S34. Surah Saba (Sheba)

NAME: In the ayah No.15 a mention of the community of Saba (Sheba) is made, which gives the surah its name.

TIME OF REVELATION : From the topics it appears that it was revealed in the middle of the Makkan period.

CENTRAL THEME : In the universe it is only Allah who has excellent attributes and perfect in goodness, and therefore, He alone is worthy of praises and thanks. And the only way of thanking Him and praising Him is to believe in the oneness of God and in the Hereafter.

ORDER OF THE VERSES : Ayah Nos. 1 to 9 are preliminary verses, in which by removing doubts a recognition about Allah is presented which creates a belief in monotheism and the Hereafter. In Ayah Nos. 10 to 13 Allah’s favours on Prophet David and Prophet Sulaiman and their thankfulness to Allah are mentioned as a historical example. Verses Nos. 14 to 21 present the unthankfulness of the community of Saba and their adverse consequences, as a lesson for others. Ayah Nos. 22 to 27 refute polytheism. In Ayah Nos. 28 to 45, while giving replies to their objections, a few realities about the Hereafter have been presented before them. Ayah Nos. 46 to 54 are the concluding ayah of the Surah, in which people are invited to decide after giving due consideration, and they have also been warned that if time is lost, then they will only rue the day and it will be of no avail.

34. Surah Saba (Sheba) Ayah: 54

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

1. Praise ¹ be to Allah, to Whom belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth. His is the praise ² in the Hereafter, and He is the Wise, the Aware.³

2. He knows what goes down into the earth and what comes forth from it,⁴ and what descends from the heaven and what ascends into it.⁵ He is the Merciful, the Forgiving.⁶

3. He knows what goes down into the earth and what comes forth from it,⁴ and what descends from the heaven and what ascends into it.⁵ He is the Merciful, the Forgiving.⁶ Those who disbelieve say: “The Hour will never come to us.⁷ ” Say: “Nay , by my Lord, but it is coming to you surely.⁸ (He is) the Knower of the Unseen. Not an atom’s weight or less than that or greater escapes Him in the heavens or in the earth, but it is in a clear book.⁹”

4. (The Hour will come) so that He may reward those who believed and performed good deeds. For them is pardon and respectful provision.¹⁰

5. And those who strive to make ineffective Our revelations,¹¹ for them will be the torment of harrowing punishment.

6. Those to whom knowledge has been given see that what is revealed to you from your Lord is the truth,¹² and leads to the path of the Mighty, Worthy of Praise.

1. For the explanation of ‘Hamd’ (Praise) please see Surah Fatiha, Note No.2.

2. There will be greater manifestations of Allah’s wonderful and perfect might in the Hereafter than what it was in this world, therefore, there also He only will be worthy of praises, and only His paeans will be sung. The people of faith will be offering their thanks to Him alone for being blessed with His rewards, and in the Paradise, only the sounds of His hymns will be heard.

3. Whatever plan He has made for this and the other world is based on perfect knowledge and wisdom. None of His act is devoid of knowledge and wisdom, therefore, for all His acts He is worthy of receiving our praises and thanks. If man does not understand the wisdom of any of His acts, then it is the defect of man’s own understanding, or it is because man’s understanding cannot reach it on account of its limitations.

4. Anything that enters the crust of the earth, apparently it disappears, but it exists in the knowledge of Allah. That is why we see that after the absorption of water into the earth, sprouts are seen coming out after some time. It is the proof of the fact that the water was in the knowledge of Allah and He caused the plants to come out of the earth. Similarly man also goes down under the earth after death, but Allah has all his parts in His knowledge, therefore on the Day of Resurrection His instilling life into the bodies of the dead persons and bringing them out alive is not at all difficult.

5. From the heaven water comes down to the ground, rays from stars fall on the earth, lightning also strikes on earth, etc. Similarly vapours rise from the oceans and rivers and fall down on the earth in the form of raindrops. It is also the proof of the fact that the vapours were in the knowledge of Allah and He caused them to fall down on earth in the form of raindrops. Angels also come down to earth from the heaven and again ascend back into heaven. In the same way the spirits of the virtuous people fly to the heaven.

6. In these ayah, providing recognition of Allah, His attributes of being Merciful and Forgiving have been mentioned, as if this is an invitation to His slaves to rush towards Allah’s Mercy and Forgiveness.

7. Today also there is no dearth of those who deny the Doomsday but they have no proof or any argument against it.

8. For those who were denying the occurrence of the Doomsday, the Prophet is directed by Allah that he should refute their claim with force and total belief by taking the oath of the Almighty, Who is the Knower of the Unseen because Doomsday is an inevitable reality and its knowledge has been given by the Divine Revelation as a complete certainty.

In view of this statement of Quran, it is the responsibility of the Islamic missionaries to present the occurrence of the Day of Resurrection before its deniers with full force and perfect confidence. The direction to take the oath of Allah’s being the Knower of the Unseen is given because the Day of Resurrection belongs to the world of Unseen and Allah knows the Unseen, therefore, the information given by Him must be true. The deniers have not peeped into the Unseen, then how can they claim that there will be no Doomsday?

9. That is: The record of everything is certainly with Allah.

10. This is the positive aspect of the Day of Resurrection, that the people of faith who are virtuous should be rewarded handsomely, their sins may be forgiven, and they should be given such excellent provision, as will be a means of respect for them.

11. The meaning of striving to make ineffective the revelations of Allah is to rise against Allah’s directives, e.g. he tries to spend his energy in propagating against the principles of monotheism, Hereafter, and Prophethood, so that people may not believe in them.

12. By knowledge is meant that knowledge which gives correct recognition of Allah and lights his path. Man gets this knowledge from his own nature and common sense to certain extent. Before the revelation of Quran there were among the polytheists of Makkah a few persons who used to worship the one and only God and their religion was sincerely for Allah only. But the full light of knowledge is gained through the revelation from God.

Those who do not live in ignorance and reflect on God and religion in the light of knowledge, they come to realise the truth and realism of Quran.

