38:1. Sad. By the Qur’an full of reminders,

38:2. yet the disbelievers are steeped in arrogance and stubborn defiance.

38:3. How many nations We destroyed before them; they cried out [for mercy] when it was too late for deliverance.

38:4. They deem it strange that a warner has come to them from among themselves, and the disbelievers say: This man is a magician and a liar!

38:5. What! Has he made all the gods into one God? This is indeed most strange!

38:6. The leaders among them left, saying: Carry on as you are, and hold fast to your gods. There is surely some motive behind it.^{1This verse refers to an incident in which the leaders of Quraysh walked out of a discussion with the Prophet in the house of his paternal uncle Abu Talib. They claimed that the Prophet (^) had ulterior motives in calling them to Islam and wanted to gain power over them, and they were determined not to yield to him.}

38:7. We have never heard [the like] of this in the religion we learned from our forefathers. It is nothing but a fabrication.

38:8. What! Has the Reminder [the Qur’an] been sent down to him alone, out of all of us? Nay, they are in doubt about My Reminder, for they have not yet tasted My punishment.

38:9. Or do they possess the treasuries of the bounty of your Lord, the Almighty, the Bestower?

38:10. Or is theirs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them? Then let them ascend [to heaven] by any means.^{2Because the disbelievers did not think that Muhammad («it|) deserved to receive revelation, Allah challenged them to ascend to heaven, take control of the universe and stop the revelation coming down, or decide who was most deserving of receiving it - if they could. (al-Qurtubi; al-Kash-shaf,}

38:11. They are nothing but troops [of disbelievers] who have gathered against [the Prophet], but they will soon be defeated.^{3Here Allah (3s) is reassuring the Prophet (j^g) and giving him the glad tidings that the disbelievers will be defeated, which happened to them at the Battle of Badr. (al-Qurtubi; an-Nasafi; ash-Shawkani; al-Kash-shaf; Tafseer Abus-Su 'ood)}

This is an explanation from Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), describing the Qur’an and the attitude of those who reject it towards Him and towards the one who brought it.

﴾fṣad. By the Qur’an full of reminders﴿ that is, it reminds people of everything that they need to know about the names, attributes and deeds of Allah, and about religious rulings and what will happen with regard to the resurrection and requital. Thus it reminds them of the basic principles and minor issues of their religion.

There is no need here to mention what is confirmed by this oath, because in fact what is referred to in this oath and what is sworn by in it are one and the same, which is this Qur’an that is described in these sublime terms. If the Qur’an is like this, then people’s need for it surpasses all other needs, and what they must do is accept it and believe in it, and try to find in it that which will be a reminder to them.

Allah guides whomever He wills to do that; as for those who disbelieve in it and in the One Who sent it down, their attitude towards it is ﴾arrogance and stubborn defiance﴿ that is, arrogance, refusal to believe in it and pride. What is meant by stubborn defiance is defiance in rejecting it and trying to refute it and criticise the one who brought it.

Hence Allah warned them by reminding them of the destruction of previous nations who disbelieved in the Messengers: when doom came upon them, they cried out and sought help to avert the punishment from themselves, but by then ﴾it was too late for deliverance﴿ that is, that was not the time for them to be saved from what they had fallen into, and there was no escape from that which had befallen them. So let these people beware lest, if they persist in their arrogance and stubborn defiance, the same fate befall them as befell those earlier nations.

﴾They deem it strange that a warner has come to them from among themselves﴿ that is, these disbelievers find strange something thatis not strange at all, which is that a warner has come to them from among themselves, so that they would be able to learn from him and so that they would know his character very well, because he is one of them, so they would not be deterred from following him by tribal feelings. This is something for which they should be grateful and they should follow him.

But they reacted in the opposite manner to that which was expected of them, and they expressed amazement by way of rejection. Because of their disbelief and wrongdoing, they said: ﴾This man is a magician and a liar﴿

What he did wrong - according to their view - was that ﴾jhe made all the gods into one God﴿. In other words, how could he forbid them to take the so-called partners and rivals as gods, and enjoin them to devote their worship to Allah alone?

﴾This﴿, namely the message he brought, ﴾is indeed most strange﴿ that is, it is extremely strange because it is false and corrupt (according to their view).

﴾The leaders among them left﴿ that is, those whose word was followed, left, urging their people to adhere to what they believed in of ascribing partners to Allah

﴾saying: Carry on as you are, and hold fast to your gods﴿ that is, continue in that way, and strive hard to remain steadfast; persist in worshipping your gods, and do not let anyone deter you or prevent you from doing that.

﴾There is surely some motive behind itp that is, what Muhammad has brought of the prohibition on worshipping them; it is deliberate and he has an ulterior motive and bad intentions. This was a specious argument that could only be accepted by foolish people, for when a person calls others to something, whether it is true or not, his view is not to be rejected by casting aspersions on his intentions, because his intentions and deeds will affect him only. Rather it is to be refuted bypresenting something to counter his arguments and invalidate them by means of proof and evidence. What they meant was: Muhammad (ill) is only calling you to that in order to become a leader among you, and to be respected and followed.

We have never heard [the like] of this﴿ namely what he is saying ﴾in the religion we learned from our forefathers﴿ that is, we did not see our fathers doing or saying that, and our fathers never saw their fathers doing or saying that; so carry on with the religion that your forefathers followed, for it is true, and this to which Muhammad (ilg) is calling you is nothing but fabrications and lies that he has made up.

This is another specious argument, in addition to the first one, as they rejected the truth on the basis of something that does not constitute proof for rejecting any idea at all, namely the argument that what he brought was contrary to that which their misguided forefathers followed. Where do we find (in their argument) any proof to refute the message brought by the Prophet (ﷺ)?

﴾What! Has the Reminder [the Qur’an] been sent down to him alone, out of all of us?﴿ That is, what makes him better than us, so that the Qur’an was sent down to him and not us, and Allah singled him out for that?

This is yet another specious argument. Where is the proof of that to refute what he said? Were not all the Messengers like this? Allah blessed them with the message and instructed them to call people to Allah.

Because none of these arguments that they produced was fit to refute what the Messenger (ﷺ) brought, Allah tells us where they came from, and that the people were ﴾in doubt about My Reminder﴿. They had no knowledge or clear proof, so they fell into doubt and were content with it, and when the clear truth came to them and they had already decided to persist in their doubt, they produced these arguments to ward off the truth, not as a result of any thoroughexamination of the issue, but because they had decided to turn away. It is well known that if anyone who has such an attitude and speaks on the basis of doubt and stubbornness, his words are not acceptable and he is not able to undermine the truth in the least, because he has no strong argument. He is the one who is to be blamed and criticised as soon as he starts talking. Therefore Allah warned them of the punishment and said:

﴾for they have not yet tasted My punishment﴿ that is, they have the audacity to say these words because they were enjoying a life of ease in this world, and nothing of the punishment of Allah had struck them. If they had tasted His punishment, they would not have had the audacity to say that.

