يَوْمِ

7:159; 48:15.

51:13; 74:47; 82:18, 19; 83:7.

Important Words:

مالك (Master) is derived from ملك.They say ملك الشیء meaning: he owned the thing and possessed the right of doing with it what he liked. ملك القوم means: he gained complete dominion over the people. ملك (malak) which, according to some authorities, is derived from the same root, means 'an angel.' ملك (malik) means: king or ruler. مالك means: master or one who possesses the right of ownership over a thing and has the power to deal with it as one likes (Aqrab).

یوم (Day) means (1) time absolutely, whether day or night, short or long; (2) day from sunrise till sunset; (3) present time or now; (4) ایام اللّٰه means, God’s favours and punishments (Aqrab & Lane). The Quran says: Verily a day with thy Lord is as a thousand years of what you reckon (22:48). At another place (70:5) the Quran uses the word to indicate fifty thousand years. At yet another place the Quran says: الیوم اکملت لکم دینکم i.e. Now have I perfected your religion for you (5:4). Here الیوم simply means 'now.'

دین (Judgement) is derived from دان. They say دانه meaning: he rewarded or recompensed him; he became his master and set him to any task he liked; he judged him; he obeyed him. دان بالاسلام means: he adopted Islam as his religion (Aqrab). Thus the word دین is used in several different senses, e.g. (1) recompense or requital; (2) judgement or reckoning; (3) dominion or government; (4) obedience; (5) religion (Lane). The word has been used in the Quran in all these different senses: see 37:54; 24:3; 12:77; 5:4; 4:126.

Commentary:

Generally, this verse is understood to mean that God is the Master of the Day of Judgement. But it has a wider significance; for although the last and the perfect reckoning will take place on the Day of Judgement, the process of requital is going on even in this life. In its wider significance, therefore, the verse would mean that God, Master of the Day of Judgement, is also Master of the period and process of reckoning in this life as well as in the next. There is, however, one difference. In this life human actions are often also judged and rewarded by other men—kings, rulers, superiors, etc.; and there is, therefore, always the possibility of error. On the Day of Judgement, however, the mastery of God will be exclusive and absolute and the work of requital will lie entirely in His hands. There will be no error, no undue punishments, and no undue rewards. The verse points out that in spite of the fact that God is the Master of the time of requital, both in this world and the world to come, He has been spoken of in this verse as the Master of the Day of Judgement so that it may be emphasized that on the Day of Judgement He will be the Sole Master.

The use of the word مالك (Master) in the verse is also intended to point to the fact that God is not like a judge who is bound to give his judgement strictly in accordance with a prescribed law. But, being Master, He can forgive and show mercy wherever and in whatever manner He may like.

The use of the word "Master" thus serves a twofold purpose. On the one hand, it encourages a person who has, in a moment of weakness, committed a sin, not to despair because God, being his Master, has the power to forgive. On the other hand, it serves as a warning against taking undue advantage of God’s mercy. For if as God, the Master could, and no doubt would, forgive, He would also hate to see His servants degraded by sin. God, the Master, inspires man both with hope and with fear, and this is essential for man’s spiritual progress and development.

The four attributes of God, i.e. (1) رب العالمین (Lord of all the worlds); (2) الرحمن (Gracious); (3) الرحیم (Merciful) and (4) مالك یوم الدین (Master of the Day of Judgement) mentioned in verses 2-4 are fundamental. The other attributes only explain and serve as a sort of commentary upon these four attributes, which are like four pillars on which the Throne of the Almighty rests.

The order in which these four attributes have been mentioned here throws light on how God manifests His attributes to men. It is obvious that the first divine attribute to manifest itself to man is that of رب العالمین (Lord of all the worlds) which means that, together with the creation of man, God creates the necessary environment for his spiritual progress and development. Next, the attribute of الرحمن (Gracious) comes into operation, and through this, God, so to speak, hands over to man the means and material required for his moral and spiritual advancement. And when man has made proper use of the means thus granted to him, the attribute of الرحیم (Merciful) comes in to reward his works. Last of all, the attribute of مالك یوم الدین (Master of the Day of Judgement) produces the final and collective result of man’s labour; and the process finds consummation in him being granted spiritual dominion over the world, as is granted to the chosen ones of God. This is what may be called the descent of God towards man.