7. And those who disbelieve say: “Shall we show you the man who informs that when you have become completely dispersed in dust, (even then), you will be created anew?” ¹³

8. “ Has he invented a lie about Allah or is he mad?”¹⁴ Nay, but those who disbelieve in the Hereafter are in torment and in far error.¹⁵

9. Did they not observe what is before them and what is behind them of the sky and the earth? If We will, We can cave in the earth under their feet or let a part of the sky fall upon them.¹⁶ Surely there is sign in this for every penitent man.¹⁷

10. And certainly We bestowed on Dawood Our favour ¹⁸ (saying): “Mountains and birds ¹⁹ echo his psalms of praise.” And We made the iron soft for him. ²⁰

11. (Saying): ‘Make full coats of mail and measure their links with care. ²¹ And act righteously, ²² verily, I see what you do.’

12. And to Sulaiman (We subdued) the wind, traveling a month’s course in the morning, and a month’s course in the evening, ²³ and We caused a spring of copper to flow for him, ²⁴ and (We gave him) certain jinns who served worked for him by permission of his Lords.²⁵ And those of them who deviated from Our command, We caused them to taste the punishment of devastating Fire.²⁶

13. They made for him what he disired: structures,²⁷ pictures,²⁸ basins as large as watring-throughs, and fixed cauldrons.²⁹ O People of Dawood! act (righteously) and be thankful.³⁰ And few of My slaves are thankful.³¹

13. These are the foolish acts of those who wander in the darkness of ignorance that they ridicule the statement of the Prophet who has informed them of the coming of the Day of Resurrection

14. To accuse the Prophet of inventing a lie or to suspect him to be a mad man is the proof of the fact that the deniers were saying these things out of doubt or superstition. If they were certain about anything, they would not have said both the things at the same time.

15. Such talk of the deniers was like shutting the eyes from the sun and then denying its existence. Therefore, instead of answering them, their guilt has been pointed out that they do not want to believe in the Hereafter and for this reason they are making such absurd statements about the Prophet. But by denying the Hereafter they have made themselves liable for punishment and they have gone very far in their misguidance and transgression.

16. That is: Day and night they see the heavens and the earth before and after them, but they are not prepared to reflect over the point that if their Creator wanted He could have caused the earth to swallow them or to let fall a portion of the sky over them. Had they considered this, fear of God would have been created in their hearts. Then they would not have denied the Hereafter, nor would they have become guilty for receiving punishment.

17. In the greatness and vastness of the earth and the sky a great sign of Allah’s might is hidden. If He will, He can send down a gigantic catastrophe, but towards this sign only those slaves of Allah turn their attention who tend to lean towards Him.

The word used “Muneeb” means one who turns towards a thing with sincerity. This sincerity opens the path for right guidance.

18. That is: Prophet Dawood (David) was blessed with special favour from Allah. The details of this favour have been mentioned further on, which gives the idea that the Being worthy of thanks and praise is Allah alone, who blesses His selected slaves with special favours, i.e. Prophets.

19. For explanation, please see Surah Anbiya Note No.106.

20. The iron’s becoming soft in the hands of Prophet Dawood was a sort of a miracle, as is clear from the wordings and the style of the sentence. It will be wrong to consider it on the lines of the usual softening of the iron as is done by other people or by other methods, as in the case of applying heat to the iron, which makes it soft, then it is moulded into different shapes, etc. If it were a technology or civilised progress which resulted from the usual practice, then Quran would not have mentioned it in such a lofty way which attracts attention, nor would it have mentioned it along with the miracles.

21. Coat of mail is a thing of necessity in wars, and in the olden days it was considered very important. Before Prophet Dawood the coats of mail which were prepared were flat and very heavy. But Allah favoured Prophet Dawood and made iron soft in his hands like wax, so that he could make links from that and prepare light coats of mail. These light coats of mail were easy to be used. This was a very important addition to the defensive power of Prophet Dawood, and since other nations were unaware of this technique, their armies could not stand before his armies. This was great benefit which Bani Israil received through Prophet Dawood because of this miracle. For further explanation, please see Surah Anbia Note No.8.

22. The address is to the people of Dawood, that is Bani Israil, that on being blessed with this favour they should become virtuous because that is the real thanksgiving.

23. For Prophet Sulaiman (Solomon) the wind was subdued in such a way that on his bidding it used to blow so swiftly but softly that it was possible to traverse the distance of one month’s journey in a few hours in the morning. Similarly in the evening also the same distance could be traversed in a few hours. According to the Bible the kingdom of Prophet Sulaiman was spread from Palestine to the river Euphrates, therefore, there is no wonder that he was able to travel this long journey in the morning or evening. For further explanation, please see Surah Anbia Note No. 109.

24. Copper is found in mines, but for Prophet Sulaiman, Allah caused molten copper to be flown in a spring. This was an extraordinary thing, which was the result of his special favour, so that without going through the difficult processes of mining and melting, Prophet Sulaiman could establish grand Islamic kingdom. As is stated further he made huge vessels of copper.

25. For explanation please see Surah Anbia Note No.110 and Surah Naml Note No. 25.

26. The view that Prophet Sulaiman had himself subjugated the jinns is not correct, but as stated in the ayah further Allah, by His command, had subdued the jinns for him that he may take whatever service he might like. And if any jinn disobeyed this command, Allah would punish him by subjecting him to fire.

27. Prophet Sulaiman made these jinns construct lofty edifices. To shift huge blocks of stones from one place to another in those days when there were no cranes was not easy, but with the help of jinns this work became easy.

28. In the ayah the word ‘tamatheel’ has been used, which is the plural of timthal, which in Arabic is also used for statue. It is used for picture also. The reliable Arabic dictionary, Lisanul Arab.

“states that timthal means image”

and the shadow of everything is its image (picture).

“And timthal is the name of that artificial thing which is made like any thing that is created by Allah.” (Lisanul Arab, Vol. 11 page 613).

“And timthal is a pictured thing.” (Mufarridate- Raghib-P. 478).

