Surah Maryam 19:83-98 - Quran Translation Commentary

(19:97) Indeed We have made it easy (to understand) in your own tongue so that you might thereby give glad tiding to the believers and warn thereby a people contentious.

(19:98) How many nations ¹⁰² have We destroyed before them? Do you perceive anyone of them, or hear from them a whisper?¹⁰³

Commentary

95. The meaning of the words, “We have let loose (lit. ‘sent’) Shayatin” is, “We gave them the freedom (to incite the humans)” – Qurtubi.

96. `Ali, Abu Hurayrah, Ibn `Abbas and Sufyan Thawri said that on Judgment Day the righteous will not be on their feet singly, but rather, in groups, on mounts (of Light) of such beauty as never seen before (Ibn Jarir). In fact, the term “wafd” is employed in Arabic for a delegation on mounts (Ibn Kathir). This does not contradict those reports in the Sahihayn that say that people will leave their graves barefoot, bareheaded, and naked. For, they might be clothed after leaving the graves (Qurtubi).

We also have `Amr b. Qays al-Mula’i on record as having said, “As a believer leaves his grave he will encounter someone with the most beautiful countenance and the best of fragrance. He will ask, ‘Do you know me?’ The believer will reply, ‘No. But your fragrance is so pleasant and the countenance so beautiful.’ He will say, ‘That is how you were in the world. I am your good deeds of the life of the world. There I rode upon you, today you ride upon me.’” Then he recited this verse (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir).

Abu Bakr Ibn al-`Arabiyy has said however – in his Siraj al-Muridin - that the report does not have a trustworthy chain of narrators (Qurtubi).

The above hadith is in Ibn Abi Hatim (Ibn Kathir).

97. The translation of “wird” as “thirsty” follows the understanding of Ibn `Abbas, Abu Hurayrah, Hasan and others (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir).

98. What covenant is it? Ibn `Abbas thought that it is faith itself. But Qatadah and Ibn Jurayj added that it is faith followed by righteous deeds. Qatadah said that they had learnt from their elders that the Prophet said,

لَيَدْخُلَنَّ الْجَنَّةَ بِشَفَاعَةِ رَجُلٍ مِنْ أُمَّتِي أَكْثَرُ مِنْ بني تَمِيمٍ

“There will be a man in my Ummah by whose intercession as many people will enter Islam as the tribe of Banu Tameem.” And, “we use to hear,” Qatadah continues, “that a martyr will intercede for seventy of his kinsfolk” (Tabari, Ibn Kathir).

The report is, according to Dhahabi, trustworthy; and Hasan al-Busri is reported to have said that he believed the allusion was to Uways al-Qarni (Au.).

99. Majid notes the Christian doctrine, “God the Son is the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. He is the only Begotten and eternal son of the Father. He is co-substantial with the Father.’ (CD. p. 912).”

100. So monstrous it is to attribute a son to the Lord Most High that the world could all but be destroyed. Hence the importance of belief in the Oneness of God. The Prophet said,

لَقِّنُوا مَوْتَاكُمْ شَهَادَةَ أَنْ لا إِلَهَ إِلا اللَّهُ , فَمَنْ قَالَهَا عِنْدَ مَوْتِهِ وَجَبَتْ لَهُ الْجَنَّةُ, قَالُوا: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ , فَمَنْ قَالَهَا فِي صِحَّةٍ؟ قَالَ:تِلْكَ أَوْجَبُ وَأَوْجَبُ, ثُمَّ قَالَ:وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ لَوْ جِيءَ بِالسَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرَضِينَ وَمَنْ فِيهِنَّ وَمَا بَيْنَهُنَّ وَمَا تَحْتَهُنَّ , فَوُضِعَتْ فِي كِفَّةِ الْمِيزَانِ وَوُضِعَتْ شَهَادَةُ أَنْ لا إِلَهَ إِلا اللَّهُ فِي الْكِفَّةِ الأُخْرَى لَرَجَحَتْ بِهِنَّ

“Let your dying say the testimony ‘There is no god save Allah’ for whoever said that at the time of his death will enter Paradise.” He was asked, “If so, then what about someone who said it in ordinary times?” He replied, “That would make it more certain, more certain.” Then he added, “By Him in whose hands is my life, if all that is there in the heavens and the earth were to be placed into one pan and the testimony ‘There is no god save Allah’ in another, the one with the testimony will weigh down” (Ibn Jarir).

