(Madiini)

46:1. Ha’. Meem.

46:2. The revelation of the Book is from Allah, the Almighty, the Most Wise.

46:3. We have not created the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, except for a true purpose and for an appointed term. But those who disbelieve pay no heed to the warning that is given to them.

This is praise and veneration from Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) for His holy Book, highlighting its dignity and implicitly telling people to seek guidance by its light, focus on pondering its verses and extract its treasure.Having referred to the revelation of His Book that contains commands and prohibitions, Allah now mentions His creation of the heavens and the earth, thus combining the creation and the command.

(f...Verily, His is the creation and the command...﴿ (al-A'raf7: 54)

This is like the verses in which Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

﴾flt is Allah Who created seven heavens and of the earth the like thereof. His decree descends throughout them...﴿ (af-Talaq 65:12)

- and:

﴾He sends down the angels with His revelation by His command to whomever among His slaves He wills, saying: Proclaim that there is no god but 1, so fear Me. He created the heavens and the earth for a

It is Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) Who created those who are accountable, and He created their dwellings and made to be of service to them all that is in the heavens and on earth, then He sent His Messengers to them, and sent down to them His Books. He sent His commands and prohibitions to them and told them that this realm is the realm of striving and a place for those who strive to pass through; it is not a place of settlement that people will never leave. Rather they will move on from it to the place of settlement and the eternal abode, and they will find the reward for their deeds that they did in this realm waiting for them in full in that realm.

Thus Allah establishes proof that points to that realm and gives people a taste of reward and punishment in this world, so as to motivate them to seek what they love and flee from what they fear. Therefore He says here: ﴾We have not created the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, except for a true purpose﴿ that is. We have not created them without purpose or in vain; rather it is so that people will come to know the greatness of the Creator thereof and find evidence of His perfect attributes, and so that they may come to know that the One Who created both realms, despite their vastness.is able to recreate people after their death in order to requite them, and that their creation and life is limited ﴾for an appointed term﴿.

Having told us of that - and He is the most truthful of speakers - and thus established proof and lighted the way, Allah now tells us that despite that, some people insist on turning away from the truth and turning away from the call of the Messengers, as He says: ﴾But those who disbelieve pay no heed to the warning that is given to them]L

As for those who believe, when they came to know the truth, they responded to the commands of their Lord, accepted the truth and submitted with humility and veneration. Thus they attained all that is good and all that is evil was warded off from them.

46:4. Say: Tell me about those on whom you call besides Allah. Show me what they have created on the earth. Or do they have any share in the heavens? Bring me [proof from] a Book revealed before this, or some remnant of knowledge, if you are telling the truth.

46:5. Who is more astray than one who calls upon, besides Allah, those who will not answer him until the Day of Resurrection, and are oblivious to his call?

46:6. When humankind are gathered [on the Day of Resurrection], they will become their enemies and will reject their worship of them.

﴾Say﴿ to these people who associate idols and rivals in worship with Allah, which have no power to bring benefit or cause harm, or to cause death, give life or resurrect - say to them, highlighting the helplessness of their idols and pointing out that they do not deserve anything of worship: ﴾Tell me about those on whom you call besides Allah. Show me what they have created on the earth. Or do they have any share in the heavens?﴿.

Have they created any of the heavenly bodies or any of the creatures on earth? Have they created mountains? Have they caused rivers to flow? Have they scattered animals throughout the earth? Have they caused trees to grow? Did they help in the creation of any of these things?

They have done none of these things, by their own admission, let alone the admission of anyone else. This offers definitive rational evidence that the worship of anyone or anything other than Allah is invalid.

Moreover, there is no textual evidence: ﴾Bring me [proof from] a Book revealed before this﴿, namely a book that promotes the association of others with Allah,

﴾or some remnant of knowledge﴿ inherited from the Messengers, that enjoins that.

