Verses 176–191
These verses present a summary of the story of Shuʿayb (Jethro, Reuel), who was one of the prophets of the Arabs. This is the last of the seven stories mentioned in this chapter.
Commentary
كَذَّبَ أَصْحابُ الْأَيْكَةِ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ١٧٦ إِذْ قالَ لَهُمْ شُعَيْبٌ أَ لا تَتَّقُونَ ١٧٧ إِنِّي لَكُمْ رَسُولٌ أَمِينٌ ١٧٨ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَ أَطِيعُونِ ١٧٩ وَ ما أَسْئَلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ أَجْرٍ إِنْ أَجْرِيَ إِلاَّ عَلى رَبِّ الْعالَمِينَ ١٨٠
(26:176-180) The dwellers of the thicket (al-aykah) rejected the messengers. When Shuʿayb said to them: Will you not guard (against evil)? Surely I am a trustworthy messenger to you; Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me. And I do not ask you any reward for it; my reward is only with the Lord of the worlds;
Aykah means “a grove with dense vegetation.” It is said that this was a thicket near Midian where some people used to live. Shuʿayb was also sent to them [in addition to Midian], but since he was not one of them, the verse says, “When Shuʿayb said to them” () instead of referring to him as “their brother Shuʿayb.” This is unlike the expression in the stories of Hūd and Ṣāliḥ, who were relatives of their people. Likewise, Lot was a relative of his people by marriage. That is why they are referred to as “their brother Hūd” (), “their brother Ṣāliḥ” (), and “their brother Lot” ().
The rest of the verses were discussed above.
أَوْفُوا الْكَيْلَ وَ لا تَكُونُوا مِنَ الْمُخْسِرِينَ ١٨١
(26:181-182) Give a full measure (al-kayl), and be not of those who diminish (al-mukhsirīn, from ikhsār), And weigh (things) with a straight balance (bil-qisṭās al-mustaqīm).
Kayl is a measure of volume for commodities. “Giving it in full” means not reducing the volume. Qisṭās is a scale for measuring weight. It is “straight” if it weighs things justly. The two verses together order them to be just whether they give or take, whether by measure or weight.
وَ لا تَبْخَسُوا النَّاسَ أَشْياءَهُمْ وَ لا تَعْثَوْا فِي الْأَرْضِ مُفْسِدِينَ ١٨٣
(26:183) And do not wrong (tabkhasū, from bakhs) people of their things, and do not act corruptly on the earth, making mischief.
Bakhs means “deficiency in weight and measurement,” just as ikhsār (in ) means “deficiency in capital.”
“Their things” means their goods and commodities. The context suggests that “Give a full measure” () is complemented by what follows it: and be not of those who diminish (), And weigh (things) with a straight balance (), And do not wrong people of their things (). Then “and do not act corruptly on the earth, making mischief” () describes the evil and unfortunate consequence of stinting and fraud, and emphasizes both prohibitions: Be not of those who diminish (), And do not wrong… ().
…and do not act corruptly (taʿthaw, from ʿathy and ʿayth) on the earth, making mischief (mufsidīn): ʿAthy and ʿayth mean “to corrupt.” Therefore “making mischief” (mufsidīn) is mentioned for further emphasis. We already explained how stinting and fraud corrupt human societies in Shuʿayb’s story in Sūrah Hūd and in under the verse: And give full measure when you measure out, and weigh with a true balance; this is fair and better in the end (). You may refer to those discussions.
وَ اتَّقُوا الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَ الْجِبِلَّةَ الْأَوَّلِينَ ١٨٤
(26:184) And guard against (the punishment of) Him who created you and the former nations (al-jibbilat al-awwalīn).
Majmaʿ al-bayān says, “Jibbilah is the formation according to which one is created.” Therefore, what is meant here is “possessors of jibillah.” That is: Guard against God Who created you and your forefathers, Who planted aversion to corruption and confession to its evilness in your natures and creations.
Perhaps verse specifically mentions the word jibillah (formation, creation) exactly to convey this meaning [that your action is against your own human nature]. Overall, the verse is a call to worship God alone because they were not wary and fearful of their Creator Who is the Lord of all worlds.
قالُوا إِنَّما أَنْتَ مِنَ الْمُسَحَّرِينَ ١٨٥ وَ ما أَنْتَ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِثْلُنا وَ إِنْ نَظُنُّكَ لَمِنَ الْكاذِبِينَ ١٨٦
(26:185-186) They said: You are only of the bewitched; And you are naught but a mortal like ourselves, and we surely deem you (in naẓunnuka) to be certainly of the liars.
The first part of these verses was discussed above. In the second verse where it says, in naẓunnuka, particle in is in fact inna (truly, indeed, surely), but the stress has been dropped.
فَأَسْقِطْ عَلَيْنا كِسَفاً مِنَ السَّماءِ إِنْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ ١٨٧
(26:187) Therefore cause a portion (kisafan) of the heaven to come down upon us, if you are one of the truthful.
Kisaf has been defined as the plural of kisfah which means “piece, portion, part.” Their request here is out of derision and defiance.
قالَ رَبِّي أَعْلَمُ بِما تَعْمَلُونَ ١٨٨
(26:188) He said: My Lord knows best what you do.
This is Shuʿayb’s response to their speech and their request for punishment from him. It implies that the matter is not up to him to decide, but it is only up to God, for He knows best about what they do, whether or not their action deserves punishment, and if so, what punishment it should be. This is similar to what Hūd told his people: The knowledge is only with Allah, and I deliver to you the message which I am sent with ().
فَكَذَّبُوهُ فَأَخَذَهُمْ عَذابُ يَوْمِ الظُّلَّةِ إِنَّهُ كانَ عَذابَ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ ١٨٩
(26:189) But they called him a liar, so the punishment of the day of covering overtook them; surely it was the punishment of a grievous day.
“The day of covering” was the day when Shuʿayb’s people were punished by a cloud that overshadowed them. Their story was discussed in detail in Chapter 11 (Hūd).
إِنَّ فِي ذلِكَ لَآيَةً وَ ما كانَ أَكْثَرُهُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ ١٩٠ وَ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الرَّحِيمُ ١٩١
(26:190-191) Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them were not believers. And most surely your Lord is Mighty, the Merciful.
The exposition of these verses was discussed above.
Examining Narrations
Concerning verse (When Shuʿayb said to them) Jawāmiʿ al-jāmiʿ says: According to hadith, Shuʿayb was from Midian, but he was sent to them and to the dwellers of the thicket (aṣḥāb al-aykah).
Concerning al-jibillat al-awwalīn in verse (And guard against (the punishment of) Him who created you and al-jibillat al-awwalīn) Tafsīr al-Qummī says: “It means the former people.” Concerning “they” in verse (But they called him a liar) he said: “It refers to Shuʿayb’s people.” Concerning yawm al-ẓullah in verse (so the punishment of yawm al-ẓullah overtook them), he said: “It means a day of heat and fatal winds.”