Verses 34–47
وَمَا جَعَلْنَا لِبَشَرٍ مِنْ قَبْلِكَ الْخُلْدَ أَفَإِيْنْ مِتَّ فَهُمْ الْخَالِدُونَ ٣٤ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ وَنَبْلُوكُمْ بِالشَّرِّ وَالْخَيْرِ فِتْنَةً وَإِلَيْنَا تُرْجَعُونَ ٣٥ وَإِذَا رَآكَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا إِنْ يَتَّخِذُونَكَ إِلاَّ هُزُواً أَهَذَا الَّذِي يَذْكُرُ آلِهَتَكُمْ وَهُمْ بِذِكْرِ الرَّحْمَنِ هُمْ كَافِرُونَ ٣٦ خُلِقَ الإِنسَانُ مِنْ عَجَلٍ سَأُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِي فَلا تَسْتَعْجِلُونِ ٣٧ وَيَقُولُونَ مَتَى هَذَا الْوَعْدُ إِنْ كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ ٣٨ لَوْ يَعْلَمُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا حِينَ لا يَكُفُّونَ عَنْ وُجُوهِهِمْ النَّارَ وَلا عَنْ ظُهُورِهِمْ وَلا هُمْ يُنْصَرُونَ ٣٩ بَلْ تَأْتِيهِمْ بَغْتَةً فَتَبْهَتُهُمْ فَلا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ رَدَّهَا وَلا هُمْ يُنظَرُونَ ٤٠ وَلَقَدْ اسْتُهْزِئَ بِرُسُلٍ مِنْ قَبْلِكَ فَحَاقَ بِالَّذِينَ سَخِرُوا مِنْهُمْ مَا كَانُوا بِهِ يَسْتَهْزِئُون ٤١ قُلْ مَنْ يَكْلَؤُكُمْ بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ مِنْ الرَّحْمَنِ بَلْ هُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ رَبِّهِمْ مُعْرِضُونَ ٤٢ أَمْ لَهُمْ آلِهَةٌ تَمْنَعُهُمْ مِنْ دُونِنَا لا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ نَصْرَ أَنفُسِهِمْ وَلا هُمْ مِنَّا يُصْحَبُونَ ٤٣ بَلْ مَتَّعْنَا هَؤُلاءِ وَآبَاءَهُمْ حَتَّى طَالَ عَلَيْهِمْ الْعُمُرُ أَفَلا يَرَوْنَ أَنَّا نَأْتِي الأَرْضَ نَنقُصُهَا مِنْ أَطْرَافِهَا أَفَهُمْ الْغَالِبُونَ ٤٤ قُلْ إِنَّمَا أُنذِرُكُمْ بِالْوَحْيِ وَلا يَسْمَعُ الصُّمُّ الدُّعَاءَ إِذَا مَا يُنذَرُونَ ٤٥ وَلَئِنْ مَسَّتْهُمْ نَفْحَةٌ مِنْ عَذَابِ رَبِّكَ لَيَقُولُنَّ يَا وَيْلَنَا إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَالِمِينَ ٤٦ وَنَضَعُ الْمَوَازِينَ الْقِسْطَ لِيَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ فَلا تُظْلَمُ نَفْسٌ شَيْئاً وَإِنْ كَانَ مِثْقَالَ حَبَّةٍ مِنْ خَرْدَلٍ أَتَيْنَا بِهَا وَكَفَى بِنَا حَاسِبِينَ ٤٧
And We did not ordain eternal life for any mortal before youWhat! Then if you die, will they live forever?
Every soul shall taste of death, and We try you by evil and good by way of probation; and to Us you shall be brought back.
And when those who disbelieve see you, they do not take you but for mockery: Is this he who speaks of your gods? And they are deniers at the remembrance of the Beneficent.
Man is created of haste; soon will I show you My signs; therefore, do not ask Me to hasten (them) on.
And they say: When will this threat come to pass if you are truthful?
Had those who disbelieve but known (of the time) when they shall not be able to ward off the fire from their faces nor from their backs, nor shall they be helped.
Nay, it shall come upon them all of a sudden and cause them to become confounded, so they shall not have the power to avert it, nor shall they be respited.
And certainly messengers before you were mocked; then what they mocked befell those of them who scoffed at them.