On the other hand, when man begins to ascend towards God, the process is reversed. In this process, man, first of all, becomes the mani­festation of the attribute of مالك (Master); he begins to manifest in himself the attribute of عدل or justice, tempering it with mercy and for­giveness. Having developed in his person the attribute of مالك, man reaches the second stage of spiritual progress where he becomes the manifestation of the attribute of الرحیم i.e. he begins to reward the actions of men liberally and generously. This is the stage which is termed احسان or beneficence. The next stage relates to the attribute of الرحمن. Here the sphere of man’s beneficence becomes widespread; his goodness extends to believers and un-believers alike—he begins to treat them just as a mother treats her children, prompted only by a natural instinct and without hope of any return. This stage has been termed ایتاء ذی القربی i.e. doing good to others as one would do to one’s near relatives. Then comes the attribute of رب العالمین which marks the highest stage of man’s spiritual development, when he becomes a manifestation of "Lord of all the worlds". At this stage man makes himself responsible for the welfare and guidance of the whole world. He is not satisfied if he or only those who immediately surround him are guided or otherwise provided for, but desires the good of the whole world, and begins to use his God-given powers for the achievement of this great end. This is the philosophy of ھبوط and صعود i.e. the process of Descent and Ascent which has been so beautifully described in these three short verses.

Commentary:

While speaking of "the day" as in the present verse, the Quran uses the words "will you not then see" and when speaking of "the night" as in the preceding verse it uses the words, "will you not then hearken", the reason being that one cannot properly see at night.

3:194; 4:16; 7:127; 8:51; 10:47, 105; 12:102; 13:41; 16:29, 33; 22:6; 39:43; 40:68, 78; 47:28.

4:159; 7:177; 19:57.

5:49; 6:165; 11:24; 31:16; 39:8.

Important Words:

متوفیك (cause thee to die) is derived from وفی i.e. he fulfilled or performed; or he was faithful, etc. توفی الله زیدا means, قبض روحه i.e. God took away the soul of Zaid, namely, He caused him to die. When God is the subject and a human being the object, توفی has no other meaning than that of taking away the soul, whether in sleep or death (see note on 2:235). So متوفیك means, I will cause thee to die. Ibn ‘Abbas, a cousin of the Holy Prophet and a scholar of great eminence, has tran-slated متوفیك as ممیتك i.e. I will cause thee to die (Bukhari). Similarly, Zamakhshari, an Arab linguist of great repute, says: "The expression متوفیك means, I protect thee from being killed by the people and will grant thee full lease of life ordained for thee, and will cause thee to die a natural death, not by being killed" (Kashshaf). In fact, all Arabic lexicographers are agreed on the point that the word توفی as used in the aforesaid manner, can bear no other interpretation. Not a single instance from the whole of Arabic literature can be shown of this expression having been used in any other sense. Outstanding scholars and commentators like (1) Ibn ‘Abbas, (2) Imam Malik, (3) Imam Bukhari, (4) Imam ibn Hazm, (5) Imam Ibn Qayyim, (6) Qatadah, (7) Wahab, and others are of the same view (see 1. Bukhari, ch. on Tafsir; 2. Bukhari, ch. on Bad‘ul-Khalq; 3. Bihar; 4. Al-Muhalla, Cairo, i. 23; 5. Ma‘ad, p. 19; 6. Manthur ii.7. Kathir). According to Fathul-Bayan, those commentators who have tried to put other meanings into the word توفی as used in the aforesaid manner, have done so on account of their belief that Jesus has been taken up to heaven alive; otherwise, the word possesses no other meaning but that of taking away the soul or causing to die. The expression has been used at no less than 25 different places in the Quran and in no less than 23 of them the meaning is to take away the soul at the time of death. Only at two places the meaning is to take the soul away at the time of sleep; but here the qualifying word "sleep" or "night" has been added (6:61; 39:43).

