An-Nahl 16:115
The Bee · Juz 14 · Page 280
إِنَّمَا حَرَّمَ عَلَيۡكُمُ ٱلۡمَيۡتَةَ وَٱلدَّمَ وَلَحۡمَ ٱلۡخِنزِيرِ وَمَآ أُهِلَّ لِغَيۡرِ ٱللَّهِ بِهِۦۖ فَمَنِ ٱضۡطُرَّ غَيۡرَ بَاغٖ وَلَا عَادٖ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٞ رَّحِيمٞ ١١٥
He has only forbidden to you dead animals,1 blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allāh. But whoever is forced [by necessity], neither desiring [it] nor transgressing [its limit] - then indeed, Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful.
1 translator’s note
- Those not slaughtered or hunted expressly for food. ↩
Tafsir · in English
Tazkirul Quran
Brief · Short modern reflections on each passage.
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Commentary on 16:114–115
This verse relates to things which are eaten from day to day out of the eatable things created by God. All things are permissible (halal) with just a few exceptions. However, the ancient polytheists prohibited for themselves many things which were permissible. On the contrary, atheists have treated many things prohibited by God as being permissible for themselves. Both these approaches negate the spirit, which is intended to be developed in man through the bounties of food. Food is the most important of all man’s needs. It is a need which is experienced morning and evening. God desires that, whenever a man uses food, he should eat it considering it as a gift from God and he should be grateful to Him for it. But man has reversed the whole matter. In the ancient polytheistic period, they attributed these foods to false gods and in this way made it the means of remembering false gods instead of the one and only God. In the atheistic modern period, man having made the whole matter subject to his personal tastes, those things prohibited by God have been treated as permissible by him. This has resulted in the things created by God becoming mere foodstuffs to cater to his tastes at the dining table. If, under compulsion, anyone goes against the law of God regarding food, he should do it with a sense of shame and not with arrogance. In that way his mentality will be uncorrupted.
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16:111
۞ يَوۡمَ تَأۡتِي كُلُّ نَفۡسٖ تُجَٰدِلُ عَن نَّفۡسِهَا وَتُوَفَّىٰ كُلُّ نَفۡسٖ مَّا عَمِلَتۡ وَهُمۡ لَا يُظۡلَمُونَ ١١١
On the Day when every soul will come disputing [i.e., pleading] for itself, and every soul will be fully compensated for what it did, and they will not be wronged [i.e., treated unjustly].
16:112
وَضَرَبَ ٱللَّهُ مَثَلٗا قَرۡيَةٗ كَانَتۡ ءَامِنَةٗ مُّطۡمَئِنَّةٗ يَأۡتِيهَا رِزۡقُهَا رَغَدٗا مِّن كُلِّ مَكَانٖ فَكَفَرَتۡ بِأَنۡعُمِ ٱللَّهِ فَأَذَٰقَهَا ٱللَّهُ لِبَاسَ ٱلۡجُوعِ وَٱلۡخَوۡفِ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَصۡنَعُونَ ١١٢
And Allāh presents an example: a city [i.e., Makkah] which was safe and secure, its provision coming to it in abundance from every location, but it denied the favors of Allāh. So Allāh made it taste the envelopment of hunger and fear for what they had been doing.
16:113
وَلَقَدۡ جَآءَهُمۡ رَسُولٞ مِّنۡهُمۡ فَكَذَّبُوهُ فَأَخَذَهُمُ ٱلۡعَذَابُ وَهُمۡ ظَٰلِمُونَ ١١٣
And there had certainly come to them a Messenger from among themselves, but they denied him; so punishment overtook them while they were wrongdoers.
16:114
فَكُلُواْ مِمَّا رَزَقَكُمُ ٱللَّهُ حَلَٰلٗا طَيِّبٗا وَٱشۡكُرُواْ نِعۡمَتَ ٱللَّهِ إِن كُنتُمۡ إِيَّاهُ تَعۡبُدُونَ ١١٤
Then eat of what Allāh has provided for you [which is] lawful and good. And be grateful for the favor of Allāh, if it is [indeed] Him that you worship.
16:115
إِنَّمَا حَرَّمَ عَلَيۡكُمُ ٱلۡمَيۡتَةَ وَٱلدَّمَ وَلَحۡمَ ٱلۡخِنزِيرِ وَمَآ أُهِلَّ لِغَيۡرِ ٱللَّهِ بِهِۦۖ فَمَنِ ٱضۡطُرَّ غَيۡرَ بَاغٖ وَلَا عَادٖ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٞ رَّحِيمٞ ١١٥
He has only forbidden to you dead animals,1 blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allāh. But whoever is forced [by necessity], neither desiring [it] nor transgressing [its limit] - then indeed, Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful.
1 translator’s note
- Those not slaughtered or hunted expressly for food. ↩
16:116
وَلَا تَقُولُواْ لِمَا تَصِفُ أَلۡسِنَتُكُمُ ٱلۡكَذِبَ هَٰذَا حَلَٰلٞ وَهَٰذَا حَرَامٞ لِّتَفۡتَرُواْ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلۡكَذِبَۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَفۡتَرُونَ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ٱلۡكَذِبَ لَا يُفۡلِحُونَ ١١٦
And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, "This is lawful and this is unlawful," to invent falsehood about Allāh. Indeed, those who invent falsehood about Allāh will not succeed.
16:117
مَتَٰعٞ قَلِيلٞ وَلَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٞ ١١٧
[It is but] a brief enjoyment, and they will have a painful punishment.
16:118
وَعَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ هَادُواْ حَرَّمۡنَا مَا قَصَصۡنَا عَلَيۡكَ مِن قَبۡلُۖ وَمَا ظَلَمۡنَٰهُمۡ وَلَٰكِن كَانُوٓاْ أَنفُسَهُمۡ يَظۡلِمُونَ ١١٨
And to those who are Jews We have prohibited that which We related to you before.1 And We did not wrong them [thereby], but they were wronging themselves.
1 translator’s note
- See 6:146. ↩