Al-An'am 6:69
The Cattle · Juz 7 · Page 136
وَمَا عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ مِنۡ حِسَابِهِم مِّن شَيۡءٖ وَلَٰكِن ذِكۡرَىٰ لَعَلَّهُمۡ يَتَّقُونَ ٦٩
And those who fear Allāh are not held accountable for them [i.e., the disbelievers] at all, but [only for] a reminder - that perhaps they will fear Him.
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Ibn Kathir (abridged)
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Commentary on 6:66–69
The Invitation to the Truth is Guidance Without Coercion
Allah said,
وَكَذَّبَ بِهِ
(But have denied it) denied the Qur'an, guidance and clear explanation that you (O Muhammad ) have brought them,
قَوْمُكَ
(your people) meaning, Quraysh,
وَهُوَ الْحَقُّ
(though it is the truth.) beyond which there is no other truth.
قُل لَّسْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ بِوَكِيلٍ
(Say: "I am not responsible for your affairs.") meaning, I have not been appointed a guardian or watcher over you. Allah also said;
وَقُلِ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ فَمَن شَآءَ فَلْيُؤْمِن وَمَن شَآءَ فَلْيَكْفُرْ
(And say: "The truth is from your Lord." Then whosoever wills, let him believe, and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve.) 18:29, This means, my duty is to convey the Message and your duty is to hear and obey. Those who follow me, will acquire happiness in this life and the Hereafter. Those who defy me will become miserable in this life and the Hereafter. So Allah said;
لِّكُلِّ نَبَإٍ مُّسْتَقَرٌّ
(For every news there is a reality...) meaning, for every news, there is a reality, in that, this news will occur, perhaps after a while, according to Ibn `Abbas and others. Allah said in other Ayat,
وَلَتَعْلَمُنَّ نَبَأَهُ بَعْدَ حِينِ
(And you shall certainly know the truth of it after a while.) 38:88 and,
لِكُلِّ أَجَلٍ كِتَابٌ
((For) each and every matter there is a decree (from Allah).) 13:38. This, indeed, is a warning and a promise that will surely occur,
وَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ
(and you will come to know.) Allah's statement,
وَإِذَا رَأَيْتَ الَّذِينَ يَخُوضُونَ فِى ءَايَتِنَا
(And when you see those who engage in false conversation about Our verses (of the Qur'an)), by denying and mocking them.
The Prohibition of Sitting with Those Who Deny and Mock Allah's Ayat
فَأَعْرِضْ عَنْهُمْ حَتَّى يَخُوضُواْ فِى حَدِيثٍ غَيْرِهِ
(stay away from them till they turn to another topic.) until they talk about a subject other than the denial they were engaged in.
وَإِمَّا يُنسِيَنَّكَ الشَّيْطَنُ
(And if Shaytan causes you to forget...) This command includes every member of this Ummah. No one is to sit with those who deny and distort Allah's Ayat and explain them incorrectly. If one forgets and sits with such people,
فَلاَ تَقْعُدْ بَعْدَ الذِّكْرَى
(then after the remembrance sit not you) after you remember,
مَعَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّلِمِينَ
(in the company of those people who are the wrongdoers.). A Hadith states,
«رُفِعَ عَنْ أُمَّتِي الْخَطَأُ وَالنِّسْيَانُ وَمَا اسْتُكْرِهُوا عَلَيْه»
(My Ummah was forgiven unintentional errors, forgetfulness and what they are coerced to do.) The Ayah above 6:68 is the Ayah mentioned in Allah's statement,
وَقَدْ نَزَّلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِى الْكِتَبِ أَنْ إِذَا سَمِعْتُمْ ءَايَتِ اللَّهِ يُكَفَرُ بِهَا وَيُسْتَهْزَأُ بِهَا فَلاَ تَقْعُدُواْ مَعَهُمْ حَتَّى يَخُوضُواْ فِى حَدِيثٍ غَيْرِهِ إِنَّكُمْ إِذاً مِّثْلُهُمْ
(And it has already been revealed to you in the Book that when you hear the Verses of Allah being denied and mocked at, then sit not with them, until they engage in a talk other than that; (but if you stayed with them) certainly in that case you would be like them.) 4:140, for, if you still sit with them, agreeing to what they say, you will be just like them. Allah's statement,
وَمَا عَلَى الَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ مِنْ حِسَابِهِم مِّن شَىْءٍ
(There is no responsibility for them upon those who have Taqwa,) means, when the believers avoid sitting with wrongdoers in this case, they will be innocent of them and they will have saved themselves from their sin. Allah's statement,
وَلَكِن ذِكْرَى لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ
(but (their duty) is to remind them, that they may avoid that.), means, We commanded you to ignore and avoid them, so that they become aware of the error they are indulging in, that they may avoid this behavior and never repeat it again.
