Tafheem ul Quran

Surah 46 Al-Ahqaf, Ayat 27-35

وَلَقَدۡ اَهۡلَكۡنَا مَا حَوۡلَـكُمۡ مِّنَ الۡقُرٰى وَصَرَّفۡنَا الۡاٰيٰتِ لَعَلَّهُمۡ يَرۡجِعُوۡنَ‏ ﴿46:27﴾ فَلَوۡلَا نَصَرَهُمُ الَّذِيۡنَ اتَّخَذُوۡا مِنۡ دُوۡنِ اللّٰهِ قُرۡبَانًا اٰلِهَةً ؕ بَلۡ ضَلُّوۡا عَنۡهُمۡ​ۚ وَذٰلِكَ اِفۡكُهُمۡ وَمَا كَانُوۡا يَفۡتَرُوۡنَ‏  ﴿46:28﴾ وَاِذۡ صَرَفۡنَاۤ اِلَيۡكَ نَفَرًا مِّنَ الۡجِنِّ يَسۡتَمِعُوۡنَ الۡقُرۡاٰنَ​ۚ فَلَمَّا حَضَرُوۡهُ قَالُوۡۤا اَنۡصِتُوۡا​ۚ فَلَمَّا قُضِىَ وَلَّوۡا اِلٰى قَوۡمِهِمۡ مُّنۡذِرِيۡنَ‏ ﴿46:29﴾ قَالُوۡا يٰقَوۡمَنَاۤ اِنَّا سَمِعۡنَا كِتٰبًا اُنۡزِلَ مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِ مُوۡسٰى مُصَدِّقًا لِّمَا بَيۡنَ يَدَيۡهِ يَهۡدِىۡۤ اِلَى الۡحَقِّ وَاِلٰى طَرِيۡقٍ مُّسۡتَقِيۡمٍ‏  ﴿46:30﴾ يٰقَوۡمَنَاۤ اَجِيۡبُوۡا دَاعِىَ اللّٰهِ وَاٰمِنُوۡا بِهٖ يَغۡفِرۡ لَـكُمۡ مِّنۡ ذُنُوۡبِكُمۡ وَيُجِرۡكُمۡ مِّنۡ عَذَابٍ اَ لِيۡمٍ‏ ﴿46:31﴾ وَمَنۡ لَّا يُجِبۡ دَاعِىَ اللّٰهِ فَلَيۡسَ بِمُعۡجِزٍ فِى الۡاَرۡضِ وَلَيۡسَ لَهٗ مِنۡ دُوۡنِهٖۤ اَوۡلِيَآءُ ​ؕ اُولٰٓـئِكَ فِىۡ ضَلٰلٍ مُّبِيۡنٍ‏ ﴿46:32﴾ اَوَلَمۡ يَرَوۡا اَنَّ اللّٰهَ الَّذِىۡ خَلَقَ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالۡاَرۡضَ وَلَمۡ يَعۡىَ بِخَلۡقِهِنَّ بِقٰدِرٍ عَلٰۤی اَنۡ يُّحۡیِۦَ الۡمَوۡتٰى ​ؕ بَلٰٓى اِنَّهٗ عَلٰى كُلِّ شَىۡءٍ قَدِيۡرٌ‏‏ ﴿46:33﴾ وَيَوۡمَ يُعۡرَضُ الَّذِيۡنَ كَفَرُوۡا عَلَى النَّارِ ؕ اَلَيۡسَ هٰذَا بِالۡحَقِّ​ ؕ قَالُوۡا بَلٰى وَرَبِّنَا​ ؕ قَالَ فَذُوۡقُوا الۡعَذَابَ بِمَا كُنۡـتُمۡ تَكۡفُرُوۡنَ‏  ﴿46:34﴾ فَاصۡبِرۡ كَمَا صَبَرَ اُولُوا الۡعَزۡمِ مِنَ الرُّسُلِ وَلَا تَسۡتَعۡجِلْ لَّهُمۡ​ؕ كَاَنَّهُمۡ يَوۡمَ يَرَوۡن مَا يُوۡعَدُوۡنَۙ لَمۡ يَلۡبَثُوۡۤا اِلَّا سَاعَةً مِّنۡ نَّهَارٍ ​ؕ بَلٰغٌ ۚ فَهَلۡ يُهۡلَكُ اِلَّا الۡقَوۡمُ الۡفٰسِقُوۡنَ‏  ﴿46:35﴾