﴾Or do they possess the treasuries of the bounty of your Lord, the Almighty, the Bestower?﴿ So that they can give to whomever they wish and withhold from whomever they wish, because they said, ﴾What! Has the Reminder [the Qur’an] been sent down to him alone, out of all of us?﴿ In other words, the bounty and mercy of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) are not under their control, such that they could deny the blessings and gifts of Allah to anyone.

﴾Or is theirs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them﴿ so that they are able to do whatever they want? ﴾Then let them ascend [to heaven] by any means﴿ that would enable them to reach the heaven, then cut off and prevent divine mercy from reaching the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ). How can they say such things when they are the most helpless and weakest of Allah’s creation? Or is their aim to gang up and amass troops to cooperate in support of falsehood and seek to undermine the truth? For that is the reality of what they really want to do.

But they will not be able to achieve this aim; rather their efforts will be wasted and their troops will be defeated. Hence Allah says: tfThey are nothing but troops [of disbelievers] who have gathered against [the Prophet], but they will soon be defeated﴿.

38:12. Before them the people of Nooh rejected [their Prophet], as did ‘Ad and the mighty Pharaoh,

38:13. and Thamood and the people of Loot, and the dwellers of the Wood - such were the parties [who gathered against their Prophets].

38:14. Each of them rejected the Messengers, therefore My punishment became inevitable.

38:15. They are only waiting for a single blast [of the Trumpet, on the Day of Resurrection], after which there will be no turning back.

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) warns them that He will do to them what He did to the nations that came before them, who were stronger than them and gathered more troops to support falsehood.

﴾Before them the people of Nooh rejected [their Prophet], as did ‘ Ad]﴿, the people of Hood

﴾and the mighty Pharaoh﴿ who commanded great troops and immense power.

﴾and Thamood﴿ the people of Salih,

﴾and the people of Loot, and the dwellers of the Wood﴿ - the word translated here as the ﴾Wood﴿ refers to a place that is crowded with different types of trees and plants. They were the people of Shu‘ayb. ﴾such were the parties [who gathered against their Prophets]﴿ - they gathered together all that they had of power, people and weapons in order to refute the truth, but that did not avail them in the slightest.

﴾Each of them rejected the Messengers, therefore My punishment became inevitable﴿ for them. So what makes these people (Quraysh) better than others and more pure of heart, so that they will not meet the same fate as others?

So let them await (fa single blast [of the Trumpet, on the Day of Resurrection], after which there will be no turning back﴿ that is, there will be no way for them to return or go back; it will destroy them and eradicate them, if they persist in what they are doing.

38:16. They say: Our Lord, hasten for us our share [of the punishment] before the Day of Reckoning.^{1They said this by way of ridiculing the Prophet}

38:17. Bear with patience whatever they say, and remember Our slave Dawood, the man of endurance [in worship] who constantly turned [to Us],

38:18. Verily We compelled the mountains to glorify Allah with him in the afternoon and in the morning,

38:19. and the birds, too, who flocked to him; they all would echo his [glorification],

38:20. We strengthened him in his kingdom, and granted him wisdom, and sound judgement [and clarity in speech].

﴾They say: Our Lord, hasten for us our share [of the punishment] before the Day of Reckoning﴿ that is, these disbelievers say, in their ignorance and stubbornness, seeking to hasten the punishment: ﴾Our Lord, hasten for us our share [of the punishment]﴿ that is, what has been allocated to us of punishment, in this world, ﴾before the Day of Reckoning﴿. They persisted in this demand, and they claimed: If you, O Muhammad (ﷺ), were speaking the truth, the sign of your truthfulness would be that you would bring the punishment upon us.

Hence Allah said to His Messenger (ﷺ): ﴾Bear with patience whatever they say﴿, as the Messengers before you were also patient and steadfast, for their words will not harm the truth at all and they will not harm you at all; rather they only harm themselves

Having instructed His Messenger to bear with patience whatever his people said, Allah now instructs him to seek help in being patient by worshipping Allah alone and remembering how true worshippers worshipped Allah, as He says elsewhere:

﴾So bear patiently what they say, and glorify and praise your Lord before the rising of the sun and before its setting...﴿ (Ta Ha 20: 130) One of the greatest worshippers was the Prophet of Allah Dawood (عليه السلام), ﴾the man of endurance [in worship]﴿ that is, he had great stamina in worshipping Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), in both physical and spiritual terms.

﴾who constantly turned [to Us]﴿ that is, he turned to Allah in all his affairs, by repenting to Him, loving Him, showing devotion to Him, fearing Him, putting his hope in Him, often beseeching Him and calling upon Him, turning to Him whenever he committed an error, giving it up and repenting sincerely.

Because of his constantly turning to his Lord and worshipping Him, Allah subjugated the mountains to him, so that they would glorify and praise their Lord with him,﴾in the afternoon and in the morning﴿ that is, at the beginning and end of the day.

﴾and﴿ Allah subjugated ﴾the birds, too, who flocked to him﴿ and gathered with him.

﴾they all﴿ - the mountains and the birds ﴾would echo his [glorification]﴿ in obedience to the words of Allah:

﴾...0 mountains, echo his [glorification of Allah], and you too, O

This is a blessing that Allah bestowed upon him because of his worship.

Then Allah tells us how He blessed him with great dominion: ﴾We strengthened him in his kingdom﴿ that is, We strengthened him with what we gave him of means, and large numbers of troops and equipment, by means of which Allah strengthened him in his kingdom.

Then Allah tells us how He blessed him with knowledge:

﴾and granted him wisdom﴿ that is, prophethood and great knowledge ﴾and sound judgement [and clarity in speech]﴿ that is, when judging disputes among people.

38:21. Has the story of the disputing parties reached you, when they climbed the wall into his chamber?

38:22. When they entered his chamber, Dawood was startled by them. They said: Do not be afraid; we are two disputants, one of whom has wronged the other. Judge between us in truth and do not be unjust; guide us to the right path.

38:23. [One of them said:] This is my brother; he has ninety-nine ewes and I have only one. He said: Let me take care of her, and he has been overbearing towards me in his speech.

38:24. Dawood said: He has certainly wronged you by demanding that your ewe be added to his flock. Indeed many associates [or partners] wrong one another, except those who believe and do righteous deeds - and how few they are. Then Dawood realised that We were only testing him, so he asked his Lord for forgiveness, fell down in prostration and turned to Allah in repentance.

38:25. So We forgave him for that. Verily nearness to Us awaits him [in the hereafter], and a blissful journey’s end.

