Surah Ali 'Imran 3:181-187 - Quran Translation Commentary

(3:181) Surely, Allah has heard the saying of those who said, 'Allah is poor and we are rich.’²⁸⁹ We shall write down what they have said and (the fact of) their slaying of the Prophets without cause²⁹⁰ and shall say, 'Taste then the chastisement of the burning.’

(3:182) This is in return of what your hands have forwarded.²⁹¹ Allah is never in the least unjust unto the slaves.²⁹²

(3:183) Those who said, 'Allah has surely made covenant with us that we shall not believe in a Messenger until he brings us a sacrifice burned by the fire,'²⁹³ ask, 'Indeed Messengers had come to you before me bearing clear signs and with what you have spoken of; why did you then slay them, if you speak the truth?’²⁹⁴

(3:184: Therefore, if they give you the lie, then surely, lies were given to prophets before you who came with all the evidence, with the Scriptures,²⁹⁵ and with the radiant Book.

(3:185) Every soul shall taste death, and you shall surely be paid your wages in full on the Day of Resurrection. Then whosoever is saved from the Fire and admitted to Paradise, indeed he triumphed.²⁹⁶ As for the life of this world, it is nothing but a brief deceptive enjoyment.²⁹⁷

(3:186) You shall surely be tried (O Muslims) with your wealth and your selves and you might hear a lot of painful things from those who were given the Book before you, as well as from the idolaters.²⁹⁸ But if you persevere and are godfearing, then indeed, that is of the matters of great resolution.

(3:187: And when Allah took pledge from those who were given the Book to the effect that, 'You shall make it known to the people and not conceal it.’²⁹⁹ But they flung it behind their backs³⁰⁰ and sold it for a small price.³⁰¹ Evil is that which they purchased.

Commentary

289. Ibn Ishaq has said that according to Ibn `Abbas, the following incident occasioned this verse. Abu Bakr visited a group of Jews taking lessons from a Rabbi of theirs called Finhas. Abu Bakr told Finhas to fear God and declare belief in Islam, for he knew at heart that Muhammad was a Messenger. Finhas replied arrogantly that God seemed to be in need of the Jews, while the Jews did not need Him. If God were to be rich He would not have sought loans. He has prohibited the Muslims from charging usury while He had permitted the Jews to accept it which showed that He stood in need of the Jews more than they of Him. Abu Bakr got angry at these words and hit him in the face. Finhas reported to the Prophet. When he asked Abu Bakr the reason, Finhas denied that he had said the things Abu Bakr was alleging. Allah revealed: "Surely Allah has heard the saying of those who said, 'Allah is poor and we are rich...'" Allah further said, referring to what Abu Bakr had heard from Finhas: "You might hear a lot of painful things from those who were given the Book before you, and from the idolaters...." (Ibn Jarir, Razi). The report is in Abu Hatim also (Ibn Kathir). Suddi, Mujahid and Shibl have also said that the Jews were the cause of the revelation of these verses (Ib Jarir).

According to Hasan, Qatadah and Ibn Zayd, when the Jews said that God was seeking loans, they were referring to an earlier revelation which said (2: 245): "Who is it that will offer Allah a goodly loan ..." (Ibn Jarir).

290 Obviously the Jews did not mean what they were saying. It was by way of mockery that they had said those things (Qurtubi).

That is, those who said such things as 'Allah is poor and we are rich' out of ignorance were not demonstrating something new. In earlier times they have even slain their Prophets out of insistence on ignorance (Razi).

But, we might remind that the Jewish literature reveals that the Jews do think that God needs them (Au.).

They have been charged with slaying their prophets, although it is their previous generations who did that because they were in full agreement with their previous generations over the issue. Had they disowned their previous generations, they could have been absolved. It is said that someone showed approval of `Uthman's murder before Sha`bi. Sha`bi told him: "You are a co partner in the murder." In fact there is a hadith in Abu Da'ud which says:

إِذَا عُمِلَتِ الْخَطِيئَةُ فِى الأَرْضِ كَانَ مَنْ شَهِدَهَا فَكَرِهَهَا ». وَقَالَ مَرَّةً « أَنْكَرَهَا ». « كَمَنْ غَابَ عَنْهَا وَمَنْ غَابَ عَنْهَا فَرَضِيَهَا كَانَ كَمَنْ شَهِدَهَا

"When an evil deed is done in the earth then whoever was present and disapproved of it and, according to another report, disowned it is like someone who was not there; while whoever was not there but approved of it is like he who was present (at the scene of the crime) Qurtubi.

Munawi has said in Jami` Saghir that the hadith sounds trustworthy (Au.).

Muhammad `Abduh said: The verse has a message for every new generation of Muslims in that they should examine what has been produced by the previous generations, accept only that which conforms with the Shari`ah and reject the rest. If they do not, then they would be considered equal in their crimes (Manar).

291. The words "what their hands have forwarded" is to emphasize their intentions and full commitment to what they did (Qurtubi).

