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Ayah
Word by Word
أَلَمۡ
Did not
يَرَوۡاْ
they see
كَمۡ
how many
أَهۡلَكۡنَا
We destroyed
مِن
from
قَبۡلِهِم
before them
مِّن
of
قَرۡنٖ
generations
مَّكَّنَّـٰهُمۡ
We had established them
فِي
in
ٱلۡأَرۡضِ
the earth
مَا
what
لَمۡ
not
نُمَكِّن
We (have) established
لَّكُمۡ
for you
وَأَرۡسَلۡنَا
And We sent
ٱلسَّمَآءَ
(rain from) the sky
عَلَيۡهِم
upon them
مِّدۡرَارٗا
showering abundantly
وَجَعَلۡنَا
and We made
ٱلۡأَنۡهَٰرَ
the rivers
تَجۡرِي
flow
مِن
from
تَحۡتِهِمۡ
underneath them
فَأَهۡلَكۡنَٰهُم
Then We destroyed them
بِذُنُوبِهِمۡ
for their sins
وَأَنشَأۡنَا
and We raised
مِنۢ
from
بَعۡدِهِمۡ
after them
قَرۡنًا
generations
ءَاخَرِينَ
other
أَلَمۡ
Did not
يَرَوۡاْ
they see
كَمۡ
how many
أَهۡلَكۡنَا
We destroyed
مِن
from
قَبۡلِهِم
before them
مِّن
of
قَرۡنٖ
generations
مَّكَّنَّـٰهُمۡ
We had established them
فِي
in
ٱلۡأَرۡضِ
the earth
مَا
what
لَمۡ
not
نُمَكِّن
We (have) established
لَّكُمۡ
for you
وَأَرۡسَلۡنَا
And We sent
ٱلسَّمَآءَ
(rain from) the sky
عَلَيۡهِم
upon them
مِّدۡرَارٗا
showering abundantly
وَجَعَلۡنَا
and We made
ٱلۡأَنۡهَٰرَ
the rivers
تَجۡرِي
flow
مِن
from
تَحۡتِهِمۡ
underneath them
فَأَهۡلَكۡنَٰهُم
Then We destroyed them
بِذُنُوبِهِمۡ
for their sins
وَأَنشَأۡنَا
and We raised
مِنۢ
from
بَعۡدِهِمۡ
after them
قَرۡنًا
generations
ءَاخَرِينَ
other
Translation
See they not how many of those before them We did destroy?- generations We had established on the earth, in strength such as We have not given to you - for whom We poured out rain from the skies in abundance, and gave (fertile) streams flowing beneath their (feet): yet for their sins We destroyed them, and raised in their wake fresh generations (to succeed them).
Tafsir
Have they not seen, in their travels to Syria and to other places, how many, (kam is predicative [and not interrogative], meaning 'many') a generation, [how many] a community of past communities, We destroyed before them; We established them, We assigned them an [established] place, in the earth, through strength and abundance, as We have not established, [as] We have [not] assigned, you (there is a shift in the address here from third person [to second]); and how We unleashed the sky, the rain, upon them in torrents, one torrent after another, and made the rivers to flow beneath them?, beneath their dwellings. Then We destroyed them because of their sins, because of their denial of the prophets; and We raised up after them another generation.
Tafsir of Surah Al-An'am
All Praise is Due to Allah for His Glorious Ability and Great Power
Allah praises Himself;
الۡحَمۡدُ لِلّهِ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالَارۡضَ وَجَعَلَ الظُّلُمَاتِ وَالنُّورَ
All praise be to Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth, and originated the darkness and the light,
Allah praises and glorifies His Most Honorable Self for creating the heavens and earth, as a dwelling for His servants, and for making the darkness and the light to benefit them in the night and the day.
In this Ayah, Allah describes darkness in the plural, Zulumat (where Zulmah is singular for darkness), while describing the light in the singular, An-Nur, because An-Nur is more honored.
In other Ayat, Allah said,
ظِلَـلُهُ عَنِ الۡيَمِينِ
To the right and to the lefts. (16:48)
Near the end of this Surah, Allah also said;
وَأَنَّ هَـذَا صِرَاطِي مُسۡتَقِيمًا فَاتَّبِعُوهُ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُواۡ السُّبُلَ فَتَفَرَّقَ بِكُمۡ عَن سَبِيلِهِ
And verily, this is my straight path, so follow it, and follow no (other) ways, for they will separate you away from His way. (6:153)
Allah said next,
ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواۡ بِرَبِّهِم يَعۡدِلُونَ
Yet those who disbelieve hold others as equal with their Lord.
meaning, in spite of all this, some of Allah's servants disbelieve in Him and hold others as partners and rivals with Him. Some of Allah's servants claimed a wife and a son for Allah, hallowed be He far above what they attribute to Him.
Allah's statement
هُوَ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُم مِّن طِينٍ
He it is Who has created you from clay,
refers to the father of mankind, Adam, from whom mankind originated, multiplied in numbers and spread about, east and west.
Allah said,
ثُمَّ قَضَى أَجَلً وَأَجَلٌ مُّسمًّى عِندَهُ
Then has decreed a stated term. And there is with Him another determined term...
His saying;
ثُمَّ قَضَى أَجَلً
(Then has decreed a stated term),
refers to death,
while,
وَأَجَلٌ مُّسمًّى عِندَهُ
(And there is with Him another determined term...),
refers to the Hereafter,
according to Sa`id bin Jubayr who reported this from Ibn Abbas.
Similar statements were narrated from Mujahid, Ikrimah, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, Ad-Dahhak, Zayd bin Aslam, Atiyah, As-Suddi, Muqatil bin Hayyan and others.