رافعك (will exalt thee). رافع is the active participle from رفع. They say رفعه i.e. he raised him or it; he elevated him or it; he lifted it; he uplifted it; he exalted or honoured him; he took it up, etc. Thus رفع is the antonym of وضع i.e. he put it down; he debased it. The Holy Prophet says:

ان الله یرفع بھذا القرآن اقوا ما و یضع اقواما

i.e. Allah will, by means of this Quran, exalt some peoples and humble others (Majah).

Again he says:

من تواضع لله رفعه الله الی السماء السابعة

i.e. he who truly humbles himself for the sake of God, God would lift him to the seventh heaven, i.e. would exalt him to the highest spiritual station (‘Ummal, ii. 25). The Quran has described the Day of Resurrection as خافضة رافعة meaning, it shall debase some and exalt others (56:4). In the Quran we also have فی بیوت اذن الله ان ترفع i.e. in houses with regard to which Allah has commanded that they be exalted (24:37). Again: العمل صالح یرفعه i.e. the righteous work of a man exalts him (35:11). Even in our daily Prayers we pray: اللھم ارفعنی i.e. O God, exalt me. In fact, when the رفع of a man is spoken of as being to or towards God, the meaning is invariably his spiritual elevation, because God being not material or confined to a place, no physical elevation to Him is possible. Jesus himself has denied the possibility of his rising physically to heaven. Says he: "And no man hath ascended up to heaven but he that came down from heaven, even the son of man which is in heaven" (John 3:13).

Commentary:

This verse has been linked up with the preceding one with the word اذ (when), thus indicating that it provides what is known as ظرف for the concluding clause of that verse, i.e. Allah is the Best of planners. The present verse thus relates to the occasion when Jesus was being made a victim of the evil machinations of his enemies who were plotting to have him crucified and thereby prove him to have come to an accursed end (Deut. 21:22, 23). "Nay", says God to Jesus as stated in the verse under comment, "thine enemy shall not be permitted to kill thee on the cross and thereby prove thee to be low and debased spiritually. On the contrary, I will cause thee to die a natural death and will exalt thee in My presence…" This is the only possible meaning of the verse in conformity with the context. Unfor-tunately, however, the verse is one of those which have heavily suffered from misinterpretation. Meanings have been sought to be put upon its words which they are simply incapable of bearing. It is now an admitted fact that, through the free intermixture of Muslims and Christians and the conversion en masse of hundreds of thousands of Christians to Islam, the belief that Jesus had risen up to heaven alive found widespread credence among Muslims, the misunderstanding of the prophecy about the second advent of Jesus lending support to it.

There is no gainsaying the fact that Jesus is dead, and not alive in heaven. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said, "Had Moses and Jesus been now living, they would have found themselves bound to follow me" (Kathir). He even fixed the age of Jesus as 120 (‘Ummal). The Quran, in as many as 30 verses, has completely demolished the absurd belief of the physical ascension of Jesus and his supposed life in heaven. The arrangement of words in the verse under comment also leaves no doubt about the death of Jesus. Four distinct promises have been made to Jesus in the verse: (1) his being saved from death on the cross and dying thereafter a natural death; (2) his exaltation in God’s presence; (3) his exoneration from the false charges of his enemies, and (4) the domination of his followers over his rejecters. The last three promises have already been fulfilled; but what of the first? It is idle to speak of تقدیم and تاخیر (i.e. the first-mentioned promise to be read after the others) without any justifying reason. It is idle also to claim that متوفیك here means, "I will cause thee to sleep". The Quranic idiom spurns the idea. Indeed such a meaning makes the verse almost ridiculous.

The verse beautifully describes in four brief words the frustration of the plans of the Jews referred to in the preceding verse. They had planned (1) to bring about the death of Jesus by crucifixion; and (2) to be thus able to say that because he was a false prophet, he died an accursed death on the cross (Deut. 21:22, 23). They also sought (3) to bring false charges against him, especially the heinous charge of an illegitimate birth; and (4) to be thus able to compass the destruction of his entire movement. They were completely foiled in all these designs. Jesus died, not on the cross, but a natural death, respected and revered by devoted followers. He was cleared of the false charges imputed to him and has ever been regarded as one of the sacred band of God’s great Prophets. Last of all, his followers have for centuries held his rejecters, the Jews, under their heels.

