An-Nahl 16:39
The Bee · Juz 14 · Page 271
لِيُبَيِّنَ لَهُمُ ٱلَّذِي يَخۡتَلِفُونَ فِيهِ وَلِيَعۡلَمَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوٓاْ أَنَّهُمۡ كَانُواْ كَٰذِبِينَ ٣٩
[It is] so He will make clear to them [the truth of] that wherein they differ and so those who have disbelieved may know that they were liars.
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Ma'arif al-Qur'an
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Commentary on 16:36–40
Has a Rasul of Allah appeared in India and Pakistan too?
From verse 36 in the present Surah: وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولًا (And We did raise a messenger among every people), as well as from verse 24 of Surah Fatir: وَإِن مِّنْ أُمَّةٍ إِلَّا خَلَا فِيهَا نَذِيرٌ (And there is no group of people among whom there has not been a warner - 35:24), it outwardly appears that messen-gers may have also been sent to areas now known as India and Pakistan - whether residents of the area, or located in another country whose deputies or emissaries had reached there. Then, there is the verse of Surah Al-Qasas: لِتُنذِرَ قَوْمًا مَّا أَتَاهُم مِّن نَّذِيرٍ (so that you may warn a people unto whom came no warner - 28:46). The sense released by the verse is that no warner had come before him to the people unto whom the Holy Prophet ﷺ was sent. This can be answered by saying that this obviously refers to the people of Arabia who became the first addressees of the prophetic mission of Sayyidna Muhammad al-Mustafa ﷺ - the fact being that no prophet since Sayyidna Ismail (علیہ السلام) had appeared among them. Therefore, the title given to these people in the Holy Qur'an was "Ummiyyin" (the unlettered ones). This does not necessarily imply that no prophet came before him in the rest of the world as well. Allah knows best.
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16:35
وَقَالَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَشۡرَكُواْ لَوۡ شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ مَا عَبَدۡنَا مِن دُونِهِۦ مِن شَيۡءٖ نَّحۡنُ وَلَآ ءَابَآؤُنَا وَلَا حَرَّمۡنَا مِن دُونِهِۦ مِن شَيۡءٖۚ كَذَٰلِكَ فَعَلَ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبۡلِهِمۡۚ فَهَلۡ عَلَى ٱلرُّسُلِ إِلَّا ٱلۡبَلَٰغُ ٱلۡمُبِينُ ٣٥
And those who associate others with Allāh say, "If Allāh had willed, we would not have worshipped anything other than Him, neither we nor our fathers, nor would we have forbidden anything through other than Him." Thus did those do before them. So is there upon the messengers except [the duty of] clear notification?
16:36
وَلَقَدۡ بَعَثۡنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٖ رَّسُولًا أَنِ ٱعۡبُدُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱجۡتَنِبُواْ ٱلطَّٰغُوتَۖ فَمِنۡهُم مَّنۡ هَدَى ٱللَّهُ وَمِنۡهُم مَّنۡ حَقَّتۡ عَلَيۡهِ ٱلضَّلَٰلَةُۚ فَسِيرُواْ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ فَٱنظُرُواْ كَيۡفَ كَانَ عَٰقِبَةُ ٱلۡمُكَذِّبِينَ ٣٦
And We certainly sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], "Worship Allāh and avoid ṭāghūt."1 And among them were those whom Allāh guided, and among them were those upon whom error was [deservedly] decreed. So proceed [i.e., travel] through the earth and observe how was the end of the deniers.
1 translator’s note
- False objects of worship. ↩
16:37
إِن تَحۡرِصۡ عَلَىٰ هُدَىٰهُمۡ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَهۡدِي مَن يُضِلُّۖ وَمَا لَهُم مِّن نَّٰصِرِينَ ٣٧
[Even] if you should strive for their guidance, [O Muḥammad], indeed, Allāh does not guide those He sends astray,1 and they will have no helpers.
1 translator’s note
- As a result of their choice to reject guidance. ↩
16:38
وَأَقۡسَمُواْ بِٱللَّهِ جَهۡدَ أَيۡمَٰنِهِمۡ لَا يَبۡعَثُ ٱللَّهُ مَن يَمُوتُۚ بَلَىٰ وَعۡدًا عَلَيۡهِ حَقّٗا وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكۡثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا يَعۡلَمُونَ ٣٨
And they swear by Allāh their strongest oaths [that] Allāh will not resurrect one who dies. But yes - [it is] a true promise [binding] upon Him, but most of the people do not know.
16:39
لِيُبَيِّنَ لَهُمُ ٱلَّذِي يَخۡتَلِفُونَ فِيهِ وَلِيَعۡلَمَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوٓاْ أَنَّهُمۡ كَانُواْ كَٰذِبِينَ ٣٩
[It is] so He will make clear to them [the truth of] that wherein they differ and so those who have disbelieved may know that they were liars.
16:40
إِنَّمَا قَوۡلُنَا لِشَيۡءٍ إِذَآ أَرَدۡنَٰهُ أَن نَّقُولَ لَهُۥ كُن فَيَكُونُ ٤٠
Indeed, Our word to a thing when We intend it is but that We say to it, "Be," and it is.
16:41
وَٱلَّذِينَ هَاجَرُواْ فِي ٱللَّهِ مِنۢ بَعۡدِ مَا ظُلِمُواْ لَنُبَوِّئَنَّهُمۡ فِي ٱلدُّنۡيَا حَسَنَةٗۖ وَلَأَجۡرُ ٱلۡأٓخِرَةِ أَكۡبَرُۚ لَوۡ كَانُواْ يَعۡلَمُونَ ٤١
And those who emigrated for [the cause of] Allāh after they had been wronged - We will surely settle them in this world in a good place; but the reward of the Hereafter is greater, if only they could know.
16:42
ٱلَّذِينَ صَبَرُواْ وَعَلَىٰ رَبِّهِمۡ يَتَوَكَّلُونَ ٤٢
[They are] those who endured patiently and upon their Lord relied.