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I.e., whatever good deeds they may do will be so completely outweighed by the above-mentioned sin that they will amount to nothing on the Day of judgment. (But see also note 9 below.) The above verse connects with the last sentence of the preceding surah, "Will, then, any be [really] destroyed save iniquitous folk?"
Whatever they do will miss its mark, because Allah is the source of all energy and life. If the wicked try to persecute men or seduce them from the Truth, the result will be the opposite of what they intend.
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Lit., "will set aright their hearts" or "their minds", inasmuch as one of the several meanings of the term teal is the "heart" or "mind" of man (Jawhari).
Bal means state or condition, whether external, or of the heart and mind. Both meanings apply here. The more the wicked rage, the better will be the position of the righteous, and Allah will make it easier and easier for the righteous to love and follow the Truth.
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Lit., "their parables" (amthalahum). This, according to some of the most outstanding commentators, relates to the parabolic expressions in the above three verses: the "going to waste" - in consequence of their deliberate "pursuance of falsehood" - of the good deeds of those who deny the truth, as well as the "effacement of the bad deeds" of the true believers in consequence of their "pursuance of the truth" (Baghawi, Zamakhshari, Razi, Baydawi). In a broader perspective, this interpretation takes into account the parabolic nature not only of the above sentence but also of many other Qur'anic statements relating to men's spiritual conditions and destinies in this world as well as in the life to come.
We learn the greatest moral lessons by parables and similitudes from things that happen in the outer world. If a man goes after a mirage or a thing that has no real existence, he can never reach his goal, while the man that follows the kindly Light from Allah that leads him on must be happier in mind, sounder in heart, and firmer in life, generally for every moment that he lives.
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Sc., "and on barring [others] from the path of God" - thus connecting with verse {1} and laying down the fundamental condition which alone justifies physical warfare: namely, a defence of the Faith and of freedom (cf. in this connection note [167] on 2:190 ). In other words, when "those who are bent on denying the truth" try to deprive the Muslims of their social and political liberty and thus to make it impossible for them to live in accordance with the principles of their faith, a just war (jihad) becomes allowable and, more than that, a duty. The whole of the above verse relates to war actually in progress (cf. note [168] on the first part of 2:191 ); and there is no doubt that it was revealed after {22:39-40}, the earliest Qur'anic reference to physical warfare.
Lit., "tighten the bond". According to almost all the commentators, this expression denotes the taking of prisoners of war. In addition, it may also refer to any sanctions or safeguards which would make it unlikely that the aggression could be resumed in the foreseeable future.
Lit., "so that (hatta) the war may lay down its burdens". The term "ransom" comprises also, in this context, a mutual exchange of prisoners of war (Zamakhshari, quoting an opinion of Imam Ash-Shafi'i ).
I.e., so as to enable the believers to prove by actual deeds the depth of their faith and their readiness for self-sacrifice, and to enable the aggressors to realize how wrong they have been, and thus to bring them closer to the truth.
Another possible interpretation: “And those who fight in the cause of Allah.”
When once the fight (Jihad) is entered upon, carry it out with the utmost vigour, and strike home your blows at the most vital points (smite at their necks), both literally and figuratively. You cannot wage war with kid gloves.
In the first onset there must necessarily be great loss of life; "after the enemy's numbers are fairly thinned down, prisoners may be taken". With this passage may be compared viii. 67, and n. 1234.
When once the enemy is brought under control, generosity (i.e., the release of prisoners without ransom) or ransom is recommended.
The Believers are tested in Faith by the extent to which they are willing to make sacrifices, even to the laying down of their lives; and the enemies are tested as to whether they would repent and let the righteous live in freedom and security.
There are two alternative readings, (1) qatalu, "those who fight", and (2) qutilu, "those who are slain". The meaning under the first reading is wider, and includes that under the second. I have translated on the basis of the second reading, which is in accordance with the text of the Royal Egyptian edition.
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If we read "who are slain" in the last clause but one of verse 4, (see last note), "guide" would mean "guide them in their journey after death".