The words, those who follow thee, originally referred to the Christians and the words, those who disbelieve, to the Jews. Later, however, when Islam made its appearance, the words those who follow thee, naturally came to include Muslims, who believe in the divine mission of Jesus; and history tells us that Muslims and Christians have both dominated the Jews whenever and wherever they have come in contact with them.

The prophecy about giving dominance to the believers in Jesus over his rejecters was, however, to be fulfilled in its completest form at the time of his second advent which has now taken place in the person of Ahmad, the Promised Messiah, whose message is for all the nations of the world. The clause, those who disbelieve, would, therefore, now apply to all those from among Jews, Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and others who reject the Second Messiah who has come in fulfilment of the prophecies of both Jesus and the Holy Prophetof Islam. No wonder then that the words: "O Jesus, I will cause thee to die (a natural death)…and will place those who follow thee above those who disbelieve" also formed part of the revelation vouchsafed to Ahmad (Izalah’-i-Auham, p. 192).

Commentary:

Taking the particle الی (till) in the sense of فی (in or on for which see Lane), the clause لیجمعنکم الی یوم القیامة may also be rendered as, "He will certainly assemble you on the Day of Resurrection" but the more correct rendering is that given in the text, i.e. He will certainly (continue to) assemble you till the Day of Resurrection. The difference in meaning is obvious. People are born and die and will go on doing so till the Last Day. Thus the process of assembling is always going on and will continue till the Day of Resurrection, when God will call all to account.

3:56; 5:65.

Commentary:

After referring to the Jews in the preceding verses, the Quran here refers to the Christians, who had also fallen low owing to their ceasing to act on the commandments of God.

The words, We have caused enmity and hatred among them, either refer to the Christians and the Jews spoken of in the preceding verse or they refer to the Christians alone as understood by the present verse. In any case they embody a great prophecy to the truth of which the whole world is a witness. Unappeasable animosity, hatred and rivalry exist not only between Christians and Jews but also between the different sections of Christians themselves. This enmity and discord are a natural result of their rejection of Islam. The Holy Prophet, who had a universal mission, brought the Message of the oneness of all mankind. All nations of the world were invited to assemble under his banner and thus become welded into one nation and one people. But the People of the Book refused to accept him. So not only will Jews and Christians as well as the sections thereof continue to remain at loggerheads with each other, but the phan­tom of world-peace will also continue to elude humanity till men come to render allegiance to that Great and Noble Prophet whom God sent as "a mercy for all mankind".

The Arabic word یصنعون (have been doing) is generally used concerning works of art. The allusion is thus primarily to the works of art in which Christian nations were to excel and take pride.

6:55; 7:157.

3:10; 4:88; 45:27.

Important Words:

خسروا انفسھم (who ruin their souls). خسروا is derived from خسر which means, he lost; he suffered a loss; he went astray; he became lost; he perished (Lane). From the above it is clear that the word خسر is really intransitive. The transitive use of the word in the verse is merely apparent. In fact when the Quran says خسروا انفسھم it does not mean, they made their souls suffer, but, that they suffered with regard to themselves, i.e. they themselves suffered. The correct transitive form of the word is خسر (khasara), i.e. he caused to perish, and not خسر (khasira), i.e. he suffered or he was lost, which the Quran has used. This peculiar use of the word is intended to intensify the meaning. Thus, the words الذین خسروا انفسھم would really read الذین خسروا و خسروا انفسھم i.e. those who suffered a loss and caused their souls to perish. For the sake of convenience, however, the expression has been rendered in the text as, those who ruin their souls. For a somewhat similar expression, i.e. سفه نفسهsee Lisan where that expression has been fully dealt with.

Commentary:

Here God first puts a question, and then Himself answers it. This form has also been employed elsewhere in the Quran. It is meant to bring out the disbelievers’ extreme weakness of faith and make them realize it.