Say: Who guards you by night and by day from the Beneficent? Nay, they turn aside at the remembrance of their Lord.
Or have they gods besides Us who can defend them? They shall not be able to assist themselves, nor shall they be defended from Us.
Nay, We have provided for them and their fathers until life was prolonged for them. Do they not then see that We come to the land and shrink its sides? Shall they then prevail?
Say: I warn you only by revelation; and the deaf do not hear the call whenever they are warned.
And if a blast of the chastisement of your Lord were to touch them, they would certainly say: O woe to us! Surely we were unjust.
And We will set up just balances on the Day of Resurrection, so no soul shall be dealt with unjustly in the least; and though there be the weight of a grain of mustard seed, We will bring it, and sufficient are We to take account.
Introduction
These verses continue the discussion about prophethood by relating some of the statements of the polytheists about the Prophet. For example they said, “He will soon die, and we will be saved from him and his trouble;”; they referred to him in derision: Is this he who speaks of your gods? (); and they mocked the Resurrection and afterlife which they were warned about: When will this threat come to pass if you are truthful? (). These verses answer their foolish words, warn and threaten them, and console the Prophet.
Commentary
وَمَا جَعَلْنَا لِبَشَرٍ مِنْ قَبْلِكَ الْخُلْدَ أَفَإِيْنْ مِتَّ فَهُمْ الْخَالِدُونَ ٣٤
(21:34) And We did not ordain eternal life for any mortal before you. What! Then if you die, will they live forever?
It appears from the verse that they used to comfort themselves by saying that the Prophet will die soon, and then they will be relieved of his call and their gods will be saved from his criticism. A statement similar to this has been quoted from them elsewhere: We await the evil accidents of time for him (). The verse is God’s answer to this.
We did not ordain eternal life for any mortal before you: In other words, it is not expected that you live forever. On the contrary: Surely you shall die and they (too) shall surely die []. However, your death will be of no avail to them and will not make them eternal, because everybody is going to die. Also, their short appointed lifetime will not be free of divine trial and tribulation, for there is no human being who is exempt from tribulation in life. Nor can they escape Our authority in the Hereafter, but they will return to Us and We will reckon them and requite them for what they have done.
…What! Then if you die, will they live forever? This is a rhetorical question that conveys a negation against their false impression. It does not simply say that will they live forever? but it says, if you die, then will they live forever? This implies that they viewed themselves to be eternal, and the prophet as the only impediment to that. That is why they said: We await the evil accidents of time for him (). Thus, if you die, they will grab on eternity and live a comfortable and easy life forever. However, that is not the case. Rather, every person shall taste of death (), and life in this world is based on trial and tribulation. Meanwhile, unending trial and eternal tribulation make no sense, but they must return to their Lord so that He may recompense them according to how He has tried them and distinguished them from one another.
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ وَنَبْلُوكُمْ بِالشَّرِّ وَالْخَيْرِ فِتْنَةً وَإِلَيْنَا تُرْجَعُونَ ٣٥
(21:35) Every person (nafsin) shall taste of death (al-mawt) and We try you by evil and good by way of probation; and to Us you shall be brought back.
By contemplating the usages of the word nafs, it can be deduced that nafs originally meant the same thing as it was annexed to. Thus, nafs al-shayʾ (lit. “the nafs of a thing”) means “that thing” (al-shayʾ); nafs al-insān (lit. “the nafs of a human being”) means “that human being” (al-insān); and nafs al-ḥajar (lit. “the nafs of a stone”) means “that stone” (al-ḥajar). If it is used alone and not next to another word, it does not mean anything, but it only conveys emphasis [as a reflexive pronoun]. For example, it is said: Zayd “himself” came to me (Zaydun nafsuhu or nafsu Zaydin). In this sense it can be used for anything, even for God, as He says: He has ordained mercy on Himself (ʿalā nafsihi) (); And Allah makes you cautious of Himself (nafsahu) (); Thou knowest what is in my mind (fī nafsī); and I do not know what is in Thy mind (fī nafsika) ().