Sulaiman was a prophet and was a follower of the Shariah of Prophet Moosa. Therefore, we do not think that he would have made pictures or statues of the living beings; in the Torah making pictures of living thing is forbidden (haram):

“You shall not make for yourself a graven , image or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or there is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. (Deut 5:8)

Those commentators who have said that in the past shariah making pictures of living things was lawful, have made a wrong statement. This hadith of the Prophet negates this statement:

“Ayesha (R) narrates that Umme Habiba (R) and Umme Salma (R)mentioned before the Prophet, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, about a church which they had seen in Abyssinia, in which there were pictures. The Prophet said that if there used to be a righteous person among them and when he died, they used to make a worshipping place over his grave, and on that they made that kind of pictures; those people will be the worst creatures in front of Allah on the Day of Resurrection.”- (Muslim, Kitab -ul- Masajid).

This hadith is quite clear on this point that in the past Shariahs also it was not lawful to make pictures of living things.

Therefore, Prophet Sulaiman must have made pictures of non living things or inanimate objects, which are not forbidden in the Shariah. These pictures can be the images of flowers, leaves, trees and natural scenes. As for the statement in the books “Kings” and “Chronicles” of Bible that Prophet Sulaiman had made pictures of living things, then that is not reliable, because as stated by the commentator of the Bible, these books were written centuries after the time of Prophet Sulaiman, in which hearsay stories and tales have found their way. (See Interpreter’s one Volume Commentary on the Bible P.181 ).And in the Bible Prophet Sulaiman has been shown to be practicing polytheism and idolatry. Therefore, in this matter argument on the basis of what is stated in the Bible is not right. The correct and the best sense of this ayah can only be what is in consonance with the Shariah commands and which does not present a prophet in a wrong and bad light. In this connection a few points needs must be kept in mind:

The first point is this that the work of constructing lofty edifices decorated with pictures was taken from the jinns as is clearly stated in the ayah. They used to bring heavy stones and used to draw and paint pictures and decorations on them. For this work they were neither paid anything nor this expenditure had any adverse effect on the state’s treasury. Therefore, it would not be termed as wastefulness.

The second point is that in the acts of Prophet Sulaiman the divine miraculous element had a very big share. Flowing of the copper spring and the working of the jinns for him were things of this nature only. He had not undertaken construction of buildings and pictures or statue making as pieces of art or culture in his nation.

The third point is that these beautiful buildings decorated with pictures were not made as manifestations of his pride and exhibition of greatness but as an expression of Allah’s special favour on him, to show that Allah had blessed His prophet. Allah had provided for him such extraordinary resources that these majestic and gigantic works were performed by him without in any way affecting the state’s treasures. This helped in leaving an awe-inspiring impression on the non-Islamic governments and secondly it confirmed the fact that Sulaiman was the prophet of Allah. Accordingly the impression created on the Queen of Sheba, when she saw the glass palace of Prophet Sulaiman has been mentioned in Surah Naml.

The fourth point is that Allah wanted to establish a grand Islamic state by a prophet for Bani Israil, which would be a reward of an extraordinary nature for them and it would also impress the world that such an Islamic state has been established which is unique in its splendor and seeing its grandeur people remember Allah, and this government has been very successfully conducted with full justice and efficiency by a prophet. After understanding these points the grandeur and majesticity of Prophet Sulaiman’s palaces cannot be presented as arguments in favour of the Muslim kings and emperors’ wasteful and ostentatious buildings and palaces. The Diwan-e-Khas of Lal Quila, (Red Fort) Delhi, whose walls are not merely decorated with paintings but had also precious jewels affixed into them, are the best examples of wasteful expenditure. The Mogul kings had constructed lofty and beautiful palaces for pleasure and the inimitable Taj which they had built and which has no equal in grandeur is merely a manifestation of pride and self-exhibition.

With the problem of picture, the question of lawfulness or otherwise of the photograph also arises. But here this discussion will be lengthy, because photo is invention of the modern times, and from this angle it is a matter of Ijtihad. Here we do not want to enter into this discussion, and therefore, we would rest content with these lines only.

29. In the big vessels (cauldrons) food was cooked, and it used to be taken out in big basins, so that many people could partake of it at one and the same time. The big army which Prophet Sulaiman had, it appears, used these vessels for their feeding arrangements.

The big basins and the cauldrons of stones, which could not be moved from one place to another ordinarily, were prepared by the jinns. As stated in the ayah all this work was done by the jinns.

30. By Aal-e-Dawood is meant the children of Dawood as also the followers of Dawood. And acting with thanks means be thankful to Allah in such a way that it should be manifested in your practical life, that is such acts as are consonant with thanksgiving. It is learnt that for thanks giving merely uttering words with the mouth is not sufficient but that it should be expressed by acts also.

31. Precious things are found in less quantity in the world. Gold compared to iron, diamonds and jewels compared to coal and stones, beautiful and fragrant flowers compared to wild shrubbery, twigs, etc., Saffron compared to grass, and similarly Allah’s thankful slaves compared to thankless slaves are found much less in number, but these scarcely found commodities are the very cream and the most valuable jewels of humanity.

14. And when We had decreed his death, nothing showed them that he was dead until they saw that a worm was eating away his staff. And when he fell down the jinns realised that if they had known the Unseen, they would not have been in shameful torment.³²

15. There indeed was sign for Sheba ³³ in their dwelling place, ³⁴ two gardens on the right and on the left sides. ³⁵ Eat of the provision of your Lord and render thanks to Him. A good land and Forgiving Lord ! ³⁶

16. But they turned away. ³⁷ So We sent against, them the flood of the Dam ³⁸ and replaced their gardens by two other gardens bearing bitter fruit, tamarisks and a few nettle shrubs.³⁹

17. Thus We punished them for their ingratitude. ⁴⁰ Do We punish any but the ungrateful?

18. And We placed between them and the towns We have blessed, towns easy to be seen and made travel therein in convenient stages: ⁴¹ Travel through them safely by night and day.⁴²

19. But they said: “Our Lord! ⁴³ make the stages between our journeys longer.⁴⁴” They wronged themselves,⁴⁵ so We made them a byword ⁴⁶ and scattered ⁴⁷ throughout the land. Verily there is a sign in this for every steadfast, thankful man. ⁴⁸

20. And Iblis (Satan) proved his conjecture true⁴⁹concerning them; they all followed him except a group of the people of faith.⁵⁰

32. The death of prophet Sulaiman had also occurred in a miraculous way. He was standing, reclining a little on his staff, supervising the work of jinns. The death seized him in this position but Allah did not let his dead body fall on the ground, it was resting on his staff so that the jinns might think that Sulaiman was still alive, and they might continue to do their work. They continued to work till Allah desired to disclose his death the white ants ate away his staff, Prophet Sulaiman fell down on the ground. At that time the jinns realised that Sulaiman’s death had occurred much earlier, and that his dead body was standing by the support of his staff, and they felt that had they known the Unseen they would have been relieved of the work which they were doing, being subservient to him, for they were appointed to work for him alone.