All that is in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allah; so the enemies of Faith also belong to God. No one would like to destroy that which belongs to him, much less would God like to do so, for He is Merciful and has made mercy binding on Himself. So He is giving the enemies of the Holy Prophet time to repent. He is putting off punishment so that they may turn to Him and repent of their sins. Hence, instead of demanding punishment, let them ask forgiveness and benefit by His mercy.

It should be noted that disbelief alone does not bring punishment upon men in this life. So far as simple disbelief is concerned, the case of the believers and the disbelievers will be decided on the Day of Judgement when all will be assembled together and God’s judgement will be pronounced. It is only the extreme wickedness of men and their active opposition to the Prophets of God that hastens punishment for them in this life. So the verse exhorts disbelievers not to demand punishment, but rather to repent, so that God may have mercy on them.

13:19; 39:48.

3:182; 36:48.

5:69.

3:56; 5:15.

2:18.

Important Words:

یداه (both His hands). The word ید (hand or arm) is derived from یدی (yadyun) and, besides its literal meaning, gives a number of figurative meanings e.g., (1) favour, benefit, bounty or generosity; (2) power, dominion, control, authority or superiority (Aqrab & Lane).

Commentary:

The expression: Their own hands shall be tied up, signifies that the Jews shall be suitably punished for their insolent saying expressed in the words, The hand of Allah is tied up. The sentence may also be taken as optative, meaning, "may their hands be tied up." But as what Allah wills must come to pass, therefore the expression may be better rendered in the form of a positive statement, meaning that the Jews shall become miserly and stingy.

The clause, Nay, both His hands are wide open, constitutes a crushing reply to the taunt of the Jews, that the hand of Allah is tied up. The Quran says that not only is the hand of God not tied up but that both His hands are wide open—the one to give to the believers in plenty and the other to punish the Jews for their insolence. The sentences which follow the clause, Nay, both His hands are wide open, refer respectively to the work of the two hands of God, namely (1) the bestowal of special bounties upon believers, and (2) the exemplary punishment of Jews for their sins. It will be noted that the hand is used both as an instrument for bestowing a favour or bounty and as a symbol of power and dominion for seizing and punishing an offender.

The enmity and hatred referred to in the verse are to exist and continue not only among Jews themselves but also among Christians, as well as between Jews and Christians.

The expression, Whenever they kindle a fire for war, refers to the attempts of Jews to incite the idolaters of Arabia to wage war against Muslims, as well as to their own hostile activities against Islam.

Commentary:

The verse purports to say that when disbelievers will have realized to their discomfiture that the time of their prosperity and progress was very short, they will be told by true believers that according to divine decree they (disbelievers) were left alone to indulge in vice and sin up to the Day of Resurrection i.e. till the advent of a Divine Prophet, when all their prosperity and grandeur was to have come to an end. Thus the words "Day of Resurrection" do not refer to Resurrection after death but to the rise and fall of nations in this world.

The disbelievers or Christian nations of the West are here warned that their final destruction will take place after the renaissance of Islam in the Latter Days and not, as they misunderstand, in the time of its first phenomenal rise and spread.

15:37; 38:80.

Commentary:

The resurrection to which the words, when they will be raised up, refer is not the general resurrection of mankind decreed for the Hereafter but the spiritual resurrection of man that comes into being whenever a Prophet is raised. Iblis can lead man astray only so long as he is not spiritually resurrected. But once a man attains the spiritual stage which is designated by the term بقا (rebirth), Iblis can do him no harm. It is indeed a similar spiritual stage which is mentioned in the words, As to My servants, thou (Satan) shalt certainly have no power over them (17:66).

2:62; 3:113.

Commentary:

The reference in the memorable words, those who would afflict them with grievous torment, is to those people who throughout the ages have persecuted and tormented the Jews. The degradation of the Jews holds a lesson for us. Those who neither act righteously nor try to reform their environment gradually drift more and more into evil practices, with the result that finally they lose their independence and are subjugated by other nations who trample them under their feet.

This and the following verses also show that the people who are spoken of as "apes despised" in the preceding verse were not actually transformed into apes but continued as human beings, though they led a miserable existence and were looked down upon by others. See also 2:66.