Later on, this term started being used widely for individual human beings—a being that is comprised of spirit and body. Thus it acquired its own independent meaning even without annexation. He says: He it is Who created you from a single being (nafs), and of the same (kind) did He make his mate (), which means “from a single human being.” He [also] says: Whoever slays a soul (nafsan), unless it be [punishment] for murder or mischief in the land, it is as though he slew all people; and whoever keeps it alive, it is as though he kept alive all people (); that is, “whoever slays a human being” and “whoever keeps a human being alive.” Both meanings [that is, nafs as a reflexive pronoun for emphasis, and nafs as an individual human being] are used in this verse: Every soul (nafs) shall come, pleading for itself (nafsihā) (). The first nafs means the second sense of nafs and the second one means the original meaning.
It was later used for the human spirit in particular because it is the basis of one’s life, knowledge and strength. An example of this is His words: Give up your souls (anfusakum); today shall you be recompensed with an ignominious chastisement ().
These two usages—the second and third meanings [that is, “individual human being” and “human spirit”]—do not apply to non-humans, such as plants or other animals, except as a specific terms in particular disciplines [like Islamic philosophy]. In ordinary language, one does not use nafs to refer to an entire plant or animal, or to a part of it that runs and regulates its body. True, blood may be called nafs because life depends on it, as it is called al-nafs al-sāʾilah (circulatory blood).
Similarly, the second and third senses of nafs are not lexically used for the angels or the jinn, even though they are believed to be living creatures. The Qur’an has not used nafs to refer to them either, even though its verses say that the jinn, like human beings, have duties, die, and are resurrected. He says: And I have not created the jinn and men except that they should serve Me (); Among nations of the jinn and men that have already passed away before them (); And on the day when He shall gather them all together: O assembly of jinn! You took away a great part of mankind (). This is what can be said about the lexical meaning of nafs.
As for mawt (death), it means “loss of life and its properties like feeling and volition by a being that has the capacity to live and have these properties.” He says [about humankind]: “You were dead and He gave you life” (), and about the idols He says: Dead (are they), not living ().
In philosophical discussions death is often defined as “the departure of the soul from the body by the disconnection of its regulatory.” It is also defined as “a transition from one abode to another,” as per a Prophetic narration. However, these are meanings that are obtained from either reason (ʿaql) or transmission (naql), but not the common usages of the term. Human beings—which consist of spirit and body—are subject to death only on the basis of their body, because it is the body that possesses life at some point and then loses it. As for the spirit, there is nothing in His saying that it can die. Similarly, there is nothing in His words saying that mawt can apply to angels. It is true that He says: Everything is perishable (hālik, from halāk) but He (), and: And the trumpet shall be blown, so all those that are in the heavens and all those that are in the earth shall swoon (fa ṣaʿiqa, from ṣaʿq) (), but it will be said later on, God willing, that halāk and saʿq are different from mawt, even though they are sometimes concomitant.
Based on the above the following points should be clear:
(1) In Every nafs shall taste of death, nafs means “human person” (insān), which is the second of the three usages of the term. It does not mean the human spirit here [that is, the third meaning] because death has never been attributed to the spirit in God’s Book so that it may be construed as such.
(2) The verse only applies to humankind, not to the angels, the jinn or other animals—although some of these creatures also die, such as the jinn and the animals. A contextual evidence (qarīnah) that the verse applies exclusively to humankind is what He said in the previous verse: And We did not ordain eternal life for any mortal before you (), as well as what He says later in this verse: and We try you by evil and good by way of probation (). We shall discuss this below.
A group of exegetes have interpreted nafs in this verse as rūḥ (soul, spirit), but the reader should now know that the contrary is true. Many of them have insisted that the verse applies to all living creatures, including people, angels, jinn, other animals—and even plants, assuming that they are truly living. We just explained the problem with this view.
Imam al-Rāzī in al-Tafsīr al-Kabīr has a very strange explanation asserting the universality of the verse. After saying that the universal expression of the verse applies to anything with a nafs, he says that some exceptions have been made to this:
God also has a nafs, as Jesus says to Him: Thou knowest what is in myself (nafsī), and I do not know what is in Thyself (nafsika) () while it is impossible for Him to die. The same applies to inanimate objects: they have nafs but they do not die. A universal that has been excepted and particularized remains a proof and applicable with regards to anything that has not been made an exception to it. This refutes what philosophers say about the immortality of the human spirits, immaterial intellects and celestial souls.
