1 Ha Mim. 4604
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
2 By the Book that makes things clear
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
3 We have made it a Qur'an in Arabic that ye may be able to understand (and learn wisdom). 4605
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
4 And verily it is in the Mother of the Book in Our Presence high (in dignity) full of wisdom. 4606
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
5 Shall We then take away the Message from you and repel (you) for that ye are a people transgressing beyond bounds? 4607
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
6 But how many were the prophets We sent amongst the peoples of old? 4608
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
7 And never came there a prophet to them but they mocked him.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
8 So We destroyed (them) stronger in power than these and (thus) has passed on the Parable of the peoples of old. 4609
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
9 If thou wert to question them `Who created the heavens and the earth?' They would be sure to reply `They were created by (Him) the Exalted in Power Full of knowledge' 4610 4611
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
10 (Yea the same that) has made for you the earth (like a carpet) spread out and has made for you roads (and channels) therein in order that ye may find guidance (on the way); 4612 4613
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
11 That sends down (from time to time rain from the sky in due measure; and We raise to life therewith a land that is dead; even so will ye be raised (from the dead) 4614 4615
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
12 That has created pairs in all things and has made for you ships and cattle on which ye ride 4616 4617
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
13 In order that ye may sit firm and square on their backs and when so seated ye may celebrate the (kind) favor of your Lord and say "Glory to Him Who has subjected these to Our (use) for We could never have accomplished this (by ourselves). 4618
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
14 "And to Our Lord surely Must We turn back!" 4619
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
15 Yet they attribute to some of His servants a share with Him (in His godhead)! Truly is man a blasphemous ingrate avowed! 4620
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
16 What! Has He taken Daughters out of what He Himself creates and granted to you sons for choice? 4621
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
17 When news is brought to one of them of (the birth of) what he sets up as a likeness to (Allah) Most Gracious his face darkens and he is filled with inward grief! 4622
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
18 Is then one brought up among trinkets and unable to give a clear account in a dispute (to be associated with Allah)? 4623
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
19 And they make into females angels who themselves serve Allah. Did they witness their creation? Their evidence will be recorded and they will be called to account! 4624
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
20 ("Ah!") they say "If it had been the will of (Allah) Most Gracious We should not have worshipped such (deities)!" of that they have no knowledge! They Do nothing but lie! 4625 4626
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
21 What! have We given them a Book before this to which they are holding fast?
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
22 Nay! they say: "We found Our fathers following a certain religion and We do guide ourselves by their footsteps." 4627
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
23 Just in the same way whenever We sent a Warner before thee to any people the wealthy ones among them said: "We found Our fathers following a certain religion and We will certainly follow in their footsteps." 4628
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
24 He said: "What! even if I brought you better guidance than that which ye found your fathers following?" They said: "For us We deny that ye (prophets) are sent (on a mission at all)." 4629
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
25 So We exacted retribution from them: now see what was the end of those who rejected (Truth)!
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
26 Behold! Abraham said to his father and his people: "I do indeed clear myself of what ye worship: 4630
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
27 "(I worship) only Him Who made me and He will certainly guide me."