Ibn Abbas and Mujahid said that,
ثُمَّ قَضَى أَجَلً
(And then has decreed a stated term),
is the term of this earthly life,
while,
وَأَجَلٌ مُّسمًّى عِندَهُ
(And there is with Him another determined term),
refers to man's extent of life until he dies as mentioned in Allah's statement;
وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَتَوَفَّاكُم بِاللَّيۡلِ وَيَعۡلَمُ مَا جَرَحۡتُم بِالنَّهَارِ
It is He, Who takes your souls by night (when you are asleep), and has knowledge of all that you have done by day, then He raises (wakes) you up again that a term appointed (life) be fulfilled. (6:60)
The meaning of Allah's statement,
عِندَهُ
(With Him), is that;
none but Him knows when it will occur.
Allah said in other Ayat,
إِنَّمَا عِلۡمُهَا عِنۡدَ رَبِّي لَا يُجَلِّيهَا لِوَقۡتِهَأ إِلاَّ هُوَ
The knowledge thereof is with my Lord. None can reveal its time but He. (7:187)
and,
يَسۡأَلُونَكَ عَنِ السَّاعَةِ أَيَّانَ مُرۡسَـهَا
فِيمَ أَنتَ مِن ذِكۡرَاهَا
إِلَى رَبِّكَ مُنتَهَـهَأ
They ask you about the Hour -- when will be its appointed time! You have no knowledge to say anything about it. To your Lord belongs (the knowledge of) the term thereof. (79:42-44)
Allah said,
ثُمَّ أَنتُمۡ تَمۡتَرُونَ
Yet you doubt.
According to As-Suddi,
the coming of the (last) Hour.
Allah said next,
وَهُوَ اللّهُ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَفِي الَارۡضِ يَعۡلَمُ سِرَّكُمۡ وَجَهرَكُمۡ وَيَعۡلَمُ مَا تَكۡسِبُونَ
And He is Allah in the heavens and the earth, He knows what you conceal and what you reveal, and He knows what you earn.
Meaning, it is He Who is called Allah, throughout the heavens and the earth, that is, it is He who is worshipped, singled out, whose divinity is believed in by the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth. They call Him Allah, and they supplicate to Him in fear and hope, except those who disbelieve among the Jinns and mankind.
In another Ayah, Allah said;
وَهُوَ الَّذِى فِى السَّمأءِ إِلَـهٌ وَفِى الاٌّرۡضِ إِلَـهٌ
It is He Who is God in the heavens and the earth. (43:84)
meaning, He is the God of those in heaven and those on earth, and He knows all affairs, public and secret.
وَيَعۡلَمُ مَا تَكۡسِبُونَ
And He knows what you earn.
all the good and bad deeds that you perform.
Threatening the Idolators for their Stubbornness
Allah says;
وَمَا تَأۡتِيهِم مِّنۡ ايَةٍ مِّنۡ ايَاتِ رَبِّهِمۡ إِلاَّ كَانُواۡ عَنۡهَا مُعۡرِضِينَ
And never an Ayah comes to them from the Ayat of their Lord, but that they have been turning away from it.
Allah states that the rebellious, stubborn polytheists will turn away from every Ayah, meaning, sign, miracle and proof that is evidence of Allah's Uniqueness and the truth of His honorable Messengers. They will not contemplate about these Ayat or care about them.
Allah said,
فَقَدۡ كَذَّبُواۡ بِالۡحَقِّ لَمَّا جَاءهُمۡ فَسَوۡفَ يَأۡتِيهِمۡ أَنبَاء مَا كَانُواۡ بِهِ يَسۡتَهۡزِوُونَ
Indeed, they rejected the truth when it came to them, but there will come to them the news of that which they used to mock at.
This Ayah contains a warning and a stern threat for the disbelievers' rejection of the truth, stating that the disbelievers will surely know the truth of what they used to deny and taste the evil end of their behavior.
Allah advises and warns the disbelievers, that they should avoid the torments and afflictions of this life, similar to what befell their likes from previous nations, who were stronger, wealthier, had more offspring, and were more exploitive on the earth.
Allah said
أَلَمۡ يَرَوۡاۡ كَمۡ أَهۡلَكۡنَا مِن قَبۡلِهِم مِّن قَرۡنٍ مَّكَّنَّاهُمۡ فِي الَارۡضِ مَا لَمۡ نُمَكِّن لَّكُمۡ
Have they not seen how many a generation before them We have destroyed whom We had established on the earth such as We have not established you!
meaning, they had more wealth, children, buildings, abundant provision, riches and soldiers.
Allah said next,
وَأَرۡسَلۡنَا السَّمَاء عَلَيۡهِم مِّدۡرَارًا
and We poured out on them rain from the sky in abundance,
in reference to rain that comes often,
وَجَعَلۡنَا الَانۡهَارَ تَجۡرِي مِن تَحۡتِهِمۡ
And made the rivers flow under them.
as rain was abundant and the springs were plentiful, so that We deceived them.
فَأَهۡلَكۡنَاهُم بِذُنُوبِهِمۡ
Yet We destroyed them for their sins,
meaning the mistakes and errors that they committed,
وَأَنۡشَأۡنَا مِن بَعۡدِهِمۡ قَرۡنًا اخَرِينَ
and created after them other generations,
for, these generations of old perished and became as legends and stories,
وَأَنۡشَأۡنَا مِن بَعۡدِهِمۡ قَرۡنًا اخَرِينَ
(And created after them other generations), so that We test the new generations, as well. Yet, they committed similar errors and were destroyed, as their ancestors were destroyed. Therefore, beware of the same end that might befall you, for you are not dearer to Allah than these previous nations, but the Messenger whom you defied is dearer to Allah than the Messengers they defied. Thus, you are more liable than them to receive torment, if it was not for Allah's mercy and kindness.
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