There are a few problems with this view:
(1) The sense of nafs that can be applied to God or to anything else is the first of the three usages cited above, which is the one that is meaningful only with an annexation. This is how it is used in the verse quoted as an example []. However, in the current verse of discussion, nafs is used without being annexed to anything, therefore the first meaning is definitely not applicable here. Hence, the intended meaning must be one of the other two, and you would agree that the third meaning is also not intended here, which leaves us with the second one.
(2) His claim that death does not apply to inanimate objects contradicts His words: You were dead (amwātan) and He gave you life (), Dead (amwātun) (are they), not living (), and other similar verses.
(3) His claim that “This refutes what philosophers say about the immortality of the human spirits, immaterial intellects and celestial souls” is wrong because these are rational matters that should be established by rational demonstrative proof (burhān), and demonstration is a decisive argument that proves something with certainty. If the arguments set forth by the philosophers in support of their claim are entirely or partially demonstrative, then the verses cannot maintain their apparent meaning. This is because the apparent meaning of a text is a speculative (ẓanniyyah) proof. How is it conceivable that an argument may produce certain knowledge while the opposite is also speculated? And if their arguments are not demonstrations, then their claims are not proven and there would be no need for speculative proof to counter them.
Every person shall taste of death () is a confirmation and reiteration of the idea mentioned above: And We did not ordain eternal life for any mortal before you (). It is also a prelude and introduction to what is said thereafter: And We try you by evil and good by way of probation (). It means: We will test you by what you dislike—such as illness and poverty—and by what you like—such as health and wealth—as means of trial. It is as if to say: We give every one of you a limited and appointed lifespan, and We test you throughout it by bad and good trials. Then, you will be returned to your Lord and He will judge either in your favor or against you.
This is also an indirect explanation for why death is inevitable for every soul (nafs). It is because the life of every soul is a period of test and trial, and a trial is obviously an introductory and preparatory matter. Something introductory cannot continue without any end. Rather, there must inevitably be something else beyond every introduction, for which the introduction is set up. Likewise, every trial must be followed by a stage at which the result is determined. This is why every living soul (nafs) must inevitably die and then return to God for decisive judgment.
وَإِذَا رَآكَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا إِنْ يَتَّخِذُونَكَ إِلاَّ هُزُواً أَهَذَا الَّذِي يَذْكُرُ آلِهَتَكُمْ وَهُمْ بِذِكْرِ الرَّحْمَنِ هُمْ كَافِرُونَ ٣٦
(21:36) And when those who disbelieve see you, they do not (in) take you but for mockery: Is this he who speaks of your gods? And they are deniers at the remembrance of the Beneficent.
The Arabic particle in is a negative particle (“not” in “they do not”). It means that their dealing with him is restricted to mocking and deriding him.
… Is this he who speaks of your gods? This is what they “said” although the verse does not explicitly say it. The implied meaning is: “… they do not take you but for mockery and they say (or saying): Is this he who speaks…” [where the italicized part is omitted from the verse].
This part of the verse describes their derision and mockery: the way they referred to the Prophet was derogatory. He who speaks of your gods means that he speaks “ill” of your gods, but they did not mention “ill” explicitly as a sign of courtesy to their gods. This is comparable to: They said: We heard a youth called Abraham speak of them ().
… And they are deniers at the remembrance of the Beneficent: This statement is a qualifier that describes how they mocked the Prophet, or a qualifier for the implied verb “say” [in “and they say: Is this he…”]. The latter is more likely as it more readily comes to the mind. The effective meaning is: They are offended by you for the sake of their gods because you say that their gods do not benefit or harm them—which is the truth—so they confront you with nothing but scorn and insults. Yet, they are not offended that the remembrance of God is denied, while they themselves are the deniers.
The “remembrance (dhikr) of the Beneficent” means the remembrance of God as the One Who effuses every mercy and bestows every blessing. Being mindful of God as such necessarily entails that He is the Lord Who has to be worshiped. The “remembrance of the Beneficent” has also been interpreted as the Qur’an.
The meaning is: When those who disbelieve—that is, the polytheists—see you, they take you and deal with you with nothing but mockery and derision, saying to each other, “Is this he who speaks ill of your gods?” Thus they feel indignant for the sake of their gods because you speak negatively of them. At the same time they deny the remembrance of the Beneficent, yet they do not consider it a sin and do not feel indignant about it.
