Фуссилят 41:37–48

From among the Signs of Allah

Here Allah reminds His Creation of His power, and that He is the One Who has no equal, and He is Able to do all things. Allah's saying;

(And from among His signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon.) means, He created the night with its darkness and the day with its light, and they alternate without ceasing. And He created the sun with its shining light, and the moon with its reflected light. and He allotted their stages and gave them separate orbits in the heavens, so that by the variations in their movements man may know the stages of night and day, of weeks, months and years, and time periods related to people's rights, acts of worship and various transactions. Moreover, because the sun and moon are the most beautiful of the heavenly bodies that can be seen in both the upper and lower realms, Allah points out that they are created entities which are in a state of enthrallment to Him, subject to His dominion and control. So He says:

(Do not prostrate yourselves to the sun nor to the moon, but prostrate yourselves to Allah Who created them, if you (really) worship Him.) meaning, `do not associate anything in worship with Him, for your worship of Him will be of no benefit to you if you worship others alongside Him, because He does not forgive the association of others in worship with Him.' He says:

(But if they are too proud, ) i.e., to worship Him Alone, and they insist on associating others with Him,

(then there are those who are with your Lord) i.e., the angels,

(glorify Him night and day, and never are they tired.) This is like the Ayah:

(But if these disbelieve therein, then, indeed We have entrusted it to a people who are not disbelievers therein.) (6:89).

(And among His signs) means, signs of His ability to bring the dead back to life.

(that you see the earth barren,) means, lifeless, with nothing growing in it; it is dead.

(but when We send down water (rain) to it, it is stirred to life and growth.) means, it brings forth all kinds of crops and fruits.

(Verily, He Who gives it life, surely is able to give life to the dead. Indeed He is Able to do all things.)

The Punishment of the Deniers and the Description of the Qur'an

(Verily, Yulhiduna Fi Our Ayat) Ibn `Abbas said, "Al-Ilhad means putting words in their improper places." Qatadah and others said, "It means disbelief and obstinate behavior."

(are not hidden from Us.) This is a stern warning and dire threat, stating that He, may He be exalted, knows who denies His signs, Names and attributes, and He will punish them for that. He says:

(Is he who is cast into the Fire better or he who comes secure on the Day of Resurrection) means, are these two equal They are not equal. Then Allah warns the disbelievers:

(Do what you will.) Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak and `Ata' Al-Khurasani said that

(Do what you will. ) is a threat. Meaning, `do what you will of good or evil, for He knows and sees all that you do.' He says:

(Verily, He is All-Seer of what you do.)

(Verily, those who disbelieved in the Reminder when it came to them.) Ad-Dahhak, As-Suddi and Qatadah said, "This is the Qur'an."

(And verily, it is an honorable well-fortified respected Book.) means, it is protected and preserved, and nobody can produce anything like it.

(Falsehood cannot come to it from before it or behind it,) means, there is no way to corrupt it, because it has been sent down by the Lord of the worlds. Allah says:

((it is) sent down by the All-Wise, Worthy of all praise.) meaning, He is Wise in all that He says and does, Praiseworthy in all that He commands and forbids; everything that He does is for praiseworthy purposes and its consequences will be good.

(Nothing is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you.) Qatadah, As-Suddi and others said, "Nothing is said to you by way of rejection and disbelief, that was not said to the Messengers who came before you. Just as you have been rejected, they were also rejected. Just as they bore their people's insults with patience, so too you must bear your people's insults with patience."

(Verily, your Lord is the Possessor of forgiveness,) means, for those who turn to Him in repentance.

(and (also) the Possessor of painful punishment.) means, for those who persist in disbelief, transgression and stubborn opposition.

Rejection of the Qur'an is pure Stubbornness

Allah tells us that the Qur'an is so eloquent and perfect in its wording and meanings, yet despite that the idolators do not believe in it. He tells us that their disbelief is the disbelief of stubbornness, as He says elsewhere:

(And if We had revealed it unto any of the non-Arabs, and he had recited it unto them, they would not have believed in it.) (26:198-199). If the Qur'an had been revealed in the language of the non-Arabs, they would have said, because of their stubbornness:

(Why are not its verses explained in detail What! not in Arabic and an Arab) meaning, why is it not revealed in detail in Arabic And by way of denunciation they would have said, "What! not in Arabic nor from an Arab -- i.e., how can foreign words be revealed to an Arab who does not understand them This interpretation was reported from Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Sa`id bin Jubayr, As-Suddi and others.

(Say: "It is for those who believe, a guide and a cure...") means, `say, O Muhammad: this Qur'an, for the one who believes in it, is guidance for his heart and a cure for the doubts and confusion that exists in people's hearts.'

(And as for those who disbelieve, there is heaviness in their ears,) means, they do not understand what is in it.

(and it is blindness for them.) means they are not guided to the explanations contained therein. This is like the Ayah:

(And We send down of the Qur'an that which is a healing and a mercy to those who believe, and it increases the wrongdoers nothing but loss.) (17:82).