It is well known that they are incapable of bringing any evidence to that effect from any of the Messengers; in fact we are confident and certain that all the Messengers promoted the affirmation of the oneness of their Lord, and they forbade associating others with Him. This is the greatest knowledge that is narrated from them. Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

Indeed, We sent to every nation a Messenger [saying]: Worship Allah [alone] and shun false gods...﴿ (an-Nahl 16: 36)

And every Messenger said to his people:

﴾f...worship Allah; you have no god but He...p (al-A‘raf7: 65)

Thus it is known that the argument that the polytheists give for their association of others with Allah is not based on proof or evidence; rather they rely on false notions, ill-founded opinions and corrupt reasoning.

What indicates that their argument is invalid is studying their stories, finding out about their knowledge and deeds, and examining the situation of those who spent their lifetimes worshipping false gods: did it benefit them at all in this world or in the hereafter?

Hence Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says: ﴾Who is more astray than one who calls upon, besides Allah, those who will not answer him until the Day of Resurrection﴿ that is, for the duration of his stay on earth, and they do not benefit him even an atom’s weight

﴾fand are oblivious to his call﴿ for they do not hear or respond to any call. This is how they are in this world, and on the Day of Resurrection they will reject their association of them with Allah.

﴾When humankind are gathered [on the Day of Resurrection], they will become their enemies﴿ - they will curse one another and disavow one another, and they (the false gods) ﴾will reject their worship of them﴿.

46:7. When Our clear revelations are recited to them, those who disbelieve say of the truth when it comes to them: This is obviously magic!

46:8. Or do they say: He has fabricated it himself? Say [O Muhammad]: If I did fabricate it, then there is nothing you can do to shield me from the punishment of Allah. He knows best what you utter against it. Sufficient is He as a witness between me and you, and He is the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

46:9. Say [O Muhammad]: I am not the first of the Messengers, and I do not know what will happen to me or to you. I only follow what is revealed to me, and I am but a clear warner.

46:10. Say: What do you think, if it [the Qur’an] is really from Allah but you reject it? What if a witness from among the Children of Israel has testified in its favour and has believed, whilst you remain arrogant? Verily Allah does not guide people who are given to wrongdoing.

That is, when ﴾Our clear revelations﴿ are recited to the disbelievers, in such a way that they cannot doubt them, that does not benefit them; rather proof is established against them thereby, and they say by way of fabrication, ﴾of the truth when it comes to them: This is obviously magic!﴿ That is, it is clearly and undoubtedly magic. This is a kind of turning the facts upside down, but no one can be fooled by that except those who are weak in reasoning. Otherwise the difference between the truth that was brought by the Messenger (ﷺ) and magic is greater than the distance between heaven and earth.

How can the truth - which is as sublime as the stars and whose light surpasses that of the sun, and is supported by evidence in the universe and in their own selves, and is affirmed and accepted by people of insight and mature thinking - be compared with falsehood such as magic, which only comes from misguided wrongdoers who are evil at heart and evil in their deeds, so it is appropriate for them and suits their condition?

﴾Or do they say: He has fabricated it himself﴿ that is, Muhammad (ﷺ) has fabricated this Qur’an himself, and it is not from Allah?

﴾Say [O Muhammad]﴿ to them: ﴾If I did fabricate it﴿ then Allah has power over me and He has knowledge of your plan and what you say about it, so why has He not punished me for fabricating it, as you claim?

Is there anything ﴾you can do to shield me from the punishment of Allah﴿ if it be His will to harm me or to have mercy on me? ﴾Sufficient is He as a witness between me and you﴿. If I was making it up. He would have seized me by my right hand and punished me with a punishment that would be seen by all, because this is the worst type of fabrication, if I were really attributing it falsely to Him.

Then Allah calls them to repent, despite what they have done of stubbornly rejecting the truth and disputing it: dand He is the Oft- Forgiving, Most Merciful﴿ that is, so repent to Him and give up what you are doing; He will forgive you your sins, have mercy on you, guide you to all that is good and reward you immensely.

﴾Say [O Muhammad]: I am not the first of the Messengers﴿ that is, I am not the first Messenger to come to you, such that you should find my mission strange and find my call odd. There have been previous Messengers and Prophets whose call was like mine, so why do you object to my message?