The special aspect to which attention is intended to be diverted is that the jinns do not know the Unseen and it is wrong to seek help from them as some people do, and indulge in evil practices (magic). This is mere superstition, but even today many people evoke jinns because of weakness of their belief. A person afflicted by a mental illness is sometimes supposed to be possessed by a jinn, and is beaten mercilessly, in the belief that they are beating the jinn, and that the jinn will speak out the answer to their question. On such occasions Satan goes on deceiving them and their wrong belief hurls them into lowliness and disgrace.

It may be noted that Quran did not say how long after death Prophet Sulaiman stood by the support of the staff. In some narratives it is stated that for one year he stood like that and some commentators have quoted them, but all these are not reliable. No authentic narrative in this respect is available. ‘Therefore, it is not necessary to presume a long period. It is likely that he might have remained in this condition for a short time only a few days, and even this period was sufficient to make the jinns realise that they could not know of his death on time. As for the question that if the jinns could not get the news of his death, then did the humans get the news of his death on time, and if they had got the news then why did they allow the dead body to remain without shroud and without being buried for a long time? But in this connection it should be kept in view that the Quran has stated that only jinn did not know about his death for some time, it has not mentioned that humans did not know about his death. Sulaiman’s death was brought to their notice by the insect of the earth. The pronoun appearing in the sentence refers to jinns only, because in this ayah the jinns have been mentioned, and in the ayah before this the craftsmanship of the jinns was mentioned. In the context there is nothing which refers to humans. Therefore, we think that Prophet Sulaiman on getting an indication from Allah might have informed his family and subordinates that they should leave his dead body alone till it fell down on the ground, and they might have obeyed this order of Sulaiman, or they might have thought that even after his death his dead body did not fall on the ground, it might be a divine miracle, therefore, unless something transpired they should not interfere with it. Since the dead body was in a standing position they might have thought that it was a divine miracle and the body would be in a preserved condition. His burial etc. would have been taken in hand only after his body fell down on the ground. And Allah might have placed such obstructions between humans and the jinns that were working that they did not know about Prophet Sulaiman’s death. In our opinion after this explanation no doubts will remain in the reader’s mind, and the real position is known to Allah alone.

33. Saba (Sheba) is the name of a community which lived in the region of Yemen, and its capital was Maarib, which is situated at a distance of 193 kilometers in the east of Sanaa. In Surah Naml the event of the Queen of Sheba presenting herself before Prophet Sulaiman and embracing Islam has been narrated. In those days generally the governed people followed the religion of their rulers. Therefore, when the Queen of Sheba might have returned to her country after accepting Islam, her people might have also embraced Islam. Therefore, Islam had reached the country of Sheba in the time of Prophet Sulaiman. The community of Sheba ruled there for centuries and lived happily. It was a great civilised state of Arabia. But later on when they adopted the attitude of unthankfulness towards God, all favours were withdrawn from them. This adverse consequence of an ungrateful community is presented here by way of a lesson for others.

34.The region in which they lived was fertile and it was the means of the people of the land being happy all this was a clear sign of the fact that these blessings and favours were bestowed on them by Allah, and for these favours it was their duty to express their gratitude to the giver of blessings, and that if He will He can withdraw these favours, therefore, they should live their lives fearing Him.

35. That is: A series of gardens was on the right side and another series of gardens on the left side of the city, in which were trees of luscious and tasty fruits, farms yielding plentiful corns and fragrant plants. All these beautiful and excellent gifts were so plenty that the whole area had become a veritable garden.

36. This abundance of food and provision was the favour and kindness of their Lord only. As if this blissful board invited the people to partake of Allah’s favours in the words: Eat the provision of your Lord and render thanks to Him. And the nature itself was saying as if the land was excellent and the Lord was Forgiving and Indulgent.

37. Instead of thanking their Lord, they adopted an attitude of aversion, and when they turned away from Allah, their indulging in polytheism and materialism was inevitable.

38. “Sailul ‘Arim” means that flood which broke the Dam and entered the gardens and the farms, inundating everything. This Dam is known as ‘Sadd-e-Maarib’. This Dam was built by the community of Sheba in their capital Maarib between two hills, whose name is Ablaq, so that the water from the rainfall and the springs might be stored therein. They had built canals from this stored water. The technique of constructing dams is not the invention of the modern times, but it is older than two thousand years. The community of Sheba had shown great expertise in this technique. (For the details of this dam please see the Urdu book , Arzul Quran by Sayed Sulaiman Nadvi, chapter: Sadd-e-Maarib Vol.1 p. 254). This event of breaking of the Dam is likely to have taken place in the second century before Christ.

The ruins of this Dam are still found in Maarib, and provide a lesson for the onlookers. We are giving their photos, in the coming pages. (For the details of these ruins please see Dr. Abdul Aleem Abdur Rehman Khizr’s book ‘Mafaheem Jughrafia Fil Qasasil Qurani, printed at Darushshurooq, Jeddah, pages 195 to 206).

39. The result of the devastation of the flood was that the fruit trees, plants and gardens, all were destroyed, and in their place fruits of bitter taste and wild shrubs and twigs came to be grown. The only eatable fruits that remained were berries and that too in very small number.

It seems that the flood had brought with it sand and such material that when they spread over the farming land nothing worth while could be grown over there. It destroyed the fertility of the land.

40. The punishment of ingratitude which the community of Sheba received was so devastating that all their pleasure became a thing of the past and their happiness was converted into a sad and hopeless life.