خُلِقَ الإِنسَانُ مِنْ عَجَلٍ سَأُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِي فَلا تَسْتَعْجِلُونِ ٣٧
(21:37) Man is created of haste; soon will I show you My signs; therefore, do not ask Me to hasten (them) on.
In addition to their disbelief in the prophetic call, the polytheists used to mock the Prophet whenever they saw him, which was further disbelief and insolence. If one mocks something, it shows that they view it as something frivolous and not in earnest; they respond to frivolity with like frivolity [that is, mockery]. However, mockery [of His Prophet and Book] is no joke to God, but it is something very serious. Therefore, when they denied His message and then mocked it on top of that, they effectively exposed themselves to His punishment twice. This is equivalent to pressing for the hastening of punishment. They were not convinced by the signs that were shown to them at the time of ease, but instead they asked for signs that would recompense them for their deeds. This verse shows that He counts their mockery after their disbelief to be a request for the hastening of signs—that is, signs that bear punishment—and informs them that He will soon show these signs to them.
Man is created of haste: This is a way of expressing humankind’s extreme haste, as if they were created of haste and not known for anything else. It is similar to expressions such as: “so-and-so is all good”; “he is all evil”; “he is created of goodness”; or “he is created of evil.” This statement is more expressive than saying, “how hasty he is” or “his haste is so great.” It is an exclamatory phrase that shows disdain for their deeds. It implies that He does not hasten their punishment because they cannot escape from Him.
… soon will I show you My signs; therefore, do not ask Me to hasten (them) on: God’s “showing of His signs” here means punishing them with Hellfire, based on what comes below: Had those who disbelieved but known… ().
وَيَقُولُونَ مَتَى هَذَا الْوَعْدُ إِنْ كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ ٣٨
(21:38) And they say: When will this threat come to pass if you are (kuntum) truthful?
The speakers of these words are those who disbelieve, and their audience is the Prophet and the believers. They should have normally said, “if you are truthful” in the singular form (kunta), but they used the plural “you” (kuntum). They said so in order to bundle two things together and aim at two goals with a single shot: (1) to challenge the Prophet by asking him something that he would not be able to do; and (2) to lead the believers astray and entice them against the Prophet. Their requested “threat” was alluded to in the last verse, and it is explained by the next verse.
لَوْ يَعْلَمُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا حِينَ لا يَكُفُّونَ عَنْ وُجُوهِهِمْ النَّارَ وَلا عَنْ ظُهُورِهِمْ وَلا هُمْ يُنْصَرُونَ ٣٩
(21:39) Had (law) those who disbelieve but known (of the time) when they shall not be able to ward off the fire from their faces nor from their backs, nor shall they be helped.
The Arabic particle law (lit. “if”) shows wish and desire (tamannī). It is wished that they knew “when they shall not…,” as the exegetes have said. They shall not be able to ward off the fire from their faces nor from their backs: They will not be able to stop it when it takes them from the front and from behind. This is an allusion to being surrounded by the fire.
… nor (wa) shall they be helped: This sentence presents an alternative for the previous part of the verse. That is why the two parts are joined by the conjunction wāw (lit. “and, but”). The meaning is: They cannot stop the fire—neither independently, nor with help from anyone else.
The verse is an answer to their question about the appointed time [in ]. It means: I wish those who disbelieve knew the time when they would not be able to keep the fire from their faces and from their backs, either independently or by help from others.
بَلْ تَأْتِيهِمْ بَغْتَةً فَتَبْهَتُهُمْ فَلا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ رَدَّهَا وَلا هُمْ يُنظَرُونَ ٤٠
(21:40) Nay, it shall come upon them all of a sudden and cause them to become confounded, so they shall not have the power to avert it, nor shall they be respited.