﴾and I do not know what will happen to me or to you﴿ that is, I am only human; I have no control over anything, for it is Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) Who is in control of me and you, and He will decide between me and you. I am not bringing anything of my own accord,

﴾and I am but a clear warner﴿ if you accept my message and respond to my call, that is your good fortune in this world and the hereafter, but if you reject my message, then your reckoning will be with Allah. I have warned you and whoever is given a prior warning is left with no excuse.

﴾Say: What do you think, if it [the Qur’an] is really from Allah but you reject it? What if a witness from among the Children of Israel has testified in its favour and has believed, whilst you remain arrogant?﴿ That is, tell me, if this Qur’an is from Allah and those who are guided among the People of the Book testify to its truth, for they have knowledge of the truth by which they know that it is true, so they believe in it and are guided, and thus it is proven that what the Prophets brought was all in harmony and their followers are people of dignity, whilst you, O ignorant ones, are too arrogant to follow it. Can this be anything but the greatest wrongdoing and worst disbelief? ﴾Verily Allah does not guide people who are given to wrongdoing﴿ - part of wrongdoing is being too arrogant to follow the truth after it comes within reach.

46:11. Those who disbelieve say of those who believe: If it [the Qur’an] were a good thing, they would not have believed in it before us. Since they have not let themselves be guided by it, they will continue to say: This is an ancient fabrication.

46:12. But before it came the Book of Moosa [which was revealed as] a guide and a mercy. This Book, which is in the Arabic language, confirms it, warning those who do wrong and bringing glad tidings to those who do good.

That is, those who stubbornly disbelieved in the truth and rejected its call said: ﴾If it [the Qur’an] were a good thing, they would not havebelieved in it before us﴿ that is, the believers would not have beaten us to it; rather we would have been the first to embrace it. This is pure nonsense. What evidence is there that the sign of something being the truth is that the rejecters should attain it before the believers? Are they more pure at heart or more perfect in reasoning? Or is guidance under their control?

Rather with these words they were trying to console themselves, like one who fails to attain something so he begins to criticise it. Hence Allah says:

﴾Since they have not let themselves be guided by it, they will continue to say: This is an ancient fabrication﴿ that is, this is the reason why they said that about it: because they were not guided by this Qur’an and they missed out on the greatest blessing, they criticised it by saying that it was a lie, when it is undoubtedly true and is in accordance with the previous Books, especially the most perfect and best of them after the Qur’an, namely the Torah, which Allah sent down to Moosa as ﴾a guide and a mercy﴿ that is, the Children of Israel followed it and were guided by it, and thus it brought them good in this world and the hereafter.

﴾This Book﴿ namely the Qur’an

﴾which is in the Arabic language﴿ so that it is easy to approach and understand

﴾confirms it﴿ that is, it confirms the previous Books and testifies in their favour by being in harmony with them.

﴾warning those who do wrong﴿ that is, who wrong themselves by indulging in disbelief, immorality and sin; if they persist in their wrongdoing, it warns them of a grave punishment.

But it gives glad tidings to those who do good by worshipping the Creator and being kind to others, of a great reward in this world and the hereafter. It mentions the deeds that it warns against and the deeds for which it gives glad tidings.

46:13. Verily those who say: Our Lord is Allah, then remain steadfast, will have no fear, nor will they grieve.

46:14. They will be the inhabitants of paradise; they will abide therein forever, as a reward for what they used to do.

That is, those who acknowledge their Lord, testify to His oneness and are constant in their obedience to Him,

﴾)then remain steadfast﴿ all their lives

﴾will have no fear﴿ of any turmoil that lies ahead of them ﴾nor will they grieve﴿ over whatever they leave behind them.

﴾They will be the inhabitants of paradise﴿ that is, they will be its people who abide therein, who will never want to leave it or desire anything else.

﴾they will abide therein forever, as a reward for what they used to do﴿ of believing in Allah, which required them to do the righteous deeds in which they remained steadfast.

46:15. We have enjoined upon man kindness to his parents. With hardship his mother bears him and with hardship she brings him forth, and his bearing and weaning take thirty months. Then when he reaches his prime and reaches the age of forty years, he says: O my Lord, inspire me to be constantly grateful for Your blessings that You have bestowed upon me and my parents, and to do righteous deeds with which You will be pleased; and establish righteousness among my offspring for me. Verily I repent to You and verily I am one of those who submit to Allah [in Islam].