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Once in Paradise, the believers will recognize their mansions just like they recognized their homes in the world.
"The Garden which He has made known to them ": Cf. ii. 25.
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See above, xlvii. I and n. 4817.
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Namely, the revelation relating to man's moral responsibility to a Supreme Being.
The particle fa ("and thus") at the beginning of this clause connotes a consequence: in other words, it is their rejection of the idea of moral responsibility, inherent in all divine revelation, that deprives the deeds of "those who are bent on denying the truth" - even such deeds as might be termed "good" - of all moral value. This law of inner causality explains fully the phrase "He will let all their [good] deeds go to waste" occurring in verses {1} and {8}.
Their deeds are "fruitless" in the sense that they are vain; they do not produce the results intended by their doers. But they will not be exempt from producing the natural consequences of evil, viz., further degradation and misery for the soul.
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Cf. 6:10 and the corresponding note [9].
The end of evil is evil. All past history and tradition shows that. Will not men of every generation learn that lesson? Allah helps His servants, but those who rebel against Allah have no one to help them.
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Meaning, the disbelievers enjoy their life to the fullest while they are heedless of what will happen to them in the Hereafter, just like the cattle that graze in the pasture are unaware that they will probably end up in the slaughter house.
An apt simile. Beasts of the field eat their fill, but have no higher interests. Men who worship the world exclusively are no better: their pleasures and enjoyments rise no higher than those of the beasts of the field. They have no inkling of spiritual happiness. On the contrary, as they were endowed with spiritual faculties which they misused, they will not escape the Fire of Punishment, the Penalty of Sin.
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See note [116] on 6:131 . It is said that this verse was revealed on the first night of the Prophet's hijrah from Mecca to Medina (Tabari, on the authority of Ibn'Abbas).
A reference to Pagan Makkah, which drove out the holy Prophet because of his righteousness and because he preached Repentance. The date of this Sura must therefore be after the Hijrat.
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Lit., "Is, then, one who takes his stand. .. like one.. .", etc.
Clear, or enlightened; a Path on which shines the Light of Allah.
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My rendering of this verse is based in its entirety on the grammatical construction given to it by Zamakhshari and supported by Razi. In this construction, the parabolic description of paradise - beginning with the phrase "wherein there are rivers...", etc., and ending with the words "and forgiveness from their Sustainer" - is a parenthetic passage (jumlah muttaridah). As for the term "parable" (mathnal) itself, it is undoubtedly meant to impress upon those who read or listen to the Qur'an that its descriptions of life in the hereafter are purely allegorical: see in this connection Zamakhshari's explicit remarks cited in note [65] on 13:35 .
Cf. {37:45-47}, especially verse {47}: "no headiness will there be in it, and they will not get drunk thereon".
Lit., "and wherein they [i.e., the God-conscious] will have. . .", etc.
This interpolation reproduces literally Zamakhshari's explanation of the above ellipticism.
Lit., "exceedingly hot [or "boiling"] water". For an explanation of this metaphor, see note [62] on 6:70 .
In this description there are four kinds of drinks and all kinds of fruits; and the summing up of all delights in the "Forgiveness from their Lord". The four kinds of drinks are: (1) delicious, cool, pure water, not like earthly water, for it never suffers corruption; (2) milk which never turns Sour, whose taste is like that of fresh warm milk drawn from the udder; (3) wine, not like any wine on earth, for it leaves no headaches behind, and causes no intoxication, which is a kind of madness or poison, but is ever a joy to drink; and (4) honey, pure and clear, with no admixture of wax or any foreign substance. These drinks, will cool the spirit, feed the heart, warm the affections, and sweeten life.
See n. 4671 to xliii. 73.
Forgiveness from their Lord: that is the covering up or blotting out of sin and all that was sad or unsatisfactory in the lower life; the pure Light from the Countenance of Allah Most High: xcii. 20.
Cf. xxxvii. 66-67, and n. 4074. Just as the Bliss of the Blessed will penetrate their being through and through, so the agony of the condemned ones will penetrate their being through and through.
