37:1. By those [angels] lined up in rows,

37:2. And by those [angels] who drive [the clouds],

37:3. And by those [angels] who recite Allah’s words,

37:4. Verily your God is indeed One,

37:5. Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, and Lord of every point of sunrise.^{1The point of sunrise varies throughout the year.}

37:6. Verily We have adorned the lowest heaven with the beauty of the stars,

37:7. which also serve as a protection against every rebellious devil,

37:8. so that they cannot eavesdrop on those on high, for they are pelted from all sides

37:9. to repulse them. And theirs will be a perpetual punishment.

37:10. But if any of them snatches some words,^{2This refers to the words of the angels, as they discuss what is going to happen on earth, based on the divine decree.} he will be pursued by a shooting star.

37:11. So ask them [O Muhammad]: Is it more difficult to create them [again, on the Day of Resurrection] than all the other things We have created? Verily We created them from sticky clay.

This soorah begins with an oath in which Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) swears by the noble angels, when they worship Him and dispose of people’s affairs by His leave, affirming His divinity and Lordship.

﴾By those [angels] lined up in rows﴿ that is, in rows serving their Lord.

﴾And by those [angels] who drive [the clouds]this also refers to the angels, who drive the clouds by Allah’s leave.

﴾And by those [angels] who recite Allah’s words﴿.

As they are devoted to their Lord, worshipping and serving Him, and not disobeying Him even for an instant, Allah swears by them, affirming His divinity, as He says:

﴾Verily your God is indeed One]( - He has no partner in divinity, so devote your love, fear, hope, and all kinds of worship solely to Him.

﴾Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, and Lord of every point of sunrise]j that is. He is the Creator of these things, Who provides for them and controls them; just as He has no partner in His Lordship over them, so too He has no partner inHis divinity. Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) often affirms the oneness of His divinity by affirming the oneness of His Lordship, because it is indicative of it, and the polytheists themselves also affirmed it, so He proves to them the soundness of what they denied on the basis of what they affirm.

Allah singles out for mention the points of sunrise, because that also implies the points of sunset. The word translated here as ‘points of sunrise’ may also refer to the points of rising of the stars that are mentioned in the following verses, hence He says: ﴾Verily We have adorned the lowest heaven with the beauty of the stars, which also serve as a protection against every rebellious devil, so that they cannot eavesdrop on those on high﴿. Here Allah mentions two important benefits of the stars:

1 - They are adornment for the heaven. Were it not for the stars, the heaven would be a dark place with no light. But He has adorned it in order to illuminate it throughout and make it beautiful, and so that people may navigate by the stars in darkness on land and sea, and there are also other benefits from them.

2- They serve to protect the heaven from every rebellious devil, preventing them from reaching the heaven in order to eavesdrop on those on high, namely the angels. When they try to listen, they are pelted with shooting stars ﴾from all sides﴿, so as to repulse them and drive them away so that they cannot listen to what is said by those on high.

f﴾And theirs will be a perpetual﴿ that is, ongoing ﴾punishment﴿; it has been prepared for them, because they rebelled and failed to obey their Lord.

Were it not that Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) makes an exception here, this would indicate that they never hear anything at all, but He says 6(But if any of them snatches some words﴿ that is, except the one among the rebellious devils who snatches a single word by stealth,

﴾fhe will be pursued by a shooting star﴿. Sometimes it hits him before he is able to convey that word to his familiars, so the news of heavenis cut off; and sometimes he passes it on before he is hit, but they also tell one hundred lies with that word, that they propagate because of the word that was heard from heaven.

Having described these great creations, Allah says;

﴾So ask them [O Muhammad]﴿ that is, ask those who deny their recreation after death tjls it more difficult to create them [again, on the Day of Resurrection]﴿ that is, is recreating them after their death more difficult,

﴾than all the other things We have created?﴿ They will inevitably affirm that the creation of the heavens and the earth is more difficult than the creation of humankind.

So they have no choice but to affirm and believe in the resurrection. Indeed, if they look at their own selves and reflect upon them, they will realise that their initial creation from sticky clay is more difficult, when they think about it, than their recreation after death. Hence Allah says: Verily We created them from sticky clay﴿. This is like the verse in which Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

﴾-(Indeed, We created man from dry clay, made from black mud moulded into shape.﴿ (al-Hijr 15: 26)

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37:12. Rather you wonder [at their disbelief in the resurrection] whilst they ridicule it.

37:13. and when they are reminded, they do not pay heed,

37:14. and when they see a sign, they resort to ridicule,

37:15. and they say: This is obviously nothing but magic!

37:16. What! When we have died and have turned into dust and bones, will we really be raised up,

37:17. and our forefathers, too?

37:18. Say: Yes, and you will be humiliated.

37:19. It will be but a single blast [of the Trumpet], and immediately they will be [alive and] looking around.

37:20. They will say: Woe to us! This is the Day of Judgement!

37:21. [It will be said:] This is the Day of Decision that you used to deny.

Rather you wonder﴿ O Messenger or, O man - at the disbelief of those who disbelieve in the resurrection, after you showed them great signs and clear evidence. It is indeed something astonishing and strange (that there are people who deny the resurrection), because it is something that cannot be denied

﴾whilst﴿ even stranger than their denial is the fact that they ﴾ridicule﴿ the one who is telling them about the resurrection. They were not content merely to deny it; rather they went further and ridiculed the word of truth.

﴾and﴿ also strange is the fact that ﴾when they are reminded﴿ of what they know on the basis of their natural inclination and rational thinking, and what is instilled in them and what they see around them, ﴾they do not pay heed]* to that. If they do not pay heed because of ignorance, this indicates that they are extremely unintelligent, because they were reminded of something that is instilled in them and is well known on the basis of rational thinking, and there can be no doubt about it. And if that is because of wilful ignorance and stubbornness, that is even stranger.

Also strange is the fact that when proof is established for them and they are reminded of the signs to which the smartest people and those who are most mature in thinking would submit, they ridicule them and find them odd.

Also strange is the fact that they said of the truth when it came to them: ﴾This is obviously nothing but magic!﴿. They regarded the most sublime of things, namely the truth, as being like the most base and ignoble of things.

Also strange is the fact that they compared the power of the Lord of earth and heaven with the power of human beings who are lacking in all aspects, and they said, thinking it unlikely and denying it: ﴾What! When we have died and have turned into dust and bones, will we really be raised up, and our forefathers, too?﴿

Because this was all they had to offer, Allah commanded His Messenger (ﷺ) to respond in a way to alarm them, so He said: ﴾Say: Yes﴿ you will be resurrected, you and your forefathers ﴾and you will be humiliated﴿ that is, brought low; it is not beyond Allah’s power to resurrect you.

﴾lt will be but a single blast﴿ that Israfeel will blow on the Trumpet ﴾and immediately they﴿ will be resurrected from their graves and ﴾will be [alive and] looking around﴿. As they were initially created, they will be resurrected: whole in body, barefoot, naked and uncircumcised. In that state they will show their regret, disgrace and loss, and they will call out (wishing) for death (cf 25: !3).