46:16. Such are the ones from whom We will accept their righteous deeds and overlook their bad deeds. They will be among the inhabitants of paradise - a true promise that has been given to them.

Because of His kindness towards His slaves and His appreciation towards parents, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) enjoins and instructs children to treat their parents kindly, by speaking to them gently and nicely, spending on them, and other ways of showing kindness.

Then He points out the reason for that, by mentioning what the mother has to go through of hardship because of her child, such as hardship during pregnancy, then the hardship of birth, which is very painful, then the hardship of breastfeeding and looking after the child at that time. The things mentioned do not last for a short time, one or two hours; rather they go on for a long time, ﴾thirty months﴿. Pregnancy lasts nine months or so, and the remainder of that time is for breastfeeding. This refers to what is usually the case.

This verse, along with the verse:

﴾IVlothers may breastfeed their children for two whole years...﴿

- is quoted as evidence that the minimum length of pregnancy is six months, because if the period of breastfeeding - which is twoyears - is subtracted from thirty months, what is left is six months for pregnancy.

﴾Then when he reaches his prime﴿ that is, the pinnacle of his youth and intellect,

﴾fand reaches the age of forty years, he says: O my Lord, inspire me﴿ that is, guide me and help me

﴾to be constantly grateful for Your blessings that You have bestowed upon me and my parents﴿ that is, spiritual blessings and worldly blessings. Gratitude means using those blessings in obedience to the One Who bestowed them and granted them, and responding to His blessings by acknowledging and admitting one’s inability to give proper thanks, and striving to praise Allah for them. A blessing to the parents is a blessing to their children and descendants, because they will inevitably get some of them and some of their effects, especially the blessing of religious commitment, because the righteousness of the parents, that is based on knowledge and deeds, is one of the main reasons for the righteousness of their children.

﴾and to do righteous deeds with which You will be pleased﴿ by helping me to do the type of deed that meets all the prerequisites of being sound and right, and is free of anything that may spoil it. Such is the deed that Allah is pleased with and accepts, and for which He gives reward.

﴾and establish righteousness among my offspring for me﴿ - as he prayed for himself to be righteous, he also prayed for his offspring to be righteous, asking Allah to rectify their condition. He stated that the benefit of the children’s righteousness comes back to their parents, because he said, ﴾fand establish righteousness among my offspring for me﴿.

﴾Verily I repent to You﴿ from sins and acts of disobedience, and I come back to obedience to You, ﴾fand verily I am one of those who submit to Allah [in Islam]﴿.

﴾Such﴿ that is, those who are described here ﴾are the ones from whom We will accept their righteous deeds﴿ which are acts of obedience, because they also do other kinds of deeds. ﴾and overlook their bad deeds﴿ in general terms.

﴾They will be among the inhabitants of paradise﴿ so they will attain goodness and what they seek, and evil and what they dislike will be removed from them.

﴾a true promise that has been given to them﴿ that is, this promise that We have made to them is a true promise from the One Who is truest in speech, Who does not break His promise.

46:17. But some say to their parents: Fie on you both! Are you telling me that I will be brought forth [from the grave] even though many generations have passed away before me? They seek Allah’s help [and say]: Woe to you! Have faith, for the promise of Allah is true. But he says: This is nothing but tales of the ancients.

46:18. Such are the ones for whom the punishment becomes inevitable, as happened to nations of jinn and men who came before them, for indeed they are [all] losers.

46:19. For all there will be ranks according to their deeds, so that [Allah] may pay them in full for their deeds, and no one will be wronged.

Having mentioned the situation of the righteous one who honours his parents, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) now tells us of the situation of the one who is disobedient to his parents, and that it is the worst of situations:

﴾But some say to their parents﴿ when they call them to believe in Allah and the Last Day, and warn them of the requital.

This is a great act of kindness and the best thing that the parents can do for their child, to call him to that which leads to eternal happiness and bliss, but he responds in the worst manner and says: ﴾Fie on you both!﴿ That is, may you perish, you and what you have brought.

