يَسْتَهْزِءُونَ

Commentary:

As stated above the truth and triumph of Islam form the basic and central theme of the present Surah. In v. 8 above we are told that the endeavours of disbelievers are confined to the acquisition of things of the material world, and that they give no thought to the fact that there is a better and higher spiritual life after this life and that the real purpose and aim of all religions, as of Islam, is the realization of this supreme fact. The present and the preceding two verses deal with the truth of Islam and adduce three arguments in its support: (a) The creation of man and the subjection of all created things to his service; (b) the great wisdom and beautiful design and order that pervade the entire universe; and (c) the life history of the past Prophets and the sad end of their rejecters. The verse under comment purports to say that all these arguments lead to but one conclusion, viz. that those unfortunate people who rejected God’s Message and persecuted His Messengers and persisted in transgression, vice and sin, came to grief, and such will also be the end of the opponents of Islam. They, too, will meet with failure and frustration and Islam’s cause will triumph.

21:42.

Commentary:

The words, And surely have the Messengers been mocked at before thee, imply a hint that the demand of disbelievers regarding the coming of an angel is really nothing but a mockery. The verse also contains a prophecy about the destruction of the enemies of the Holy Prophet. The enemies of the former Prophets laughed them to scorn and were consequently punished by God, the very object of their mockery becoming the means of their destruction. The enemies of the Holy Prophet were also scoffing at him and so they too would meet with the same fate which befell their predecessors.

26:7.

Important Words:

انباء (tidings) is the plural of نبأ which means, news or tidings. The word is generally used in the Quran about important news relating to some great event (Aqrab and Kulliyat).

Commentary:

The words, shall come, imply that the important "tidings" referred to in the verse were ordained to come to the Meccans from outside. The words, which were revealed at Mecca, thus contain a veiled prophecy to the effect that the Holy Prophet will have to flee from Mecca and that, after his flight, the Meccans will go out and fight him but that they will be routed, and the news of the great success of the Holy Prophet or, to quote the expression of the Quran, the tidings of that at which they mocked, will reach the Meccans from outside. This prophecy was fulfilled in a wonderful way at the famous Battle of Badr, thus showing that God possesses both perfect knowledge and perfect power.

21:42; 45:34.

21:42; 46:27.

Important Words:

امة (time) is derived from ام (amma). They say امه (ammahu) i.e. he repaired or directed his course to him or it; he sought or aimed at it. امة means, way, course or manner of acting; religion; a people or nation; a generation of men. It also means a time or a period of time as in 12:46 (Lane).

Commentary:

The verse points out that just as most people are in doubt about the life after death, similarly they labour under a delusion with regard to Divine punishment in this life. If punishment is delayed a little, they become impatient and begin to criticize and find fault with Divine Messengers, although the nature of this world as being an abode of trials demands that Divine punishment should be late in coming; for if there were no delay, the abode of trials would turn into a veritable abode of recompense.

It is strange that on the one hand people deny the existence of an abode of recompense and, on the other, by demanding from the Prophets of God a decisive punishment, admit that there should be such a thing as an abode of requital. The words, that which they used to mock at shall encompass them, show that disbelievers, while demanding the speedy arrival of punishment, do not do so in earnest, but only ridicule the warnings of Prophets about the impending punishment. They should know that their scoffing and jeering shall recoil on themselves and will serve only to expedite the threatened punishment.

36:31; 43:8.

Commentary:

The verse shows that when disbelievers addressed the Holy Prophet saying, O thou to whom this Exhortation has been sent down, thou art surely a madman (v. 7), they really used the words in jest. So what it meant in the present verse is that if disbelievers mock at the Holy Prophet, it is not a thing to be wondered at, for even Prophets whom they claim to accept were similarly mocked at by their forefathers.

Another significance of the verse is that whenever there comes a Prophet, God promises to protect his teachings, and this makes disbelievers wonder. They cannot bring themselves to believe that through his teachings he has any chance of success in the face of their opposition and, therefore, they treat him with contempt.

It is surprising that although all Prophets have been mocked at on account of their humble origins, yet whenever a new claimant appears he is expected by disbelievers to come with great pomp and splendour. Disbelievers seem to forget that if past Prophets had come with pomp and splendour, they would never have been treated with scorn. Incidentally, the verse draws our attention to the divine law that the fact that every new Messenger of God is, in the beginning, rejected and ridiculed is really a sign of the truth of his claim rather than of his falsehood.

6:11; 21:42; 39:49; 45:34.

Commentary:

The words, So the evil result of what they did befell them, point to the great truth that the punishment of an evil deed is no extraneous thing, but is the natural consequence of the deed itself and is also proportionate to it. The expression, and that which they used to mock at encompassed them, means that disbelievers themselves become the object of the charges of which they accuse the Prophets and their followers.

6:11; 13:33.

11:9; 46:27.

Commentary:

The verse makes mention of two things which never fail to occur when a Prophet preaches his message: (a) the message is held up to scorn and the Prophet himself is mocked and jeered at; and (b) the jeering and mocking of the scoffers always recoils on their own heads and they themselves become the laughing-stock of the world.

6:35; 22:43; 35:26; 40:6.

Commentary:

The verse has an implied allusion to the Biblical prophecy, viz. "the stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner" (Matt. 21:42).

15:12; 43:8.

Commentary:

The words of this verse are full of pathos. The Almighty Himself seems, as it were, to be full of grief over the rejection and mocking of His Prophets by men. While the Prophets grieved and pined for their peoples, the latter requited their grief with contempt and mockery.

While the verse means that every Prophet of God was rejected, mocked and jeered at by his people, it has a special reference to the Promised Messiah, signifying that in his time all Prophets will be rejected i.e. the very idea of Divine revelation will be doubted and denied.

15:12; 36:31.

16:35; 21:42; 39:49.

6:7; 7:11.

11:9; 21:42.

Important Words:

أفئدة (hearts) is the plural of فؤاد which is derived from فاد. They say فادہ, i.e. he or it hit, struck, smote or hurt his فؤاد i.e. heart. فاد اللحم فی النار means, he roasted the flesh meat in the fire. فؤاد is synonymous with قلب both meaning heart, mind or intellect. In the Quran, too, both these words have been used synonymously. In 28:11, both the words have been used together, signifying the heart. It is the context which determines where any of these words is used in the sense of mind or heart. Some authors, however, make a distinction between فؤاد and قلب; the latter is said to have a more special signification than the former which is said to be the غشاء or the وعاء of the قلب or the middle or the interior thereof. They say طار فؤادہ i.e. his mind or intellect or courage tied (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

This verse also shows that the Adites were a very powerful and prosperous people. Their dominions extended over vast areas.