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Ayah
Word by Word
وَمَا
And not
جَعَلۡنَا
We made
لِبَشَرٖ
for any man
مِّن
before you
قَبۡلِكَ
before you
ٱلۡخُلۡدَۖ
[the] immortality
أَفَإِيْن
so if
مِّتَّ
you die
فَهُمُ
then (would) they
ٱلۡخَٰلِدُونَ
live forever
وَمَا
And not
جَعَلۡنَا
We made
لِبَشَرٖ
for any man
مِّن
before you
قَبۡلِكَ
before you
ٱلۡخُلۡدَۖ
[the] immortality
أَفَإِيْن
so if
مِّتَّ
you die
فَهُمُ
then (would) they
ٱلۡخَٰلِدُونَ
live forever
Translation
And We did not grant to any man before you eternity [on earth]; so if you die - would they be eternal?
Tafsir
When the disbelievers said that Muhammad may peace and salutation be upon him would die, the following was revealed: And We did not assign to any human being before you immortality, permanence [of life] in this world. What, if you [are fated to] die, will they be immortal?, in it? No! (The last sentence constitutes the [syntactical] locus of the interrogative of denial).
No One has been granted Immortality in this World
Allah tells:
وَمَا جَعَلْنَا لِبَشَرٍ مِّن قَبْلِكَ
And We granted not to any human being immortality before you;
means, O Muhammad.
الْخُلْدَ
immortality,
means, in this world.
On the contrary,
كُلُّ مَنْ عَلَيْهَا فَانٍ
وَيَبْقَى وَجْهُ رَبِّكَ ذُو الْجَلْـلِ وَالاِكْرَامِ
Whatsoever is on it (the earth) will perish. And the Face of your Lord full of majesty and honor will remain forever. (55:26-27)
أَفَإِن مِّتَّ
then if you die,
means, O Muhammad,
فَهُمُ الْخَالِدُونَ
would they live forever!
means, they hope that they will live forever after you, but that will not happen; everything will pass away.
So Allah says:
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَايِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ
Everyone is going to taste death,
...
وَنَبْلُوكُم بِالشَّرِّ وَالْخَيْرِ فِتْنَةً
and We shall test you with evil and with good by way of trial.
Meaning, We shall test you, sometimes with difficulties and sometimes with ease, to see who will give thanks and who will be ungrateful, who will have patience and who will despair.
Ali bin Abi Talhah reported from Ibn Abbas:
وَنَبْلُوكُم
(and We shall test you) means,
We will test you,
بِالشَّرِّ وَالْخَيْرِ فِتْنَةً
(with evil and with good by way of trial) means,
with difficulties and with times of prosperity, with health and sickness, with richness and poverty, with lawful and unlawful, obedience and sin, with guidance and misguidance.
...
وَإِلَيْنَا تُرْجَعُونَ
And to Us you will be returned.
means, and We will requite you according to your deeds
How the Idolators mocked the Prophet, Allah tells His Prophet
Allah says:
وَإِذَا رَاكَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا
And when those who disbelieved see you,
meaning, the disbelievers of the Quraysh, such as Abu Jahl and his like.
إِن يَتَّخِذُونَكَ إِلاَّ هُزُوًا
they take you not except for mockery,
means, they make fun of you and insult you, saying,
أَهَذَا الَّذِي يَذْكُرُ الِهَتَكُمْ
Is this the one who talks about your gods!
meaning, is this the one who insults your gods and ridicules your intelligence!
Allah says:
وَهُم بِذِكْرِ الرَّحْمَنِ هُمْ كَافِرُونَ
While they disbelieve at the mention of the Most Gracious.
meaning, they disbelieve in Allah and yet they mock the Messenger of Allah.
As Allah says:
وَإِذَا رَأَوْكَ إِن يَتَّخِذُونَكَ إِلاَّ هُزُواً أَهَـذَا الَّذِى بَعَثَ اللَّهُ رَسُولاً
إِن كَادَ لَيُضِلُّنَا عَنْ ءَالِهَتِنَا لَوْلَا أَن صَبْرَنَا عَلَيْهَا وَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ حِينَ يَرَوْنَ الْعَذَابَ مَنْ أَضَلُّ سَبِيلً
And when they see you, they treat you only in mockery (saying):Is this the one whom Allah has sent as a Messenger He would have nearly misled us from our gods, had it not been that we were patient and constant in their worship!
And they will know, when they see the torment, who it is that is most astray from the path! (25:41-42)
خُلِقَ الاِْنسَانُ مِنْ عَجَلٍ سَأُرِيكُمْ ايَاتِي فَلَ تَسْتَعْجِلُونِ
Man is created of haste. I will show you My Ayat. So ask Me not to hasten (them).
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