Then he explains why he thinks that unlikely, rejecting this idea: ﴾Are you telling me that I will be brought forth [from the grave]﴿ on the Day of Resurrection

﴾even though many generations have passed away before me?﴿ That is, many generations have passed away who were disbelievers, following the path of disbelief, and they were the leaders for every stubborn, ignorant disbeliever?

﴾They﴿ namely his parents ﴾seek Allah’s help﴿ in dealing with him, and they say to him: ﴾Woe to you! Have faith﴿ that is, they do their utmost in trying hard to guide him, to the extent that - in their keenness for him to be guided - they seek the help of Allah, like one who is drowning, asking Him in desperation, trying to convince their son and feeling sad for him, trying to explain the truth to him. Hence they say: ﴾for the promise of Allah is true﴿. Then they present whatever evidence they can to him.

But their son only increases in stubbornness, aversion, arrogance towards the truth, and speaking ill of it.

﴾But he says: This is nothing but tales of the ancients﴿ that is, it is only something that was transmitted from the books of the earlier generations; it is not from Allah, and Allah did not reveal it to His Messenger (ﷺ).

Everyone knows that Muhammad was unlettered and could neither read nor write, and did not learn from anyone. So where did he learn it from? How could people produce something like this Qur’an, even if they came together to do so?

﴾Such are the ones﴿ that is, the ones who are in this blameworthy state

﴾for whom the punishment becomes inevitable﴿ that is, they deserved the punishment

﴾as happened to nations of jinn and men who came before them﴿, who followed the path of disbelief and rejection. So these people will be included with them and will disappear in their midst.

﴾for indeed they are [all] losers﴿ - loss means losing one’s capital, for if a man loses his capital, it is more apt that he should lose the profits thereon. They have lost faith, and did not attain any bliss, nor were they safe from the punishment of hell.

﴾For all﴿ that is, for both good people and evil people ﴾there will be ranks according to their deeds﴿ that is, for each one according to his level of good or evil. Their ranks in the hereafter will be according to their deeds. Hence Allah says: ﴾so that [Allah] may pay them in full for their deeds, and no one will be wronged﴿ by having anything added to their bad deeds or anything subtracted from their good deeds.

46:20. On the day when those who disbelieved are brought before the fire, [it will be said to them]: You had your share of goodthings in the life of the [previous] world, and you had your fill of pleasure. Today you will be recompensed with a humiliating punishment, because you behaved arrogantly on earth without justification and because you acted rebelliously.

Here Allah ffe) mentions the state of the disbelievers when they are brought before the fire and rebuked and chastised. It will be said to them: ﴾You had your share of good things in the life of the [previous] worlds, when you felt content with the world, were deceived by its pleasures and were pleased with its desires. Its good things distracted you from striving for your hereafter, and you enjoyed it in the manner of grazing animals. That was your share, and you have no share of the hereafter.

﴾Today you will be recompensed with a humiliating punishment﴿ that is, a severe punishment that will humiliate you and expose you to shame, because you used to say of Allah that which was not true, for you used to attribute to Allah and to His decree the path of misguidance that you were following, but you were lying when you said that, ﴾and because you acted rebelliously﴿ and were too arrogant to obey Allah.

Thus they combined speaking words of falsehood, acting upon falsehood, telling lies against Allah by attributing their falsehood to Him, casting aspersions upon the truth and being too arrogant to follow it. So they will be given the most severe of punishments.

46:21. Remember the brother of ‘Ad [namely Hood], when he warned his people in [the land of] al-Ahqaf - and indeed there came warners before him and after him - [saying]: Do not worship any but Allah. Verily I fear for you the punishment of a momentous day.

46:22. They said: Have you come to lure us away from our gods? Bring us that with which you are threatening us, if you are telling the truth.

46:23. He said: Knowledge [of when it will come] is only with Allah. I only convey to you the message with which I have been sent. But I see that you are ignorant people.

46:24. When they saw it [the punishment] as a cloud approaching their valleys, they said: This is a cloud bringing us rain. [Hood said:] Nay; rather it is that which you sought to hasten - a wind bearing a painful punishment.