38:26. f﴾We said:] O Dawood, verily We have made you a ruler in the land, so judge between the people in truth, and do not follow your desires, lest they lead you astray from the path of Allah. Verily those who go astray from the path of Allah will have a severe punishment because they forgot the Day of Reckoning.

Having told us that He gave His Prophet Dawood sound judgement when judging disputes among people, for which he was well known, and people would seek him out for that reason, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) now tells us the story of two disputants who came to him concerning an issue that Allah made a test for Dawood and a lesson, because of a mistake that he made. But Allah had mercy on him and forgave him, andHe caused this case to be referred to him. Allah says to His Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ):

﴾Has the story of the disputing parties reached you﴿, for it is a wondrous story.

﴾when they climbed the wall into his chamber﴿, when Dawood was there. It was a space in which Dawood would worship Allah, and the two men entered it without permission and without asking permission, and they did not enter through the door.

Therefore, when they entered upon him in this manner, he was startled and was afraid of them. They said to him: ﴾we are two disputants﴿, so do not be afraid.

﴾one of﴿ us ﴾has wronged the other. Judge between us in truth﴿ that is, justly, and do not side with one of us

﴾and do not be unjust; guide us to the right path﴿.

The point here is that it became clear to him that the two disputants were seeking a fair and just verdict, and as that was the case, they would tell him their story truthfully. So the Prophet of Allah Dawood was not offended by their exhortation to be fair, and he did not tell them off for that.

One of them said: ﴾This is my brother﴿ - he stated that he was his brother, either by faith or by blood or by friendship, because in that case there should be no wrongdoing, and wrongdoing on his part would be worse than wrongdoing on the part of anyone else.

﴾he has ninety-nine ewes﴿, which is a great deal of good, and he should be content with what Allah has given him ﴾and I have only one﴿, but he covets it

﴾He said: Let me take care of her﴿ that is, give it to me and let me be in charge of it

﴾and he has been overbearing towards me in his speech﴿ that is, he has overpowered me with his words, because he kept bothering me until he got the ewe, or almost got it.

When he heard his words - and it is known from the context that this is what really happened, so there is no reason for anyone to objectand say: Why did Dawood pass judgement before listening to what the other party had to say? - Dawood said:

﴾He has certainly wronged you by demanding that your ewe be added to his flock﴿ and this is the usual way with many associates and close friends.

Then he said: ﴾Indeed many associates [or partners] wrong one another﴿ because wrongdoing is something that is ingrained in people ﴾except those who believe and do righteous deeds﴿ because what they have of faith and righteous deeds prevents them from wronging others ﴾and how few they are﴿. This is like the verse in which Allah Lfe) says:

﴾f...But few of My slaves are grateful.﴿ (Saba’34:13)

﴾Then Dawood realised﴿, when he had passed judgement between them,

﴾that We were only testing him﴿ that is, We tested him by causing this case to be referred to him, so as to alert him to something.

﴾so he asked his Lord for forgiveness﴿ for what he had done ﴾fell down in prostration and turned to Allah in repentance﴿, repenting sincerely and worshipping Allah.

﴾So We forgave him for that﴿ that is, for what he had done, and Allah bestowed all kinds of honours upon him and said:

﴾Verily nearness to Us﴿ that is, high status and closeness to Us ﴾awaits him [in the hereafter], and a blissful journey’s end﴿ that is, destination.

With regard to the mistake that Dawood (عليه السلام) made (and for which he sought forgiveness), Allah does not tell us what it was, because there is no need to do so. Therefore trying to find out what it was is unnecessary. Rather what matters in the story that Allah tells us here is His kindness towards him, and that he repented and turned to Him and was raised in status thereby, so that after repenting he was better than he was before.

﴾([We said:] O Dawood, verily We have made you a ruler in the land﴿ when you rule concerning their religious and worldly affairs ﴾so judge between the people in truth ﴿ that is, with justice, and that is not possible except with the necessary knowledge, knowledge of real-life situations and the ability to carry out just rulings.

﴾fand do not follow your desires﴿ and be biased towards one party because of blood ties or friendship, or love or hatred for the other party ﴾lest they﴿ namely your desires ﴾lead you astray from the path of Allah﴿ and take you beyond the bounds of the straight path.

﴾Verily those who go astray from the path of Allah﴿, especially those who do so deliberately

﴾will have a severe punishment because they forgot the Day of Reckoning﴿. If they had remembered it, fear would have been instilled in their hearts, and they would not have gone along with tempting desires.

38:27. We have not created the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, in vain. That is what the disbelievers think. So woe to the disbelievers from the fire!

38:28. Should We equate those who believe and do righteous deeds with those who spread mischief in the land? Or should We equate those who fear Allah with the wicked?^{1This verse refutes the view of those who did not believe in the hereafter, and thus believed that the end of the believers and the disbelievers would =}

38:29. This is a blessed Book that We have sent down to you, so that they may ponder its verses, and so that people of understanding may pay heed.

Here Allah tells us of His perfect wisdom in creating the heavens and the earth, and that He did not create them in vain, for no purpose and to serve no interest.

﴾That is what the disbelievers think﴿ of their Lord, as they harbour notions about Allah that are not befitting to His majesty. ﴾So woe to the disbelievers from the fire﴿ for it is what will settle the score with them, and it will overwhelm them completely.

Rather Allah’s creation of the heavens and the earth is based on truth and is for the sake of truth. He created them so that people may know the perfect nature of His knowledge, might and all-encompassing authority, and that He alone is deserving of worship, and not those that did not create even an atom in the heavens or on earth; and that the resurrection is true, and Allah will judge between the people of good and the people of evil.

So the one who is ignorant of divine wisdom should not think that Allah will treat them all equally when He judges them. Hence He says: ﴾Should We equate those who believe and do righteous deeds with those who spread mischief in the land? Or should We equate those who fear Allah with the wicked?﴿ This is not befitting to divine wisdom and judgement.

﴾This is a blessed Book that We have sent down to you﴿, in which there is much goodness and abundant knowledge, guidance away from error, healing from disease, light to illuminate the darkness, and every ruling that accountable people may need. It contains definitive

= be the same (namely death, and nothing beyond that). Here Allah confirms that their ultimate end will not be the same, for the believers will enter paradise whilst the disbelievers will enter hell.evidence for every issue, by means of which it becomes the most majestic book to appear in this world since Allah created it.

﴾so that they may ponder its verses﴿ that is, this is the wisdom behind sending it down, so that people may ponder its verses, and thus find knowledge in it and reflect upon its subtle meanings and wisdom, for by pondering and reflecting upon its meanings, thinking about it time after time, its blessings and good may be attained. This indicates that it is encouraged to reflect upon the Qur’an and that doing so is one of the best of deeds, and that recitation which includes reflection is better than rapid recitation that does not achieve this purpose.