﴾They will say: Woe to us! This is the Day of Judgement!﴿ They will affirm that which they used to ridicule in this world.

But it will be said to them: ﴾This is the Day of Decision﴿ among people, and between them and their Lord, regarding that concerning which they differed among themselves of rights and duties, and between them and other people.

37:22. [Allah will command:] Gather together those who did wrong, and others of their ilk, as well as whatever they used to worship

37:23. besides Allah, and direct them to the path of hell.

37:24. But detain them, for they are to be questioned.

37:25. [Allah will say to them:] What is the matter with you, that you do not help one another?

37:26. Rather on that day they will submit completely.

That is, when they are brought on the Day of Resurrection, and they see with their own eyes that which they disbelieved in and used to ridicule, the command will be issued to take them to the fire, which they used to disbelieve in, and it will be said:

﴾Gather together those who did wrong﴿ that is, they wronged themselves by disbelieving, ascribing partners to Allah and committing sins ﴾and others of their ilk﴿ who did similar deeds. Each person will be joined to others who were like him in misdeeds.

﴾as well as whatever they used to worship besides Allah﴿ such as the idols and rivals that they claimed; gather them all together, ﴾and direct them to the path of hell ﴿ that is, drive them violently to hell.

﴾But﴿ after it has become clear to them that their fate is hell and they know that they are among the people who are destined for the realm of doom, it will be said:

﴾detain them﴿ before you take them to hell﴾for they are to be questioned﴿ about what they used to fabricate in this world, so that their lies and fabrications will be made clear before the witnesses.

Then it will be said to them: ﴾What is the matter with you, that you do not help one another?﴿ That is, what has happened to you today? What has befallen you, so that you do not help one another or support one another, after you used to claim in the previous world that your gods would ward off the punishment from you and help you, and they would intercede for you with Allah? It is as if they will not answer this question, because they will be overcome with humiliation and shame; they will submit to the punishment of the fire and will surrender, having lost all hope, so they will not speak. Hence Allah says: ﴾Rather on that day they will submit completely﴿.

37:27. They will turn upon one another,^{1The misguided disbelievers will turn to their leaders and reproach them} reproaching one another.

37:28. They [the followers] will say [to the leaders]: You used to prevent us from doing what is right [and good].

37:29. [The leaders] will say [to the followers]: Rather it was you who would not believe.

37:30. and we had no power over you. Rather it was you who were a people given to transgression.

37:31. Now the punishment of our Lord has become inevitable for us; we will surely taste it.

37:32. We led you astray, for we ourselves had gone astray.

37:33. Verily on that day they will all share in the punishment.

37:34. Indeed that is how We will deal with the evildoers,

37:35. for when it was said to them: There is no god but Allah they would turn away in arrogance

37:36. and say: Are we to abandon our gods for the sake of a mad poet?

37:37. Rather he has brought the truth and confirmed the [message of the earlier] Messengers.

37:38. You [O disbelievers] will surely taste the painful punishment,

37:39. but you will not be requited for anything other than what you used to do.

When they are gathered together with others of their ilk and their gods, and taken to the path of hell, and they are detained and questioned but do not answer, they will then turn upon one another, blaming one another for having gone astray and led them astray. The followers will say to the leaders:

﴾You used to prevent us from doing what is right [and good]﴿ that is, you used to prevent us by force and power, so you led us astray. Were it not for you, we would have been believers.

﴾[The leaders] will say﴿ to them:

﴾Rather it was you who would not believe﴿ that is, you continued to ascribe partners to Allah as we did, so what makes you better than us? What right do you have to blame us?

﴾fand﴿ in fact ﴾we had no power over you﴿ that is, we did not force you to choose disbelief;

﴾Rather it was you who were a people given to transgression﴿ and you overstepped the mark.

﴾Now the punishment of our Lord has become inevitable for us﴿ that is, for us and for you;

﴾we will surely taste it﴿ that is, the punishment, and this is the will and decree of our Lord, that we and you should taste the punishment and share the suffering.

Therefore, ﴾We led you astray, for we ourselves had gone astray﴿ that is, we called you to the path that we were following, which was the path of misguidance, and you responded to our call, so do not blame us; rather blame yourselves.

﴾Verily on that day﴿ namely the Day of Resurrection, ﴾they will all share in the punishment﴿, even though the severity of the punishment will vary according to the extent of their sins. Just as they shared disbelief in this world, they will share the consequences thereof in the hereafter. Hence Allah says: tflndeed that is how We will deal with the evildoers﴿.

Then Allah states that their evildoing was extreme and went beyond all bounds:

﴾for when it was said to them: There is no god but Allah﴿ and they were called to this message and were instructed to abandon all other gods, c-(they would turn away in arrogance﴿ from the message and from the one who brought it.

ffand say﴿ objecting to it: ﴾Are we to abandon our gods﴿ whom we and our forefathers have continued to worship, ﴾for the sake of!) and the words of ﴾fa mad poet?﴿ They were referring thereby to Muhammad (ﷺ). And they did not stop at turning away from him or simply rejecting him; rather they judged him in the most unfair manner and deemed him to be a mad poet, when they were well aware that he knew nothing of poetry or poets, and his character was not that of a poet; rather he was the most wise of Allah’s creation and the most mature in thinking.

Hence Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) said, refuting their accusation: ﴾Rather he﴿ namely Muhammad (ﷺ)

﴾has brought the truths that is, his coming is true, and what he has brought of teachings and the Qur’an is true

﴾and confirmed the [message of the earlier] Messengers﴿ that is, his coming confirms what the Messengers foretold concerning him. Were it not for his coming and his message, the Messengers would not have been telling the truth. Therefore he is a sign and a miracle of every Messenger who came before him, because they spoke of him and foretold his coming, and Allah took from them their covenant and pledge that if he came to them, they would surely believe in him and support him, and they took the same promise from their nations. So when he came, the truthfulness of the Messengers who came before him became apparent, and the falsehood of those who disagreed with them became clear. If it had so happened that he did not come, when they had foretold his coming, that would have shed doubts on their truthfulness.

The truthfulness of the Messengers was also confirmed by the fact that he brought that which they brought and called to that to which they called, and he believed in them and confirmed the soundness of their message, their prophethood and their laws.

Because they said earlier (in 37: 31) f[we will surely taste it﴿, which may or may not be true, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us in decisive terms, that cannot be but true and certain, because it is He Who says it: *(You [O disbelievers] will surely taste the painful punishment, but you will not be requited﴿, by being made to taste the painful punishment, ﴾for anything other than what you used to do﴿ - We did not wrong you; rather We have been just towards you.

Because the wording used here is general, and what is meant here is the polytheists, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) excluded the believers from that, and said:

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37:40. However, for the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah

37:41. there will be provisions that are known [for their beauty and delicious taste],

37:42. fruits of various kinds; and they will be honoured

37:43. in gardens of delight,

37:44. seated on couches facing one another.

37:45. A cup will be passed around among them with wine from a flowing spring,

37:46. white and delicious to those who drink it.

37:47. It will not cause any harm, nor will they be intoxicated by it.