46:25. It will destroy everything by the command of its Lord. And they became such that there was nothing left to be seen except their [empty] dwellings. Thus We requite the evildoers.

46:26. We gave them power [and prosperity] to an extent to which We did not give it to you [O Quraysh], and We gave them hearing, sight and intellect. But neither their hearing nor their sight nor their intellect was of any avail to them, for they used to reject the signs of Allah. And the very thing [punishment] they used to ridicule overwhelmed them.

﴾Remember﴿ that is, by way of praise ﴾the brother of‘Ad [namely Hood]﴿ (عليه السلام), who was one of the noble Messengers whom Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) blessed by making them callers to His religion who guided people towards Him.

﴾when he warned his people﴿ namely ‘Ad ﴾in [the land of] al-Ahqaf﴿ that is, in their dwellings that were known as al-ahqaf a word which refers to an area where there is a great deal of sand, in the land of Yemen.

?fand indeed there came warners before him and after him﴿ so he was not the first among them and was no different from them. He said to them: ﴾Do not worship any but Allah. Verily I fear for you the punishment of a momentous day﴿.

Thus he instructed them to worship Allah, which includes all good words and praiseworthy deeds. And he forbade them to ascribe partners to Allah or make others equal to Him. And he warned them, if they did not obey him, of the severe punishment. But this call was to no avail in their case.

﴾They said: Have you come to lure us away from our gods?﴿ That is, you have no other aim, and there is no truth in what you say. You are envying us for what we have of gods and you want to turn us away from them.

﴾Bring us that with which you are threatening us, if you are telling the truth﴿ - this is the utmost ignorance and stubbornness.

﴾He said: Knowledge [of when it will come] is only with Allah﴿ for it is He in Whose Hand is control of all things, and it is He Who will bring you the punishment if He so wills.

?[I only convey to you the message with which I have been sent﴿ that is, my only responsibility is to convey the message clearly. ?(But I see that you are ignorant people﴿, therefore you did what you did of showing extreme audacity.

So Allah sent against them the severe punishment, namely the wind that destroyed them utterly.

Hence He says: ﴾When they saw it [the punishment] as a cloud approaching their valleys﴿ that is, it appeared like a cloud that came towards their valleys, that would provide water with which they would irrigate their land and drink from their wells and streams ﴾they said﴿ optimistically: ﴾This is a cloud bringing us rain﴿ that is, this cloud will give us rain.

﴾[Hood said:] Nay; rather it is that which you sought to hasten﴿ that is, this is what you have brought upon yourselves when you said: ﴾Bring us that with which you are threatening us, if you are telling f(a wind bearing a painful punishment. It will destroy everything﴿ that it passes over, because of its intensity and destructive power. Allah sent it against them:

﴾... for seven nights and eight days in succession, so that you would have seen the people lying lifeless as if they were the trunks of fallen palm trees.﴿ (al-Haqqah 69: 7)

- ﴾by the command of its Lord﴿ that is, by His leave and His will.

﴾And they became such that there was nothing left to be seen except their [empty] dwellings﴿ that is, their flocks, their wealth and they themselves were destroyed.

﴾Thus We requite the evildoers﴿ because of their sin and wrongdoing.

Although Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) had bestowed great blessings upon them, they did not give thanks to Him or remember Him. Hence He says: ﴾We gave them power [and prosperity] to an extent to which We did not give it to you [O Quraysh]﴿ that is, We gave them power (and prosperity) in the land, so they were helping themselves to its good things and enjoying its pleasures. We made their lives long enough for anyone who might reflect and pay heed to do so (cf. 35: 37), and for anyone who might be guided to follow guidance. In other words.We gave ‘Ad power and prosperity more than We have given to you (O Quraysh), so do not think that what We have bestowed upon you has never been given to anyone else, or that it will protect you from the punishment of Allah at all. Rather others were given more power and prosperity than you, but their wealth, sons and troops did not avail them before Allah in the slightest.

﴾and We gave them hearing, sight and intellect﴿ that is, there was no shortcoming in their hearing, sight or intellect, such that it could be said that they neglected the truth out of ignorance and were unable to learn about it. There was nothing wrong with their reasoning, but guidance is in the Hand of Allah.