﴾and so that people of understanding may pay heed﴿ that is, so that people of sound mind may leam through reflecting upon all issues of knowledge. This indicates that learning and benefitting from this Book will be commensurate with a person’s maturity and understanding.

(g) j (g)

38:30. We bestowed upon Dawood Sulayman, a good and faithful slave who constantly turned [to Us]

38:31. One afternoon, noble swift-footed steeds were presented before him.

38:32. And he kept saying: I love to love these good things [these horses] because of the command of my Lord,^{1He loved the horses because they were kept and trained for the purpose of fighting in Allah’s cause, and they were referred to in the Torah as they are referred to in the Qur’an.} until [the galloping horses] disappeared from sight.

38:33. [Then he said:] Bring them back to me, and he began to pass his hands over their legs and necks.

38:34. Indeed We tested Sulayman, and placed on his throne a body, then he turned to Us [in repentance].

38:35. He said: My Lord, forgive me and grant me a dominion, the like of which will never be granted to anyone after me, for indeed You are the Bestower.

38:36. And We made the wind subject to him; it blew gently at his command, wherever he directed it.

38:37. And [We made subject to him] the devils, every kind of builder and diver,

38:38. and other [devils], bound together in shackles.

38:39. [We said:] This is Our gift, so give freely or withhold, without [having to render] account.

38:40. Verily nearness to Us awaits him [in the hereafter], and a blissful journey’s end.

Having praised Dawood and mentioned what happened to him and what he did, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) now praises his son Sulayman (عليه السلام), as He says:

﴾We bestowed upon Dawood Sulayman﴿ that is, We blessed him with him, and made him to be a source of comfort and joy to him. e[a good and faithful slave﴿ - this refers to Sulayman (عليه السلام), who possessed characteristics that deserved praise, for he ﴾constantly turned [to Us]j﴿ that is, he constantly turned to Allah in all situations,with devotion and love, remembering Him, calling upon Him, humbling himself and striving hard to earn the pleasure of Allah, giving precedence to that over all things.

﴾One afternoon, noble swift-footed steeds were presented before him﴿ the words translated here as ﴾noble swift-footed steeds﴿ refer to fine horses, one of the characteristics of which is that they stand on three feet, with one foot raised, and they are very beautiful and pleasant to look at, especially for those who need them, such as kings. These horses continued to be presented to him until the sunset, and they distracted him from the afternoon prayer and remembrance of Allah.

So he said - regretting what he had done and seeking to draw close to Allah, because they had distracted him, and so as to give precedence to love for Allah over love for anything else: love to love these good things [these horses]﴿. The word translated here as ﴾love﴿ also includes the meaning of giving precedence to. In other words, he said: I gave precedence to love of these good things, which refers to wealth in general. In this case what is referred to is the horses, ﴾because of the command of my Lord, until [the galloping horses] disappeared from sight﴿.

﴾[Then he said:] Bring them back to me﴿, so they were brought back

﴾and he began to pass his hands over their legs and necks﴿ that is, he started to cut their legs and necks with his sword.^{2This is the interpretation favoured by as-Sa‘di. At-Tabari and others held a different opinion, namely that this could not be right because it would be both cruel and a waste of wealth, neither of which would be appropriate on the part of a Prophet; they suggested that what is meant is either stroking or patting the horses by way of affection, or examining them, as Sulayman was a skilled horseman. At-Tabari narrated this view from Ibn ‘Abbas and regarded it as the correct interpretation of this verse. Here, we have reflected as-Sa‘di’s view. (Translator)}

﴾Indeed We tested Sulayman﴿ that is, we tested him and tried him by taking away his dominion and separating him from it, because mistakes are due to human nature,

﴾fand placed on his throne a body﴿ - this was a devil which Allah willed and decreed should sit on his throne and have control over Sulayman’s dominion for the duration of this test. Then Sulayman turned to Allah in repentance.

﴾He said: My Lord, forgive me and grant me a dominion, the like of which will never be granted to anyone after me, for indeed You are the Bestower﴿. And Allah answered his prayer and forgave him, and restored his dominion to him, and added to it something that was never granted to anyone after him, namely the subjugation of the devils to him, so that they built whatever he wanted and dived for him in the sea, bringing forth pearls and jewels; whoever among them disobeyed him, he chained him with shackles and tied him up.

﴾[We said:] This is Our gift﴿ so enjoy it and ﴾give freely﴿ to whomever you wish

﴾or withhold﴿ from whomever you wish

﴾without [having to render] account﴿ that is, with no blame on you and no reckoning, because Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) knew of his perfect justice and good judgement.

You should not think that this was for Sulayman in this world only, and not in the hereafter; rather he will have much good in the hereafter too. Hence Allah says: ﴾Verily nearness to Us awaits him [in the hereafter], and a blissful journey’s end﴿ that is, he is one of those who will be brought close to Allah, and will be honoured in various ways by Him.

• Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) told his Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) stories of those who came before him, so as to make him steadfast and reassure him; He told him about their worship, great patience and turningto Allah, so that he would long to compete with them and draw close to Allah as they did, and to be patient in bearing the harm of his people. Hence - here - when Allah mentions the harm that his people tried to do to him and what they said about him and his message. He instructed him to be patient and to remember His slave Dawood, so that he might find comfort in that.

• Allah praises and loves a person to have energy when doing acts of obedience and worship, and to be strong in both physical and mental terms, because if a person is strong, it will result in him doing those acts of obedience properly and doing a great deal of them, which does not happen when a person is weak and has no resolve. The individual should seek means of developing strength and energy, and not become lazy and slow, as that will lead to loss of energy that will weaken one’s resolve.

• Turning to Allah in all circumstances is one of the characteristics of the Prophets of Allah and the elite of His creation, as Allah praised Dawood and Sulayman for that. So people should follow their example and their guidance.

﴾Those [Prophets] are the ones whom Allah guided; let their guidance be an example to follow...﴿ (al-An‘dm 6: 90)

• Allah honoured His slave Dawood with a beautiful voice, by means of which Allah caused the mountains, that do not hear, and the birds, which cannot understand, to echo him when he raised his voice in praise of Allah, and to glorify Allah with him in the afternoon and in the morning.

• One of the greatest blessings that Allah can bestow upon His slave is to bless him with beneficial knowledge, so that he knows how to judge between people, as Allah blessed His slave Dawood with such knowledge.

• Allah demonstrates His care for His Prophets and chosen ones, if they make some mistake, by putting them through tests and trials so that troubles will be dispelled from them and they willbecome better than they were originally, as happened to Dawood and Sulayman (peace be upon them).

