Tafheem ul Quran
Surah 7 Al-A'raf, Ayat 182-188
وَالَّذِيۡنَ كَذَّبُوۡا بِاٰيٰتِنَا سَنَسۡتَدۡرِجُهُمۡ مِّنۡ حَيۡثُ لَا يَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ۖ ۚ
﴿7:182﴾
وَاُمۡلِىۡ لَهُمۡ ؕ اِنَّ كَيۡدِىۡ مَتِيۡنٌ ﴿7:183﴾
اَوَلَمۡ يَتَفَكَّرُوۡا مَا بِصَاحِبِهِمۡ مِّنۡ جِنَّةٍؕ اِنۡ هُوَ اِلَّا نَذِيۡرٌ مُّبِيۡنٌ
﴿7:184﴾
اَوَلَمۡ يَنۡظُرُوۡا فِىۡ مَلَـكُوۡتِ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالۡاَرۡضِ وَمَا خَلَقَ اللّٰهُ مِنۡ شَىۡءٍ ۙ وَّاَنۡ عَسٰٓى اَنۡ يَّكُوۡنَ قَدِ اقۡتَرَبَ اَجَلُهُمۡ ۚ فَبِاَىِّ حَدِيۡثٍۢ بَعۡدَهٗ يُؤۡمِنُوۡنَ
﴿7:185﴾
مَنۡ يُّضۡلِلِ اللّٰهُ فَلَا هَادِىَ لَهٗ ؕ وَ يَذَرُهُمۡ فِىۡ طُغۡيَانِهِمۡ يَعۡمَهُوۡنَ
﴿7:186﴾
يَسۡـئَـلُوۡنَكَ عَنِ السَّاعَةِ اَيَّانَ مُرۡسٰٮهَا ؕ قُلۡ اِنَّمَا عِلۡمُهَا عِنۡدَ رَبِّىۡ ۚ لَا يُجَلِّيۡهَا لِوَقۡتِهَاۤ اِلَّا هُوَۘ ؕ ثَقُلَتۡ فِى السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالۡاَرۡضِؕ لَا تَاۡتِيۡكُمۡ اِلَّا بَغۡتَةً ؕ يَسۡـئَلُوۡنَكَ كَاَنَّكَ حَفِىٌّ عَنۡهَا ؕ قُلۡ اِنَّمَا عِلۡمُهَا عِنۡدَ اللّٰهِ وَلٰـكِنَّ اَكۡثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعۡلَمُوۡنَ
﴿7:187﴾
قُلْ لَّاۤ اَمۡلِكُ لِنَفۡسِىۡ نَـفۡعًا وَّلَا ضَرًّا اِلَّا مَا شَآءَ اللّٰهُ ؕ وَلَوۡ كُنۡتُ اَعۡلَمُ الۡغَيۡبَ لَاسۡتَكۡثَرۡتُ مِنَ الۡخَيۡرِ ۖ ۛۚ وَمَا مَسَّنِىَ السُّۤوۡءُ ۛۚ اِنۡ اَنَا اِلَّا نَذِيۡرٌ وَّبَشِيۡرٌ لِّقَوۡمٍ يُّؤۡمِنُوۡنَ
﴿7:188﴾
(7:182) As for those who reject Our signs as false, We shall lead them, step
by step, to their ruin without their even perceiving it. (7:183) And (for this purpose) I will grant them respite. My design is incontrovertible.
(7:184) Have they not pondered that their companion [i.e. the Prophet Muhammad]
is not afflicted with insanity? He is only a plain warner. (7:185) Have they not observed the kingdom of the heavens and the earth,
and all that Allah has created143 and that their term of life might
have drawn near144 After this warning from the Prophet, what will
it be that will make them believe? (7:186) For those whom Allah lets go astray, there is no guide; and He will
leave them in their transgression to stumble blindly. (7:187) They ask you concerning the Hour, when will its coming be? Say: 'The
knowledge of it is with my Lord alone: none but He will disclose it at its time.
That will weigh heavily on the heavens and the earth; and it shall not come
to you other than all of a sudden.' They ask you - as if you are eagerly inquisitive
about it - concerning it. Say to them: 'The knowledge of it is with none except
Allah. But most people are unaware of this reality.' (7:188) Tell them [O Muhammad]: 'I have no power to benefit or harm myself
except as Allah may please. And had I knowledge of the unseen, I should have
amassed all kinds of good, and no evil would have ever touched me.145
I am merely a warner and the herald of glad tidings to those who have faith.'
Notes
143. The word 'companion' here refers to the Prophet (peace be on him) who
was born, brought up, grew into youth, in short, spent his whole life including
his old age in their midst. Before the advent of his prophethood, Muhammad (peace
be on him) was known to all the Quraysh as good natured and of sound mind. However,
as he started calling people to accept the Message of God, they immediately
dubbed him insane. Now it is obvious that they were not attributing insanity
to him as regards his pre-prophetic life, for they had nothing evil to say about
that period of his life. The charge of insanity, therefore, was levelled against
the Message he began to preach when he was designated a Prophet.
The Qur'an, therefore, asks them to give serious thought to the teachings of
the Prophet (peace be on him) and to see if there is anything that is inconsistent
with sanity, or is meaningless and irrational. Had people reflected on the order
of the universe, or carefully considered even one single creation of God, they
would have been convinced of the truth of the teachings of the Prophet (peace
be on him). They would have realized that whatever he said to refute polytheism,
or to establish God's unity or the accountability of man in the Hereafter, or
about the necessity of man's surrender to God, was corroborated by the entire
order of the universe and every single atom of God's creation.
144. The unbelievers, feeble-minded as they are, fail to understand that
no one knows when he will die. For death overtakes man totally unawares. This
being the case, what will be the end of those who waste the time at their disposal
until death overtakes them and fail to find the direction to their salvation?
145. The time of the advent of the Last Day is known to God alone Who knows
the Unseen which, in fact, is not known even to the Prophet (peace be on him).
Being human, he is not aware what the morrow has in store for him and his family.
Had his knowledge encompassed everything - even things that lie beyond the ken
of sense-perception and events that lie hidden in the future - he would have
accumulated immense benefit and would have been able to avoid a great deal of
loss owing to such foreknowledge. That being the case, it is sheer naivety to
ask the Prophet about the actual time for the advent of the Last Day.