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Towards Understanding the Quran
With kind permission: Islamic Foundation UK
Introduction to Tafheem | Glossary | Verbs
Tafsirs: Maarif | Dawat | Ishraq | Clear

 Surah An-Nahl 16:35-40 [5/16]
  
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Verse Summary -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
وَقَالَAnd said
ٱلَّذِينَthose who
أَشْرَكُواْassociate partners (with Allah),
لَوْ"If
شَآءَ ٱللَّهُAllah (had) willed
مَاnot
عَبَدْنَاwe (would) have worshipped
مِن دُونِهِۦother than Him
مِنany
شَىْءٍthing,
نَّحْنُwe
وَلَآand not
ءَابَآؤُنَاour forefathers
وَلَاand not
حَرَّمْنَاwe (would) have forbidden
مِن دُونِهِۦother than Him
مِن شَىْءٍ‌ۚanything."
كَذَٲلِكَThus
فَعَلَdid
ٱلَّذِينَthose who
مِن قَبْلِهِمْ‌ۚ(were) before them.
فَهَلْThen is (there)
عَلَىon
ٱلرُّسُلِthe messengers
إِلَّاexcept
ٱلْبَلَـٰغُthe conveyance
ٱلْمُبِينُclear?
﴿٣٥﴾
وَلَقَدْAnd certainly,
بَعَثْنَاWe sent
فِىinto
كُلِّevery
أُمَّةٍnation
رَّسُولاًa Messenger,
أَنِthat,
ٱعْبُدُواْ"Worship
ٱللَّهَAllah,
وَٱجْتَنِبُواْand avoid
ٱلطَّـٰغُوتَ‌ۖthe false deities."
فَمِنْهُمThen among them
مَّنْ(were some) whom
هَدَى ٱللَّهُAllah guided,
وَمِنْهُمand among them
مَّنْ(were) some
حَقَّتْwas justified
عَلَيْهِon them
ٱلضَّلَـٰلَةُ‌ۚthe straying.
فَسِيرُواْSo travel
فِىin
ٱلْأَرْضِthe earth
فَٱنظُرُواْand see
كَيْفَhow
كَانَwas
عَـٰقِبَةُthe end
ٱلْمُكَذِّبِينَ(of) the deniers.
﴿٣٦﴾
إِنIf
تَحْرِصْyou desire
عَلَىٰ[for]
هُدَٮٰهُمْtheir guidance,
فَإِنَّthen indeed,
ٱللَّهَAllah
لَا(will) not
يَهْدِىguide
مَنwhom
يُضِلُّ‌ۖHe lets go astray,
وَمَاand not (are)
لَهُمfor them
مِّنany
نَّـٰصِرِينَhelpers.
﴿٣٧﴾
وَأَقْسَمُواْAnd they swear
بِٱللَّهِby Allah
جَهْدَstrongest
أَيْمَـٰنِهِمْ‌ۙ(of) their oaths,
لَا يَبْعَثُ ٱللَّهُAllah will not resurrect
مَن(one) who
يَمُوتُ‌ۚdies.
بَلَىٰNay,
وَعْدًا(it is) a promise
عَلَيْهِupon Him
حَقًّا(in) truth,
وَلَـٰكِنَّbut
أَكْثَرَmost
ٱلنَّاسِ(of) the mankind
لَا(do) not
يَعْلَمُونَknow.
﴿٣٨﴾
لِيُبَيِّنَThat He will make clear
لَهُمُto them
ٱلَّذِىthat
يَخْتَلِفُونَthey differ
فِيهِwherein,
وَلِيَعْلَمَand that may know
ٱلَّذِينَthose who
كَفَرُوٓاْdisbelieved
أَنَّهُمْthat they
كَانُواْwere
كَـٰذِبِينَliars.
﴿٣٩﴾
إِنَّمَاOnly
قَوْلُنَاOur Word
لِشَىْءٍto a thing
إِذَآwhen
أَرَدْنَـٰهُWe intend it
أَن(is) that
نَّقُولَWe say
لَهُۥto it,
كُن"Be"
فَيَكُونُand it is.
﴿٤٠﴾