(46:27) Surely We destroyed many a town around you. We sent Our Messages to them repeatedly and in diverse forms that they may eschew (their evil ways) and return (to Allah). (46:28) So why did those whom they had set up as gods apart from Allah, hoping that they would bring them nearer to Him, not come to their aid?32 Instead, they failed them. This was the end of the lie they had fabricated and the false beliefs they had invented. (46:29) And call to mind when We sent to you a party of the jinn that they may listen to the Qur'an.33 When they reached the place (where you were reciting the Qur'an), they said to one another: “Be silent (and listen).” And when the recitation ended, they went back to their people as warners. (46:30) They said: “Our people, We have heard a Scripture revealed after Moses, verifying the Scriptures revealed before it; it guides to the Truth and to the Straight Way.34 (46:31) Our people, respond to the call of him who calls you to Allah and believe in him. Allah will forgive your sins and will protect you from a grievous chastisement.”35 (46:32) And36 he who does not respond to the one who calls to Allah will not be able to frustrate Him on earth, nor will they have anyone to protect them from Allah. Such people are in manifest error. (46:33) Do they not see that Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth � and creating them did not wear Him out � has the power to bring the dead back to life? Why not! He certainly has the power over everything. (46:34) On the Day when the unbelievers will be brought within sight of the Fire, they will be asked: “Is this not the Truth?” and they will answer “Yes, by Our Lord (this is the Truth).” Allah will say: “Then suffer the chastisement as a requital for your disbelieving.” (46:35) So bear with patience, (O Prophet), even as the Messengers endowed with firmness of resolve37 (before you) bore with patience, and do not be hasty in their regard. The Day when they see what they had been warned against they will feel as though they had remained in the world no more than an hour of a day. (The Truth has been conveyed.) Will any, then, suffer perdition except those who disobey?

Notes

32. That is, they had put faith in those things in the beginning with the idea that they were favorite servants of God and through them they would attain nearness to Him, but then gradually they made them their gods. They started invoking them for help; they formed the belief that they had the powers to change their destinies and could answer their prayers and remove their hardships. To deliver them from this error Allah sent His revelations through His Messengers over and over again in different ways to bring them to the right path, but they persisted in the worship of their gods, and continued to insist that they would still invoke them instead of Allah. Now consider this: When the torment of Allah visited these polytheists because of their deviation, where had their redressers of grievances and removers of hardships disappeared? Why didn’t they come to their rescue at the time of affliction?

33. The traditions that have been related from Abdullah bin Masud, Zubair, Abdullah bin Abbas, Hasan Basri, Saeed bin Jubair, Zarr bin Hubaish, Mujahid, Ikrimah and others in connection with the commentary of this verse concur that this incident of the first visit of the jinns, which has been mentioned in this verse, had occurred in the valley of Nakhlah. And according to Ibn Ishaq, Abu Nuaim Isfahaini and Waqidi, this incident occurred during the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) return journey from Taif to Makkah. On the way, when he halted at Nakhlah, and was reciting the Quran in the Isha or the Fajr or the Tahajjud Prayer, a group of the jinns happened to pass by and stopped to listen to him. In this connection, all the traditions agree that on this occasion the jinns did not appear before the Prophet (peace be upon him), nor did he feel their presence, but Allah informed him afterwards by revelation that they had come and listened to the Quranic recitation.

The place where this incident took place was either Az- Zaimah or AsSayl-ul-Kabir, for both these places are situated in the valley of Nakhlah and at both water is available and are green; if the travelers from Taif have to halt in this valley, they can halt at either of the places.

34. This shows that these jinns had already had faith in the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) and in the divine Books. After hearing the Quran they felt that it gave the same teachings as the former Prophets had been preaching. Therefore, they believed in this Book forthwith and also in the Prophet (peace be upon him) who had brought it.

35. Authentic traditions show that after this several deputations of the jinns visited the Prophet (peace be upon him), one after the other, and met him face to face. When all the traditions related in the collections of Hadith on this subject are read together, it appears that at least six deputations had visited him in Makkah before the Hijrah.

About one of these deputations, Abdullah bin Masud relates: One day the Prophet (peace be upon him) remained missing from Makkah for the whole night. We could not know his whereabouts and feared he might have been attacked by somebody. Early in the morning we saw him coming from the direction of Hira. On inquiring he said that a jinn had come to invite him and he had accompanied him and recited the Quran to a gathering of them there. (Muslim, Musnad Ahmad, Tirmidhi, Abu Daud).

Abdullah bin Masud has related another tradition, saying: Once the Prophet (peace be upon him) asked his companions in Makkah as to which of them would accompany him that night to meet the jinns. I became ready to go with him. At a place in the upper quarters of Makkah the Prophet (peace be upon him) drew a line and told me not to cross it. Then he went forward and stood and began to recite the Quran. I saw that a number of the people had gathered around him and they stood between me and him. (Ibn Jarir, Baihaqi: Dalail an-Nubuwwat, Abu Nuaim Isfahani: Dalail an-Nubuwuat).

On another occasion also during the night Abdullah bin Masud was with the Prophet (peace be upon him) when he decided a case of the jinns at Hajun in Makkah. Many years later Ibn Masud saw a group of the villagers at Kufa and said that the group of the jinns he had seen at Hajun closely resembled those people. (Ibn Jarir).

36. This sentence might also be a part of the saying of the jinns, or it might be an addition by Allah to their saying. In view of the context the second view seems to be more reasonable.

37. That is, just as the Prophets before you went on enduring with patience and ceaseless struggle the indifference, opposition, resistance and persecutions of their people for years, so should you also do the same, and do not entertain the idea that either the people should believe in you immediately or if they do not believe, Allah should visit them with His torment.