292. That is, Allah will administer punishment in accordance with their deeds, no more, no less. If He does not do it then He cannot be called Just, for there are people who lead a righteous life. Were He to place those who made fun of their Prophets, nay, even murdered them, along with the righteous ones, together in the same Paradise then He would not be just with the righteous ones, and religion itself would be a mockery. But that is not the case. Rather, Allah says (38: 28):

أَمْ نَجْعَلُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ كَالْمُفْسِدِينَ فِي الْأَرْضِ أَمْ نَجْعَلُ الْمُتَّقِينَ كَالْفُجَّارِ [ص : 28]

"Or shall We make those who believe and do righteous deeds as the workers of corruption in the earth, or shall We make the godfearing as the transgressors?" (Manar).

The translation of the verse follows the understanding of the majority of commentators. The difficulty is in the word "zallam" which is a hyperbolic term, literally meaning "unjust to a high degree." Zarkashi (Al Burhan, vol II, p. 511) has given eleven possible explanations of the exaggerated form. One of them is, it is for emphasis, as if to say: "(Allah is not) unjust, not unjust, not unjust."

Shabbir has an additional remark, also hinted at by Zarkashi. Had Allah possessed the attribute of injustice, surely it would have been of a very high order, to a perfect degree, as all His other attributes are. Therefore the refutation, ‘Allah is not "zallam."

293. Ibn `Abbas and Dahhak have said that the allusion is to the sacrifices of the Israelites in the ancient times when they left their sacrificial material in the open and the sign of its approval by God was that a fire descended from the heavens and burnt the offering. The Jews demanded the same of our Prophet and used it as a pretext for denying him (Ibn Jarir).

Majid says: "Cf. the Bible: 'And the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the people. And there came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed upon the alter the burnt offering and the fat.' (Le. 9: 23,24). Also Jn. 13: 20 23; 1 Ki. 18: 38; 1 Ch. 21: 26; 2 Ch. 7: 1. Fire thus came to be regarded by the Jews as one of the agents of Divine will, and Divine fire was expected to consume the acceptable offering."

Mawdudi writes: "The Bible mentions, for example, the Prophet Elijah who had challenged the worshippers of Ba`l to sacrifice a bull, promising that he too would sacrifice a bull. He stated that the offering of the one who was truthful would be consumed by the miraculous fire. The confrontation took place before a large crowd and it was Elijah's sacrifice which was consumed by the fire. This so antagonized the Ba`l worshipping Queen that ... Elijah was forced to leave his homeland and take refuge in the mountains of Sinai."

294. That is, their demand for such miracles is out of contention and not out of a true desire for right guidance (Razi).

295. According to Zajjaj, Zabur (sing. Zubur, translated here as Scriptures) is every book of wisdom; hence Zabur (Psalms) of Da'ud (Razi).

296. The Prophet has said in a hadith of Ahmad narrated by `Abdullah ibn `Amr:

مَنْ أَحَبَّ أَنْ يُزَحْزَحَ عَنْ النَّارِ وَيَدْخُلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَلْتُدْرِكْهُ مَنِيَّتُهُ وَهُوَ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَيَأْتِي إِلَى النَّاسِ مَا يُحِبُّ أَنْ يُؤْتَى إِلَيْهِ

"Whosoever wishes that he be spared the Fire and admitted into Paradise may not die but on faith in Allah and the Hereafter, and give to the people what he would approve of being given to himself" (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

Shu`ayb Arna’ut remarks that the hadith is trustworthy (Au.).

Adds Thanwi: This verse which speaks of being saved of the Fire and admitted into Paradise as the triumph of the highest kind, refutes those (ignorant sufis: Shabbir) who declare that to them neither of them matters, (rather, it is Allah Himself Who matters: Au.).

297. Abu Hurayrah has reported that the Prophet (saws) said:

مَوْضِعُ سَوْطٍ فِي الْجَنَّةِ خَيْرٌ مِنْ الدُّنْيَا وَمَا فِيهَا

"The peg by which a whip is hung in Paradise is better than all that is there in this world.” Read if you want, 'And the life of this world is nothing but a (brief and) deceptive enjoyment'" (Ibn Jarir).

The hadith is in Bukhari, but without the words, "Read if you want..." (Au.).

He is also reported to have said, in a hadith of Ibn Majah, that what is in this world is no more than what one would get if he were to dip a finger in the sea and withdraw. Let him see how much does the finger come back with (Ibn Kathir).

298. Apart from various blasphemous statements that the Muslims had to hear from the Jews at Madinah, they were also the target of satires and lampoons of their poets such as Ka`b al Ashraf who had to be finally done away with because of his erotic poems directed at the kinsfolk of the Prophet (Ibn Jarir: abridged, Qurtubi).