37:48. And with them will be chaste women with big beautiful eyes who restrain their glances,^{1They are the hoor al-‘een, who will be content with their husbands and will not look at other men.}

37:49. as if they are eggs^{2This refers to their colour, as they are fair and unblemished.} carefully guarded.

﴾However, for the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah﴿ they will not taste the painful punishment, because they were sincere to Allah in their deeds. Therefore He chose them and singled them out for His mercy, and showered them with His grace.

﴾there will be provisions that are known﴿ that is, they are not unknown; rather it is an immense provision, the type and quality of which is not unknown, and no one could know its nature.

Then Allah explains that by saying: ﴾fruits of various kinds﴿ that is, all types of fruits that one would enjoy because of its delicious colour and taste

﴾and they will be honoured﴿ that is, they will not be despised or looked down upon; rather they will be respected, appreciated and dignified.

They will honour one another and the angels will honour them, entering upon them from every gate and congratulating them for having attained this great honour. And they will be honoured by the Most Generous of those who show generosity. Who will bestow upon them all kinds of blessings that will bring joy to their hearts and souls.

﴾in gardens of delight﴿ that is, in gardens that are filled with joy and happiness because of what they contain of all sorts of bliss, such as no eye has seen, no ear has heard, nor has it crossed the mind of man, and they are free of all that could spoil their delights, of any kinds of stresses and troubles.

One of the ways in which they will be honoured by their Lord and will honour one another is that they will be ﴾seated on couches﴿ which are raised seats adorned with all kinds of fine and beautiful cloth. They will be reclining on these couches in a way that reflects comfort, serenity and joy,

﴾facing one another﴿ and their hearts will be free of rancour, their love will not be tainted with any element of hate, and they will be delighted to be together, facing one another in a manner that is indicative of the harmony between their hearts. They will show proper etiquette to one another, not turning their backs on one another; rather the fact that they are described as facing one another is indicative of their perfect joy and perfect etiquette towards one another.

﴾fA cup will be passed around among them with wine from a flowing spring﴿ that is, boys who are ready to serve them will go around with delicious drinks, in beautiful cups, filled with nectar scented with musk; these will be cups of wine, but that wine willbe different from the wine of this world in all aspects. In colour it is ﴾white﴿ which is one of the best of colours, and in taste it will be ﴾delicious to those who drink it﴿; the one who drinks it will enjoy it whilst drinking it and afterwards.

It will be free of anything that may harm the mind or cause the drinker to lose his mind; he will not become intoxicated by it and it will not lead to any headache or hangover.

Having told us of the food, drink and gatherings of the people of paradise, and the delights, in general terms and in detail, that are included in the phrase {(gardens of delight﴿, so that people may know what is there, and thus they will long for it, Allah now speaks of their spouses, saying:

﴾And with them will be chaste women with big beautiful eyes who restrain their glances﴿ that is, with the people of paradise, with big beautiful eyes, reaching the pinnacle of beauty and restraining their glances.

What is meant is either that this beautiful and chaste woman restrains her glance and looks only at her husband, because of her chastity, and she does not look beyond him to anyone else, and because of the perfection and beauty of her husband, which is such that she does not want anyone else in paradise but him; or it may be the phrase translated as ﴾restrain their glances﴿ means that they are so beautiful that the husband looks only at his spouse, and restrains his glance which indicates that his thoughts and love are only for her. Both meanings are possible and both are sound.

All of this is indicative of the beauty of both men and women in paradise and their love for one another, which is such that no one would look at anyone else and they will all be extremely chaste; there will be no envy or resentment or grudges, because of the absence of the causes thereof.

﴾with big beautiful eyes﴿ this refers to the beauty of the eye and its lovely shape

﴾as if they﴿ namely the hoor al-‘een ﴾are eggs carefully guarded﴿ that is, covered. That is because of their beauty and purity, and indicates that their colours are the most beautiful of colours and the most delightful to behold, with no blemishes or dark patches.

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37:50. They will turn to one another with questions.

37:51. One of them will say: I had a friend [on earth],

37:52. who used to say: Are you one of those who believe

37:53. that when we have died and become dust and bones, we will be brought to account?

37:54. He will say: Shall we look for him [in the fire]?

37:55. So he will look down and see him in the middle of the blazing fire.

37:56. He will say: By Allah, you almost brought about my ruin!

37:57. Were it not for the grace of my Lord, 1 too would have been there [in hell].

37:58. Is it then that we are not going to die,

37:59. except our first death, and that we will not be punished?

37:60. Surely this is the supreme triumph!

37:61. For the like of this let all strive, who wish to strive.

Having described their bliss and perfect happiness, with food and drink, beautiful spouses and splendid places to sit, Allah now describes how they will converse with one another and speak of matters of the past, and they will continue talking and asking one another questions, until the conversation leads to one of them saying:

﴾I had a friend﴿ in the former world who denied the resurrection and criticised me for believing in it, and he ﴾used to say﴿ to me: ﴾Are you one of those who believe that when we have died and become dust and bones, we will be brought to account﴿ that is, requited for our deeds?

In other words (this disbelieving friend asked): How can you believe such a far-fetched notion which is very strange, that when we have disintegrated and become dust and bones, we will be resurrected and brought back to life, then we will be brought to account and requited for our deeds?

The one who is in paradise will say to his brethren: this is my story and this is what happened between me and my friend; I was and remained a true believer, whilst he did not believe in the resurrection and persisted in denying it until we died, then we were resurrected, and I attained what you see of bliss, which the Messengers told us about, and he has undoubtedly ended up in pain and suffering.

﴾Shall we look for him [in the fire]﴿ and see what happened to him, for it will increase our joy and happiness with what we are enjoying, when we see that with our own eyes?

What appears to be the case, with regard to what the people of paradise have of joy in being together and in harmony with one another, is that they will respond to what he says and will go with him to look at his friend. ﴾So he will look down﴿ and will see his friend ﴾in the middle of the blazing fire﴿ that is, in the midst of torment, overwhelmed and surrounded by punishment.

﴾He will say﴿, blaming him for his predicament and expressing gratitude to Allah for His blessing in saving him from his friend’s attempt to mislead him:

﴾By Allah, you almost brought about my ruin!﴿ That is, you almost destroyed me because of what you tried to confuse me with of your specious arguments.

﴾Were it not for the grace of my Lord﴿ and His making me steadfast in Islam

﴾1 too would have been there [in hell]﴿, suffering the punishment with you.

﴾Is it then that we are not going to die, except our first death, and that we will not be punished?﴿ That is, the believer will say this, overjoyed with the blessing that Allah will bestow upon the people of paradise, of remaining there for ever and being safe from punishment. It is a question in the sense of an affirmation. In other words, he will say to his friend who is now being punished: Do you still claim that we will not die, except our first death, and that there will be no resurrection or punishment after that?

In the phrase ﴾They will turn to one another with questions﴿ (37: 50), the object of the question is not mentioned, but the context is one of joy and happiness, which indicates that they will ask one another about whatever matters will bring them joy, and they will discuss issues concerning which there were disputes and confusion.