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
28 And he left it as a Word to endure among those who came after him that they may turn back (to Allah). 4631
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
29 Yea I have given the good things of this life to these (men) and their fathers until the Truth has come to them and an Apostle making things clear. 4632
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
30 But when the Truth came to them they said: "This is sorcery and We do reject it." 4633
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
31 Also they say: "Why is not this Qur'an sent down to some leading man in either of the two (Chief) cities?" 4634
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
32 Is it they who would portion out the Mercy of thy Lord? It is We Who portion out between them their livelihood in the life of this world: and We raise some of them above others in ranks so that some may command work from others. But the Mercy of thy Lord is better than the (wealth) which they amass. 4635
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
33 And were it not that (all) men might become of one (evil) way of life We would provide for everyone that blasphemes against (Allah) Most Gracious silver roofs for their houses and (silver) stair-ways on which to go up. 4636
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
34 And (silver) doors to their houses and thrones (of silver) on which they could recline
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
35 And also adornments of gold. But all this were nothing but conveniences of the present life: the Hereafter in the sight of thy Lord is for the Righteous. 4637
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
36 If anyone withdraws himself from remembrance of (Allah) Most Gracious We appoint for him an evil one to be an intimate companion to him. 4638
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
37 Such (evil ones) really hinder them from the Path but they think that they are being guided aright! 4639
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
38 At length when (such a one) comes to Us he says (to his evil companion): "Would that between me and thee were the distance of East and West!" Ah! Evil is the companion (indeed)! 4640 4641
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
39 When ye have done wrong it will avail you nothing that day that ye shall be partners in punishment! 4642
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
40 Canst thou then make the deaf to hear or give direction to the blind or to such as (wander) in manifest error? 4643 4644
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
41 Even if We take thee away We shall be sure to exact retribution from them. 4645
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
42 Or We shall show thee that (accomplished) which We have promised them: for verily We shall prevail over them.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
43 So hold thou fast to the Revelation sent down to thee: verily thou art on Straight Way. 4646
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
44 The (Qur'an) is indeed the Message for thee and for thy people; and soon shall ye (all) be brought to account. 4647
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
45 And question thou Our apostles whom We sent before thee; did We appoint any deities other than (Allah) Most Gracious to be worshipped? 4648
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
46 We did send Moses aforetime with Our Signs to Pharaoh and his Chiefs: he said "I am an apostle of the Lord of the Worlds." 4649
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
47 But when he came to them with Our Signs behold they ridiculed them. 4650
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
48 We showed them Sign after Sign each greater than its fellow and We
seized them with Punishment in order that they might turn (to
Us). 4651
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
49 And they said "O thou Sorcerer! invoke thy Lord for us according to His covenant with thee; for We shall truly accept guidance." 4652
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
50 But when We removed the Penalty from them behold they broke their word.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
51 And Pharaoh proclaimed among his people saying: "O my people! does not the dominion of Egypt belong to me (witness) these streams flowing underneath my (palace)? What! see ye not then? 4653
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
52 "Am I not better than this (Moses) who is a contemptible wretch and can scarcely express himself clearly? 4654
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
53 "Then why are not gold bracelets bestowed on him or (why) come (not) with him angels accompanying him in procession?" 4655
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
54 Thus did he make fools of his people and they obeyed him: Truly were they a people rebellious (against Allah).
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
55 When at length they provoked Us We exacted retribution from them and We drowned them all 4656 4657
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
56 And We made them (a people) of the Past and an Example to later ages. 4658
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
57 When (Jesus) the son of Mary is held up as an example behold thy
people raise a clamor there at (in ridicule)! 4659
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
58 And they say " Are Our gods best or He?" This they set forth to thee only by way of disputation: yea they are a contentious people.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
59 He was no more than a servant: We granted Our favor to him and We made him an example to the Children of Israel. 4660
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
60 And if it were Our Will We could make angels from amongst you succeeding each other on the earth. 4661
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
61 And (Jesus) shall be a Sign (for the coming of) the Hour (of Judgment): therefore have no doubt about the (Hour) but follow ye Me: this is a Straight Way. 4662
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
62 Let not the Evil One hinder you: for he is to you an enemy avowed.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
63 When Jesus came with Clear Signs he said: "Now have I come to you with Wisdom and in order to make clear to you some of the (points) on which ye dispute: therefore fear Allah and obey me. 4663
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
64 "For Allah; He is my Lord and your Lord: so worship ye Him: this is a Straight Way." 4664
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
65 But sects from among themselves fell into disagreement: then woe to the wrongdoers from the Penalty of a Grievous Day!