• The Prophets (peace be upon them) are protected from error in that which they convey from Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), because the purpose of their mission cannot be achieved otherwise. However, they may commit some sins, which is something inherent in human nature, but Allah soon causes them to repent, by His kindness.

• Dawood usually stayed in his chamber to worship his Lord, hence the two disputants climbed the wall of his chamber, because he was alone in his chamber and no one else could come to him in that place. He did not devote all his time to the people, even though many cases were referred to him for judgement. Rather he allocated some time to be alone with his Lord, and to find comfort in worshipping Him, which helped him to be sincere in all his affairs.

• Etiquette should be followed when entering upon rulers and others, because when the two disputants entered upon Dawood in an unusual manner, not from the usual door, he was startled by them and was very upset by that, and he did not think that it was appropriate at all.

• The judge should not refuse to issue a verdict on the basis of truth because of bad manners or inappropriate conduct on the part of the disputant.

• Dawood was a man of perfect forbearance, as he did not get angry with the two disputants when they came to him without asking permission, even though he was the king; he did not scold them or tell them off.

• It is permissible for one who has been wronged to say to the one who wronged him: “You have wronged me” or “O wrongdoer” or “You transgressed against me”, and the like, because they said: ﴾we are two disputants, one of whom has wronged the• The one who is being exhorted and advised, even if he is of high status and very knowledgeable, should not get angry or upset if someone advises or exhorts him. Rather he should hasten to accept the advice and be grateful. The two disputants advised Dawood and he did not get upset or angry, and that did not deter him from giving a fair verdict; rather he passed a judgement that was completely fair.

• Mixing with relatives and friends, and having a lot of financial worldly dealings with them, may lead to ill feeling among them, and some of them may transgress against others. There is no way to prevent that except by fearing Allah and being patient in all situations, by means of having faith and doing righteous deeds. This is something that is very uncommon among people.

• Seeking forgiveness and doing acts of worship, especially prayer, are among the means of absolving sins, because Allah connected the forgiveness of Dawood’s sin to his prayer for forgiveness and his prostration.

• Allah honoured His slaves Dawood and Sulayman by bringing them close to him and granting them a goodly reward, so no one should think that what happened to them undermines their status before Allah (سبحانه وتعالى). This is how Allah shows kindness to His sincere and devoted slaves: when He forgives them, He removes the traces of their sins and all consequences that result from it. That even includes what people think, because, if they know of some of their sins, they will lose some of the respect they have for them. So Allah removes these effects, and that is not difficult for the Most Generous, Oft-Forgiving.

• Ruling between people is a religious honour that was undertaken by the Messengers of Allah and the elite of His creation. The job of the one who undertakes it is to judge on the basis of truth and avoid the influence of whims and desires. Judging on the basis of truth requires knowledge of shard matters, understanding ofthe issue that is referred for judgement, and knowing how to apply the shar'i rulings to it. The one who is ignorant of either of these matters is not fit to judge, and it is not permissible for him to undertake this task.

• The judge should beware of whims and desires and always be cautious about this matter, because no one is free of it; rather he should strive hard to make the truth his aim and, at the time of judgement, set aside any feelings of love or hate towards any of the disputants.

• Sulayman (عليه السلام) was one of the virtues of Dawood, and one of the blessings that Allah bestowed upon him, for one of the greatest blessings that Allah may bestow upon His slave is to grant him a righteous son, and if he is also a scholar, that is light upon light.

• Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) praised Sulayman by describing him as: (-fa good and faithful slave who constantly turned [to Us]﴿ (38: 30).

• Allah bestows abundant blessings and kindnesses upon His slaves; He blesses them by enabling them to do righteous deeds and attain good manners, then He praises them for that, when it is He Who bestowed it upon them by His generosity and kindness.

• Sulayman gave precedence to love of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) over love of all else.

• Everything that distracts a person from Allah is bad and blameworthy, so he should keep away from it and focus on that which is more beneficial.

• We also learn the famous principle: “Whoever gives up something for the sake of Allah, Allah will compensate him with something better than it.” Sulayman hamstrung the noble swift-footed steeds that are so dear to people, giving precedence to love of Allah, so Allah compensated him with something better than that, by subjugating the soft and gentle wind to him,that blew on his command, and would cover the distance of a month's journey in the morning and a month’s journey in the evening (cf 34: 12); and He subjugated the devils to him who were able to do things that humans could not.

• The subjugation of the devils was not granted to anyone after Sulayman (عليه السلام)

• Sulayman (SSO was a Prophet-king who did what he wanted, but he did not want anything except what was just. This is in contrast to the Prophet-slave whose will is subject to the command of Allah, so he does not do anything or refrain from anything except by divine command, as in the case of our Prophet Muhammad (jig), and that is more perfect.

38:41. Remember Our slave Ayyoob, when he called upon his Lord:

Verily the Shayfan has afflicted me with hardship and pain.

38:42. [We said to him:] Strike [the ground] with your foot. Here is cool water for you to wash in and drink.

38:43. And We restored his family to him and doubled their number, as a mercy from Us and as a reminder to people of understanding.

38:44. [We said to him:] And take a bundle of rushes in your hand and strike [your wife, once] with it, and do not break your oath. Truly We found him to be patient and steadfast, a good and faithful slave who constantly turned [to Us].

﴾Remember﴿ in this Book full of reminders ﴾Our slave Ayyoob﴿ and mention him in the best terms, speaking highly of him, when harm befell him, but he bore it with patience and did not complain to anyone except his Lord, turning only to Him. ﴾when he called upon his Lord﴿ in supplication, complaining to Him and none other. He said: My Lord, ﴾Verily the Shaytan has afflicted me with hardship and pain﴿ that is, something very hard, tough and painful. The Shaytan had been given the power to harm him physically, so he blew on his skin until it was filled with sores, which then ruptured, making matters even worse; similarly, his family died and his wealth was destroyed.

It was said to him: ﴾Strike [the ground] with your foot﴿ that is, strike the ground with your foot so that there will flow from it a spring of water with which you may wash yourself and from which you may drink, and it will take away the harm and pain from you. He did that, and the harm left him, and Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) healed him.

﴾And We restored his family to him﴿ - it was said that Allah brought them back to life for him

﴾and doubled their number﴿ in this world, and Allah made him rich and bestowed upon him a great deal of wealth ﴾as a mercy from Us﴿ to Our slave Ayyoob, as he was patient and steadfast, so We granted him reward by Our mercy in this world and the hereafter.

﴾and as a reminder to people of understanding﴿ that is, so that people of understanding might remember the story of Ayyoob and learn a lesson from it, and realise that whoever bears harm with patience, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) will reward him in this world and the hereafter, and will answer his supplication when he calls upon Him.

