Surah Ghafir 40:51-60 - Quran Translation Commentary

(40:55) Observe patience then. Allah’s promise is true. And seek forgiveness for your fault,⁶⁶ and glorify your Lord with praise at evening and at dawn.

(40:56) Surely those who dispute concerning Allah’s revelations without any authority that came to them, there is nothing in their breasts but greatess⁶⁷ that they are not going to attain. Therefore, seek refuge with Allah. He indeed is the Hearer, the Beholder.

(40:57) Certainly, the creation of the heaven and earth is greater than the creation of men but most men know not.

(40:58) And not equal are the blind and the seeing, nor those who believed and did righteous deeds and the evildoer. Little it is that you take admonition.⁶⁸

(40:59) The Hour is surely coming. No doubt about it. But most people believe not.

(40:60) And said your Lord, ‘Call on Me,⁶⁹ I shall respond to you. Surely those who wax proud against My service, will surely enter Jahannum, belittled.‘

Commentary

61. The believers in Truth are always triumphant, even if physically and materially not so, because the word of Truth they believe in overcomes the false word whenever the two clash, or come face to face with each other (Zamakhshari).

Shabbir comments: “That is, they are victorious at the intellectual, moral and spiritual level. Falsehood is merely the dreg that appears on the surface. Those who stand for falsehood, seem to be on top of the world, in great might, pomp and show. But they are nothing but the upper bubble layer of soda water. They have no real existence.

“Yet, the fact must not be lost sight of, that the promise of help and victory is for the true. Let those who seek Divine intervention look at themselves with a critical eye.”

Suddi has said with reference to this verse that although some Prophets and their followers were killed by their people yet they were victorious because after they were gone, Allah sent His forces that destroyed the criminal nations. That was Allah’s help and the victory of the Messengers and believers (Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

Accordingly, we find that after Yahya and Zakariyyah were killed, Allah let loose upon the Jews such tribes as who tormented them. Similarly after the attempted murder of `Isa ibn Maryam, Allah sent upon them the Romans who tormented and humiliated them in a variety of ways. Allah has said in a hadith Qudsi preserved by Bukhari,“He who made an enemy of My Friend, I shall surely challenge him to a war” (Ibn Kathir).

Sayyid adds: “The people notice that of the Prophets there were some who were killed, others who had to flee their land leaving behind a denying, rejecting nation; and that there were believers who were persecuted; some were thrown into fire-pits, others martyred, while some lived in pain and suffering. So, where was Allah’s promise of help? Shaytan finds his way in through these openings. Doubts start to creep in.

“But people see only the apparent, ignorant of many truths and values. They think about these issues with a short span of time in view, and constricted places in sight. They are quite modest in their judgment. Evidently, a comprehensive standard of judgment takes us beyond to much extended time and space without placing boundaries of time and space. If we look at the issue of faith and ideals from this angle, we find that it does emerge victorious – without the littlest of doubt. To explain, the victory of beliefs and convictions is the victory of those who stood for those beliefs and convictions. This is because those who stood for those beliefs and convictions had no personality of their own separated from those beliefs and convictions. The demand on them right at the start was that they will dissolve their personalities in them and let emanate from their selves those beliefs and convictions alone.

“Similarly, people err in allocating the meaning to the concepts of succor, restricting it to a particular familiar form. But it takes varieties of forms, some of which might even be confused with defeat. Take for instance Ibrahim (asws) at the time he was thrown into the fire. He refused to renounce his faith, nor would agree to desist calling to it. Was that a situation of defeat or triumph? Why, was he not at the very summit of victory? .. Or, consider Hussain. He was martyred, bearing pains that he bore. Was that victory or defeat? Measured by the limited scales, and measured against superficial paradigms it was defeat. But from a broader viewpoint, it was a grand victory. There has not been a martyr whose heart was not moved by Hussain’s sacrifice and who did not feel encouraged by his example, whether in sympathy with his cause or not, whether a Muslim or not. (These last lines have been slightly modified: Au.).

“How many martyrs have not been,” continues Sayyid, “who could not have attained victory even if he had lived for a thousand years, the kind of victory he achieved with his martyrdom?!..

“What is victory and what is defeat? We need to reconsider the meanings we have allocated to these terms before we can ask: Where is Allah’s help that has been promised to the Messengers and the believers.”

62. Witnesses such as the angels, Messengers and the faithful who will all testify that Allah’s Messengers had delivered the messages (Ibn Jarir from Qatadah, Suddi and Mujahid).

63. To be under “la`nah” is to be distanced from Allah’s mercy.

64. Literally, “We made the Israelites inherit the Book.” This is because normally one has to work hard to obtain a blessing. But the Book was given to them without any effort on their part, just like inherited wealth (Alusi).

65. The connection between this verse and the previous ones should be obvious. Allah helps the Messengers and their followers. Fir`awn is a good example: the ruler of a mighty nation, but done away with summarily (Shabbir).

66. Majid offers a note on the nature of “dhanb”: “When spoken of in respect to the prophets it (dhanb) means an act of inadvertence, not blamable in itself, but only unworthy of their high rank.”

At all events, istighfar (i.e., saying the words “astaghfirullah” or the like: Au.), is by itself a devotional act (Shawkani).

67. This verse has been thought to be Madinan (Qurtubi, Alusi).

Our rendering of “kibr” as greatness, although the literal meaning is pride, is following the understanding of Mujahid as in Ibn Jarir.

As a context of revelation it is reported that the Jews used to say that Dajjal will arise from among them along with whom they will subdue the land and sea of the world, who will make rivers run as he wishes, and the kingdom of the earth will then return to them. Allah (swt) revealed this verse in refutation (Zamakhshari).

That is, to them Dajjal will be a man of worthy qualities (Au.).

In fact it has been reported by `Abd b. Humayd and Ibn Abi Hatim – through a chain declared trustworthy by Suyuti – that some Jews went up to the Prophet and said that the Anti-Christ will be of them, and that they will accomplish this .. and that .. In response Allah revealed this ayah to say that they will not be able to attain their objectives (Shawkani, Alusi).

With regard to pride, a hadith preserved by Ahmed says,“Those who wax pride will be raised on the Day of Judgment like ants in the image of people. Everyone will be stepping on them because of their littleness until they enter into a prison in Jahannum called ‘Bulus.’ The fires will rise above them, and they will be made to drink a mixture of puss, blood, tears and sweat of the inhabitants of the Fire” (Ibn Kathir).

68. “The man of Faith who backs his faith by righteous conduct is like the man of clear vision, who sees things in their true perspective and walks with firm steps in the Way of Allah. The man who does evil is like a blind man: the Light of Allah is all around him, but he is blind, and he can see nothing. He has rejected Faith and cannot even learn by other people’s admonition” (Yusuf Ali).

69. That is, address your supplications to me alone. A hadith explains the importance of supplications: The Prophet said, “Supplication is indeed worship.” Then he recited this verse, ‘Call on Me, I shall respond to you’ (Ibn Jarir, Zamakhshari, Qurtubi, Shawkani).

The above hadith is in several Sunan collections about which Tirmidhi said that it is Hasan Sahih (Ibn Kathir).

Another hadith of Ahmed says,“Allah is angry with him who does not ask Him” (Ibn Kathir).

This hadith is not strong enough (S. Ibrahim).