﴾But neither their hearing nor their sight nor their intellect was of any avail to them﴿ at all.

That is because they t﴾used to reject the signs of Allah﴿ that pointed to His oneness and indicated that He alone is to be worshipped.

﴾And the very thing [punishment] they used to ridicule overwhelmed them﴿ that is, there befell them the punishment that they denied would happen, and they ridiculed the Messengers who warned them of it.

46:27. Indeed We destroyed the cities that were around you [O Quraysh], having given them a variety of signs, so that they might turn back [from their evil ways].

46:28. Why then was no help forthcoming to them from those whom they took as gods besides Allah so that they might bring themcloser to Him? Nay, they were lost from them; such was the outcome of their lie and the fabrication they used to invent.

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) warns the polytheist Arabs and others by mentioning the destruction of the disbelieving nations who had lived around their land; in fact many of them had lived in the Arabian Peninsula itself, such as ‘Ad, Thamood and others. Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) sent various signs to them, of different types, ﴾so that they might turn back [from their evil ways]﴿ that is, so that they might give up their ways of disbelief and rejection.

But because they did not believe, Allah seized them with the vehement grip of One Who is Almighty, Omnipotent (cf. 54: 42), and their gods upon whom they called besides Allah did not help them in the slightest. Hence Allah says here: ﴾Why then was no help forthcoming to them from those whom they took as gods besides Allah so that they might bring them closer to Him﴿ and because they hoped that they would benefit them?

^Nay, they were lost from them﴿, so they did not respond to them or protect them.

﴾such was the outcome of their lie and the fabrication they used to invent﴿ by way of wishful thinking, as they claimed that they were following the truth and that their deeds would benefit them, but they came to nought.

(rr-rt:ciLb-VUjj_)

46:29. And [remember] when We sent a group of jinn to you, to listen to the Qur’an. When they were close enough to hear it, they said [to one another]: Listen attentively. And when [the recitation] was over, they went back to their people to warn them.

46:30. They said: O our people, verily we have heard [recitation from] a Book that has been revealed after Moosa, confirming that which came before it, guiding to the truth and to a straight path.

46:31. O our people, respond to the one who is calling to Allah, and believe in him, so that Allah may forgive you some of your sins and protect you from a painful punishment.

46:32. And whoever does not respond to the one who is calling to Allah can never escape [Allah’s punishment] on earth, and besides Him he has no protectors. Such people are clearly misguided.

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) sent His Messenger Muhammad (ﷺ) to all of creation, both humans and jinn, and he had to convey to all the message of his prophethood.

As for humans, he was able to call them and warn them. As for the jinn, Allah sent them to him by His might; He sent to him «fa group of jinn ... to listen to the Qur’an. When they were close enough to hear it, they said [to one another]: Listen attentively﴿ that is, they urged one another to listen attentively.

﴾And when [the recitation] was over﴿ and they had understood it and it had had an impact on them,

﴾they went back to their people to warn them﴿ out of sincerity towards them and so as to establish the proof of Allah against them. Allah made them a help to His Messenger (ﷺ) in spreading His call among the jinn.

﴾They said: O our people, verily we have heard [recitation from] a Book that has been revealed after Moosa﴿ because the Book of Moosa was the basis for the Gospel, and it was the main reference for the Children of Israel with regard to religious rulings; as for the Gospel, it complemented and completed the Book of Moosa, and changed a few rulings.

﴾confirming that which came before it﴿ namely the Book that we have mentioned confirms that which came before it ﴾guiding to the truth﴿ that is, leading to what is sound and correct in terms of teachings and stories

﴾and to a straight path﴿ that is, it leads to Allah and to His paradise, based on knowledge of Allah and of His religious rulings and rulings that have to do with requital in the hereafter.

Having praised the Qur’an and highlighted its sublime status, they then called their fellow jinn to believe in it, saying: ﴾fO our people, respond to the one who is calling to Allah﴿ that is, the one who is not calling to any but his Lord. He is not calling you for some ulterior motive, or on the basis of his own whims and desires; rather he is calling you to your Lord, so that He may reward you and remove from you all evils and harms. Hence they said: ﴾so that Allah may forgive you some of your sins and protect you from a painful punishment﴿. For if He protects you from the painful punishment, there can be nothing after that but bliss. This is the reward of those who respond to the one who is calling to Allah.