﴾[We said to him:] And take a bundle of rushes in your hand and strike [your wife, once] with it, and do not break your oath﴿. The commentators said: When he was sick, he got angry with his wife for some reason, and swore that if Allah healed him, he would strike herone hundred times. But his wife was a righteous woman who treated him kindly, so when Allah healed him, He showed mercy to her and to him; therefore He told him to strike her once with a bundle of one hundred reeds, thus enabling him to fulfil his oath (without harming her or being unjust towards her).

﴾Truly We found him﴿ namely Ayyoob ﴾fto be patient and steadfast﴿ that is, We tested him with great harm, and he bore it with patience for the sake of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى)

﴾a good and faithful slave﴿ who reached the highest levels of servitude to Allah, at times of both ease and hardship

﴾who constantly turned [to Us]﴿ that is, he often turned to Allah to help him reach his spiritual and worldly goals, and constantly remembered his Lord, called upon Him, loved Him and showed devotion to Him.

38:45. Remember Our slaves Ibraheem, Is-haq and Ya‘qoob, men of endurance [in worship] and deep insight.

38:46. Verily We chose them by granting them a distinct quality:

constantly remembering the hereafter.

38:47. And indeed before Us they are among the chosen and the truly good.

﴾Remember Our slaves﴿ who were sincere to Us in worship, and speak highly of them.

﴾Ibraheem﴿ al-Khaleel (the close friend of Allah), his son ﴾Is-haq﴿, and his grandson ﴾Ya‘qoob﴿.﴾men of endurance [in worship]﴿ that is, they had great stamina in worshipping Allah

﴾and deep insight﴿ that is, they had deep insight into the religion of Allah, so He described them as possessing beneficial knowledge and doing a great deal of righteous deeds.

﴾Verily We chose them by granting them a distinct quality﴿ that is, a significant and very special quality, which was:

﴾constantly remembering the hereafter﴿. We instilled constant remembering of the hereafter in their hearts and caused them to strive for it at all times. Sincerity towards Allah and remembering that He is always watching was something inherent in them, and We caused them to be a reminder of the hereafter, so that by seeing them, people were reminded of it and learned from them, and they are remembered in the best terms.

﴾And indeed before Us they are among the chosen﴿ whom Allah selected from among the best of His creation ﴾and the truly good﴿ who possess all noble characteristics and do all righteous deeds.

38:48. And remember lsma‘eel and Alyasa‘ and Dhul-Kifl; each of them was among the truly good.

That is, remember these Prophets in the best of terms and speak highly of them, for each of them was among the elite whom Allah chose from among humankind, and He chose for them and helped them to attain the best of attitudes, deeds, manners, attributes and characteristics.CK&a Wii (1a} OOu-li) UGk ﴿

38:49. This is a reminder. Verily the pious will have a blissful journey’s end,

38:50. Gardens of perpetual abode, whose gates will be opened to them.

38:51. Reclining therein on couches, they will call for abundant fruit and drink,

38:52. And with them will be chaste women who restrain their glances,^{1They are the hoor al-‘een, who will be content with their husbands and will not look at other men.} of equal age.

38:53. This is what you are promised for the Day of Reckoning.

38:54. Indeed this is Our provision, which will never cease.

fjThisj﴿ namely the mention of these elite Prophets and their characteristics

﴾is a reminder﴿ in this Qur’an full of reminders; by remembering their attitude and manners, one may be reminded of, and love to follow, their beautiful attributes, and one may become eager to find out about what Allah blessed them with of sublime characteristics and how Allah caused them to be remembered in the highest terms among people.

One of the types of reminder is mentioning good people; another type is mentioning the requital of both good people and evil people. Hence Allah says:﴾Verily the pious﴿ that is, those who fear their Lord by complying with His commands and heeding His prohibitions, both believing men and believing women e﴾will have a blissful journey’s end﴿ that is, a good end and place to return to.

Then Allah explains that further: ﴾Gardens of perpetual abode﴿ whose inhabitants would not wish for anything other than that, because they are so perfect and their bliss is so complete. They will never leave them or be expelled from them.

﴾whose gates will be opened to them﴿ that is, the gates of their dwellings and abodes will be opened for them. They will not need to open them themselves; rather they will be served and looked after. This is also indicative of perfect security, for in the gardens of perpetual abode there is nothing that would require closing and locking of gates (or doors).

﴾Reclining therein﴿ on adorned couches and seats ﴾they will call for﴿ that is, they will instruct their servants to bring ﴾abundant fruit and drink﴿, whatever their hearts may desire and may delight their eyes. This is indicative of perfect bliss, perfect ease and reassurance, and perfect pleasure.

﴾And with them﴿ will be their wives from al-hoor al-‘een ﴾chaste women who restrain their glances﴿ and look only at their husbands, and their husbands will look only at them, because of the beauty that all will possess, and the love that each will have for the other; they will have no desire for any other companion and will not think of any replacement

﴾of equal age﴿ that is, of the same age, the best age of youth, and the most beautiful and pleasurable.

﴾This is what you are promised﴿, O pious ones who fear Allah ﴾for the Day of Reckoning﴿ as a reward for your righteous deeds.

﴾Indeed this is Our provision﴿ that We will bestow upon the people of paradise﴾which will never cease﴿ that is, it will never stop; rather it is eternal and ongoing, and will constantly increase.

That is not difficult for the Most Generous Lord, the Most Kind, Most Merciful, Most Munificent, Self-Sufficient, Most Praiseworthy, Knower of subtleties, the Most Gracious, the Sovereign, the Judge, the Majestic, the Beautiful, the Bestower of blessings and immense favours. Whose generosity knows no end and Whose blessings cannot be counted, and no one can comprehend some of His kindness.

38:55. Thus it will be. But verily the transgressors will have a wretched journey’s end:

38:56. Hell, which they will enter; what a wretched resting-place!

38:57. This [is the punishment], so let them taste it: scalding water and pus.

38:58. and other similar [punishments], of various kinds.

38:59. [Their leaders will say to one another:] Here is a group of people rushing headlong to join you. There is no welcome for them; they will surely enter the fire.

38:60. [The followers will say to the leaders:] Nay, rather it is you for whom there is no welcome! It is you who brought this upon us. Indeed this is an evil place to settle in!

38:61. They will say: Our Lord, whoever brought this upon us, give them a double punishment in the fire.

38:62. And they will say: Why do we not see men whom we used to count among the wicked

38:63. and whom we used to ridicule? Have our eyes missed them?

38:64. All this will surely come to pass: the inhabitants of the fire will dispute among themselves.

(-[Thus it will be﴿ that is, the reward of the pious will be as We have described it.

﴾But verily the transgressors﴿ that is, those who overstep the mark in disbelief and sin ﴾will have a wretched journey’s end﴿ that is, the worst place of return.