It has become clear that when Allah wants to punish the ungrateful people He first withdraws His blessings and favours from it, and ruins its economy. It comes to pass only when that nation does not appreciate the blessings and favours of Allah and turns away from its Lord. At another place in the Quran this tradition of Allah has been stated:

“Verily Allah does not change the condition of a people until they (first) change what is with themselves.” -(Surah Ar-Ra’d-11).

From this event in the history of Sheba it has also become clear that good or bad economic conditions are in the power of Allah only. There is no existence of gods and goddesses nor is there any other being who has power to give provision or food. Truth is Tawheed only and polytheism is totally wrong.

41. This was another blessing which was bestowed on Sheba. For them traveling was made very convenient and comfortable. They used to undertake commercial journeys to Syria and Palestine. Allah had made this highway which ran from Yemen to Baitul Maqdis and Damascus so much populated that traveling through that route had become very safe. The stages made on the highway were very convenient for the travelers. These towns and colonies were situated on the sides of the highway and were easily discernible. Traveling through the route was safe and comfortable.

By the towns that We have blessed are meant the region of Palestine and Syria. This is Quran’s well known term for this region. For explanation please see Surah Bani Israil, Note No. 1.

42. This was as if nature was speaking in its own language.

43. It is learnt that the community of Sheba considered Allah as their Lord, but they were ungrateful.

44. Sheba also did not appreciate this blessing of Allah. They said that the traveling which did not cause inconvenience was not worth the name. Their prayer to make the stages between their journeys longer shows this mentality of man which is referred to at another place in the Quran:

“And man prays for evil as he prays for good.”-(Surah Bani Israil -11 )

And the polytheists of Makkah had also prayed for evil consequences for themselves:

“O Allah! If this indeed is the truth from You, then rain down stones on us, or bring down some other painful punishment.” -(Surah Al-Anfal-32).

45. That is: By doing this they had committed excess on themselves only. By being ungrateful to Allah, we do not cause Allah to lose or miss anything, but we ourselves become liable for receiving His punishment.

46.’That is: Where that rise of Sheba and where this fall that they have become a forgotten part of history.

47. By the breaking of the Dam and the destruction of their farms and gardens their trade and commerce was affected. The trade caravans which used to carry fragrant masala to Syria, etc. This trade was also adversely affected, with the result that the various tribes of Sheba were forced to leave their native place, and settled in Tahama, Syria and different other regions. Thus the community of Sheba was weakened and their people scattered.

Some commentators have written that a few prophets were also sent down to Sheba, but it is neither mentioned in the Quran nor in any authentic hadith, and from the punishment that they received it appears that no prophet was sent directly to them, for the consequence of belying messenger of Allah is that the nation in question is simply obliterated from the earth. But here only Sheba’s economy was ruined and the people were scattered. This punishment is different from the punishment which is meted out to the communities who belie the prophets. As for the conveying of Allah’s message to them convincingly, this work was done by Prophet Sulaiman, and it might have been done by other prophets of Bani Israil, because in those days the holy land was made the centre of the Islamic dawah so that the Islamic message might reach others through Bani Israil.

48. In this historical event of Sheba there is sufficient material for guidance, for example: the good economic conditions of a nation are the result of the favours of Allah, and when that nation does not appreciate it and turns away from God, then Allah converts their wealth into penury; secondly the rise and fall of the nations do not take place on the apparent causes, but behind them are operative Allah’s wisdom and His law of justice; thirdly by punishing Sheba for their ungratefulness He has presented an example as a lesson to others, which has passed into history as a permanent record; fourthly the world is not for living in pleasures only but for fulfilling responsibilities, and that man’s prosperity depends on fulfilling his responsibilities.

But only those people take advantage and reap benefits from these signs which guide to Allah and the Hereafter, who have the attributes of patience, steadfastness and gratitude to Allah.

49. Hints at the statement which Iblees had made:

“And will mislead every one of them all, except such of them as are your chosen slaves.” -(Al-Hijr -39-40).

“And you shall not find most of them grateful.” -(A’raf 17).

And Sheba provided Iblees with the opportunity of proving it.

50. It is elicited that in Sheba there was a group of people of faith who did not follow Satan and did not become ungrateful to God.

21. He had no authority ⁵¹ over them except that We wanted to know who believed in the Hereafter from him who is in doubt about it.⁵² Your Lord watches over all things.

22. Say : ⁵³ “Call those whom you consider (Lord) beside Allah. They possess no atom’s weight either in the heavens or the earth,⁵⁴ nor have they any share in either ,⁵⁵ nor has He any helpers among them.”

23. No intercession avails with Him except for him whom He permits.⁵⁶ When fear is banished from their heart, they will ask: “What was it that your Lord said?⁵⁷ “They will say:” The Truth.⁵⁸ He is the Sublime, the Great.’ ⁵⁹

24. Ask (them): “Who gives you provision from the sky and the earth?” Say: “Allah. Verily, we or you certainly are rightly guided or in evident error.⁶⁰”

25. Say : “You will not be accountable for what we committed, nor shall we be asked of what you did.⁶¹”

26. Say:”Our Lord will bring us all together, ⁶² then He will judge between us with truth.⁶³ He is the All-Knowing Judge.”

27. Say: “Show me those whom you have joined to Him as Partners. ⁶⁴ Nay (you dare not) : He is Allah, the Mighty, the Wise.⁶⁵”

28. And We have sent you (O Nabi !) but as a bringer of good tidings and a warner to all mankind but most men know not.⁶⁶

51. That is: Satan had not compelled the people to follow him, he had merely induced them, So those who followed him are themselves responsible for what they did.

52. That is: Allah had placed the community of Sheba under trial by first making them well off and later turning them into paupers to see whether they believe in the Hereafter or not. Those who believe in the Hereafter should be distinct from those who do not and are still in doubt.

It has become clear that in reality thankfulness is that which is accompanied by a belief in the Hereafter.

53. From here the address is directed towards the polytheists, and in refutation of polytheism points appealing to the head and heart have been presented.

54. This is a repudiation of the belief of the polytheists that their gods have some divine powers. It is said that they do not have the slightest power, either in the heaven or on the earth. All power is with Allah. Then how can the powerless be worthy of worship? And what can be achieved by worshipping them?