Some exegetes have suggested that the pronoun “it”—in it shall come upon them—refers to “the Hour” [that is, the Resurrection]. However, the context suggests that it should refer to “Hellfire.” The sentence builds on what He said in the previous verse: They shall not be able to ward off… (). Some other explanations that do not fit the context are:
The verse is based on an implied omitted statement. The meaning is: The signs do not come to them according to their suggestion; nay, but they shall come upon them all of a sudden…
It builds on Had those who disbelieve but known… (). The meaning is: they do not know this; nay, but it shall come upon them all of a sudden…
“Coming upon them all of a sudden” means that they will be surprised by the fire because they will not know where it is coming from and how it is surrounding them. That is the implication of how God has described the fire elsewhere: It is the fire kindled by Allah, Which rises above the hearts (); The fire of which men and stones are the fuel (); Surely you and what you worship besides Allah are the firewood of Hell ().
This kind of fire takes hold of a person’s inside and outside equally. It is not like fire in this world, which has to move from one place to another, taking the outside before the inside and the external before the internal. The fire of Hell is not gradual in its work and does not allow them to distance themselves from it. It leaves no way for them to dodge it, turn aside from it, create a barrier against it, or take shelter in a safe place. Rather, it is with them as their souls are with them: it is not limited to a specific direction, and it gives them no respite because there is no distance between it and them. Hence, its “coming upon them” only results in their astonishment and confusion.
Thus the verse means (and God knows best): They cannot keep the fire away from their faces or backs. It strikes them from where they do not know, from where they least expect. It is a surprise for them and they cannot hold it back or delay its arrival.
وَلَقَدْ اسْتُهْزِئَ بِرُسُلٍ مِنْ قَبْلِكَ فَحَاقَ بِالَّذِينَ سَخِرُوا مِنْهُمْ مَا كَانُوا بِهِ يَسْتَهْزِئُون٤١
(21:41) And certainly messengers before you were mocked (istuhziʾa, from huzʾ); then what they mocked befell (fa-ḥāqa, from ḥayq) those of them who scoffed (sakhirū, from sukhriyyah) at them.
Majmaʿ al-bayān says:
The difference between sukhriyyah and huzʾ is that huzʾ means “to degrade someone through speech” while sukhriyyah means “to humiliate someone.” Taskhīr means tadhlīl (to humiliate, to subjugate).
Hayq means “to befall.” “What they mocked” refers to “punishment.” The verse comforts the Prophet, and warns and threatens the disbelievers.
قُلْ مَنْ يَكْلَؤُكُمْ بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ مِنْ الرَّحْمَنِ بَلْ هُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ رَبِّهِمْ مُعْرِضُونَ٤٢
(21:42) Say: Who guards you (yuaklaʾukum, from kilāʾah) by night and by day from the Beneficent? Nay, they turn aside at the remembrance of their Lord.
Kilāʾah means protection. The meaning is: ask them “Who is it that would protect them from the Beneficent if He wishes to punish them?”
… Nay, they turn aside at the remembrance of their Lord: This transition shows that admonition and warning is ineffective on them. “The remembrance (dhikr) of their Lord” refers to “the Qur’an.” They do not pay any attention to it and do not want to listen attentively when you recite it to them. Dhikr has also been interpreted as “any admonition and proof.”
أَمْ لَهُمْ آلِهَةٌ تَمْنَعُهُمْ مِنْ دُونِنَا لا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ نَصْرَ أَنفُسِهِمْ وَلا هُمْ مِنَّا يُصْحَبُونَ٤٣
(21:43) Or (am) have they gods besides Us who can defend them (tamnaʿuhum min dūninā)? They shall not be able to assist themselves, nor shall they be defended from Us.
The Arabic particle am (lit. “or”) is disconnected from what was before it. The question is a rhetorical one that implies a negation. The words tamnaʿuhum and min dūninā are descriptions of “gods.” The meaning is: on the contrary, ask them if they have gods apart from us to protect them from Us.
… They shall not be able to assist themselves, nor shall they be defended from Us: This justifies the negation implied by the rhetorical question above. That is why it is not joined with a conjunction to the previous sentence. The implied meaning is: “They do not have any gods like that because their gods cannot help themselves—that is, one helping another—nor are they protected or guarded from Us. Therefore how can such gods help or protect their servants and worshipers—that is, the polytheists?” Some have suggested that the third person plural pronouns in the verse refer to the polytheists, but that does not match the context.