It is well known that people of knowledge find joy in raising questions about issues and researching matters, and that joy is greater than the pleasure that other people find in discussing worldly matters. So they will have an abundant share of this kind ofjoy, and they will attain discovery of some facts in paradise that cannot be expressed.

Having mentioned the bliss of paradise and described it in these beautiful terms, Allah Lṣs) praises it and makes those who are striving long for it, and He encourages them to strive even harder:﴾Surely this is the supreme triumph﴿ by virtue of which they attain all that is good and all that their hearts desire, and everything that concerns them or harms them is warded off thereby. Could there be any greater triumph to be sought, or is this the ultimate, as they have attained the pleasure of the Lord of the earth and the heavens, and have found the joy of being near to Him and knowing Him, seeing Him and listening to His words?

﴾For the like of this let all strive, who wish to strive﴿ for it is the most deserving of spending that which is most precious, and it is the first thing for which smart and knowledgeable people should strive, and it is the source of the greatest regret if the diligent person lets any time pass without doing righteous deeds that will bring him closer to paradise, so how about if he does deeds that bring him closer to the fire?

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37:62. Is that the better dwelling place, or the tree of Zaqqoom?^{1The contrast here is between paradise and all that it contains of pleasure, joy, delicious food and drink, and so on, and hell with the bitter fruit borne by the infernal tree of Zaqqoom.}

37:63. Verily We have made it a torment for the wrongdoers.

37:64. It is a tree that grows from the depths of hell;

37:65. Its fruits are like the heads of devils.

37:66. They will surely eat thereof, filling their bellies.

37:67. Then on top of that they will be given a mixture of filthy, scalding water to drink,

37:68. Then to hell will they return.^{2The place where they will drink this filthy, scalding water will be outside hell; they will be taken there to drink it, then they will be brought back into hell.}

37:69. For they found their fathers going astray

37:70. and they hastened to follow in their footsteps.

37:71. Indeed before them many of the earlier peoples went astray

37:72. even though We sent Messengers to them to wam them.

37:73. So see what was the fate of those who had been forewarned [but did not pay heed],

37:74. except the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah.

﴾fls that the better dwelling place﴿ that is, is that bliss of the people of paradise, that We have described, better - or the punishment in hell that will involve all kinds of torment? And which of the two foods is better - that which We have described in paradise, or the food of the people of hell? It is ﴾the tree of Zaqqoom. Verily We have made it a torment﴿ that is, a punishment

(﴾for the wrongdoers﴿ who wronged themselves by disbelieving and committing sins.

﴾flt is a tree that grows from the depths of hell﴿ that is, from the middle of hell. That is where it emerges, and the substance of which it is made is the worst of substances. The vileness of the place where it grows is indicative of how vile and foul this plant is. Hence Allah draws our attention to its vile nature by mentioning where it growsand the way in which He describes its fruits, for they are ﴾like the heads of devils﴿. After that, do not ask about its taste, or what it will do to their insides and their bellies; they will have no other food and they will have no choice but to eat it.

Hence Allah says: ﴾They will surely eat thereof, filling their bellies﴿. This is the food of the people of hell, and how awful their food will be.

Then Allah mentions their drink: ﴾Then on top of that﴿ that is, after that food,

﴾they will be given a mixture of filthy, scalding water to drink﴿ that is, water that is extremely hot. This is like the verses in which Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

﴾...If they cry for help, they will be given water like [boiling] dregs of oil that will scald their faces. What a dreadful drink, and what a miserable resting-place!﴿ (al-Kahf 18:29)

- and:

﴾.. .and be given scalding water to drink that will tear their intestines?﴿

﴾Then to hell will they return﴿ their abode to which they will return will be hell, so that they may taste its severe punishment and extreme heat. There is nothing more wretched than that.

It is as if it was asked: what brought them to this abode? So Allah says: ﴾For they found their fathers going astray and they hastened to follow in their footsteps﴿ that is, they hastened to follow them in misguidance, and they did not pay any attention to that to which the Messengers called them, or of that of which the Books warned them, or the words of those who offered sincere advice; rather they opposed them by saying:

﴾...We found our forefathers following a certain path, and we are following in their footsteps.﴿ (az-Zukhruf43: 23)

﴾Indeed before them many of the earlier peoples went astray﴿ before those who are addressed here, and few of them believed and were guided.

﴾even though We sent Messengers to them to warn them﴿ against that misguidance.

﴾So see what was the fate of those who had been forewarned﴿. Their fate was doom, disgrace and shame. So let these people beware of persisting in their misguidance, lest they meet the same fate.

Because those who were warned did not all go astray - rather some of them believed and were sincerely devoted to Allah - Allah states that they were exempted from doom, as He says: ﴾except the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah﴿ that is, those whom Allah chose and singled out for His mercy because of their sincerity; their end was good.

Then Allah mentions examples of the fate of disbelieving nations:

37:75. Indeed Nooh called upon Us, and how excellent was Our response!

37:76. We saved him and his family from great distress

37:77. and We made his offspring the only survivors.

37:78. We left for him [a favourable mention] among subsequent generations:

37:79. Peace be upon Nooh among all nations.

37:80. Thus do We reward those who do good.

37:81. Verily he was one of Our believing slaves.

37:82. Then We drowned the others.

Here Allah tells us about His slave and Messenger Nooh (عليه السلام), the first of the Messengers. When he called his people to Allah for that lengthy period and his call only increased them in aversion, he called upon his Lord and said:

﴾...My Lord, do not leave on earth a single living soul from among the disbelievers.﴿ (Nooh 71: 26)

- and:

﴾...0 my Lord, help me against those who spread mischief.﴿

Allah answered his prayer and praised Himself, saying: i﴾and how excellent was Our response﴿.

Allah responded in a way that was exactly what Nooh asked for: He saved him and his family from great distress, drowned all the disbelievers and left his offspring to produce future generations. So all people are descended from Nooh (عليه السلام) And Allah granted him a favourable mention that would endure until the time of later generations, because he did well in worshipping the Creator and showed kindness to His creation. This is Allah’s way with those who do good: He causes them to be mentioned favourably, commensurate with their good deeds.

The words ﴾Verily he was one of Our believing slaves﴿ indicate that faith is the highest status anyone can attain, and that it includes all teachings of religion, both fundamental and minor issues, because Allah praised the elite of His creation for having faith.

37:83. Verily among those who followed his way was Ibraheem,

37:84. for he came to his Lord with a pure heart.

37:85. He said to his father and his people: What are these that you worship?

37:86. Is it falsehood gods other than Allah - that you seek?

37:87. What, then, do you think of the Lord of the worlds?^{1That is, what shortcomings do you think He has, so that you worship gods other than Him?}

37:88. Then he cast a glance at the stars^{2That is, he looked up, thinking of an excuse so that he could avoid going out with the people for their festival.}

37:89. and said: Indeed I am sick.^{3This could refer to physical sickness, or being sick of his people’s disbelief and worship of idols. This was a double-entendre by means of which he avoided lying, whilst his people might understand something other than what was actually the case.}

37:90. So his people turned away from him and left.

37:91. Then he turned upon their gods and said: Will you not eat?