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Cf. 6:25 and {10:42-43}.
Lit., "unto those who have been given knowledge", sc., "of the truth" or "of thy message": i.e., the believers. The people spoken of in the above are the hypocrites among the contemporaries of the Prophet as well as all people, at all times, who pretend to approach the Qur'anic message with a show of "reverence" but are in their innermost unwilling to admit that there is any sense in it.
I.e., the "sealing" of their hearts (for an explanation of which see note [7] on 2:7 ) is consequence of their "following but their own lusts".
Cf. x. 42, and n. 1434; also vi. 25, 36, and n. 857. The case here referred to is that of the Hypocrites who came to the assemblies of Islam in Madinah and pretended to listen to the Prophet's teaching and preaching. But their heart and mind were not in learning righteousness, but in carping at things they saw and heard. When they got out, they knew nothing of the teaching, but on the contrary asked foolish and ignorant questions, such as might raise doubts.
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Lit., "and gives them their God-consciousness (taqwahum)".
Spiritual advancement is progressive: each step makes the next ones easier and more complete.
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Lit., "its indications have already come": a reference to the many Qur'anic predictions of its inevitability, as well as to the evidence, accessible to every unprejudiced mind, of the temporal finality of all creation.
I.e., "of what benefit will be to them, when the Last Hour comes, their dawning awareness of having sinned, and their belated repentance?"
The coming of Muḥammad (ﷺ) is one of the signs of the Hour.
Cf. xliii. 66, and n. 4665.
The sands of time are always running, and when a wrong is done, the time for its punishment is approaching every moment. No one should therefore wait. The time for repentance is Now at any given time. When the punishment comes, it is too late for repentance, and all admonition would be useless. Looking to the particular time when this Sura was revealed, viz., about a year after the Hijrat, already there were Signs that the plans of the Pagans to crush Islam were crumbling to pieces. The Hijrat showed how much good-will there was in Madinah for the holy Prophet of Allah, and how many people from Makkah adhered to him, The battle of Badr showed that they could hold their own against odds of three to one.
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I.e., "He knows all that you do and all that you fail to do".
Like other prophets, Muḥammad (ﷺ) was infallible of sin. The verse here refers to misjudgments, such as the example given in 80:1-10. If the Prophet (ﷺ) himself is urged to seek forgiveness, then the believers are even more in need of praying for Allah’s forgiveness.
Cf. xl. 55, and n. 4428.
The time and manner of our conducting ourselves at home and when we move about on our business are all material to the judgment of our conduct, and for every nuance in our moral and spiritual progress, we must seek Allah's help and guidance.
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I am rendering the term surah here and in the next sentence as "a revelation", for whereas there is no surah as such which deals exclusively with questions of war, there are numerous references to it in various surahs; and this is evidently the meaning of this term in the present context as well as in 9:86 . - There is no doubt that this verse precedes the revelation, in the year 1 H., of 22:39 , which states categorically - and for the first time - that the believers are allowed to wage war whenever "war is wrongfully waged" against them (see in this connection note [57] on 22:39 ).
This is a reference to {22:39-40}. For an explanation of the expression muhkamah ("clear in and by itself"), see note [5] on 3:7 . (As in the preceding sentence, the term surah has been rendered here, exceptionally, as " revelation".)
The men of faith and loyalty are eager and anxious to get a command to serve the Cause even if it be at the sacrifice of their lives. Not so the Hypocrites, "those in whose hearts is a disease". They are mortally afraid as mentioned below.
Cf. iii. 7, and n. 347. The defence of truth and righteousness at all sacrifice, when a definite and categorical command issues from the ruler of an Islamic state is a fundamental condition of enlistment in the cause of Allah. It is true that Punishment and Judgment belong to Allah alone; but our mettle and fidelity have to be tested, (see verse 4 above), and Allah uses human agency in human affairs.
Cf. ii. 10. The disease is hypocrisy, disloyalty to the Cause, want of courage and of the spirit of self-sacrifice, want of true understanding.
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