection, and take upon himself to doubt the possibility of Allah's Revelation? It is only because he has made himself blind. See next verse.
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The man of Faith who backs his faith by righteous conduct is like the man of clear vision, who sees things in their true perspective and walks with firm steps in the Way of Allah. The man who does evil is like a blind man: the Light of Allah is all around him, but he is blind, and he can see nothing. He has rejected Faith and cannot even learn by other people's admonition.
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I.e., refuse to admit to themselves that the world as they know it could ever come to an end: which is another aspect of the "overweening conceit" spoken of in verse {56} above.
"The Hour" is the crown and consummation of man's life on this earth,-the gateway to the Hereafter.
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Cf. 2:186 .
As this life is not the end of all things, and we are to have its fulfilment in the Hereafter: we have only to pray to the Lord of the Present and the Hereafter, and He will hear us, forgive us, guide us, and make our Path smooth. But Pride will have its fall,-and its humiliating Punishment: Cf. xxxvii. 18.
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See note [77] on 27:86 .
The succession of Day and Night in our physical life is frequently appealed to, as a symbol to draw our attention to the Mercy and Bounty of Allah. If we viewed these things aright, we should serve Allah and seek Light from Him and Rest from Him, and celebrate His praises with gratitude.
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Sc., "O you who deny this truth!" For my above rendering of tu'fakun, see note [90] on the last sentence of 5:75 .
If we worship false gods, i.e., go after vanities, what is it that deludes us and leads us astray? What could it be but our rank ingratitude and failure to use the understanding which Allah has given us?
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See surah {29}, note [45].
See the last two notes. If men are deluded by Falsehoods, it is because they reject Revelation and refuse to learn from the Signs of Allah all around them.
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I.e., in accordance with the exigencies of human life. See also note [9] on the first sentence of 7:11 .
The argument in the last two verses was from man's personal experiences of his physical life. In this and the next verse a parallel argument is addressed to man on a much higher plane: 'look at the spacious earth and the canopy of the sky; look at the special position you occupy above other animals that you know, in shape and form, and moral and spiritual capacities; consider your refinements in food and fruits and the higher spiritual Sustenance of which your physical food is a type; would you not indeed say that the Lord is good, and would you not glorify His holy name?'
A resting place: I understand this to imply a temporary place of rest or sojourn, a period of probation, to be followed by the eternal Home.
Cf. vii. 1 1 and n. 996. The shape and form refer to the physical form as well as to the inborn moral and spiritual capacities of man. As regards physical form, Cf. Milton's description of Adam and Eve, "Two of far noble shape, erect and tall" (Paradise Lost, iv. 288). As regards moral and spiritual capacities, they are typified by the breathing of Allah's spirit into man: xv. 29.
"Sustenance": all that is necessary for growth and development, physical, moral, and spiritual. Cf. n. 2105 to xvi. 73.
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The real, self-subsisting Life is only in Him: Cf. ii. 255, and n. 296.
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