Then Allah explains that further, as He says: ﴾Hell﴿ in which all torments are combined, and its heat and cold are severe ﴾which they will enter﴿ that is, they will be subjected therein to a punishment which will encompass them on all sides, with layers of fire above them and beneath them.

﴾what a wretched resting-place﴿ that is prepared for them as a place to dwell and settle.

﴾This)") resting-place, severe punishment, disgrace, shame and torment, will form the punishment

﴾jso let them taste it: scalding water﴿ that is extremely hot; they will drink it and it will cut their intestines

﴾and pus﴿ which is the worst possible drink, composed of pus; its taste is bitter and its smell is foul.

﴾and other similar [punishments], of various kinds﴿ that is, several types of punishment with which they will be punished and humiliated.

When they come to the fire, they will revile one another and say to one another:

﴾Here is a group of people rushing headlong to join you﴿ in the fire.﴾There is no welcome for them; they will surely enter the fire﴿.

The group that is rushing headlong will say: ﴾(Nay, rather it is you for whom there is no welcome! It is you who brought this﴿ namely the punishment

﴾upon us﴿ by calling us to it and by tempting and misguiding us; you are the cause of all this.

﴾Indeed this is an evil place to settle in﴿ that is, a place to settle in for all of them, an utterly evil place.

Then they will pray against those who led them astray, saying: ﴾Our Lord, whoever brought this upon us, give them a double punishment in the fire﴿. Elsewhere Allah tells us:

﴾...He will say: [It will be] doubled for all, but you do not know.﴿

﴾And they will say﴿ when they are in the fire:

﴾f\Vhy do we not see men whom we used to count among the wicked﴿ that is, we used to claim that they were among the wicked who deserved the punishment of the fire. But in fact they were the believers. The inhabitants of the fire will notice that they are missing and will wonder why they do not see them in the fire.

﴾and whom we used to ridicule? Have our eyes missed them?﴿ That is, the fact that we do not see them must be due to one of two reasons:

Either we were mistaken when we regarded them as being among the wicked, and in fact they are among the good; we only said what we said about them by way of mockery and ridicule. This is true, as Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us elsewhere that He will say to the inhabitants of hell:

﴾Among My slaves there were some who said: Our Lord, we believe, so forgive us and have mercy upon us, for You are the Most Merciful of those who show mercy. But you treated them with ridicule, so much so that [ridicule of them] made you forget all remembrance of Me, and you used to laugh at them.﴿ (al-Mu'minoon 23: 109-110)

Or perhaps they are with us in the fire, but we cannot see them. It may be that this is what they still believe in their hearts, so the belief that they held in this world and often repeated - that the believers would be in hell - was so well entrenched in their hearts that it became second nature to them, so they entered hell like this and said what they said.

Or it may be that they will say this by way of deceit, as they practised deceit in this world, so they will persist in that deceitful attitude even in hell. Therefore the people of the heights (al-a‘raf) will say to the people of hell:

﴾Are these the ones concerning whom you swore that Allah would never bestow His mercy upon them? [Now] enter paradise; you will have no fear nor will you grieve.(al-A Vd/7; 49)

Allah says, confirming what He has told us, and He is the most truthful in speech: ﴾A11 this﴿ that We have told you about ﴾will surely come to pass﴿ and there is no doubt about it whatsoever. ﴾the inhabitants of the fire will dispute among themselves﴿.

38:65. Say [O Muhammad]: I am but a warner, and there is no god but Allah, the One, the Subjugator,

38:66. Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, the Almighty, the Oft-Forgiving.

38:67. Say: This is a message of great importance

38:68. from which you are turning away.

38:69. I had no knowledge^{1Were it not for the revelation, the Prophet would have known nothing about the dispute among those on high (namely the angels).} of those on high when they disputed [concerning the creation of Adam],

38:70. I have only received revelation in order to give you clear warning.

38:71. [Remember] when your Lord said to the angels: Verily I am going to create a human being from clay.

38:72. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him the soul which I created for him, fall down in prostration before him.

38:73. Thereupon, the angels all fell down in prostration,

38:74. except Iblees; he was arrogant and was one of the disbelievers.

38:75. Allah said: O Iblees, what prevented you from prostrating to what I created with My own two Hands? Are you too proud, or do you deem yourself superior?

38:76. He said: I am better than he; You created me from fire and You created him from clay.

38:77. Allah said: Then get out of here, for you are accursed,

38:78. And verily My curse will be upon you until the Day of Judgement.

38:79. Iblees said: O my Lord, grant me respite until the day they are resurrected.

38:80. Allah said: You are among those who are granted respite,

38:81. Until the day of the time appointed.

38:82. Iblees said: By Your might, I will certainly mislead them all,

38:83. except Your chosen [and sincere] slaves among them.

38:84. Allah said: The truth is, and I speak nothing but the truth:

38:85. I will surely fill hell with you and those who follow you, all together.

38:86. Say [O Muhammad]: I do not ask you for any recompense for this, nor do I pretend to be what I am not.

38:87. It [the Qur’an] is but a reminder to the worlds.

38:88. And you will surely come to know its truth after a while.

﴾Say﴿, O Messenger (ﷺ), to the disbelievers, if they demand from you that which is not under your control:

﴾fl am but a warner﴿ and that is all I am. As for control, it belongs to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى). But I convey to you commands and prohibitions; I urge you to do good and I warn you against evil. Whoever is guided, it is to his own benefit, and whoever goes astray, it is to his own detriment.

ffand there is no god but Allah﴿ that is, there is no one who is deserving of devotion or worship except Allah, ﴾the One, the Subjugator﴿.

This is an affirmation of His divinity, on the basis of definitive proof, namely His oneness and His subjugation of all things. Subjugation is indicative of oneness, because there cannot be two subjugators who are equal in their subjugation. The One Who subjugates all things is the One Who has no equal, and He is the One Who alone deserves to be worshipped, just as He alone is the Subjugator.

He also affirms that on the basis of the oneness of His Lordship, as He says:﴾Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them﴿ that is, their Creator Who cares for them and controls them in all ways ﴾the Almighty﴿ to Whom belongs all power, by which He created mighty things

﴾the Oft-Forgiving﴿ Who forgives all sins, minor and major, for those who repent to Him and give up sin.

Such is the One Who alone is deserving of worship, to the exclusion of those who do not create or provide anything, and have no power to cause harm or bring benefit, and have no control over anything and no ability to do anything, and have no power to forgive sins.

(﴾Say﴿﴿ to them, to alert and warn, and to motivate them:

﴾This is a message of great importance﴿ that is, what I am telling you about the resurrection and requital of deeds is a message of great importance; a great deal of attention must be paid to it, and it should not be overlooked.