(They are called from a place far away.) Mujahid said, "Far away from their hearts." Ibn Jarir said, "It is as if the one who is addressing them is calling to them from a distant place, and they cannot understand what he is saying." This is like the Ayah:

(And the example of those who disbelieve is as that of him who shouts to those (flock of sheep) that hears nothing but calls and cries. (They are) deaf, dumb and blind. So they do not understand.) (2:171)

Taking Musa as an Example

(And indeed We gave Musa the Scripture, but dispute arose therein.) means, they disbelieved in him and did not show him any respect.

(Therefore be patient as did the Messengers of strong will) (46:35).

(And had it not been for a Word that went forth before from your Lord,) i.e., to delay the Reckoning until the Day of Resurrection,

(the matter would have been settled between them.) means, the punishment would have been hastened for them. But they have an appointed time, beyond which they will find no escape.

(But truly, they are in grave doubt thereto.) means, their words of disbelief are not due to any wisdom or insight on their part; rather they spoke without any attempt at examining it thoroughly. This was also the interpretation of Ibn Jarir, and it is a plausible interpretation. And Allah knows best.

Everyone will be requited according to His Deeds

مَّنْ عَمِلَ صَلِحاً فَلِنَفْسِهِ

(Whosoever does righteous good deed, it is for himself;) means, the benefit of which will come to him.

وَمَنْ أَسَآءَ فَعَلَيْهَا

(and whosoever does evil, it is against himself.) means, the consequences of that will come back on him.

وَمَا رَبُّكَ بِظَلَّمٍ لِّلْعَبِيدِ

(And your Lord is not at all unjust to (His) servants) means, He only punishes people for their sins, and He does not punish anyone except after establishing proof against him and sending a Messenger to him.

Knowledge of the Hour is with Allah Alone

Then Allah says:

إِلَيْهِ يُرَدُّ عِلْمُ السَّاعَةِ

(To Him is referred the knowledge of the Hour.) meaning, no one knows about that apart from Him. Muhammad ﷺ , the leader of mankind, said to Jibril, who is one of the leading angels, when he asked him about the Hour:

«مَا الْمَسْؤُولُ عَنْهَا بِأَعْلَمَ مِنَ السَّائِل»

(The one who is asked about it does not know more than the one who is asking.)" And Allah says:

إِلَى رَبِّكَ مُنتَهَهَآ

(To your Lord belongs the term thereof.) (79:44)

لاَ يُجَلِّيهَا لِوَقْتِهَآ إِلاَّ هُوَ

(None can reveal its time but He) (7:187).

وَمَا تَخْرُجُ مِن ثَمَرَتٍ مِّنْ أَكْمَامِهَا وَمَا تَحْمِلُ مِنْ أُنْثَى وَلاَ تَضَعُ إِلاَّ بِعِلْمِهِ

(No fruit comes out of its sheath, nor does a female conceive nor brings forth (young), except by His knowledge.) means, all of that is known to Him, and nothing is hidden from your Lord the weight of a speck of dust on the earth or in the heaven. Allah says:

وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلاَّ يَعْلَمُهَا

(not a leaf falls, but He knows it) (6:59).

يَعْلَمُ مَا تَحْمِلُ كُلُّ أُنثَى وَمَا تَغِيضُ الاٌّرْحَامُ وَمَا تَزْدَادُ وَكُلُّ شَىْءٍ عِندَهُ بِمِقْدَارٍ

(Allah knows what every female bears, and by how much the wombs fall short or exceed. Everything with Him is in (due) proportion) (13:8).

وَمَا يُعَمَّرُ مِن مُّعَمَّرٍ وَلاَ يُنقَصُ مِنْ عُمُرِهِ إِلاَّ فِى كِتَبٍ إِنَّ ذَلِكَ عَلَى اللَّهِ يَسِيرٌ

(And no aged man is granted a length of life nor is a part cut off from his life, but is in a Book. Surely, that is easy for Allah.) (35:11)

وَيَوْمَ يُنَادِيهِمْ أَيْنَ شُرَكَآئِى

(And on the Day when He will call unto them (saying): "Where are My (so-called) partners") means, on the Day of Resurrection, Allah will call out to the idolators before all of creation and say, "Where are My partners whom you worshipped besides Me"

قَالُواْ ءَاذَنَّاكَ

(They will say: "We inform You...") means, `we tell You,'

مَا مِنَّا مِن شَهِيدٍ

(that none of us bears witness to it.) means, `not one of us will bear witness today that You have any partner.'

وَضَلَّ عَنْهُم مَّا كَانُواْ يَدْعُونَ مِن قَبْلُ

(And those whom they used to invoke before (in this world) shall disappear from them, ) means, they will go away, and will be of no benefit to them.

وَظَنُّواْ مَا لَهُمْ مِّن مَّحِيصٍ

(and they will perceive that they have no place of refuge) means, they will have no way of escaping from the punishment of Allah. This is like the Ayah:

وَرَأَى الْمُجْرِمُونَ النَّارَ فَظَنُّواْ أَنَّهُمْ مُّوَاقِعُوهَا وَلَمْ يَجِدُواْ عَنْهَا مَصْرِفًا

(And the criminals shall see the Fire and apprehend that they have to fall therein. And they will find no way of escape from there.) (18:53)