The above hadith draws strength from another which says that a slip of paper containing the testimony will weigh heavier in the Scale on the Day of Judgment than 99 books of evil deeds (Ibn Kathir).

And, Ibn al-Mubarak, Sa`id b. Mansur, Ibn Abi Shaybah, Ahmad (in his “Al-Zuhd”), Ibn Abi Hatim, Abu al-Sheikh, Tabrani and Bayhaqi (in his Shu`ab) have reported Ibn Mas`ud as saying, “A mountain calls out to another mountain by its name, ‘O so and so. Did anyone pass by you who remembered Allah?’ It replies, ‘Yes. Be of good cheer’” (Shawkani).

Qurtubi adds: Muhammad b. Ka`b has said that the statement about Allah taking a son is so heinous, that those who uttered it almost broke the Last Hour on us human beings. And, Ibn al-Arabiyy has said, “If not for the fact that Allah is neither affected by the disbelief of the disbeliever, nor is He elevated by the belief of the believer; neither the former decreases in His kingdom by aught, nor the latter increases it by aught, (if not for these facts) such a blasphemy would not have been allowed to roll on the tongues. But the thing is, Allah Most High takes no notice of what the misguided ones have to utter about Him.”

Majid adds: “Compare a saying of Jesus himself, unrecorded in the ‘canonical’ gospels. ‘The crowd drew nigh, and when they knew him they began to cry out: Welcome to thee, O our God! And they began to do him reverence, as unto God. Whereupon Jesus gave a great groan, and said: Get ye from before me, O madmen, for I fear lest the earth should open and devour me with you for your abominable words.’ (GB. p. 213).”

101. Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid and others have said in explanation that the allusion is to the place of love for the believers among the believers (Ibn Jarir).

The above is confirmed by reports in the Sahihayn and other collections. The Prophet said,

إِنَّ اللَّهَ إِذَا أَحَبَّ عَبْدًا دَعَا جِبْرِيلَ فَقَالَ إِنِّى أُحِبُّ فُلاَنًا فَأَحِبَّهُ - قَالَ - فَيُحِبُّهُ جِبْرِيلُ ثُمَّ يُنَادِى فِى السَّمَاءِ فَيَقُولُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ فُلاَنًا فَأَحِبُّوهُ. فَيُحِبُّهُ أَهْلُ السَّمَاءِ - قَالَ - ثُمَّ يُوضَعُ لَهُ الْقَبُولُ فِى الأَرْضِ. وَإِذَا أَبْغَضَ عَبْدًا دَعَا جِبْرِيلَ فَيَقُولُ إِنِّى أُبْغِضُ فُلاَنًا فَأَبْغِضْهُ - قَالَ - فَيُبْغِضُهُ جِبْرِيلُ ثُمَّ يُنَادِى فِى أَهْلِ السَّمَاءِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُبْغِضُ فُلاَنًا فَأَبْغِضُوهُ - قَالَ - فَيُبْغِضُونَهُ ثُمَّ تُوضَعُ لَهُ الْبَغْضَاءُ فِى الأَرْضِ.

“When Allah loves a man He calls Jibril and tells him, ‘Jibril! I love so and so. So, you love him too.’ So, Jibril begins to love him. Thereafter it is announced among the inhabitants of the heavens: ‘Allah loves so and so. So, you too love him.’ So, the inhabitants of the heavens begin to love him. Then love is placed for him in the earth. In contrast, when Allah hates a man He calls Jibril and tells him, ‘Jibril! I hate so and so. So, you hate him too.’ So, Jibril begins to hate him. Thereafter it is announced among the inhabitants of the heavens, ‘Allah hates so and so. So, you too hate him.’ So, the inhabitants of the heavens begin to hate him. Then hatred is placed for him in the earth” (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir and Razi in brief).

As for the popularity that we see some of the unbelievers gaining among themselves, or among misguided Muslims, most of the time, it is temporary (Au.).

102. A literal translation of the word “qarn” is epoch. It can also be rendered as “civilization.”

103. Ibn Jarir presents examples from poetry to demonstrate that although the textual “rikz” lends different meanings, primarily it stands for a low voice, or whisper.