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
66 Do they only wait for the Hour that it should come on them all of a sudden while they perceive not? 4665
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
67 Friends on that Day will be foes one to another except the Righteous. 4666
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
68 My devotees! no fear shall be on you that Day nor shall ye grieve 4667
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
69 (Being) those who have believed in Our Signs and bowed (their wills to Ours) in Islam.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
70 Enter ye the Garden ye and your wives in (beauty and) rejoicing. 4668
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
71 To them will be passed round dishes and goblets of gold: there will be there all that the souls could desire all that the eyes could delight in: and ye shall abide therein (for aye). 4669
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
72 Such will be the Garden of which ye are made heirs for your (good) deeds (in life). 4670
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
73 Ye shall have therein abundance of fruit from which ye shall have satisfaction. 4671 4672
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
74 The Sinners will be in the Punishment of Hell to dwell therein (for aye):
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
75 Nowise will the (punishment) be lightened for them and in despair will they be there overwhelmed.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
76 Nowise shall We be unjust to them: but it is they who have been unjust themselves. 4673
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
77 They will cry: "O Malik! would that thy Lord put an end to us!"
He will say "Nay but ye shall abide!" 4674 4675
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
78 Verily We have brought the truth to you: but most of you have a hatred for Truth. 4676
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
79 What! have they settled some Plan (among themselves)? But it is We Who settle things. 4677
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
80 Or do they think that We hear not their secrets and their private counsels? Indeed (We do) and Our Messengers are by them to record. 4678
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
81 Say: "If (Allah) Most Gracious had a son I would be the first to worship." 4679
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
82 Glory to the Lord of the heavens and the earth the Lord of the Throne (of Authority)! (He is free) from the things they attribute (to Him)! 4680
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
83 So leave them to babble and play (with vanities) until they meet that Day of theirs which they have been promised. 4681
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
84 It is He Who is Allah in heaven and Allah on earth; and He is full of Wisdom and Knowledge.
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
85 And blessed is He to Whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and all between them: with Him is the knowledge of the Hour (of Judgment): And to Him shall ye be brought back. 4682
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
86 And those whom they invoke besides Allah have no power of intercession; only he who bears witness to the Truth and they know (him). 4683
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
87 If thou ask them Who Created them they will certainly say Allah: how then are they deluded away (from the Truth)? 4684
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
88 (Allah has knowledge) of the (Prophet's) cry "O my Lord! truly these are a people who will not believe!" 4685 4686
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
89 But turn away from them and say "Peace!" but soon shall they know! 4687
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
Note Number : 4604
Abbreviated Letters: see Introduction to S. xi.
Note Number : 4605
Cf. xlii. 7, n. 4533.
Note Number : 4606
Cf. iii. 7, n. 347: and xiii. 39, n. 1864. The Mother of the Book, the Foundation of Revelation, the Preserved Tablet (Lauh Mahfuz. lxxxv. 22), is the core or essence of revelation, the original principle or fountain-head of Allah's Eternal and Universal Law. From this fountain-head are derived all streams of knowledge and wisdom, that flow through Time and feed the intelligence of created minds. The Mother of the Book is in Allah's own Presence, and its dignity and wisdom are more than all we can think of.
Note Number : 4607
In vouchsafing Revelation, what an inestimable Mercy has Allah conferred on mankind! Yet so many deluded souls are ungrateful, and ignore or oppose its teaching. If it were not for His attributes of Forgiveness and Forbearing He would be justified in withdrawing that Light, but He continues to shed it, that all who will may come and be blessed by it.
Note Number : 4608
In spite of, or because of, man's obstinate and rebellious nature, Allah sent prophet after prophet to the peoples of old, but there was among them always a party that ridiculed them and treated Allah's Signs as naught.
Note Number : 4609
The result of rebellion was destruction. And the pagan Makkan generation contemporary with the Prophet are reminded that the peoples of old who were destroyed were, many of them, more powerful than they, and that they, in disobeying Allah's Law, were inviting the same fate for themselves. The events of the past have become examples for the present and the future.