Page 136
6:69
وَمَا عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ مِنۡ حِسَابِهِم مِّن شَيۡءٖ وَلَٰكِن ذِكۡرَىٰ لَعَلَّهُمۡ يَتَّقُونَ ٦٩
And those who fear Allāh are not held accountable for them [i.e., the disbelievers] at all, but [only for] a reminder - that perhaps they will fear Him.
6:70
وَذَرِ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱتَّخَذُواْ دِينَهُمۡ لَعِبٗا وَلَهۡوٗا وَغَرَّتۡهُمُ ٱلۡحَيَوٰةُ ٱلدُّنۡيَاۚ وَذَكِّرۡ بِهِۦٓ أَن تُبۡسَلَ نَفۡسُۢ بِمَا كَسَبَتۡ لَيۡسَ لَهَا مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ وَلِيّٞ وَلَا شَفِيعٞ وَإِن تَعۡدِلۡ كُلَّ عَدۡلٖ لَّا يُؤۡخَذۡ مِنۡهَآۗ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ أُبۡسِلُواْ بِمَا كَسَبُواْۖ لَهُمۡ شَرَابٞ مِّنۡ حَمِيمٖ وَعَذَابٌ أَلِيمُۢ بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡفُرُونَ ٧٠
And leave those who take their religion as amusement and diversion and whom the worldly life has deluded. But remind with it [i.e., the Qur’ān], lest a soul be given up to destruction for what it earned; it will have other than Allāh no protector and no intercessor. And if it should offer every compensation, it would not be taken from it [i.e., that soul]. Those are the ones who are given to destruction for what they have earned. For them will be a drink of scalding water and a painful punishment because they used to disbelieve.
6:71
قُلۡ أَنَدۡعُواْ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ مَا لَا يَنفَعُنَا وَلَا يَضُرُّنَا وَنُرَدُّ عَلَىٰٓ أَعۡقَابِنَا بَعۡدَ إِذۡ هَدَىٰنَا ٱللَّهُ كَٱلَّذِي ٱسۡتَهۡوَتۡهُ ٱلشَّيَٰطِينُ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ حَيۡرَانَ لَهُۥٓ أَصۡحَٰبٞ يَدۡعُونَهُۥٓ إِلَى ٱلۡهُدَى ٱئۡتِنَاۗ قُلۡ إِنَّ هُدَى ٱللَّهِ هُوَ ٱلۡهُدَىٰۖ وَأُمِرۡنَا لِنُسۡلِمَ لِرَبِّ ٱلۡعَٰلَمِينَ ٧١
Say, "Shall we invoke1 instead of Allāh that which neither benefits us nor harms us and be turned back on our heels after Allāh has guided us? [We would then be] like one whom the devils enticed [to wander] upon the earth confused, [while] he has companions inviting him to guidance, [calling], 'Come to us.'"2 Say, "Indeed, the guidance of Allāh is the [only] guidance; and we have been commanded to submit to the Lord of the worlds.
6:72
وَأَنۡ أَقِيمُواْ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَٱتَّقُوهُۚ وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِيٓ إِلَيۡهِ تُحۡشَرُونَ ٧٢
And to establish prayer and fear Him." And it is He to whom you will be gathered.
6:73
وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِي خَلَقَ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضَ بِٱلۡحَقِّۖ وَيَوۡمَ يَقُولُ كُن فَيَكُونُۚ قَوۡلُهُ ٱلۡحَقُّۚ وَلَهُ ٱلۡمُلۡكُ يَوۡمَ يُنفَخُ فِي ٱلصُّورِۚ عَٰلِمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ وَٱلشَّهَٰدَةِۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡحَكِيمُ ٱلۡخَبِيرُ ٧٣
And it is He who created the heavens and earth in truth. And the day [i.e., whenever] He says, "Be," and it is, His word is the truth.1 And His is the dominion [on] the Day the Horn is blown. [He is] Knower of the unseen2 and the witnessed;3 and He is the Wise, the Aware.
3 translator’s notes
When interpreted as the "Day" (of resurrection), the sentence would read: "And the Day He says, 'Be,' and it is, His word will be the truth."
[320] That which is absent, invisible, or beyond the perception of the senses or of the mind and therefore is unknown to man, except for what Allāh chooses to reveal.
[321] What is present, visible and known to man. The knowledge of Allāh (subḥānahu wa taʿālā) includes the reality of all things and all occurrences, no matter how they might appear to human beings.
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