In this ayah the negation of power to others than Allah does not only repudiate the belief of the idolaters but it also refutes the belief of the graveworshippers. They also believe that Qutb, Abdal, etc. are authorities having power and using them, and they interpret it by saying that these powers have been given to them by Allah only. But first of all it is a lie concerning Allah. for Allah has nowhere stated that He has given powers to such and such a person. Secondly the divine powers are not at all transferable, in the same way in which no part of Allah is transferable, otherwise polytheism will become a part of divine attributes. The powers given by Allah to the creatures are of the created nature, they are created by God, they are not parts of God’s own attributes. And meeting needs, listening to appeals for help relieving distress, etc, are connected with divine powers, because for that being present everywhere and watching, knowing everyone’s circumstances, understanding the language in which He might be invoked and understanding what is in his heart, and to be able to relieve him of his distress, are necessary. Therefore, the powers that are achieved by the slaves are of the nature of the created ones and are very limited, and they have no relation with meeting the needs and relieving distress of the creatures. Ignoring this difference quite a number of Muslims indulge in polytheism, and now such commentaries are being written which mislead the people about polytheism. The following excerpt may be seen:

“It is learnt that to be owner of something is not for the idols. But Prophets and saints are owner of every thing by the grant of the Lord.” -(Mukhtasar Tafseer Naeemi-p.687)

How misleading is this explanation. The ayah which denies power to others than Allah, the same is being quoted as a proof of prophets and saints having powers. that is the ayah which was for guidance, from that ayah misguidance has been - derived. May Allah save us from such misguidance.

55. That is: In creating the heavens and the earth, beings other than Allah had no part to play, then how did they get such powers in the universe and from where, the powers which are the exclusive attributes of Allah?

56. Refers to the angels whom the polytheists considered as the daughters of Allah and worshipped them, and they used to say they would intercede with Allah on their behalf. That is, if the Day of Resurrection really occurred, then they would intercede on their behalf and would save them from punishment. Declaring this Concept of intercession as false, it is clarified that the angels dare not intercede before Allah, let alone their being successfully achieving their goal. Intercession is a form of Allah’s forgiveness, and it will be only in the case of those persons whom Allah will permit, and this permission will not be in the case of polytheists and disbelievers, because for them the gate of forgiveness is closed.

For further explanation of intercession, please see Surah Maryam Note No.111, Surah Baqarah Note No.412, and Surah Anbia Note No.31.

57. This sentence is related to ‘except for him whom He permits. ‘That is: for those in whose favour permission of intercession will be given, for them this opportunity will come at one stage only on the Day of Judgment. Till the coming of this stage the candidates for intercession will be in great fright, and this fright will be removed when Allah will permit the angels and the prophets to intercede in their favour.

58. At that time they will ask their interceders: “What has your Lord said?” They will reply: “He spoke the Truth,” that is, He has permitted them to intercede, and this truth is based on justice. It means that He has permitted intercession in their case for the reason that they were neither polytheists nor disbelievers.

Here the purpose is to bring home to the people the correct position in connection with the intercession that:

First, the concept of intercession by the angels which the polytheists have nurtured is wrong and false.

Secondly on the Day of Judgment salvation will basically depend on faith and righteous acts, and intercession will be an exceptional case, which will be allowed only in the case of those who will not be polytheists or disbelievers, and in whose case Allah may permit some one to intercede.

Thirdly this permission will be given at a certain stage only. Till then the seekers of intercession will be in great fear, that is, till this stage arrives the long and hard day of Doomsday will be a period of great distress and anxiety for them. When man is not ready to tolerate trouble in the world for a short time then how does he become ready to tolerate the long lasting trouble and distress of the Doomsday? The right course is that instead of relying on intercession, man should live a life of faith and righteous acts.

Today Muslims also hold a wrong concept of intercession, and for this reason a very large number of Muslims has become righteously inactive. Had they pondered over these ayah from the Quran they would not have reached their present state of decline.

Some commentators have opine that the words When fear banished from their hearts refers to angels, that is when the fear banished from the angels’ hearts. If the reference was for angels ‘qulubihim’ would not have been used, the words ‘anfusihim’ would have been proper. Therefore, we have taken it to mean the fear of the seekers of the intercession, and the meaning of the ayah as stated appears to be appropriate - --------God knows best.

59. Allah is Sublime, Great, therefore, nobody has the power or authority to force Him to concede to their request of intercession.

60.That is: When you are also unable to deny that Allah provides livelihood, then what is the propriety of worshipping beings other than Allah? When we have made the Real Provider as our God, and you have made others your gods, who are not the providers of livelihood, then our paths separate. Therefore, now essentially either of us is on right guidance and the other is misguided. Now you decide for yourself, who is on right guidance and who is misguided.

The style of address adopted in this ayah is to invite the deniers to ponder over these facts.

61. In this ayah the deniers have been invited to think that they were accusing the people of faith of being guilty, and if they had really committed any guilt, they would have to answer for that themselves and not the deniers, and the deniers would be asked about their own acts and not the people of faith. Therefore, wisdom lies in taking a survey of one’s own acts whether they are the righteous acts before accusing others, and when on the Day of Judgment they would be asked to account for their acts, what would be their reply?

62. That is: On the Day of Resurrection.

63. On the Day of Judgment Allah will give judgment between the disbelievers and the people of faith on the basis of justice and truth, and He will also enforce this judgment as to who was on the side of truth and who was on the side of falsehood who was following the right religion and who was following the false religion.

64. This question also invites the polytheists to ponder as to what are those divine attributes on the basis of which they have others as their deities and partners with Allah and on the basis of which they worship them while worthy of worship is Allah alone.

65. Here is none beside Allah who has the attributes of superiority, power, knowledge, wisdom, therefore, those whom you have made your deities are neither gods nor worthy of worship.

66. This is the declaration of the Prophet’s (Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam) universal prophethood, that he was not sent for Arabs only, but for all mankind, regardless of any community, creed, colour and country, and his message is for all the nations and people that will be born till the end of this world. Here the purpose is to clarify to the deniers that the personality whom they were bent to oppose is so grand that he is the guide and the spiritual leader for the entire world. If they do not appreciate such a highly honoured personage, then it is their own deprivation.

