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Ayah
Word by Word
وَلَوۡ
And (even) if
أَنَّنَا
[that] We (had)
نَزَّلۡنَآ
[We] sent down
إِلَيۡهِمُ
to them
ٱلۡمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ
the Angels
وَكَلَّمَهُمُ
and spoken to them
ٱلۡمَوۡتَىٰ
the dead
وَحَشَرۡنَا
and We gathered
عَلَيۡهِمۡ
before them
كُلَّ
every
شَيۡءٖ
thing
قُبُلٗا
face to face
مَّا
not
كَانُواْ
they were
لِيُؤۡمِنُوٓاْ
to believe
إِلَّآ
unless
أَن
[that]
يَشَآءَ
wills
ٱللَّهُ
Allah
وَلَٰكِنَّ
But
أَكۡثَرَهُمۡ
most of them
يَجۡهَلُونَ
(are) ignorant
وَلَوۡ
And (even) if
أَنَّنَا
[that] We (had)
نَزَّلۡنَآ
[We] sent down
إِلَيۡهِمُ
to them
ٱلۡمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ
the Angels
وَكَلَّمَهُمُ
and spoken to them
ٱلۡمَوۡتَىٰ
the dead
وَحَشَرۡنَا
and We gathered
عَلَيۡهِمۡ
before them
كُلَّ
every
شَيۡءٖ
thing
قُبُلٗا
face to face
مَّا
not
كَانُواْ
they were
لِيُؤۡمِنُوٓاْ
to believe
إِلَّآ
unless
أَن
[that]
يَشَآءَ
wills
ٱللَّهُ
Allah
وَلَٰكِنَّ
But
أَكۡثَرَهُمۡ
most of them
يَجۡهَلُونَ
(are) ignorant
Translation
Even if We did send unto them angels, and the dead did speak unto them, and We gathered together all things before their very eyes, they are not the ones to believe, unless it is in Allah's plan. But most of them ignore (the truth).
Tafsir
And if We had sent down the angels to them, and the dead had spoken with them, as they have requested, and We had gathered against them all things in droves (read qubulan, plural of qabeel, meaning 'throng upon throng', or read qibalan, meaning 'before their very eyes'), and they were witness to your truthfulness, yet they would not have believed, as God already knows, unless God willed, that they believe and they did; but most of them are ignorant, of this.
The Prohibition of Insulting the False gods of the Disbelievers, So that they Do not Insult Allah
Allah says;
وَلَا تَسُبُّواۡ الَّذِينَ يَدۡعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللّهِ فَيَسُبُّواۡ اللّهَ عَدۡوًا بِغَيۡرِ عِلۡمٍ
And insult not those whom they worship besides Allah, lest they insult Allah wrongfully without knowledge.
Allah prohibits His Messenger and the believers from insulting the false deities of the idolators, although there is a clear benefit in doing so. Insulting their deities will lead to a bigger evil than its benefit, for the idolators might retaliate by insulting the God of the believers, Allah, none has the right to be worshipped but He.
Ali bin Abi Talhah said that Ibn Abbas commented on this Ayah,
They (disbelievers) said, `O Muhammad! You will stop insulting our gods, or we will insult your Lord.' Thereafter, Allah prohibited the believers from insulting the disbelievers' idols,
فَيَسُبُّواۡ اللّهَ عَدۡوًا بِغَيۡرِ عِلۡمٍ
(lest they insult Allah wrongfully without knowledge).
Abdur-Razzaq narrated that Ma`mar said that Qatadah said,
Muslims used to insult the idols of the disbelievers and the disbelievers would retaliate by insulting Allah wrongfully without knowledge. Allah revealed,
وَلَا تَسُبُّواۡ الَّذِينَ يَدۡعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللّهِ
(And insult not those whom they worship besides Allah).
On this same subject -- abandoning what carries benefit to avert a greater evil - it is recorded in the Sahih that the Messenger of Allah said,
مَلۡعُونٌ مَنۡ سَبَّ وَالِدَيۡه
Cursed is he who insults his own parents!
They said, O Allah's Messenger! And how would a man insult his own parents!
He said,
يَسُبُّ أَبَا الرَّجُلِ فَيَسُبُّ أَبَاهُ وَيَسُبُّ أُمَّهُ فَيَسُبُّ أُمَّه
He insults a man's father, and that man insults his father, and insults his mother and that man insults his mother.