وَقَالَ الَّذِيۡنَ اَشۡرَكُوۡا لَوۡ شَآءَ اللّٰهُ مَا عَبَدۡنَا مِنۡ دُوۡنِهٖ مِنۡ شَىۡءٍ نَّحۡنُ وَلَاۤ اٰبَآؤُنَا وَلَا حَرَّمۡنَا مِنۡ دُوۡنِهٖ مِنۡ شَىۡءٍ​ؕ كَذٰلِكَ فَعَلَ الَّذِيۡنَ مِنۡ قَبۡلِهِمۡ​ۚ فَهَلۡ عَلَى الرُّسُلِ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ‏  وَلَـقَدۡ بَعَثۡنَا فِىۡ كُلِّ اُمَّةٍ رَّسُوۡلًا اَنِ اعۡبُدُوا اللّٰهَ وَاجۡتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوۡتَ​ۚ فَمِنۡهُمۡ مَّنۡ هَدَى اللّٰهُ وَمِنۡهُمۡ مَّنۡ حَقَّتۡ عَلَيۡهِ الضَّلٰلَةُ​ ؕ فَسِيۡرُوۡا فِىۡ الۡاَرۡضِ فَانْظُرُوۡا كَيۡفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الۡمُكَذِّبِيۡنَ‏   اِنۡ تَحۡرِصۡ عَلٰى هُدٰٮهُمۡ فَاِنَّ اللّٰهَ لَا يَهۡدِىۡ مَنۡ يُّضِلُّ​ وَمَا لَهُمۡ مِّنۡ نّٰصِرِيۡنَ‏  وَ اَقۡسَمُوۡا بِاللّٰهِ جَهۡدَ اَيۡمَانِهِمۡ​ۙ لَا يَبۡعَثُ اللّٰهُ مَنۡ يَّمُوۡتُ​ؕ بَلٰى وَعۡدًا عَلَيۡهِ حَقًّا وَّلٰـكِنَّ اَكۡثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعۡلَمُوۡنَۙ‏   لِيُبَيِّنَ لَهُمُ الَّذِىۡ يَخۡتَلِفُوۡنَ فِيۡهِ وَلِيَـعۡلَمَ الَّذِيۡنَ كَفَرُوۡۤا اَنَّهُمۡ كَانُوۡا كٰذِبِيۡنَ‏  اِنَّمَا قَوۡلُـنَا لِشَىۡءٍ اِذَاۤ اَرَدۡنٰهُ اَنۡ نَّقُوۡلَ لَهٗ كُنۡ فَيَكُوۡنُ‏  

Translation
(16:35) Those who associate others with Allah in His Divinity say: "Were Allah to will so, neither we nor our forefathers would have worshipped any other than Him, nor would we have prohibited anything without His command."30 Their predecessors proffered similar excuses.31 Do the Messengers have any other duty but to plainly convey the Message? (16:36) We raised a Messenger in every community (to tell them): "Serve Allah and shun the Evil One."32 Thereafter Allah guided some of them while others were overtaken by error.33 Go about the earth, then, and observe what was the end of those who rejected the Messengers,34 calling them liars. (16:37) (O Muhammad), howsoever eager you may be to show them the Right Way, Allah does not bestow His guidance on those whom He lets go astray; and in fact none will be able to help them. (16:38) They swear most solemnly in the name of Allah and say: "Allah shall not raise to life any who dies." (Yes, He will do so); that is a promise by which He is bound, even though most people do not know that. (16:39) (That is bound to happen in order that) He may make clear to them the reality regarding the matters on which they differ and that the unbelievers may realize that they were liars.35 (16:40) (As for the possibility of resurrection, bear in mind that) whenever We do will something, We have to do no more than say: "Be", and it is.36

Commentary

30. In order to understand the significance of this argument the reader should keep in view (Ayats 148-150 and E.N.s 124-126 of Surah Al-Anaam), for this has been cited and answered there.