Commentary:

The verse points to the great truth that sometimes one sin follows another as a natural consequence thereof. Hypocrisy took the place of faith in the hearts of those who did not keep the promise they had made with God. See also the preceding two verses.

38:79.

Important Words:

اللعنة (the curse) literally means, the state of being away from the mercy of God. See also 2:89.

Commentary:

The verse declares that the curse and maledictions of not only God and His Chosen Ones but also of all succeeding generations of men dog the footsteps of the opponents of God’s Prophets, while the latter and their followers continue to be remembered with honour and affection. As Divine Reformers will continue to come till the end of days, so Satan and his votaries will also continue to be cursed till the Day of Judgement. The curse referred to here does not, however, mean the Divine punishment which will have its full manifestation on the Day of Judgement but the curses and maledictions of men with which Satan and his followers will ever continue to be remembered in this world. See also 2:162 & 13:26.

7:15; 17:63; 38:80.

Commentary:

The preceding verses, like the relevant verses of chapters 2 & 7, refer to Adam and other Prophets in particular and to mankind in general. In reference to Adam and the Prophets, the breathing of the Divine Spirit would mean the descent of Divine revelation on men, and in reference to mankind in general, it would signify the perfection of the human soul. The words, the day when they shall be raised, will therefore, have different meanings in reference to the two classes of persons. When taken as referring to mankind in general the words would mean the time of the spiritual rebirth of man when, having attained that state of spiritual ascent, he not only becomes safe against spiritual fall but also contented and pleased with his Lord. In this sense, the protest of Satan mentioned in the present verse would mean that he should be granted respite to deceive and seduce man till the time of his (man’s) spiritual rebirth, when he joins the rank of the sincere servants of God and becomes immune from any further interference by Satan and his followers. This dialogue between God and Satan is, as hinted above, only an allegory or a metaphor.

That the words, the day when they shall be raised, signify the spiritual rebirth of man and not the Day of Resurrection after death, is confirmed by the fact that Satan asked for respite to be extended not to the day of death, but to the Day of Resurrection. As a matter of fact, there being no possibility of man being seduced by Satan after his death, Satan’s request to be allowed to tempt man up to the Day of Resurrection, which is to take place, after death, would be meaningless. It is thus evident that these words do not mean the actual Day of Resurrection after death but the day of man’s spiritual rebirth i.e. when he attains to the stage of نفس مطمئنة (the soul at peace) in his very life. In fact, Satan and his followers can tempt a man only so long as he does not attain to this very high state of spiritual development when he becomes immune against the onslaughts of Satan. When referring to Adam and his true Successors, i.e. the Prophets of God, the verse means that Satan and his followers are allowed to find fault with them and put all sorts of impediments and obstacles in their way till the day when they shall be raised, i.e. till the time when truth finally triumphs and the enemies of the Prophets are vanquished and many of them join the ranks of the Faithful. This time of the final victory of truth over falsehood or, in other words, of the Prophets over their adversaries, is here called the day of resurrection. See also v. 19.

38:82.

Commentary:

The words, Till the day of the appointed time, mean, as explained in v. 37 till the day when the Prophets and their followers will have achieved final victory over their adversaries and falsehood and its votaries will have been finally crushed.

This "day of the appointed time" comes to different Prophets at different times. To the Holy Prophet it came in his life-time, when he saw the complete triumph of his cause with his own eyes, and to Jesus it came centuries after his death.

21:12; 22:46; 28:59.

Commentary:

In the previous verse it was stated that false deities could not save their devotees from Divine punishment. The present verse gives a specific illustration of this. It purports to say that the time was coming when idolatry would spread all over the world and in consequence thereof the whole of mankind would suffer for its sins and iniquities. At that time no human device and no seeking of help from false deities would save their devotees from Divine wrath. This subject has been dealt with at greater length in the next Surah.

The verse contains a warning for Muslims to beware of "the second great punishment" to which an allusion has already been made in v. 57. The words "before the Day of Resurrection" allude to a prophecy which was to be fulfilled in the latter days. From the Hadith it appears that this prophecy about "the second punishment" was to be fulfilled after the advent of the Promised Messiah, and we find that it is already being fulfilled.

7:13; 15:34; 38:77.