Note Number : 4610
Cf. xxix. 61 and n. 3493; and xxxi. 25 and n. 3613. This class of men acknowledge Allah's Power and Allah's Knowledge or Wisdom, but do not realise Allah's infinite Mercy and care for His creatures.
Note Number : 4611
Note the beautiful rhetorical figure of speech here. The reply of the inconsistent men who do not follow Allah's Law is turned against themselves. When they acknowledge Allah's Power and Knowledge, their speech is interrupted, and the concomitant qualities of Allah's Mercy and care of His creatures, with pointed reference to the inconsistent ones themselves, is set out in eloquent terms, as completing what they themselves had said, and the right course of conduct is pointed out to them (verses 10-14).
Note Number : 4612
See last note.
Note Number : 4613
Cf. xx. 53 and n. 2576. Mihad, a carpet or bed spread out, implies not only freedom of movement but rest also. The 'roads and channels' carry out the idea of communications and include land routes, sea routes, and airways.
Note Number : 4614
In due measure: i.e., according to needs, as measured by local as well as universal considerations. This applies to normal rainfall: floods and droughts are abnormal conditions, and may be called unusual manifestations of His power, fulfilling some special purpose that we may or may not understand.
Note Number : 4615
The clause 'And We raise...(from the dead)' is parenthetical. Cf. xxxv. 9, n. 3881. Note the transition from the third to the first person, to mark the Resurrection as a special act of Allah as distinguished from the ordinary processes of nature ordained by Allah.
Note Number : 4616
Cf. n. 2578 to xx. 53. Also see xxxvi. 36, n. 3981.
Note Number : 4617
By analogy all means of transport, including horses, camels, ships, steamers, railways, aeroplanes, airships, etc. The domestication of animals as well as the invention of mechanical means of transport require a skill and ingenuity in man, which are referred to Allah as His gifts or endowments to man.
Note Number : 4618
See last note. People of understanding attribute all good to its true and original source viz.: Allah.
Note Number : 4619
Men of understanding, every time they take a journey on earth, are reminded of that more momentous journey which they are taking on the back of Time to Eternity. Have they tamed Time to their lawful use, or do they allow Time to run away with them wildly to where they know not? Their goal is Allah, and their thoughts are ever with Allah.
Note Number : 4620
As a contrast to the men of true understanding are the ungrateful blasphemous creatures, who offer a share to others besides Allah! They imagine sons and daughters to Allah, and forget the true lesson of the whole of Creation, which points to the Unity of Allah. This theme is further developed in the following Section.
Note Number : 4621
To imagine goddesses (female gods) or mothers or daughters to Allah was particularly blasphemous in the mouths of people who held the female sex in contempt. Such were the pagan Arabs, and such (it is to be feared) are some of the moderns. They wince when a daughter is born to them and hanker after sons. With that mentality, how can they attribute daughters to Allah?
Note Number : 4622
Cf. xvi. 57-59 and notes. With scathing irony it is pointed out that what they hate and are ashamed of for themselves they attribute to Allah!
Note Number : 4623
The softer sex is usually brought up among trinkets and ornaments, and, on account of the retiring modesty which for the sex is a virtue, is unable to stand up boldly in a fight and give clear indications of the will to win. Is that sort of quality to be associated with Allah?
Note Number : 4624
Angels for grace and purity may be compared to the most graceful and the purest forms we know. But it is wrong to attribute sex to them. They are servants and messengers of Allah and so far from being rivals seeking worship, are always engaged in devotion and service. If any persons invent blasphemies about Allah, such blasphemies will form a big blot in their Book of Deeds, and they will be called to account for them.
Note Number : 4625
Worsted in argument they resort to a dishonest sarcasm. 'We worship these deities: if Allah does not wish us to do so, why does He not prevent us?' In throwing the responsibility on Allah, they ignore the limited free-will on which their whole life is based. They are really playing with truth. They are arguing against their own knowledge. They have no authority in any scripture, and indeed they are so slippery that they hold fast to no scripture at all.
Note Number : 4626
Cf. vi. 116.