37:92. What is the matter with you that you do not speak?

37:93. Then he turned upon them, striking them with his right hand,^{4What is meant is that he struck them with force, because the right hand is usually stronger than the left.}

37:94. and his people came rushing towards him.

37:95. He said: Do you worship that which you yourselves carve,

37:96. when it is Allah Who has created you and everything you make?

37:97. They said: Build a pyre for him and throw him into the blazing fire.

37:98. They planned to harm him, but We brought them low.

37:99. He said: I am going to [a land where I may freely worship] my Lord; He will guide me.

37:100. My Lord, grant me a righteous son.

37:101. So We gave the glad tidings of a forbearing son.

37:102. Then when [the son] reached the age where he could help him in his endeavours, Ibraheem said: O my son, I see in my dream that I must sacrifice you. What do you think? [The son] said: O my father, do as you are commanded. You will find me, if Allah so wills, among the steadfast.

37:103. So when they had both submitted to the command of Allah, and Ibraheem had laid his son face down on the ground.

37:104. We called out to him: O Ibraheem,

37:105. you have already fulfilled the dream. Thus do We reward those who do good,

37:106. for this was clearly the most difficult of tests.

37:107. And We ransomed him with a tremendous sacrifice.

37:108. We left for him [a favourable mention] among subsequent generations:

37:109. Peace be upon Ibraheem.

37:110. Thus do We reward those who do good.

37:111. Verily he was one of Our believing slaves.

37:112. We gave him the glad tidings of Is-haq, a Prophet, one of the righteous.

That is, among the party of Nooh and those who followed his path of prophethood and conveying the message, calling people to Allah and answering that call, was Ibraheem al-Khaleel (عليه السلام)

﴾for he came to his Lord with a pure heart﴿ that was free of doubt and desires that prevent one from understanding the truth and acting upon it. If a person’s heart is pure, he will be safe from all evil and will attain all good.

As a result of being pure, Ibraheem was free of ill feelings and envy towards people, and other bad attitudes. Hence he sincerely advised others about Allah, starting with his father and his own people:

﴾S(He said to his father and his people: What are these that you worship?﴿ This was a question by way of denunciation and establishing binding proof.

﴾fls it falsehood - gods other than Allah - that you seek?﴿ That is, do you worship - besides Him false gods that are not gods at all and are not fit to be worshipped? What do you think the Lord of the worlds will do to you, when you worship others besides Him? This was warning them of the requital for persisting in their ascription of partners to Allah.

(It was as if he was saying): what do you think the Lord of the worlds has of shortcomings, so that you ascribed rivals and partners to Him?

Ibraheem (llO wanted to break the idols and find a way to do so. He took the opportunity of their heedlessness when they went to celebrate one of their festivals. He went out with them, ﴾Then he cast a glance at the stars and said: Indeed I am sick﴿. According to the saheeh hadith:

«Ibraheem only lied on three occasions: when he said ﴾Indeed I am sick﴿, when he said:

﴾...Nay, it was this one, the biggest of them, who did it...﴿ (al-Anbiya’ 21: 63)

- and when he said of his wife: She is my sister.» (A sound hadith recorded by at-Tirmidhi)

The aim of his staying behind and not going out with them was so that he could carry out his plan concerning their gods.

﴾So his people turned away from him and left﴿. When he found the opportunity,

﴾Then he turned upon their gods﴿ that is, he rushed to them, stealthily, ﴾and said﴿ to them, by way of ridiculing them:

﴾Will you not eat? What is the matter with you that you do not speak?﴿ That is, how can it be appropriate for them to be worshipped when they are more helpless than animals which eat and make sounds? For these are inanimate things that do not eat or speak.

﴾Then he turned upon them, striking them with his right hand﴿ that is, he began to strike them with force, until he broke them to pieces, except the largest one of them, so that the people would come back to it.

﴾and his people came rushing﴿ that is, running ﴾towards him﴿, wanting to attack him, after having investigated the matter. They said:﴾f...Who has done this to our gods? He must surely be one of the wrongdoers!﴿ (al-Anbiya'21: 59)

It was said to them:

...We heard a young man speaking ill of them; he is called Ibraheem.﴿

He said:

﴾And, by Allah, I have a plan for your idols, after you leave.﴿

So they rebuked him and criticised him, but he said:

﴾(...Nay, it was this one, the biggest of them, who did it. So ask them, if they can speak! So they started thinking and said to one another: Surely it is you who are doing wrong. But then they relapsed into their former obstinacy [and said]: You know full well that these [idols] cannot speak. Ibraheem said: Do you then worship, besides Allah, that which cannot benefit or harm you in any way? Fie on you and on all that you worship besides Allah! Have you then no sense?﴿

﴾He said﴿ here: ﴾Do you worship that which you yourselves carve﴿ that is, you make it with your own hands and manufacture it yourselves? How can you worship them, when it is you who make them, and fail to show devotion to Allah alone, when it is He ﴾Who has created you and everything you make? They said: Build a pyre﴿ that is, a tall structure, and light a fire in it, ﴾and throw him into the blazing fire﴿ as a punishment for what he had done of breaking their gods.

﴾They planned to harm him﴿ that is, to kill him in the worst manner

﴾but We brought them low﴿. Allah caused their plan to backfire on them, and He made the fire cool and safe for Ibraheem.

Because they did this to him, and he established proof against them and left them no excuse, ﴾He said: I am going to [a land where I mayfreely worship] my Lord﴿ that is, I am migrating for His sake, heading towards the blessed land, the land of ash-Sham (Greater Syria).

﴾He will guide me﴿ that is, He will show me what is best for me in both my spiritual and worldly affairs. Elsewhere Allah tells us that Ibraheem said:

﴾I will keep away from [and disavow] you and those on whom you call besides Allah, and I will call upon my Lord; perhaps my supplication to my Lord will not remain unanswered.﴿ (Maryam 19: 48)

﴾My Lord, grant me a righteous son﴿ that was when he despaired of his people and did not see anything good in them; he asked Allah to grant him a righteous son, by means of whom Allah would benefit him during his lifetime and after his death.

Allah answered his prayer, as He says: ﴾So We gave the glad tidings of a forbearing son﴿. This was undoubtedly Isma‘eel (عليه السلام), because when Allah mentioned the glad tidings of Is-haq, He mentioned his son Ya'qoob after him:

((...Then We gave her the glad tidings of Is-haq and, after Is-haq, of Ya'qoob.﴿ (Hood II: 71)

This indicates that Is-haq was not the one who was to be sacrificed.

Allah described Isma‘eel as forbearing, which implies that he was patient, had a good attitude, was big-hearted and was forgiving towards anyone who caused offence.

﴾Then when [the son] reached the age where he could help him in his endeavours﴿ that is, he reached an age where he was the dearest he could be to his father, for there was no longer any trouble in looking after him and he could now be of benefit to him, Ibraheem ()E30 said to him:

((I see in my dream that I must sacrifice you﴿ that is, I have seen in my dream that Allah is commanding me to sacrifice you. The dreams of the Prophets are revelation from Allah.﴾What do you think?﴿ For the command of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) must be fulfilled.