29. And they ask: “When will this promise be fulfilled, if you are truthful?” ⁶⁷

30. Say : “Your day is already fixed. You cannot hold it back for one hour, nor can you hasten it.” ⁶⁸

31. The disbelievers say: “We will never believe in this Quran, nor in what came before it.⁶⁹” If only your could see the wrongdoers when they are brought before their Lords! ⁷⁰ They will blame one another. Those who were weak will say to those who were proud: “But for you, we would have been believers.⁷¹”

32. And those who were proud will say to those who were weak: “Did we debar you from the guidance after it had come to you? Nay, but you were guilty.”

33. Those who were weak will say to those who were proud: “Nay but it was your scheming night and day, when you commanded us to disbelieve in Allah and set up equals to Him.” And they will be filled with remorse when they will see the punishment; and We will place shackles round the neck of the disbelievers. Will they be requited for anything else but for what they did?⁷²

34. And We did not send to any township a warner, but its wealthy men said: “We do not believe in that with which you have been sent.⁷³”

35. And they said: “We have been given more wealth and children, and we will not be punished.⁷⁴”

67. That is: When the promise about the Doomsday will be fulfilled.

68. That is: The time of the Doomsday is fixed. It will not occur an hour earlier than its appointed time nor an hour later. When the Day of Resurrection will occur all will be made to be present at the appointed place at the appointed time, not an hour earlier nor later.

69. That is: The Torah, Injeel, etc.

70. Today these people boastfully say with great pride that they do not believe in Quran and other divine scriptures, but on the Day of Judgment when they will be hauled up before Allah for accounting for their acts, they will realise the real error, and on that day their heads will hang down in shame and sorrow.

This scene of the Day of Judgment has been presented in words so that they may come to their senses.

71. By the weak people are meant those people who were in the grip, or under the pressure, of the influential people, and they had become their followers. These influential people were their leaders and religious guides. On the Day of Judgment how they will reproach one another and will repudiate one another, a glimpse of that scene is presented here.

72. That is: It may be the general public or the leader, followers or guide, all of them will be liable to be punished because of their denial and disbelief. The common people cannot escape punishment by accusing their leaders and guides of misleading them. Why did they not use the intellect given by Allah and instead followed the big ones blindly, and why did they not pay attention to what the Quran and the Prophet preached?

73. Wealthy people are lost in their material pleasures, for this reason they do not pay heed to the message of the Prophet. When he warns them of the divine punishment, they deny it in their intoxication of materialism and reject the message of Allah.

74. Wealthy people are under the wrong impression that the abundance of wealth and children is the sign of their being the favoured ones of Allah, and feel there is no question of their receiving any punishment?

36. Say: “My Lord gives abundantly whom He will, and sparingly (Whom He will), but most men do not know.⁷⁵”

37. Neither your wealth nor your children will bring you nearer ⁷⁶ to Us, but those who believe and perform righteous deeds; ⁷⁷ such will be doubly rewarded for their deeds; they will dwell in peace in the lofty mansions (of Paradise).

38. And those who strive to make Our revelations ineffective will be brought for punishment ! ⁷⁸

39. Say: “Verily my Lord gives to His slaves abundantly of the provision whom He will and sparingly ⁷⁹ (whom He will). And whatever you spend (in charity), He replaces it, and He is the Best of Providers. ⁸⁰ ”

40. And on the day when He will gather them all togather, He will ask the angels: “Was it you that these worshipped? ⁸¹

41. They will say: “Immaculate are you; You are our protecting friend, not they.⁸² Nay, but they worshipped the jinn; most of them were believers in them.⁸³”

42. This day you will have no power to help or harm one another.⁸⁴ And We will say to the wrong-doers: ⁸⁵ “Taste the punishment of Fire, which you persistently denied.”

75. This is the denial of the claim of the wealthy people that abundance of wealth and children is not a sign of Allah’s favour. Abundance of livelihood and provision or scarcity depends on Allah’s will. He gives plenty to whom He pleases and sparingly to whom He pleases. In both the cases, it is a test for the slaves-whether they keep patience or not and offer Him their thanks or not. But many people do not know this fact, and therefore, offer wrong interpretation.

76. It is the negation of this view of the deniers that whoever has plenty of riches and children, he is the favourite slave of God and nearer to Him. These things are enjoyed even by those who are evil doers, criminals and bad people. How can this be considered as the sign of nearness to God?

77. Faith and righteous acts are the things which can guarantee nearness to God, and persons having these attributes can only be Allah’s favourite slaves.

78. Those who are active in opposing Allah’s commands and teachings of His messengers will surely receive punishment, however rich they might have been in the world and however large might have been the number of their children. All their pomp and grandeur will remain in the world only and in the Hereafter they will be subjected to punishment.

79. This topic had gone before, By the addition of the words ‘to His slaves’ the idea is to express His attributes of providing livelihood to His creatures.

80. That is: Ponder over His attribute of being a Provider. He is constantly providing you livelihood. Whatever you spend, He replenishes it with the result that you never feel that you are in want of any provision. How much good a Provider He is! Even then you are not thankful to Him.

81. Here one more scene of the Day of Resurrection is presented. When the polytheists will be gathered in the ground of ‘Hashr’ Allah will ask the angels: Did these people worship you?

82. In reply the angels will praise the Lord mentioning His immaculateness, that He is absolutely free of and above the need for having partners. Then they would say that they had not made these misled people their friends to be pleased with their worshipping them and having any relation with them, their (angels’) friend was and is only Allah.

83. The angels will further say that the misled people were worshipping the jinns, and they believed in them only. It means that if they worshipped the angels, they did so at the bidding of the Satanic jinns. They were also ardent believers of the jinns, that they regularly followed them and persisted in their misguidance, the angels had nothing to do with them. This statement of the angels will make their worshippers realise this fact that to make angels their deities and partners of Allah was not right.

84. After this statement of the angels, polytheists who had expected intercession at the hands of the angels, will be disappointed that they were of no use for them. This is the consequence of living on the support or beings other than Allah.