Note Number : 4627
Then comes the argument about ancestral custom, which was repudiated by Abraham (see verses 26-28 below). Indeed a good reply to ancestral custom in the case of the Arabs was the example of Abraham, the True in Faith, for Abraham was the common ancestor of the Arabs and the Israelites.
Note Number : 4628
It is some privileged position, and not ancestral custom, which is really at the bottom of much falsehood and hypocrisy in the world. This has been again and again in religious history.
Note Number : 4629
The Warner or messenger pointed out the merits and the truth of his teaching, and how superior it was to what they called their ancestral customs. But they denied his mission itself or the validity of any such mission. In other words they did not believe in inspiration or revelation, and went on in their evil ways, with the inevitable result that they brought themselves to destruction.
Note Number : 4630
The plea of ancestral ways is refuted by the example of Abraham, in two ways: (1) he gave up the ancestral cults followed by his father and people, and followed the true Way, even at some sacrifice to himself; and (2) he was an ancestor of the Arabs, and if the Arabs stood on ancestral ways, why should they not follow their good ancestor Abraham, rather than their bad ancestors who fell into evil? See n. 4627 above. The incident in Abraham's story referred to here will be found in xxi. 51-70.
Note Number : 4631
A Word: i.e., the Gospel of Unity, viz.: "I worship only Him who originated me", as in verse 27. This was his teaching, and this was his legacy to those who followed him. He hoped that they would keep it sacred, and uphold the standard of Unity. Cf. xxxvii. 108-1 1 1.
Note Number : 4632
Note the first person singular, as showing Allah's personal solicitude and care for the descendants of Abraham in both branches. The context here refers to the prosperity enjoyed by Makkah and the Makkans until they rejected the truth of Islam when it was preached in their midst by a messenger whose Message was as clear as the light of the sun.
Note Number : 4633
When the pagan Makkans could not understand the wonderful power and authority with which the holy Prophet preached, they called his God given influence sorcery!
Note Number : 4634
The world judges by its own low standards. From a worldly point of view, the holy Prophet was poor and an orphan. Why, they thought, should he be so richly endowed in spiritual knowledge and power? If such a gift had to come to a man among them, it was the right (they foolishly said) of one of the chiefs in either the sacred city of Makkah, or the fertile garden-city of Taif!
Note Number : 4635
That is, spiritual gifts, those connected with Revelation. What audacity or folly in them to claim to divide or distribute them among themselves? They may think they are distributing the good things of this world among themselves. In a sense that may be true, even here, their own power and initiative are very limited. Even here it is Allah's Will on which all depends. In His wisdom Allah allows some to grow in power or riches, and command work from others, and various relative gradations are established. Men scramble for these good things of this world, but they are of no value compared to the spiritual gifts.
Note Number : 4636
So little value is attached in the spiritual world to silver or gold, or worldly ranks or adornments, that they would freely be at the disposal of everyone who denied or blasphemed Allah, were it not that in that case there would be too great temptation placed in the way of men, for they might all scramble to sell their spiritual life for wealth! They might have silver roofs and stair-ways, silver doors and thrones, and all kinds of adornments of gold. But Allah does not allow too great a temptation to be placed in the path of men. He distributes these things differently, some to unjust men, and some to just men, in various degrees, so that the possession of these is no test either of an unjust or a just life. His wisdom searches out motives far more subtle and delicate than any we are even aware of.
Note Number : 4637
Adornments of gold: the keyword to this Sura. All false glitter and adornments of this world are as naught. They more often hinder than help.
Note Number : 4638
If men deliberately put away the remembrance of Allah from their minds, the natural consequence, under Allah's decree, is that they join on with evil. Like consorts with like. We can generalise evil in the abstract, but it takes concrete shape in our life-companions.
Note Number : 4639
The downward course in evil is rapid. But the most tragic consequence is that evil persuades its victims to believe that they are pursuing good. They think evil to be their good. They go deeper and deeper into the mire, and become more and more callous. "Them" and "they" represent the generic plural of anyone who "withdraws himself from...Allah" (see last verse).