Isma’eel said, showing patience, seeking reward with Allah, and showing obedience to his father: my father, do as you are commanded﴿ that is, go ahead and do what Allah has commanded you to do.

﴾You will find me, if Allah so wills, among the steadfast﴿. Isma’eel told his father that he had resolved to be patient, and he mentioned the will of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) alongside that, because nothing happens except by Allah’s will.

﴾So when they had both submitted to the command of Allah﴿ that is, Ibraheem and his son Isma'eel, when Ibraheem resolved to kill his son, the apple of his eye, in obedience to the command of his Lord, and for fear of His punishment, and Isma’eel resolved to be patient, and regarded this ordeal as nothing, so as to obey his Lord and please his father.

﴾and Ibraheem had laid his son face down on the ground﴿ so that he could slaughter him. He made him lie with his face towards the ground, so that he would not have to look at his face at the moment of slaughter.

﴾We called out to him﴿ at that tense moment, when he was about to do that astounding deed

Ibraheem, you have already fulfilled the dream﴿ that is, you have done what you were instructed to do, and you resolved to do it and took all the measures that were required, and now there is nothing left but to pass the knife over his throat.

﴾Thus do We reward those who do good﴿ in worshipping Us, giving precedence to seeking Our pleasure over their own whims and desires.

﴾for this﴿ with which We tested Ibraheem (عليه السلام)

﴾was clearly the most difficult of tests﴿ that is, through which the purity of Ibraheem his love for his Lord and the fact that he was indeed the close friend of Allah, were made manifest and becameclear. When Allah bestowed lsma'eel (عليه السلام) upon Ibraheem (عليه السلام), he loved him dearly, but he was also the close friend of the Most Gracious (Khaleel ar-Rahman), and close friendship is the highest level of love; it is a level of love in which there is no room to love anything else, a level which dictates that one be attached to one’s beloved with all of one’s heart.

As part of Ibraheem’s heart became attached to his son lsma‘eel, Allah Lfe) wanted to make his entire heart attached to Him and to test how sincere and strong the bond of close friendship was. So He commanded him to slaughter the one whose love had competed with the love of his Lord.

But when Ibraheem gave precedence to love of Allah over his own desires, and resolved to slaughter his son, all attachment to competitors was removed from his heart, whereupon there was no longer any benefit in slaughtering him. Hence Allah says:

﴾for this was clearly the most difficult of tests. And We ransomed him with a tremendous sacrifice﴿ that is, he was replaced with a great ram, which Ibraheem slaughtered. It was great in terms of it being the ransom for Isma’eel, and in terms of it being one of the sublime acts of worship, and in terms of it being a means of drawing closer to Allah and a precedent to be followed until the Day of Resurrection.

﴾We left for him [a favourable mention] among subsequent generations: Peace be upon Ibraheem﴿ that is, We left for him a favourable mention among the later generations, as was the case among earlier generations. In every subsequent era, Ibraheem ) was and is inevitably loved, venerated and praised.

﴾Peace be upon Ibraheem﴿ this is a salutation to him, as in the verse in which Allah says:

﴾Say: Praise be to Allah and peace be upon His slaves whom He has

﴾Thus do We reward those who do good﴿ in worshipping Allah and in dealing with people; We grant them a way out from hardship and grant them a good end and honourable mention.

﴾Verily he was one of Our believing slaves who believed in what Allah enjoined them to believe in, and whose faith reached the level of certainty, as Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says elsewhere:

﴾Thus We gave Ibraheem an insight into [Allah’s] mighty dominion over the heavens and the earth, so that he might be one of those who have certain faith.﴿ (al-An‘am 6: 75)

﴾We gave him the glad tidings of Is-ljaq, a Prophet, one of the righteous﴿ - this was the second glad tidings of Is-haq, after whom came Ya'qoob. Allah gave the glad tidings that he would be bom and would survive, and his offspring would survive, and that he would be a Prophet, one of the righteous. This was multiple glad tidings.

37:113. We blessed him and Is-haq, but among their descendants are some who do good and some who clearly wrong themselves.

﴾We blessed him and Is-haq﴿ that is, We sent down upon them blessings. The implicit meaning of the word barakah (blessing) is growth and increase in knowledge, good deeds and offspring. From their offspring, Allah brought forth three great nations: the nation of the Arabs, from the offspring of Isma’eel; the nation of the Israelites; and the nation of the Romans (and Byzantines) from the offspring of Is-haq.

﴾but among their descendants are some who do good and some who clearly wrong themselves﴿, that is, there are some who are righteous and some who are evildoers, some who are just and some wrongdoers whose wrongdoing became evident as a result of their disbelief and ascription of partners to Allah. Perhaps these words are aimed at warding off wrong impressions, because the words ﴾We blessed him and Is-haq)﴿ may give the impression that all their offspring are included in that blessing, and that part of the blessing is that all of their offspring should be doers of good. Therefore Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us that some of them are doers of good and some of them are wrongdoers. And Allah knows best.

37

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122.

Indeed We bestowed Our favour upon Moosa and Haroon, and We saved them and their people from great distress.

And We helped them, so that they became the victors.

We gave them [Moosa and Haroon] the clear scripture and guided them to the straight path;

And We left for them [a favourable mention] among subsequent generations:

Peace be upon Moosa and Haroon.

Thus do We reward those who do good.

Verily they were among Our believing slaves.

Here Allah mentions His favour to two of His slaves and Messengers, namely Moosa and Haroon, the two sons of‘Imran, upon whom He bestowed prophethood and made them His Messengers who called people to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى); He saved them and their people from their enemy, Pharaoh, and helped them against him, until Allah drowned him whilst they were looking on; and Allah sent down to them the clear scripture, namely the Torah which contained rulings, exhortations and explanation of all things. Allah guided them to the straight path by prescribing to them a religion with sound rulings and teachings that lead people to Allah, and He blessed them by enabling them to follow it.

﴾And We left for them [a favourable mention] among subsequent generations: Peace be upon Moosa and Haroon﴿ that is, Allah caused them to be highly spoken of and praised among subsequent generations, so it is more apt that this should have been the case among earlier generations. ﴾Thus do We reward those who do good. Verily they were among Our believing slaves﴿.

37:123. Verily Ilyas was one of the Messengers.

37:124. He said to his people: Will you not fear Allah?

37:125. Do you call upon [the idol] Ba‘l and forsake [the worship of] the Best of creators.

37:126. Allah, your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers?

37:127. But they rejected him, so they will surely be brought up [for punishment],

37:128. except the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah.

37:129. And We left for him [a favourable mention] among subsequent generations:

37:130. Peace be upon Ilyas.

37:131. Thus do We reward those who do good.

37:132. Verily he was one of Our believing slaves.

Here Allah Cfe) praises His slave and Messenger Ilyas (HiO for being a Prophet and Messenger, and for calling people to Allah, and tells us that he instructed his people to fear Allah and worship Allah alone, and he forbade them to worship an idol of theirs that was called Ba‘l (Baal), and told them not to forsake the worship of Allah Who created humankind and created them well, cared for them in the best manner and bestowed upon them blessings both visible and invisible.