7:17-18; 15:40.

Important Words:

ارءیتک (what thinkest thou?) is derived from رای i.e. he saw with the eyes and means, hast thou considered? tell thou me, tell me; thinkest thou? or what thinkest thou? (Lane). See also 10:51.

لاحتنکن (I will most surely bring under my sway) is derived from حنک. They say حنک الفرس i.e. he put a rope in the mouth of the horse. احتنک الجراد الارض means, the locusts ate what was upon the land and consumed its herbage. احتنکه means, (1) he put a rope in his mouth and led him; (2) he took the whole of his property; and (3) he gained the mastery over him. The Quranic expression لاحتنکن ذریته means, I will assuredly extirpate his progeny; or I will assuredly incline his progeny to obey me, or I will assuredly gain the mastery over his progeny (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

By "resurrection" is here meant not the great Resurrection that is to take place after death but the time when believers will have achieved success and disbelievers met with discomfiture.

It may also mean the spiritual resurrection which is experienced by every believer when his faith becomes perfect and Satan ceases to exercise control over him.

Whether or not Satan has succeeded in carrying out his threat in leading astray a vast majority of mankind is an important question which calls for an answer. A hurried and thoughtless glance over the state of good and evil in the world may lead one to the wrong conclusion that evil predominates in the world. But the truth is quite the reverse. If all the utterances of the greatest of liars were to be critically examined, the number of his truthful utterances will be found to be far exceeding his lies. So is the case with other evils. A great majority of people in the world are disposed to be good and virtuous. They commit moral excesses only in the heat of passion. Similarly, the number of the wicked people in the world is much smaller than that of the good and the virtuous. The fact that wickedness attracts such wide notice in itself constitutes proof positive of the fact that human nature is innately good and recoils at even a slight touch of evil. It is therefore wrong to suppose that Satan has succeeded in carrying his threat into actual fact.

The dialogue described here and in other verses of the Quran as having taken place between God and Satan never actually took place. It is only a representation of the state of things existing in the world. See also 2:35; 7:13-19 & 15:28-29.

Important Words:

یوم (day) of which the plural is ایام means, time absolutely; day from sunrise to sunset; present time; now, etc. (1:4). ایام العرب means, the contests and fights of the Arabs. ابن الایام means, a person who is well acquainted with the conditions and circumstances of the time. ایام الله means, the favours and punishments of God (Aqrab). See also 1:4 and 14:6.

احزاب (parties) is the plural of حزب which means, a party or company of men and here signifies the parties who opposed the Prophets of God in their respective times. "The day of the parties" signifies the day when they met their doom.

21:96; 36:32.

Important Words:

برزخ means, a barrier; a bar; a thing that intervenes between any two things; an obstruction or a thing that separates two things; the interval from the time of death to the Day of Resurrection. The word is technically applied to the period or state from the day of death to the Day of Resurrection (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The word لعل (that) conveys the idea of doubt. As used here the word shows that the disbeliever will have been so deeply impressed by God’s Greatness and Majesty and his own insignificance that he dare not declare with certainty that he will make amends for what he had left undone in life on earth. He only expresses a hope that he will do righteous deeds if he were sent back to this world.

The word کلمة has been used in the verse, as at several other places in the Quran in the sense of a full sentence. The Holy Prophet also used the word in the sense of a complete sentence in a well-known hadith:

أصدق کلمة قالھا لبید، الا کل شیء ما خلا اللّٰه باطل

i.e. the truest sentence is the one which the poet Labid uttered and which is to the effect, "Everything besides God is subject to destruction." See also 4:172.

The verse incidentally disproves a commonly held belief that a man passes into Heaven or Hell immediately after his death. In fact after death he lives in برزخ which is an intermediate state of incomplete realization of the punishments or rewards of Hell or Heaven respectively or a state of preparation for their complete and full realization. The Quran has compared barzakh to the embryonic state and the resurrection to the birth of the fully developed soul.

7:92; 11:95; 29:38.

2:201; 17:19.