Allah's statement,
كَذَلِكَ زَيَّنَّا لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ عَمَلَهُمۡ
Thus We have made fair seeming to each people its own doings;
means, as We made fair seeming to the idolators loving their idols and defending them, likewise We made fair seeming to every previous nation the misguidance they indulged in. Allah's is the most perfect proof, and the most complete wisdom in all that He wills and chooses.
ثُمَّ إِلَى رَبِّهِم مَّرۡجِعُهُمۡ
then to their Lord is their return,
gathering and final destination,
فَيُنَبِّيُهُم بِمَا كَانُواۡ يَعۡمَلُونَ
and He shall then inform them of all that they used to do.
He will compensate them for their deeds, good for good and evil for evil.
Asking for Miracles and Swearing to Believe if They Come
Allah says;
وَأَقۡسَمُواۡ بِاللّهِ جَهۡدَ أَيۡمَانِهِمۡ
And they swear their strongest oaths by Allah,
Allah states that the idolators swore their strongest oaths by Allah,
لَيِن جَاءتۡهُمۡ ايَةٌ
that if there came to them a sign...,
a miracle or phenomenon,
لَّيُوۡمِنُنَّ بِهَا
they would surely believe therein.
affirming its truth.
قُلۡ إِنَّمَا الايَاتُ عِندَ اللّهِ
Say:Signs are but with Allah.
meaning:Say, O Muhammad - to those who ask you for signs out of defiance, disbelief and rebellion, not out of the desire for guidance and knowledge - The matter of sending signs is for Allah. If He wills, He sends them to you, and if He wills, He ignores your request.
Allah said next,
وَمَا يُشۡعِرُكُمۡ أَنَّهَا إِذَا جَاءتۡ لَا يُوۡمِنُونَ
And what will make you perceive that (even) if it came, they will not believe.
According to Mujahid it was said that;
`you' in `make you perceive' refers to the idolators.
In this case, the Ayah would mean,
what makes you -- you idolators -- perceive that you are truthful in the vows that you swore.
Therefore, in this recitation, the Ayah means, the idolators will still not believe if the sign that they asked for came.
It was also said that;
`you' in, `what will make you perceive', refers to the believers,
meaning, what will make you perceive, O believers, that the idolators will still not believe if the signs come.
Allah also said,
مَا مَنَعَكَ أَلاَّ تَسۡجُدَ إِذۡ أَمَرۡتُكَ
What prevented you (O Iblis) that you did not prostrate, when I commanded you! (7:12)
and,
وَحَرَامٌ عَلَى قَرۡيَةٍ أَهۡلَكۡنَـهَأ أَنَّهُمۡ لَا يَرۡجِعُونَ
And a ban is laid on every town (population) which We have destroyed that they shall not return (to this world again). (21:95)
These Ayat mean:`What made you, O Iblis, refrain from prostrating, although I commanded you to do so, and, in the second Ayah, that village shall not return to this world again.
In the Ayah above (6:109) the meaning thus becomes:
What makes you perceive, O believers, who wish eagerly for the disbelievers to believe, that if the Ayat came to them they would believe.
Allah said next
وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفۡيِدَتَهُمۡ وَأَبۡصَارَهُمۡ كَمَا لَمۡ يُوۡمِنُواۡ بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ
And We shall turn their hearts and their eyes away, as they refused to believe therein for the first time,
Al-Awfi said that Ibn Abbas said about this Ayah,
When the idolators rejected what Allah sent down, their hearts did not settle on any one thing and they turned away from every matter (of benefit).
Mujahid said that Allah's statement,
وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفۡيِدَتَهُمۡ وَأَبۡصَارَهُمۡ
(and We shall turn their hearts and their eyes away) means,
We prevent them from the faith, and even if every sign came to them, they will not believe, just as We prevented them from faith the first time.
Similar was said by `Ikrimah and `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam.
Ali bin Abi Talhah said that Ibn Abbas said,
Allah mentions what the servants will say before they say it and what they will do before they do it. Allah said;
وَلَا يُنَبِّيُكَ مِثۡلُ خَبِيرٍ
(And none can inform you like Him Who is the All-Knower). (35:14)
and,
أَن تَقُولَ نَفۡسٌ يَا حَسۡرَتَى علَى مَا فَرَّطتُ فِي جَنبِ اللَّهِ
Lest a person should say, Alas, my grief that I was undutiful to Allah. (39:56) until,
لَوۡ أَنَّ لِي كَرَّةً فَأَكُونَ مِنَ الۡمُحۡسِنِينَ
(If only I had another chance, then I should indeed be among the doers of good). (39:58)
So Allah, glory be to Him, states that if they were sent back to life, they would not accept the guidance,
وَلَوۡ رُدُّواۡ لَعَادُواۡ لِمَا نُهُواۡ عَنۡهُ وَإِنَّهُمۡ لَكَاذِبُونَ
(But if they were returned, they would certainly revert to that which they were forbidden. And indeed they are liars). (6:28)
Allah said,
وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفۡيِدَتَهُمۡ وَأَبۡصَارَهُمۡ كَمَا لَمۡ يُوۡمِنُواۡ بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ
And We shall turn their hearts and their eyes away (from guidance), as they refused to believe therein for the first time),
meaning:`If they were sent back to this life, they would be prevented from embracing the guidance, just as We prevented them from it the first time, when they were in the life of this world.