But ﴾you are turning away﴿ from it as if there is no reckoning or punishment or reward ahead of you.

If you doubt what I say and you are suspicious about what I have told you, then you should note that I am telling you about things of which I have no knowledge and that I have never read about in any book; the fact that I am telling you about it exactly as it is, without any addition or omission, is the greatest testimony to my truthfulness and the clearest evidence of the truth of what I have brought to you. Hence Allah instructed him to say: f(I had no knowledge of those on high﴿ namely the angels ﴾when they disputed [concerning the creation of Adam]﴿, were it not for Allah informing me and revealing it to me. Hence he (was instructed to) say:

﴾I have only received revelation in order to give you clear warning﴿ - there was no warner who was clearer in his warning than the Prophet (ﷺ).

Then Allah mentions the dispute of those on high:

﴾[Remember] when your Lord said to the angels﴿ by way of informing them:

﴾Verily I am going to create a human being from clay﴿ that is, his essential substance will be clay

﴾So when I have fashioned him﴿ that is, when I have fashioned his body and it is complete,

﴾and breathed into him the soul which I created for him, fall down in prostration before him﴿. So the noble angels prepared themselves to do that, when his creation was completed and the soul had been breathed into him, in obedience to their Lord and by way of honouring Adam (عليه السلام). So when his creation was completed, in body and soul, and Allah tested Adam and the angels with regard to knowledge, and his superiority over them became apparent, Allah instructed them to prostrate to him.

So they all prostrated to him, ﴾except Iblees﴿, who did not prostrate.

﴾fhe was arrogant﴿ that is, he was too arrogant to obey his Lord and showed arrogance towards Adam

﴾and was one of the disbelievers﴿ in the knowledge of Allah (سبحانه وتعالى). Allah said﴿, rebuking Iblees f)0 Iblees, what prevented you from prostrating to what I created with My own two Hands?﴿That is, I honoured him and blessed him, and singled him out for this virtue, to the exclusion of the rest of creation, which dictated that no one should be arrogant towards him.

﴾Are you too proud﴿ in your refusal ﴾or do you deem yourself superior?﴿

Iblees said, expressing opposition to his Lord and going against His commands:

﴾I am better than he; You created me from fire and You created him from clay﴿ and according to his claim, the element of fire was superior to the element of clay. But this was a false analogy, for the elementof fire is the substance of evil, mischief, arrogance, foolishness and indecency, whereas the element of clay is the substance of dignity and humility, it is the source that brings forth all kinds of trees and plants, and it overwhelms and extinguishes fire. Fire requires a substance in order to exist, whereas clay exists by itself. This is the analogy of the leader of the evil people, on the basis of which he opposed the verbal command of Allah. It is obviously false and invalid, so what do you think of the analogy of the students of this leader, on the basis of which they oppose the truth? All of that is even more false and more invalid.

﴾Allah said﴿ to him:

﴾Then get out of here﴿ that is, get out of heaven, the place of honour ﴾for you are accursed﴿ that is, disgraced and outcast (7: 18)

﴾verily My curse will be upon you﴿ that is, you will continue to be disgraced and outcast

﴾until the Day of Judgement﴿ that is, always and for ever.

﴾Iblees said: O my Lord, grant me respite until the day they are resurrected﴿. This was because of his extreme enmity towards Adam and his progeny; he wanted to be able to lead astray whomever Allah decreed that he should lead astray.

﴾Allah said﴿ in response to his request, and in accordance with the dictates of His wisdom:

﴾You are among those who are granted respite, until the day of the time appointed﴿.

When Iblees was certain that he had been given respite, he showed his Lord the extent of his evil and his extreme enmity towards his Lord and towards Adam and his progeny. Therefore he said:

﴾By Your might﴿ that is, by Your greatness and majesty, ﴾I will certainly mislead them all﴿. This was an oath sworn by the might of Allah, that he would mislead them all.

﴾except Your chosen [and sincere] slaves among them﴿. He knew that Allah would protect them from his schemes.

Or it may be that what is meant is that, instead of swearing an oath, when he realised that he was helpless in all ways and could not mislead anyone except by Allah’s leave, he sought divine help, by mentioning Allah’s might, so that he could lead the progeny of Adam astray, even though he was truly the enemy of Allah.

So here we are, O our Lord, helpless and falling short, acknowledging all the blessings that You bestow, the descendants of the one whom You honoured and blessed. We seek Your help, by Your great might, power and mercy that encompass all creatures, and Your mercy by means of which You granted what You granted of blessings both religious and worldly, and You averted from us what You averted of harm. We ask You to help us to stand up to him and fight him, and to keep us safe from his evil and his traps. We have great hope that You will respond to our supplication, and we believe in Your promise as You said to us:

﴾]Your Lord says: Call upon Me; I will answer your prayer...﴿ (Ghdfir 40: 60)

We call upon You as You have commanded us, so answer us as You have promised us,

﴾.. .for You never break Your promise.﴿ (At Imran 3:194)

﴾Allah said: The truth is, and I speak nothing but the truth﴿ that is, truth is what I am and truth is what I say:

will surely fill hell with you and those who follow you, all together﴿. When the Messenger (ﷺ) had presented proof to the people and highlighted the path of guidance, Allah said to him: c-(Say [O Muhammad]: I do not ask you for any recompense for this﴿ that is, for my calling you

﴾nor do I pretend to be what I am not﴿ nor do I say things of which I have no knowledge; 1 only follow what is revealed to me.

﴾lt [the Qur’an] is but a reminder to the worlds﴿, by means of which they will be reminded of all that will benefit them and servetheir interests, both religious and worldly. So it will be an honour to those who act upon it, and will raise them in status, and it will establish proof to those who stubbornly reject it.

This mighty soorah contains a wise reminder and a message of great importance, and it establishes proof and evidence against those who disbelieve in the Qur’an and oppose it, and who reject the one who brought it. It tells us about the sincere and chosen slaves of Allah, and the requital of both the pious and the transgressors. Therefore at the beginning, it contains an oath that it is full of reminders, and at the end it describes it as a reminder to the worlds.

The idea of reminding (and remembering) is mentioned frequently throughout, such as when Allah says: ﴾remember Our slave﴿ (38: 17, 41)\ ﴾Remember Our slaves﴿ (38: 45); ﴾fas a mercy from Us and as a reminder to people of understanding﴿ (38: 43); and ﴾This is a

O Allah, teach us of the Qur’an that which we do not know, and remind us of what we have forgotten, whether that forgetting is the result of heedlessness or not implementing it.

﴾And you will surely come to know its truth﴿ that is, the truth of what it foretells

Rafter a while﴿, when the punishment befalls them and they have no source of help.

This is the end of the commentary on Soorat Sad.

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