Note Number : 4640
If ever the presence of Allah is felt, or at the time of Judgment, a glimmering of truth comes to the deceived soul, and it cries to its evil companion in its agony, "Would that I had never come across thee! Would that we were separated poles apart!" But it cannot shake off evil. By deliberate choice it had put itself in its snare.
Note Number : 4641
Distance of East and West: literally, 'distance of the two Easts'. Most Commentators understand in this sense, but some construe the phrase as meaning the distance of the extreme points of the rising of the sun, between the summer solstice and the winter solstice. Cf. n. 4034 to xxxvii. 5. A good equivalent idiom in English would be "poles apart", for they could never meet.
Note Number : 4642
All partners in evil will certainly share in the punishment, but that is no consolation to any individual soul. Evil desires the evil of others, but that does not diminish its own torment, or get rid of the personal responsibility of each individual soul.
Note Number : 4643
Cf. xxx. 52-53. The evil go headlong into sin, and sink deeper and deeper until their spiritual faculties are deadened, and no outside help can bring them back. Allah's grace they have rejected.
Note Number : 4644
There is hope for a person who wanders in quest of truth, and even for one who wanders through mistake or by weakness of will. But there is none for one who, by deliberate choice, plunges into "manifest error", i.e., error which any one can see.
Note Number : 4645
Cf. viii. 30: "how the Unbelievers plotted against thee, to keep thee in bonds, or slay thee, or get thee out (of thy home)". They were always plotting against the holy Prophet in his Makkan period. But even if their plots had succeeded against human beings, they could not defeat Allah's Plan, nor escape the just punishment of their deeds. Cf. also x. 46, and n. 1438.
Note Number : 4646
Let the wicked rage, say what they like, or do their worst: the prophet of Allah is encouraged to go forward steadfastly in the Light given him, for he is on a Path that leads straight to Allah.
Note Number : 4647
Zikrun: Message, Remembrance, Cause of remembrance, Memorial. Title for remembrance to posterity. Thus two meanings emerge, not necessarily mutually exclusive. (1) The Qur-an brings a Message of Truth and Guidance to the Prophet, and his people; (2) the revelation of the Qur-an raises the rank of the Prophet, and the people among whom, and in whose language, it was promulgated, making them worthy of remembrance in the world's history for all time. But the honour also carried its responsibilities. All who hear it must give an account of how far they profit by it spiritually.
Note Number : 4648
That is, by examining their Message, and asking the learned among their real followers. It will be found that no Religion really teaches the worship of other than Allah.
Note Number : 4649
For the story of Moses in detail, see vii. 103-137, but especially vii. 104, 130- 136.
Note Number : 4650
For the mockery of Moses and his Signs see xvii. 101; also below, xliii. 49, 52-53.
Note Number : 4651
Moses showed them nine Clear Signs: see n. 1091 to vii. 133; also xvii. 101. Each one of them in its own setting and circumstances was greater than any of its "Sister" Signs. The object was if possible to reclaim as many Egyptians as possible from their defiance of Allah.
Note Number : 4652
This speech is half a mockery, and half a ruse. In spite of their unbelief, they had fear in their minds, and in order to stop the plagues, one after another, they promised to obey Allah, and when the particular plague was removed, they again became obdurate. See vii. 133-135.
Note Number : 4653
The waw here in Arabic is the Waw haliya: the abundant streams from the Nile flowing beneath his palace being evidence of his power, prosperity, and sovereignty. The Nile made (and makes) Egypt, and the myth of the god Osiris was a compound of the myths of the Nile and the sun. The Pharaoh, therefore, as commanding the Nile, commanded the gods who personified Egypt. He boasted of water, and he perished in water,-a fitting punishment!
Note Number : 4654
Being a despised Israelite in any case, and having further an impediment in his speech. See xx. 27, and notes 2552-53.