Allah said,
وَنَذَرُهُمۡ
and We shall leave them...
and abandon them,
فِي طُغۡيَانِهِمۡ
in their trespass...,
According to Ibn Abbas and As-Suddi,
meaning, disbelief.
Abu Al-Aliyah, Ar-Rabi bin Anas and Qatadah said that;
`their trespass' means, `their misguidance'.
يَعۡمَهُونَ
to wander blindly.
or playfully, according to Al-A`mash.
Ibn Abbas, Mujahid, Abu Al-Aliyah, Ar-Rabi, Abu Malik and others commented,
to wander in their disbelief.
Allah says:
وَلَوۡ أَنَّنَا نَزَّلۡنَا إِلَيۡهِمُ الۡمَليِكَةَ
And even if We had sent down unto them angels,
Allah says:`Had We accepted what the disbelievers asked for,' that is -- those who swore their strongest oaths by Allah that if a miracle came to them they would believe in it -- `had We sent down angels,' to convey to them Allah's Message, in order to support the truth of the Messengers, as they asked, when they said,
أَوۡ تَأۡتِيَ بِاللّهِ وَالۡمَليِكَةِ قَبِيلً
(or you bring Allah and the angels before (us) face to face). (17:92)
قَالُواۡ لَن نُّوۡمِنَ حَتَّى نُوۡتَى مِثۡلَ مَأ أُوتِىَ رُسُلُ اللَّهِ
They said:We shall not believe until we receive the like of that which the Messengers of Allah had received. (6:124)
and,
وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ لَا يَرۡجُونَ لِقَأءَنَا لَوۡلَا أُنزِلَ عَلَيۡنَا الۡمَلَـيِكَةُ أَوۡ نَرَى رَبَّنَا لَقَدِ اسۡتَكۡبَرُواۡ فِى أَنفُسِهِمۡ وَعَتَوۡا عُتُوّاً كَبِيراً
And those who expect not a meeting with Us said:Why are not the angels sent down to us, or why do we not see our Lord! Indeed they think too highly of themselves, and are scornful with great pride. (25:21)
Allah said,
وَكَلَّمَهُمُ الۡمَوۡتَى
and the dead had spoken unto them,
This is, to inform them of the truth of what the Messengers brought them;
وَحَشَرۡنَا عَلَيۡهِمۡ كُلَّ شَيۡءٍ قُبُلً
and We had gathered together all things before them,
Ali bin Abi Talhah and Al-Awfi reported from Ibn Abbas,
before their eyes.
This is the view of Qatadah and Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam.
This Ayah means, if all nations were gathered before them, one after the other, and each one testifies to the truth of what the Messengers came with,
مَّا كَانُواۡ لِيُوۡمِنُواۡ إِلاَّ أَن يَشَاء اللّهُ
they would not have believed, unless Allah willed,
for guidance is with Allah not with them. Certainly, Allah guides whom He wills and misguides whom He wills, and He does what He wills,
لَاا يُسۡأَلُ عَمَّا يَفۡعَلُ وَهُمۡ يُسۡأَلُونَ
(He cannot be questioned about what He does, while they will be questioned). (21:23)
This is due to His knowledge, wisdom, power, supreme authority and irresistibility.
Similarly, Allah said,
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ حَقَّتۡ عَلَيۡهِمۡ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ لَا يُوۡمِنُونَ
وَلَوۡ جَأءَتۡهُمۡ كُلُّ ءايَةٍ حَتَّى يَرَوُاۡ الۡعَذَابَ الاٌّلِيمَ
Truly, those, against whom the Word (wrath) of your Lord has been justified, will not believe. Even if every sign should come to them, until they see the painful torment. (10:96-97)
وَلَـكِنَّ أَكۡثَرَهُمۡ يَجۡهَلُونَ
but most of them behave ignorantly.
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