Bukhari has an additional cause of revelation to relate. Usamah bin Zayd reports that early in Madinah the Prophet passed by on a mule a group of people comprising Jews, pagans and Muslims. As he neared, the dust kicked up by his mule reached the assembly. `Abdullah ibn Ubayy, who had not yet professed Islam, covered his nose with his cloak and said "Do not raise dust upon us." The Prophet stopped, dismounted, greeted them, recited the Qur'an and invited them to Islam. `Abdullah ibn Ubayy said: "Man. What you say would have sounded good if it were true. Therefore, do not bother us in our assemblies. Return to your quarters and preach whosoever comes to you." At this `Abdullah ibn Rawaha interjected saying: "Rather, preach us O Prophet, for we love to hear from you." Upon this the three, Jews, pagans and Muslims exchanged harsh words and would have come to blows were not the Prophet to intervene and cool them down. Then he rode on to the house of Sa`d b. `Ubadah and told him about what had happened. Sa`d said: "Pardon him O Messenger of Allah, for the people of this town were about to crown him king when you appeared and he was brushed aside." And Allah said: 'You might hear a lot of painful things from those who were given the Book before you, and from the idolaters..." Then, when the Muslims returned triumphant from Badr, `Abdullah ibn Ubayy and men of his ilk told themselves that this was getting serious and hence decided to (outwardly) profess Islam (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir Slightly Abridged).

299. Connection: Another thing that was painful to the Prophet was the Jewish efforts at concealing the truth about him, hence Allah revealed this verse (Razi).

Majid quotes the Bible which also forbade hiding of religious knowledge: "'We will not hide them for their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and his strength and his wonderful works that he hath done' (Ps 78: 4). 'What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what we hear in the ear, that preach ye upon the housetop' (Mt. 10: 27)."

According to Suddi, by the personal pronoun in the words, "You shall make it known to the people," the allusion is to the Prophet. That is, once having recognized him it was the duty of the Jews to spread the word about him that he was a true Prophet. However, according to Ibn Mas`ud and Ibn `Abbas, by the words, "And when Allah took compact with those who were given the Book", it is the Prophets and Messengers who are meant who had to give an undertaking that whenever they were given a revelation they would make it known to the people and shall not conceal it (Ibn Jarir). Another opinion is that every Prophet gave undertaking to the effect that he would inform his nation about Muhammad so that when he arrived, it shouldn't be hard for them to recognize him (Ibn Kathir).

Asad writes: "The implication of verse 187 is that the advent of the Prophet Muhammad was predicted in both the Old and New Testaments, and that the followers of the Bible had been called upon to spread this prophecy and not as they actually have done to suppress it."

Ibn Kathir writes: In this verse there is a warning to the scholars that they ought not conceal religious knowledge from the people. The Prophet has said, in a hadith of Ibn Majah declared Sahih,

مَنْ سُئِلَ عَنْ عِلْمٍ فَكَتَمَهُ أُلْجِمَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ بِلِجَامٍ مِنْ نَارٍ

"Whosoever was asked about a piece of knowledge and he concealed it, shall have a rein of fire in his mouth on the Day of Resurrection."

It is said that when Zuhri had given up narrating hadith, Hasan b. `Ammara went up to him and asked him to relate some ahadith. Zuhri told him of his resolve. Hasan told him: "Either you narrate or I will." Zuhri said: "Alright. You do." Hasan narrated `Ali's words: "Allah did not make it obligatory upon the ignorant to ask before He had made it obligatory upon the scholars to teach." Hearing this Zuhri narrated forty ahadith to Hasan (Qurtubi).

Yusuf Ali adds: "Truth Allah's Message comes to any man or nation as a matter of sacred trust. It should be broadcast and published and taught and made clear to all within reach. Privileged priesthood at once erects a barrier. But worse, when such priesthood tampers with the truth, taking what suits it and ignoring the rest, it has sold Allah's gift for a miserable ephemeral profit..."

300. Sha`bi's opinion is: those who were given the Book earlier refused to put its teachings to practice and meet its demands, although they did not fail to recite it (Ibn Jarir).

301. Hence it is strongly desirable that the scholars stay away from the rich and the influential, because their company corrupts. Scholars of past generations used to run away from the rich as they would run away from snakes and scorpions. Hence the hadith of Anas:

العلماء أمناء الرسل على عباد الله ما لم يخالطوا السلطان ويداخلوا الدنيا فإن خالطوا السلطان وداخلوا الدنيا فقد خانوا الرسل فاحذروهم واعتزلوهم

"Scholars are the trustees of Messengers over the people so long as they do not intermingle with the rulers and indulge in worldly affairs. If they intermingle with the rulers and indulge in the world, they would have dishonored their trust with the Messengers. Forsake them and abandon them." Ibn Jawzi has declared this hadith a fabrication. But Suyuti has disagreed with him and said that there are at least forty ahadith that support this meaning, and so the hadith acquires at least a hasan status. Tirmidhi has another hadith, which he declares hasan, which says:

مَنْ سَكَنَ الْبَادِيَةَ جَفَا، وَمَنْ اتّبَعَ الصّيْدَ غَفَلَ، وَمَنْ أَتَى أَبْوابَ السّلْطَانِ افتَتَنَ

"Whoever lived in the countryside will acquire a harsh nature, he who followed a game (during hunting) will be heedless, and whoever visited the rulers will face trials" (Manar).