Note Number : 4655
Gold bracelets and gold chains were possibly among the insignia of royalty. In any case they betokened wealth, and the materialists judge a man's worth by his wealth and his following and equipage. So Pharaoh wanted to see Moses, if he had any position in the spiritual kingdom, invested with gold bracelets, and followed by a great train of angels as his Knight-companions! The same kind of proofs were demanded by the materialist Quraish of our holy Prophet. These were puerilities, but such puerilities go down with the crowd. Barring a few Egyptians who believed in Allah and in the Message of Moses, the rest of Pharaoh's entourage followed Pharaoh in his pursuit of revenge, and were drowned in the Red Sea.
Note Number : 4656
Allah is patient, and gives many and many opportunities to the most hardened sinners for repentance. But at length comes a time when His justice is provoked, and the inevitable punishment follows.
Note Number : 4657
Cf. vii. 136.
Note Number : 4658
Pharaoh and his hosts were blotted out, and became as a tale of the past. Their story is an instructive warning and example to future generations.
Note Number : 4659
Jesus was a man, and a prophet to the Children of Israel, "though his own received him not." Some of the churches that were founded after him worshipped him as "God" and as "the son of God", as do the Trinitarian churches to the present day. The orthodox churches did so in the time of the holy Prophet. When the doctrine of Unity was renewed, and the false worship of others besides Allah was strictly prohibited, all false gods were condemned, e.g., at xxi. 98. The pagan Arabs looked upon Jesus as being in the same category as their false gods, and could not see why a foreign cult, or a foreign god, as they viewed him, should be considered better than their own gods or idols. There was no substance in this, but mere mockery, and verbal quibbling. Jesus was one of the greater prophets: he was not a god, nor was he responsible for the quibbling subtleties of the Athanasian Creed.
Note Number : 4660
A reference to the limited mission of the prophet Jesus, whose Gospel to the Jews only survives in uncertain fragmentary forms.
Note Number : 4661
If it were said that the birth of Jesus without a father sets him above other prophets, the creation of angels without either father or mother would set them still higher, especially as angels do not eat and drink and are not subject to physical laws. But angels are not higher.
Note Number : 4662
This is understood to refer to the second coming of Jesus in the Last Days before the Resurrection, when he will destroy the false doctrines that pass under his name, and prepare the way for the universal acceptance of Islam, the Gospel of Unity and Peace, the Straight Way of the Qur-an.
Note Number : 4663
True wisdom consists in understanding the unity of the Divine purpose and the Unity of the Divine Personality. The man Jesus came to reconcile the jarring sects in Israel, and his true teaching was just the same as that which was expounded in a wider form by Islam. He did not claim to be God: why should not the Christians follow the doctrine of Unity rather than what has become their ancestral and traditional custom?
Note Number : 4664
In verses 26-28 an appeal is made to the pagan Arabs, that Islam is their own religion, the religion of Abraham their ancestor; in verses 46-54, an appeal is made to the Jews that Islam is the same religion as was taught by Moses, and that they should not allow their leaders to make fools of them; in verses 57-65 an appeal is made to the Christians that Islam is the same religion as was taught by Jesus, and that they should give up their sectarian attitude and follow the universal religion, which shows the Straight Way.
Note Number : 4665
Cf. xii. 107. What is there to wait for? The Hour of Judgment may come at any moment. It will come all of a sudden before they realise that it is on them. They should make up their minds to give up misleading disputations and come to the Straight Path.
Note Number : 4666
The hatred and spite, which are associated with evil, will be felt with peculiar intensity in that period of agony. That itself would be a punishment, from which the righteous will be free. The righteous will have passed all perils of falling into wrong frames of mind.
Note Number : 4667
The devotion and service to Allah result in the soul being made free from all fear and sorrow, as regards the past, present, and future, if we may take an anology from Time for a timeless state. Such devotion and service are shown by (1) believing in Allah's Signs, which means understanding and accepting His Will, and (2) by merging our will completely in His universal Will, which means being in tune with the Infinite, and acting in all things to further His Kingdom.