Important Words:

قطنا (our portion) is derived from قط (qatta). They say قطه i.e. he cut it. قط القلم means, he nibbed the reed for writing. قطmeans, a slice cut off, a portion, share or lot, an hour or a portion of the night. مضی قط من اللیل means, a portion of the night passed (Lane & Aqrab).

Commentary:

The verse means to say that when disbelievers are warned that if they do not accept the Holy Prophet they will be punished, they turn the warning into an occasion for mocking the Prophet, and jeeringly say, "We demand to have the punishment here and now, and want no more respite." The use of the words "Day of Reckoning" implies that disbelievers will get the punishment when the reckoning of their evil deeds will have been made and they are shown to have fully deserved it.

15:36.

7:15; 15:37; 17:63.

Commentary:

The clause, the day when they shall be raised, signifies the time of the spiritual rebirth of man, when having attained to the stage of النفس المطمئنة (the soul at peace) he becomes quite immune to spiritual fall. It does not signify the Day of Resurrection after death, because there is no possibility of man being seduced by Satan after his death. See also 15:37.

15:39.

Commentary:

The words, till the day of the appointed time, may mean, till the day when truth finally triumphs over falsehood and the votaries of falsehood are completely crushed. See also 15:39.

2:29; 22:67; 40:69.

Commentary:

The verse answers the objection raised by disbelievers in v. 25 above that there is no life beyond the present life on earth. It purports to say that God Who has the power to raise—and He does raise—people who, to all intents and purposes, are spiritually and morally dead and defunct, to a new, vibrant and vigorous life, can and will certainly bring about a Resurrection in the next world. The verse further says that man was nothing. God gave him life to serve a great purpose. If man’s life had no purpose, God would not have created him, and if death were the end of all life, God would be regarded as guilty of doing something purposeless. But He is far above that. Therefore a new and better life which knows no decline or end awaits him in the next world. See also 2:29.

10:30.

Important Words:

The verse embodies yet another very convincing argument against idol worship. Islam presents a Living God Who listens to the prayers of His devotees and has given proof of this fact in every age. He reveals Himself to His true votaries by accepting their prayers and consoles them in the hour of distress by speaking to them words of comfort. How encouraging and hope-raising are the Quranic words: "And when My servants ask thee about Me, say, I am near. I answer the prayer of the supplicant when he prays to Me" (2:187). Other religions hold out no such promise to their followers. Let them cry hoarse, the Quran says, their false gods will never answer their prayer because they do not possess any such power. Of what use, then, is that deity which is deaf and dumb and hears and answers not the agonised cries of its votaries?

41:17; 69:7.

Commentary:

The verse does not mean that any particular time is auspicious or inauspicious or lucky or unlucky. The meaning is that for the tribe of ‘Ad the day proved unlucky.

Commentary:

In the previous verses mention was made of the Jews who rejected the Holy Prophet’s Message and who profaned their Sabbath and consequently incurred God’s displeasure. In the present verse, however, Muslims have been enjoined to be particularly careful about the obligatory Friday Prayer. Every people has a Sabbath and the Muslim Sabbath is Friday. As soon as call for Prayer is made all business is to cease and the Faithful should attend the mosque to listen to the Imam’s sermon (khutbah), which usually deals with some topical subject concerning the moral and social needs of the community and how to fulfil them.

As the Surah seems particularly to deal with the time of the Promised Messiah, the call for Friday Prayer may also signify his clarion call to Muslims to listen to his Message.

Commentary:

In vv. 36-39 above, it was stated that a person who severs all connection with God and defies and contravenes His laws, can never be treated like one who makes those laws a rule of life. Both these classes of men choose different ways of life and inevitably come to different ends. This is God’s eternal and unchangeable laws which cannot be altered to suit anybody’s wishful thinking. Further, disbelievers were asked whether there was any authority in any revealed Scripture that they would be allowed to choose a way of life of their own liking and would escape the consequences of their evil deeds. In the present verse they are told that if they possess no Scriptural authority to support their foolish ideas, and if reason and logic too, do not support them, have they then taken a covenant from God which will remain in force till the Day of Judgement that they will have whatever they like and do whatever they like and yet not suffer the consequences flowing from their actions? If they think so, the verse warns them, they are mistaken.