بَلْ مَتَّعْنَا هَؤُلاءِ وَآبَاءَهُمْ حَتَّى طَالَ عَلَيْهِمْ الْعُمُرُ أَفَلا يَرَوْنَ أَنَّا نَأْتِي الأَرْضَ نَنقُصُهَا مِنْ أَطْرَافِهَا أَفَهُمْ الْغَالِبُونَ ٤٤
(21:44) Nay, We have provided for them and their fathers until life was prolonged for them. Do they not then see that We come to the land and shrink its sides? Shall they then prevail?
This is another transition from the purport of the previous verse, just as “Nay, they turn aside at the remembrance of their Lord” () was a transition from its preceding part of the verse. The meanings, as you can see, are similar.
… until life was prolonged for them: This describes the end result of their continued provision and enjoyment mentioned in the first part of the verse. The implied meaning is: Nay, We have provided for these polytheists and their fathers such provision and endowment that continued until their lives were prolonged, they were deluded by that, forgot the remembrance of God, and turned away from serving Him. That is how the Quraysh society was: After their forefather Ishmael, they lived in the Holy Precinct (ḥaram) [of Mecca] safe, where they were provided for with various blessings which were brought to them. This continued until they took control of Mecca, expelled [the tribe of] Jurhum, forgot the religion of their forefather Abraham which they were following, and instead started worshiping idols.
… Do they not then see that We come to the land and shrink its sides? Shall they then prevail? The meaning which fits the context best is that “shrinking the sides of the land” refers to the extinction of certain nations that live on it. Indeed, every nation has a term; when their term comes, they shall not then remain behind for an hour, nor can they go before (their time) [; ]. This complies with our interpretation above that “prolonging people’s life” in this verse means extending the lifespan of their society.
The meaning is: Do they not see that nation after nation is taken off the earth by way of extinction by God’s command? What would stop Him from causing them to perish likewise? Can they hold out if God wills harm, doom or extinction for them?
The reader should refer to a similar verse in Sūrah al-Raʿd [] for some other points that also apply to here.
Note that these verses involve some shifts of address for rhetorical effect (iltifāt) that we have skipped because they are obvious.
قُلْ إِنَّمَا أُنذِرُكُمْ بِالْوَحْيِ وَلا يَسْمَعُ الصُّمُّ الدُّعَاءَ إِذَا مَا يُنذَرُونَ ٤٥
(21:45) Say: I warn you only by revelation; and the deaf do not hear the call whenever they are warned.
That is: What I am warning you with is divine revelation in which there is no doubt. It does not have its desired effect on you—that is, your guidance—because of some deafness in you that makes you deaf to hearing warnings. The deficiency is yours, not its.
وَلَئِنْ مَسَّتْهُمْ نَفْحَةٌ مِنْ عَذَابِ رَبِّكَ لَيَقُولُنَّ يَا وَيْلَنَا إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَالِمِينَ ٤٦
(21:46) And if a blast (nafḥah) of the chastisement of your Lord were to touch them, they would certainly say: O woe to us! Surely we were unjust.
Nafḥah means “an incident of punishment.” It means that the warning with the verses of the reminder [that is, the Qur’an] will not avail them. Instead, what these people need is a blast of punishment so that they are forced to believe and acknowledge their wrongdoing.
وَنَضَعُ الْمَوَازِينَ الْقِسْطَ لِيَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ فَلا تُظْلَمُ نَفْسٌ شَيْئاً وَإِنْ كَانَ مِثْقَالَ حَبَّةٍ مِنْ خَرْدَلٍ أَتَيْنَا بِهَا وَكَفَى بِنَا حَاسِبِينَ ٤٧
(21:47) And We will set up just (al-qisṭ) balances on the Day of Resurrection, so no soul shall be dealt with unjustly in the least; and though there be the weight of a grain of mustard seed, We will bring it, and sufficient are We to take account.
Qist means “justice, fairness.” It is added to al-mawāzīn (scales, balances) as an interpretation. It could also be its adjective assuming an implied omission: balances possessed of justice (dhawāt al-qisṭ). We already discussed the scales that are set up on the Day of Resurrection in the exegesis of Sūrah al-Aʿrāf [under verse ].