Note Number : 4668
The Garden is the type of all that is beautiful to eye, mind, and soul, all that is restful and in tune, a complete state of bliss, such as we can scarcely conceive of in this troubled world. Several metaphors indicate how we can try to picture that bliss to ourselves in "this muddy vesture of decay."
Note Number : 4669
We shall have all our near and dear ones ("wives") with us: perfected Love will not be content with Self, but like a note of music will find its melody in communion with the others. The richest and most beautiful vessels will minister to our purified desires, and give complete and eternal satisfaction to our souls in every way.
Note Number : 4670
We shall be there, not as strangers, or temporary guests, but as heirs,-made heirs in eternity because of the good lives we had led on earth.
Note Number : 4671
The "fruit" here links on with the last words in the last verse (72), "ye are made heirs for your (good) deeds (in life)".
Note Number : 4672
"Shall eat". But the word akala is used in many places in the comprehensive sense of "enjoy", "have satisfaction". For example, see n. 776 to v. 69. Cf. also vii. 19 and n. 1004.
Note Number : 4673
The wrong-doers suffer not because Allah is unjust or cruel, nor as a deterrent to others, for the probationary period will then have passed, but because their evil deeds must bear their inevitable fruit. Allah's Grace was ever ready to offer opportunities for Repentance and Forgiveness. But they rejected them. They were unjust to themselves. This is complementary to the doctrine of works and their fruits, as explained in n. 4671 above.
Note Number : 4674
Malik: The name of the Angel in charge of Hell.
Note Number : 4675
Cf. xx. 74. Annihilation is better than agony. But wrong-doers cannot destroy the "fruits" of their actions, by asking for annihilation.
Note Number : 4676
We come back now to the Present,-primarily to the time when Islam was being preached in Makkah, but by analogy the present time or any time. Truth is often bitter to the taste of those who live on Falsehoods, and Shams and profit by them. They hate the Truth, and plot against it. But will they succeed? See next verse and note.
Note Number : 4677
Men cannot settle the high affairs of the universe. If they plot against the Truth, the Truth will destroy them, just as, if they accept the Truth, the Truth will make them free. It is Allah Who disposes of affairs.
Note Number : 4678
However secretly men may plot, everything is known to Allah. His Recording Angels are by, at all times and in all places, to prepare a Record of their Deeds for their own conviction when the time comes for Judgment.
Note Number : 4679
The prophet of Allah does not object to true worship in any form. But it must be true: it must not superstitiously attribute derogatory things to Allah, or foster false ideas.
Note Number : 4680
Cf. vii. 54 and n. 1032. All Power, Authority, Knowledge, and Truth are with Allah. He neither begets nor is begotten. Glory to Him!
Note Number : 4681
That Day of theirs: they had their Day on earth; they will have a different sort of Day in the Hereafter, according to the promise of Allah about the Resurrection and Judgment, or perhaps about Retribution in this very life! So leave them to play about with their fancies and vanities. Truth must eventually prevail!
Note Number : 4682
We glorify Allah, and we call His name blessed, because He has not only supreme power and authority, but because we shall return to Him and see "the Light of His Countenance" (xxx. 38).
Note Number : 4683
While idols and false gods have no power of intercession, persons like Jesus, who is falsely worshipped by his misguided followers, but who himself preached the Gospel of Unity with full understanding will have the power of intercession.
Note Number : 4684
Cf. xxxi. 25, and n. 3613-1 and xxxix. 38, and n. 4299.
Note Number : 4685
Commentators are divided in opinion as to the construction. The best opinion is that which I have adopted, referring back qilihi as a genitive governed by 'ilm in verse 85.
Note Number : 4686
The Prophet was much troubled in mind by the Unfaith of the Quraish: xviii. 6. He is here told to leave them alone for a time, for the Truth must soon prevail.
Note Number : 4687
Cf. xxv. 63, and n. 3123.