How could you forsake the worship of Allah, Who did all this, for the sake of worshipping an idol that can neither cause harm nor bring benefit, and can neither create nor grant provision; in fact it does not even eat or speak? Can this be anything but the worst misguidance, foolishness and error?

﴾But they rejected him﴿ and what he called them to, and they did not follow him. Allah said, warning them: ﴾so they will surely be brought up [for punishment]﴿ that is, on the Day of Resurrection. But He did not mention any worldly punishment in their case.

﴾except the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah﴿ that is, those whom Allah chose and blessed them by enabling them to follow their Prophet, so they will not be brought up for punishment; rather they will have a great reward from Allah.

﴾And We left for him﴿ namely Ilyas﴾[a favourable mention] among subsequent generations﴿, as he was highly spoken of.

﴾Peace be upon Ilyas﴿ that is, salutation from Allah and from His slaves to him.

﴾Thus do We reward those who do good. Verily he was one of Our believing slaves﴿. Allah praised him as He praised his fellow Prophets. May the blessings and peace of Allah be upon them all.

37:133. Verily Loot was one of the Messengers.

37:134. We saved him and all his family,

37:135. except an old woman who stayed behind.

37:136. Then We destroyed the others.

37:137. Surely you pass by their ruins by day

37:138. and by night. Will you not then understand?

This is praise from Allah for His slave and Messenger Loot, because he was a Prophet and Messenger who called his people to Allah and forbade them to ascribe partners to Allah and commit shameful acts. But when they did not stop, Allah saved him and his entire family, so they left by night and were saved,

﴾except an old woman who stayed behind﴿. That is, she was among those who stayed behind and were punished. She was the wife of Loot who did not follow his religion.

﴾Then We destroyed the others﴿ by turning their houses upside down,﴾And We turned [their city] upside down and let loose upon them a shower of stones of baked clay.﴿ (al-Hijr 15: 74)

- until they became lifeless and still.

﴾Surely you pass by their ruins﴿ that is, the ruined dwellings of the people of Loot ﴾by day and by night﴿ that is, at those times; you frequently pass by them, so there is no room for doubt.

﴾Will you not then understand﴿ the signs and lessons, and refrain from that which leads to doom?

37:139. Verily Yoonus was one of the Messengers.

37:140. He ran away to the fully-laden ship,

37:141. then he drew lots with them^{1When the sea grew rough and the ship was tossed about by the waves, the crew of the ship feared that they would be drowned, so they decided to lighten the load in order to save themselves. They drew lots to determine who should be thrown overboard, and Yoonus lost the draw.} and he was one of those who lost.

37:142. Then the fish swallowed him. He had done an act worthy of blame.

37:143. Were it not for the fact that he was one of those who glorified Allah a great deal,

37:144. he would have remained in its belly until the Day of Resurrection.

37:145. But We caused him to be cast up, sick, on the barren shore.

37:146. and We caused a gourd vine to grow for him.

37:147. We sent him as a Messenger to a hundred thousand people or more,

37:148. and they believed, so We allowed them to enjoy life for a while.

This is praise from Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) for His slave and Messenger Yoonus ibn Matta, as He praised his fellow Messengers for being Prophets who conveyed the message and called people to Allah.

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us that He punished him in this world then saved him from that punishment, because of his faith and righteous deeds.

﴾He ran away﴿ that is, he ran away from his Lord in anger, thinking that We would not punish him (cf. 21: 87) or detain him in the belly of the fish. Allah does not mention the cause of his anger or the sin that he committed, because there is no benefit for us in mentioning that. Rather what benefits us is to tell us that he committed a sin and Allah punished him for it, despite the fact that he was one of the noble Messengers, and that He saved him after that and absolved him of blame, and made available to him the means of well-being.

When he ran away and fled ﴾to the fully-laden ship﴿ that was laden with passengers and goods, and he embarked along with others, the fully-laden ship became too heavy, so they needed to throw some of the passengers overboard. It was as if no one stood out to them, so they cast lots in order to determine who should be thrown into the sea, which was indicative of fairness on the part of the ship’s crew. When Allah decrees something, He creates the means to bring it about.

When they drew lots, it was Yoonus who was chosen by this means, ﴾Sfand he was one of those who lost)J, so he was thrown into the sea. ﴾Then the fish swallowed him﴿. At the time when the fish swallowed him, he ﴾had done an act worthy of blamed, which was his inappropriate anger.

﴾Were it not for the fact that he was one of those who glorified Allah a great deal﴿ that is, he had previously done a great deal of worship, glorifying and praising his Lord, which he continued to do in the belly of the fish, as he said:

t﴾...There is no god but You. Glory be to You; I have indeed done wrong, p (al-Anbiya '21: 87)

﴾he would have remained in its belly until the Day of Resurrection﴿ that is, it would have been his grave. But because of his glorification and worship of Allah, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) saved him. Thus does Allah save the believers when hardship befalls them.

﴾But We caused him to be cast up, sick, on the barren shore﴿ that is, the fish cast him out of its belly onto the barren shore, which was land that was empty and devoid of people, in addition to being devoid of trees and shade.

﴾sick﴿ that is, he was ill because of his stay in the belly of the fish, to the extent that he was white like a newly hatched chick.

﴾and We caused a gourd vine to grow for him﴿ to give him shade, because it is cool and gives cool shade, and no flies land on it. This was the effect of divine kindness towards him.

Then Allah bestowed further kindness upon him and granted a great blessing to him, by sending him ﴾fas a Messenger to a hundred thousand people or more﴿. What is meant is that they were no more and no less than that. So he called them to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى).

?fand they believed﴿, and that was included in his good deeds, because he was the one who called them.

﴾fso We allowed them to enjoy life for a while﴿ as Allah averted the punishment from them, even though all the reasons for it to befall them had been present.

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says elsewhere:

﴾There was no city that believed [after seeing the punishment] and benefitted from its faith except the people of Yoonus. When theybelieved. We removed from them the punishment of disgrace in this world, and allowed them to enjoy life for a while. ﴿ (Yoonus 10: 98)

•Wrfi"

37:149. So ask them: Does your Lord have daughters while they have sons?^{1The pagans of Quraysh regarded the angels as daughters of Allah and worshipped them, (at-fabari)}

37:150. Or did We create the angels as females, whilst they were present and watching?

37:151. Nay, it is one of their fabrications when they say:

37:152. Allah has begotten [offspring]; verily they are lying.

37:153. Would He [really] choose daughters rather than sons?

37:154. What is the matter with you, that you judge as you do?

37:155. Will you not then pay heed?

37:156. Or do you have clear proof?

37:157. Then bring your scripture, if you are telling the truth.

﴾So ask them﴿ that is, ask those who ascribe others with Allah, who worship angels, and claim that they are the daughters of Allah. Thus they combined ascription of partners to Allah with describing Him in a manner that did not befit His Majesty.