31. That is, your argument is not a new one but the same old one which had always been offered by erroneous people who went before you. Today you are, like them, excusing yourselves for your deviation and evil conduct, saying that it is the will of God. You know that this is a lame excuse that has been invented to delude yourselves, and to escape from admonition.

This answer also contains a subtle retort to the objection of the disbelievers that the Quran consisted merely of old stories of the ancients (Ayat 24). They meant to imply that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had nothing new to offer. So he was repeating the same old stories that had been repeated over and over again since the time of Prophet Noah (peace be upon him). The retort is this: If the Prophet (peace be upon him) was not presenting anything new but was reciting the old stories of the ancients, you yourselves are not putting forward any new excuse in defense of your evil deeds, but the same old excuse that was put forward by the people who went before you.

32. That is, you are not justified in excusing yourselves for these sins, saying that it is the will of God for We sent Messengers to every ummat, who told the people in plain words that they should worship Us and none else, and should not follow and obey taghut. Besides this, We have already warned you that We do not approve of your deviations. Why should you then put forward this excuse for your deviations? Do you mean to say that We ought to have sent such Messengers as would have forced you to follow the right way instead of bringing you to it by preaching? Please refer to (E.N. 80 of Surah Al-Anaam) for the distinction between God’s will and God’s approval).

33. That is, Whenever a Messenger came to a people, they were divided into two groups.

(1) Those who accepted the message (and that, too, could not have been possible except with the will of Allah).

(2) Those who rejected it and stuck to their deviation (For explanation see (E.N. 28 of Surah Al-Anaam).

34. That is, you can see for yourselves the lesson of human history. It is this that the people, who rejected the message, incurred the scourge of Allah like Pharaoh and the people of Pharaoh, while Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) received the blessings of Allah.

35. In (Ayat 39 )those two things have been stated which rationally and morally require that there must be Resurrection and life after death, that is:

(1) To reveal what the reality was, and

(2) To reward or punish people in accordance with the right or wrong stand they took about it in this world. It is common knowledge that since the creation of man on the earth there have been many differences regarding the reality which have been sowing dissension between families, nations and races. These have also led to the formation of many different societies, cultures and creeds on different theories. In every age millions of the torch bearers of each of these theories have been putting at stake all their life, property and honor to propagate and defend their favorite theory. Nay, there has always been such a bitter conflict between them that each group tried to annihilate the other, who, in his turn, stuck to it to the last. This being the case, common sense demands that such far reaching and serious differences should be cleared some time or other, so as to decide with certainty what was right and what was wrong, who was in the right and who was in the wrong. Obviously, it is not possible to lift the curtain from the reality in this world so as to reveal things in their true perspective. This is because the system on which this world has been created does not allow this. Therefore, there should be another world to fulfill this demand of common sense.

This is not the demand of common sense alone but also of the moral sense, which requires that the partners in this conflict should be rewarded or punished according to right or wrong, just or unjust part they played in it. For, some of these committed cruelties on the others, who had to make sacrifices for their cause. Then each one should also bear the responsibility for formulating and practicing a moral or immoral philosophy which influenced millions and billions of others for better or worse. Moral sense demands that there should be a time for the moral consequences to take their due course. As this is not possible in this world there should be another world for the purpose.

36. This is the answer to those who imagined that it was the most difficult thing to raise the dead, and that, too, to raise together at once all the people who had died at any time. They have been told that it is an easy thing for Allah, Who has the power to bring into existence anything He desires, merely by His command, “Be,” for He does not stand in need of any provisions, any means and any favorable environment for this. His mere command produces necessary provisions, means and environment. This world was brought into existence by His mere command, “Be,” and likewise the next world will at once come into existence by His single command.