Verses 1–6
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
The main theme of this chapter is to warn the people and give them glad tidings, as shown by its starting verses and its five ending verses. To do so, it discusses some parts of the stories of Prophets Moses, David, Solomon, Ṣāliḥ and Lot. Then it continues by addressing some fundamental religious teachings such as the unity of God in Lordship, and the Resurrection.
Commentary
طس تِلْكَ آياتُ الْقُرْآنِ وَ كِتابٍ مُبِينٍ ١
(27:1) Ṭā Sīn! These (tilka) are the verses of the Qur’an and clear Book.
As mentioned at the beginning of Chapter 26 (al-Shuʿarāʾ), “these” (tilka) refers to the verses of this chapter that will be revealed, as well as the Qur’anic verses revealed before. Tilka is a demonstrative pronoun which is particularly used for far-off objects. Its usage here shows that these verses are lofty and out of reach.
This book is called a qurʾān because it is recited (maqruww). Mubīn is derived from ibānah, which means “to show, to reveal, to manifest.” The word “Book” (kitābin) is in the indefinite form, which shows esteem and magnification. It means: These noble verses that We reveal are the verses of a grand, recited book that is clear and unambiguous about its objectives.
Majmaʿ al-bayān says:
The two descriptions of qurʾān and kitāb indicate that this Book is communicated through both recitation and writing. It is as if the Book speaks through its recitation and its writing. Its description as mubīn (clear, clarifying, lucid) compares the Book to a speaker who has this quality [of being eloquent and expressive].
هُدىً وَ بُشْرى لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ٢
(27:2) A guidance (hudā) and good news (bushrā) for the believers.
Hudā (guidance) and bushrā (good news) are verbal nouns that serve as a nominative case (fāʿil) here. It could also be that the verse uses verbal nouns instead of subjects to show emphasis.
الَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ الصَّلاةَ وَ يُؤْتُونَ الزَّكاةَ وَ هُمْ بِالْآخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ ٣
(27:3) Who keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, and who are sure of the hereafter.
This verse refers to performing righteous deeds. It only mentions the prayer and the poor-rate because each heads a category: The prayer represents what pertains to God, and the poor-rate represents what relates to the people. Alternatively, the prayer represents bodily acts of devotion, and the poor-rate represents financial acts of devotion.
… and who are sure of the hereafter: This is another description of the believers which is connected to the previous part. It show that the aforementioned righteous deeds are properly placed and bear fruit only if they are done with certainty in the hereafter. Otherwise, denying the hereafter annuls one’s actions. God says: And (as to) those who reject Our signs and the meeting in the hereafter, their deeds are null ().
… and who (hum) are sure of the hereafter, are they (hum): Repeating the pronoun hum (that is, repeating “are they” in addition to “who”) indicates that such certainty is part and parcel of their status. In other words, such certainty is could only be expected of them.
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْآخِرَةِ زَيَّنَّا لَهُمْ أَعْمالَهُمْ فَهُمْ يَعْمَهُونَ ٤
(27:4) As for those who do not believe in the hereafter, We have surely made their deeds fair-seeming to them, but they blindly wander on (yaʿmahūn, from ʿamah).
ʿAmah means taḥayyur (confusion, hesitation). “Making a deed fair-seeming to someone” means making the acts appeal to the person, such that the person is attracted to do it. This world is a path and the hereafter is its destination. Not believing in the hereafter means being left in this world—the path—without any goal or purpose. Thus they are left wandering in this life while clinging to their acts.
أُوْلئِكَ الَّذِينَ لَهُمْ سُوءُ الْعَذابِ وَ هُمْ فِي الْآخِرَةِ هُمُ الْأَخْسَرُونَ ٥
(27:5) These are they who shall have an evil punishment, and in the hereafter they shall be the greatest losers.
Since the second part of the verse talks about loss in the hereafter, “evil punishment” includes both worldly and otherworldly punishments. Perhaps the reason why they are “the greatest losers” is that other sinners [that is, those who are believers] have both evil deeds and righteous deeds in their records, and they will be requited for both. However, in the case of the disbelievers, their wrongdoings are recorded against them, while their good deeds are annulled.
وَ إِنَّكَ لَتُلَقَّى الْقُرْآنَ مِنْ لَدُنْ حَكِيمٍ عَلِيمٍ ٦
(27:6) And most surely you are made to receive (la-tulaqqā, from talqiyah) the Qur’an from One All-Wise, All-Knowing.
Talqiyah is close in meaning to talqīn (dictate, impart). The divine names “All-Wise” and “All-Knowing” are indefinite to indicate esteem and magnification. The verse clearly attributes the Qur’an to God, which proves the Prophet as a messenger sent from God. This confirms the teachings mentioned before, and authenticates the stories of the prophets that will come afterwards.
The verse particularly points out two of God’s names: All-Wise, All-Knowing. The first name shows that this Book is sent from the spring of wisdom; thus, it cannot be negated or weakened. The second name shows that the Book has been sent from the source of knowledge, so it neither lies in what it says nor errs in its judgments.
That is, “guidance” (hudā) means “guide” (hādī), and “good news” (bushrā) means “giver of good news” (mubashshir). (Trans.) ↩︎
In Arabic, when a quality is so strong and vivid in a person, sometimes the person is called by the verbal noun of that quality. For example, when Zayd is very just, instead of saying “Zayd is just,” it is said, “Zayd is justice.” (Trans.) ↩︎