﴾Does your Lord have daughters while they have sons?﴿ That is, this is an unfair division, ascribing offspring to Allah, and attributing toHim what they regarded as the inferior of the two, namely daughters which they did not want for themselves. This is like the verse in which Allah says:

﴾And they ascribe daughters to Allah glory be to Him! - but for themselves they choose what they desire [sons].﴿ (an-Nabl 16 57)

Moreover, they described the angels as daughters of Allah and were certain of that. But Allah Bs) says, confirming that they were lying: ﴾Or did We create the angels as females, whilst they were present and watching﴿ their creation? In other words, that is not the case; they did not witness their creation.

This indicates that they said these words without knowledge; rather this was a fabrication against Allah. Hence He says: ﴾Nay, it is one of their fabrications﴿ that is, it is one of their blatant lies ﴾when they say: Allah has begotten [offspring]; verily they are lying﴿.

﴾Would He [really] choose daughters rather than sons? What is the matter with you, that you judge as you do﴿ in this unfair manner?

﴾Will you not then pay heed﴿ and realise that this is a false and unfair view? If you paid heed, you would not say such a thing.

﴾Or do you have clear proof﴿ to support what you say, from scripture or a Messenger?

All of that is not true, hence Allah says: ﴾Then bring your scripture, if you are telling the truth﴿. Whoever says something, but does not produce sound evidence for it, is deliberately lying, or is speaking about Allah without knowledge.

37:158. They claim that there is kinship between Allah and the jinn, but the jinn know that they [those who make this claim] will be brought up for punishment.

37:159. Glory be to Allah and [exalted be He] far above what they ascribe [to Him],

37:160. except [what] the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah [ascribe to Him of perfect attributes].

That is, these polytheists claimed that there was kinship between Allah and the jinn, just as they claimed that the angels were the daughters of Allah and their mothers were from among the jinn. But the jinn knew that they would be brought before Allah, so that He might requite them as humiliated slaves. If there was any kinship between them and Him, they would not be like that.

﴾Glory be to Allah p the Almighty Sovereign, the Most Perfect and Forbearing, and exalted be He far above what the polytheists ascribe to him of any attribute that stems from their disbelief and ascription of partners to Him.

﴾except [what] the chosen [and sincere] slaves of Allah [ascribe to Him of perfect attributes]﴿. He did not declare Himself to be far above what His sincere slaves attribute to Him, because they only attribute to Him that which is befitting to His majesty. That is why they are described as sincere.

37:161. Verily neither you nor those whom you worship

37:162. can entice anyone away from Allah,

37:163. except those who are destined to bum in hell.

That is, you - O polytheists - and those whom you worship besides Allah cannot entice or mislead anyone except one whom Allah has decreed is one of the people of hell, so the divine decree will inevitably come to pass. What is meant here is a declaration that they and their gods are incapable of misguiding anyone. This highlights the perfect power of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى). In other words: do not hope to mislead the sincere slaves of Allah.

37:164. [The angels say:] There is not one of us but he has an assigned place;

37:165. verily we are those who stand lined up in rows

37:166. and verily we are those who glorify Allah.

This highlights that the angels (peace be upon them) are innocent of what the polytheists attributed to them, and that they are slaves of Allah who do not disobey Him even for an instant. There is not one of them who does not have his assigned place and task that Allah has instructed him to do, and he does not go beyond it. The angels have no control over the matter at all.

﴾verily we are those who stand lined up in rows)﴿ in obedience and in service to Allah.

﴾fand verily we are those who glorify Allah'p and declare Him to be above anything that is not befitting to Him. So how - when this is the case - could they be fit to be partners of Allah? Exalted be Allah far above that.

37:167. Indeed they [the disbelievers] used to say:

37:168. If only we had a scripture like the previous nations,

37:169. we would surely have been devoted [and sincere] slaves of Allah.

37:170. But [now that the Qur’an has come to them] they reject it; so they will come to know [the consequences of their action],

37:171. Our word has already been given to Our slaves, the Messengers,

37:172. that it is surely they who will helped [against their enemies]

37:173. And it is surely Our troops who will be the victors.

37:174. So turn away from them [the disbelievers] for a while.

37:175. Wait and see [what happens to them]; they too will see.

37:176. Do they really seek to hasten Our punishment?

37:177. When it strikes in their midst, evil will be the morning for those who were warned [but did not pay heed].

37:178. Turn away from them [the disbelievers] for a while.

37:179. Wait and see [what happens to them]; they too will see.

37:180. Glory be to your Lord, the Lord of Might and Power, and [exalted be He] far above what they ascribe [to Him].

37:181. Peace be upon the Messengers,

37:182. and praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.

Here Allah tells us that these polytheists expressed their wishes and said: If only scriptures had come to us as they came to the earlier nations, we would have devoted our worship to Allah alone, and we would have been devoted and sincere to the truth.

But they were lying when they said that, for the best of scriptures came to them, but they disbelieved in it. Thus it is known that they defiantly rejected the truth.

﴾so they will come to know [the consequences of their action]﴿, namely the punishment when it befalls them. They should not think that they will have the upper hand in this world either; rather the decree of Allah cannot be put back and cannot be contradicted, for He has already decreed that His Messengers and righteous troops will prevail over others and will be granted a mighty victory from their Lord, and will be able to establish their religion. This is glad tidings to anyone who earns the description of being one of the troops of Allah, by being of sound character and fighting those whom he is instructed to fight, that he will prevail and be victorious.

Then Allah instructs His Messenger (ﷺ) to turn away from those who are stubborn and do not accept the truth, for there is nothing left except to wait for the punishment to strike them. Hence He says: ﴾Wait and see [what happens to them]; they too will see)i whom the punishment will strike, for it will befall them.

﴾When it strikes in their midst﴿ that is, when it strikes them and strikes near them, ﴾evil will be the morning for those who were warned [but did not pay heed]﴿, because it will be a morning of evil, punishment and eradication. Then Allah repeats the command to turn away from them, and warns them of the coming of the punishment.

Having mentioned in this chapter many of the vile things that they said and attributed to Him, Allah now declares Himself to be far above all that, as He says:

﴾Glory be to your Lord﴿ and exalted be He ﴾the Lord of Might and Power﴿ that is, Who possesses might and has subdued all things, and exalted be He far above anything bad that they attribute to Him.

﴾Peace be upon the Messengers﴿ because they are free of sin and flaws, and are sound in what they attribute to the Originator of the earth and the heavens.

﴾and praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds﴿. The word translated here as Upraise﴿ appears with the definite article in the original Arabic, to indicate that it includes all kinds of praise that are due to Him because of His great and perfect attributes, the deeds by which He takes care of the worlds and bestows all kinds of blessings, and by which He averts from them all ills, and controls them in all their movements and in all circumstances. All praise is due to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), for He is holy and far above all shortcomings. He is praised, loved and venerated for all the perfect attributes that He possesses, and His Messengers are sound and saluted with peace; those who follow them in that will have peace in this world and the hereafter, whereas their enemies are subject to doom and destruction in this world and the hereafter.

This is the end of the commentary on Soorat as-Saffat.

All praise and thanks are for Allah, and may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon Prophet Muhammad his family, and his Companions abundantly until the Day of Judgement.