Al-Qasas 28:59
The Stories · Juz 20 · Page 392
وَمَا كَانَ رَبُّكَ مُهۡلِكَ ٱلۡقُرَىٰ حَتَّىٰ يَبۡعَثَ فِيٓ أُمِّهَا رَسُولٗا يَتۡلُواْ عَلَيۡهِمۡ ءَايَٰتِنَاۚ وَمَا كُنَّا مُهۡلِكِي ٱلۡقُرَىٰٓ إِلَّا وَأَهۡلُهَا ظَٰلِمُونَ ٥٩
And never would your Lord have destroyed the cities until He had sent to their mother [i.e., principal city] a messenger reciting to them Our verses. And We would not destroy the cities except while their people were wrongdoers.
Tafsir · in Arabic
Al-Qinnawji
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Commentary on 28:59
(وما كان ربك) بيان للعادة الربانية أي: ما صح، ولا استقام، وما كان، وما ثبت في حكمه الماضي، وقضائه السابق أن يكون (مهلك القرى) الكافر أهلها قبل الإنذار (حتى يبعث) ويرسل (في أمها) أي أكبرها وأعظمها (رسولاً) ينذرهم.
و (يتلو عليهم آياتنا) أي تالياً عليهم آيات الله الدالة الناطقة بما أوجبه الله عليهم، وما أعده من الثواب للمطيع، والعقاب للعاصي، ومخبراً أن العذاب سينزل بهم إذا لم يؤمنوا، وخص الأعظم منها بالبعثة إليها لأن فيها أشراف القوم وأهل الفهم والرأي، وفيها الملوك والأكابر فصارت بهذا الاعتبار كالأم لما حولها من القرى وقال الحسن: أم القرى أولها، وقيل: المراد بأم القرى هنا مكة كما في قوله: (إن أول بيت وضع للناس) الآية، والالتفات إلى نون العظمة لتربية المهابة والروعة، وقد تقدم بيان ما تضمنته هذه الآية في آخر سورة يوسف.
(وما كنا مهلكي القرى إلا وأهلها ظالمون) معطوفة على الجملة التي قبلها والاستثناء مفرغ من أعم الأحوال أي: وما كنا مهلكين لأهل القرى بعد أن نبعث إلى أمها رسولاً يدعوهم إلى الحق في حال من الأحوال إلا حال كونهم ظالمين قد استحقوا الإهلاك لإصرارهم على الكفر، بعد الإعذار إليهم، وتأكيد الحجة عليهم، كقوله سبحانه (وما كان ربك ليهلك القرى بظلم وأهلها مصلحون).
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28:51
۞ وَلَقَدۡ وَصَّلۡنَا لَهُمُ ٱلۡقَوۡلَ لَعَلَّهُمۡ يَتَذَكَّرُونَ ٥١
And We have [repeatedly] conveyed to them the word [i.e., the Qur’ān] that they might be reminded.
28:52
ٱلَّذِينَ ءَاتَيۡنَٰهُمُ ٱلۡكِتَٰبَ مِن قَبۡلِهِۦ هُم بِهِۦ يُؤۡمِنُونَ ٥٢
Those to whom We gave the Scripture before it - they1 are believers in it.
1 translator’s note
- i.e., the sincere believers among them. ↩
28:53
وَإِذَا يُتۡلَىٰ عَلَيۡهِمۡ قَالُوٓاْ ءَامَنَّا بِهِۦٓ إِنَّهُ ٱلۡحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّنَآ إِنَّا كُنَّا مِن قَبۡلِهِۦ مُسۡلِمِينَ ٥٣
And when it is recited to them, they say, "We have believed in it; indeed, it is the truth from our Lord. Indeed we were, [even] before it, Muslims [i.e., submitting to Allāh]."
28:54
أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ يُؤۡتَوۡنَ أَجۡرَهُم مَّرَّتَيۡنِ بِمَا صَبَرُواْ وَيَدۡرَءُونَ بِٱلۡحَسَنَةِ ٱلسَّيِّئَةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقۡنَٰهُمۡ يُنفِقُونَ ٥٤
Those will be given their reward twice for what they patiently endured and [because] they avert evil through good, and from what We have provided them they spend.
28:55
وَإِذَا سَمِعُواْ ٱللَّغۡوَ أَعۡرَضُواْ عَنۡهُ وَقَالُواْ لَنَآ أَعۡمَٰلُنَا وَلَكُمۡ أَعۡمَٰلُكُمۡ سَلَٰمٌ عَلَيۡكُمۡ لَا نَبۡتَغِي ٱلۡجَٰهِلِينَ ٥٥
And when they hear ill speech, they turn away from it and say, "For us are our deeds, and for you are your deeds. Peace will be upon you;1 we seek not the ignorant."
1 translator’s note
- This is not the Islāmic greeting of "Peace be upon you." Rather, it means "You are secure from being treated in a like manner by us." ↩
28:56
إِنَّكَ لَا تَهۡدِي مَنۡ أَحۡبَبۡتَ وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَهۡدِي مَن يَشَآءُۚ وَهُوَ أَعۡلَمُ بِٱلۡمُهۡتَدِينَ ٥٦
Indeed, [O Muḥammad], you do not guide whom you like, but Allāh guides whom He wills. And He is most knowing of the [rightly] guided.
28:57
وَقَالُوٓاْ إِن نَّتَّبِعِ ٱلۡهُدَىٰ مَعَكَ نُتَخَطَّفۡ مِنۡ أَرۡضِنَآۚ أَوَلَمۡ نُمَكِّن لَّهُمۡ حَرَمًا ءَامِنٗا يُجۡبَىٰٓ إِلَيۡهِ ثَمَرَٰتُ كُلِّ شَيۡءٖ رِّزۡقٗا مِّن لَّدُنَّا وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكۡثَرَهُمۡ لَا يَعۡلَمُونَ ٥٧
And they [i.e., the Quraysh] say, "If we were to follow the guidance with you, we would be swept1 from our land." Have We not established for them a safe sanctuary to which are brought the fruits of all things as provision from Us? But most of them do not know.
1 translator’s note
- By the other Arab tribes. ↩
28:58
وَكَمۡ أَهۡلَكۡنَا مِن قَرۡيَةِۭ بَطِرَتۡ مَعِيشَتَهَاۖ فَتِلۡكَ مَسَٰكِنُهُمۡ لَمۡ تُسۡكَن مِّنۢ بَعۡدِهِمۡ إِلَّا قَلِيلٗاۖ وَكُنَّا نَحۡنُ ٱلۡوَٰرِثِينَ ٥٨
And how many a city have We destroyed that was insolent in its [way of] living, and those are their dwellings which have not been inhabited after them except briefly.1 And it is We who were the inheritors.
1 translator’s note
- By travelers seeking temporary shelter. The reference is to the ruins which were visible to the Quraysh during their journeys. ↩
28:59
وَمَا كَانَ رَبُّكَ مُهۡلِكَ ٱلۡقُرَىٰ حَتَّىٰ يَبۡعَثَ فِيٓ أُمِّهَا رَسُولٗا يَتۡلُواْ عَلَيۡهِمۡ ءَايَٰتِنَاۚ وَمَا كُنَّا مُهۡلِكِي ٱلۡقُرَىٰٓ إِلَّا وَأَهۡلُهَا ظَٰلِمُونَ ٥٩
And never would your Lord have destroyed the cities until He had sent to their mother [i.e., principal city] a messenger reciting to them Our verses. And We would not destroy the cities except while their people were wrongdoers.