﴾And whoever does not respond to the one who is calling to Allah can never escape [Allah’s punishment] on earthy for Allah has power over all things, so no one can escape Him or overcome Him.

﴾and besides Him he has no protectors. Such people are clearly misguided﴿ and what misguidance can be greater than that of one whom the Messengers call, and the warning reaches him on the basis of clear signs and abundant proof, but he turns away and is too arrogant to pay heed?0

46:33. Do they not see that Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth, and was not wearied by their creation, is able to bring the dead to life? Verily He has power over all things.

This offers evidence that Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) is able to bring them back to life after death, by referring to something that is greater than that, namely the fact that it is He Who created the heavens and the earth, despite their greatness and vastness, and the precision of their creation, without that leading to Him feeling tired as a result of creating them. So how could He be incapable of bringing you back to life after your death, when He has power over all things?

46:34. On the day when those who disbelieved are brought before the fire, [it will be said to them]: Is this not the truth? They will say: Yes indeed, by our Lord. He will say: Taste then the punishment for having disbelieved.

46:35. So be patient, as the Messengers of strong resolve were patient, and do not seek to hasten [the punishment] for them. On the day when they see the punishment of which they were warned, it will be as if they had not remained [in this world] for longerthan an hour of a day. This [Qur’an] is sufficient reminder. Will any, then, be doomed but the rebellious and wicked people?

Here Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) tells us of the terrible situation of the disbelievers when they will be brought to the fire that they disbelieved in; they will be rebuked and it will be said to them: tfls this not the truth?﴿ Here it is before you; you can see it with your own eyes.

﴾They will say: Yes indeed, by our Lord﴿ - they will acknowledge their sin and their lies (namely their denial of the punishment) will become apparent.

﴾He will say: Taste then the punishment for having disbelieved﴿ that is, an eternal, everlasting punishment, as your disbelief was a constant and well-entrenched characteristic of yours.

Then Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) instructs His Messenger (ﷺ) to be patient in putting up with the harm of the disbelievers who opposed him, and to keep calling them to Allah, emulating the patience of the Messengers of firm resolve and leaders of humankind, men of high ambition whose patience was immense and whose faith was perfect, for they are most deserving of being taken as examples, to follow in their footsteps and be guided by their beacon.

The Prophet (ﷺ) obeyed the command of his Lord, and was patient as no Prophet before him had ever been. His opponents united against him and all strove hard to divert him from calling people to Allah, doing their utmost to oppose him and fight him. But he persisted in obeying the command of Allah, and never wearied of striving against the enemies of Allah, bearing with patience whatever harm he faced, until Allah granted him victory in the land and caused His religion to prevail over all others, and his Ummah to prevail over all other nations. May the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him.

﴾and do not seek to hasten [the punishment] for them﴿ that is, these disbelievers who seek to hasten the punishment for themselves, for that stems from ignorance and foolishness on their part. Do not lettheir ignorance discourage you, and do not let what you see of them seeking to hasten the punishment lead you to pray to Allah against them to hasten it for them, for everything that is coming is imminent, and when it comes ﴾it will be as if they had not remained [in this world] for longer than an hour of a day]J. So do not be upset by the little enjoyment that they have in this world, when they will end up facing a terrible punishment.

This mighty Qur’an, in which We have explained the message perfectly, is enough for you, and it is sufficient provision for you during your journey to the hereafter. What a good provision it is, that will help you to reach the realm of joy and protect you from the painful punishment. It is the best provision that Allah has granted to people, and the greatest blessing that He has bestowed upon them.

Will any, then, be doomed﴿ to punishment ﴾but the rebellious and wicked people?﴿ That is, those in whom there is nothing good, for they refused to obey their Lord, and they did not accept the truth that the Messengers brought to them. Allah warned them and left them with no excuse, but they persisted in their rejection and disbelief. We ask Allah to protect us.

This is the end of the commentary on Soorat al-Ahqaf.

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.