85.’Zalim’ means wrong doer, one whose belief and acts are against the truth and justice, and on this account one is doing excess (wrong) on his own self. In this ayah, as is clear from the context, wrong doer refers to polytheists and deniers of the Hereafter.

43. When Our clear revelations are recited to them, they say: “This is nothing but a man ⁸⁶ who would turn you away from that which your fathers used to worship.” And they say: “This (Quran) is nothing but an invented lie.” And the disbelievers say of the truth when it reaches them: “This is nothing but plain magic.”

44. We have given them no scripture to study nor have We sent them before any warner.⁸⁷

45. Those who have gone before them (also) denied. These have not got even a tenth of what We gave to those, ⁸⁸(yet) they denied My messenger. So then how (terrible) was My rejection (of them)

46. Say: “I exhort you to one thing: that for , Allah’s sake you stand up by twos and singly, and ponder: ⁹⁰ there is no madness in your comrade.⁹¹ He is nothing else than warner to you against a terrible punishment.”

47. Say: “Whatever recompense I have asked of you is for you only. ⁹² My reward is the concern of Allah only. He is a Witness to all things.”

48. Say: “Verily, my Lord hurls (reveals) the truth. (He is) the Knower of Things Hidden.⁹³

49. Say: “The Truth has come. Falsehood neither creates for the first time, nor will it create again.⁹⁴”

86. That is: He is not a divine messenger.

87. That is: For the Bani Ismail (these Arabs) no divine scriptures were sent down, as the Torah and Injeel were revealed for the Bani Israil. This was an unlettered nation, and no prophet after Prophet Ismail was sent among them. Therefore, after a very long time, the Prophet who has been sent to them and the Book which has been revealed to him for their benefit, must be appreciated by them that Allah has made such an arrangement for their right guidance, and what an elevated position Allah wants to give them. But these people instead of appreciating the Prophet and the Book, declare them to be false and magic.

88. Refers to those nations of past who had great might and power, and enjoyed plentiful resources of livelihood, e.g. the community of A’d, the community of Firaun, etc. Compared to them the Quraish had neither that might and power nor those resources. They had neither any army, nor their civilization was progressive or developed. Nor did they have plentiful economic resources.

89. When those powerful nations could not escape the divine punishment on account of their denying the Messengers, then how can the present deniers escape punishment after denying the Last Prophet? Therefore, on the basis of whatever power and wealth that these have to deny the Prophet is to invite adverse consequences for themselves.

90. Man is Mostly influenced by his environment and the opinion of the society around him, and does not take the trouble to find out what is the truth and what is falsehood. In this ayah it is suggested that people should reflect in pairs whether what the Prophet teaches is ravings of a mad man or it contains provision for intellectual and visionary consumption. they should discuss this point seriously among themselves and reach the correct conclusion. They should also individually give a thought to this matter and try to ponder what is the nature of the case. If this method is adopted seriously, then it would not be difficult to reach the correct solution. Allah will definitely guide them, for those who are in search of truth, Allah reveals the truth to them.

91. The clean character of the Prophet, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, and this full of wisdom Quran are the proof of this clear fact that he was not at all afflicted by any mental disease, but that his wisdom and intellect had reached the zenith of perfection.

92. It means that I have not asked for any recompense from you. Whatever I have asked of you is this that you should accept this guidance which your Lord has revealed and accepting which is in your own interest. I am totally disinterested and am only trying to serve you.

93. Whatever my Lord reveals to me is truth and why it should not be the truth when the knowledge of all things hidden is possessed by Him. Who can be more knowledgeable than Him to know what is right and what is wrong, what is true and what is false.

94. That is: This fact has clearly come to your notice that Tawheed is the truth. As for the falsehood, that is your deities, then they have neither the power to create anything, nor to revive, anybody. Then how can they become gods and worthy of worship?

For further explanation, see Surah Yunus, Note No.61

50. Say: “If I am In error, the loss is surely mine;⁹⁵ and if I am rightly guided, it is because of that which my Lord has revealed to me. ⁹⁶ Verily , He is Hearer, Near at hand.⁹⁷”

51. If you could only see when they are seized with terror! They will not be able to escape and will be seized from near at hand.⁹⁸ (

52. At that time) they will say: “We believe in it.⁹⁹” But how can they reach (faith) from a distant place.

53. ¹⁰⁰ When they at first denied it. They aim at the unseen from a distant. ¹⁰¹

54. And an obstruction is set between them and their desire, as was done ¹⁰² for the people of their kind in the past. Verily they were in perplexing hopeless doubt.¹⁰³

95. During debates certain presumptions have to be made, so that the addressee may reflect rising above his prejudice. Here the words. If I am in error have been spoken merely as a presumption.

96. That is: My being rightly guided is on account of the favour of my Lord, and His favour is that He sent down His revelations to me and opened up the path of right guidance for me.

97. The big reason for man’s misguidance is that he thinks that Allah is far away from him, and then he seeks support here and there. If he would believe that Allah is near at hand and hears every thing, then he would establish his relationship with Him, and would consider Him to be his Helper.

98. Here one more scene of the Day of Resurrection is being presented. Today the deniers, oppose the truth very comfortably, but on the Day of Resurrection they will be in a state of terror, and will be trying to escape, but will not be able to run away, because the angles will be nearby and they will seize them. What a scene of their helplessness !

99. That is: They believed in the truth which Allah revealed to His messenger.

100. That is: The time for accepting faith has passed away. The work which was to be done in the world, how can it be done in the Hereafter? The world is the testing ground, and the Hereafter is the place to receive the reward or punishment. When man, reached the Hereafter, the world receded into distance, and after drifting away so far off from the place of test, there is no possibility of accepting faith.

101. In the world they had the opportunity to accept faith, but they indulged in nonsensical talk and lost that opportunity.

102. That is: between them and their desire that they should be sent again in the world obstructions will be placed, that is this desire of theirs will never be fulfilled, and the same had been the fate of those nations who had lived earlier than them.

103. God, Hereafter and Prophet being in doubt about these three can result only in dissatisfaction and restlessness, and the mind may be in constant anguish.