… and though there be the weight of a grain of mustard seed, We will bring it, and sufficient are We to take account: “Though there be” refers to “the action that is weighed,” as implied by the mention of “balances.” That is: “Even if the mass of the weighted deeds is equivalent to that of a mustard seed, We will bring it, and sufficient are We to take account.” The weight of a mustard seed is used as a symbol of smallness and insignificance in examples and analogies.
Examining Narrations
- When Gabriel informed the Prophet about his death, the Prophet replied, “My Lord, then who will there be for my nation?” Then this verse was revealed: And We did not ordain eternal life for any mortal before you… ().
Author’s comment: These verses involve a context of censure which does not fit what is mentioned in this narration. Furthermore, this question does not match the Prophet’s status. Besides, this is one of the oldest Meccan chapters, while the news of his death was given to the Prophet at the end his life.
- The Prophet was once passing by Abū Sufyān and Abū Jahl while they were talking. When Abū Jahl saw him, he laughed and said to Abū Sufyan, “This is Banū ʿAbd Manāf’s prophet!” Abū Sufyan became angry and said, “What do you see wrong with Banū ʿAbd Manāf having a prophet?” When the Prophet heard this he went to them, rebuked and threatened Abū Jahl, and told him: “I can see that you will not stop [your defiance] until you are struck by what struck your uncle.” Then he said to Abū Sufyan, “As for you, you only said what you said out of tribal fanaticism (ḥamiyyah).” Thereafter, this verse was revealed: And when those who disbelieve see you, they do not take you but for mockery ().
Author’s comment: Like the previous one, this story does not fully fit the verse.
- Once the Commander of the Faithful [ʿAlī b. Abī Ṭālib] fell ill and his brothers went to visit him. They asked, “How do you see yourself, O Commander of the Faithful?” He said, “In evil (sharr).” They said, “This is not the speech of someone like you!” He replied, “Verily God says: And We try you by evil and good by way of probation (). Good is health and wealth, and evil is sickness and poverty.”
- Concerning the verse, Do they not then see that We come to the land and shrink its sides? () Majmaʿ al-bayān says: This has been interpreted as the death of scholars. It is also narrated from Imam al-Ṣādiq that “the shrinking of the land is through the passing of its scholar.”
Author’s comment: The meaning of this hadith was discussed above in the exegesis of Sūrah al-Raʿd [under verse ].
- Imam ʿAlī said: As for His words And We will set up just balances on the Day of Resurrection, so no soul shall be dealt with unjustly in the least (), it refers to the scale of justice by which the creatures are held accountable on the Day of Resurrection. God will take from some people [and give] to others by means of the scales.
- Hishām says: I asked Abū ʿAbd-Allāh [Imam al-Ṣādiq] about God’s words: And We will set up just balances on the Day of Resurrection, so no soul shall be dealt with unjustly in the least (). He replied, “They are the prophets and their successors.”
Author’s comment: This is also narrated in al-Kāfī from the Imam via an unconnected chain of narration (marfūʿ). Other narrations to the same effect were cited in the exegesis of Sūrah al-Aʿrāf [under verse ]. We discussed them there to the extent possible.
This is because the Qur’an never attributes death to the spirit, as discussed above. (Trans.) ↩︎
Arabic has both a singular “you” and a plural “you,” unlike English. (Trans.) ↩︎
The implied meaning is: Only if they knew… (Trans.) ↩︎
“The Hour” is implied by the word “when” in verses and . “The fire” is explicitly mentioned in verse . (Trans.) ↩︎
In other words, the term “or” does not introduce a choice or possibility parallel to the previous verse, but it marks a new independent statement in addition to the above. (Trans.) ↩︎
According to the author’s interpretation, min dūninā means “besides Us,” and therefore “from Us” is implied by the verse but not explicitly mentioned in the verse. Another possible translation is that min dūninā means “from Us” and it is implied that the gods are “other than God.” (Trans.) ↩︎
See verse . (Trans.) ↩︎
Al-Durr al-manthūr, on the authority of Ibn al-Mundhir, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj. ↩︎
Al-Durr al-manthūr, on the authority of Ibn Abī Ḥātim, on the authority of al-Suddī. ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān, narrated from Imam al-Ṣādiq. ↩︎
Al-Tawḥīd, part of a hadith where a man asks the Imam about some verses which were confusing to him. ↩︎
Maʿānī al-akhbār, via its chain of narration. ↩︎