Surah Al-Ma'idah 5:57-66 - Quran Translation Commentary

(5:57) Believers! Take not those who take your religion in mockery and as a sport - of those who were given the Book before you, and the unbelievers - as intimate friends. Fear Allah if you are believers.

(5:58) When you call to Prayer,¹⁶⁶ they take it in mockery and as a sport.¹⁶⁷ That is because they are a people who do not use reason.¹⁶⁸

(5:59) Say, ‘People of the Book! Do you take revenge from us for any cause other than that we believe in Allah, in what was sent down to us and what was sent down before? Surely, most of you are ungodly.'

(5:60) Say, ‘Shall I tell you a recompense with Allah worse than that?¹⁶⁹ Those whom Allah cursed, with whom He is angry, some of whom He made apes and swine¹⁷⁰ and those who worshipped Evil: these are the worse situated and the further astray from the straight path.

(5:61) When they come to you they say, ‘We have believed.' But the truth is, they entered with disbelief and departed with it. Allah is well aware of what they were concealing.

(5:62) You will find most of them competing¹⁷¹ in sin, rebellion,¹⁷² and in devouring the unlawful.¹⁷³ Surely, evil is that they have been doing.¹⁷⁴

(5:63) Why should not the godly men and the rabbis forbid them the words of sin and consumption of the unlawful?¹⁷⁵ Evil indeed is that which they have been doing.¹⁷⁶

(5:64) The Jews said, ‘Allah's hand is fettered.'¹⁷⁷ Fettered are their hands,¹⁷⁸ and cursed for what they utter. Rather, both His hands are outstretched;¹⁷⁹ He dispenses as He will.¹⁸⁰ What has been sent down to you by your Lord will actually increase insolence and disbelief in many of them. We have cast between them enmity and hatred (to last) until the Day of Judgement.¹⁸¹ Every time they kindle a fire for war, Allah extinguishes it.¹⁸² Yet they strive mischief in the land, while Allah does not approve of the mischief-mongers.

(5:65) Had the people of the Book believed and been godfearing,¹⁸³ surely We would have acquitted them of their evil deeds and admitted them to gardens of delight.

(5:66) And, had they observed the Tawrah and Injil,¹⁸⁴ and that which has (now) been sent down to them by their Lord, surely they would have enjoyed (sustenance) from their above and from their feet below.¹⁸⁵ Some of them are a just people;¹⁸⁶ but most of them - evil are the things they do.

Commentary

166. Kalbi has said that when the Prayer-call was raised and the Muslims began to pray, the Jews made fun of their bows and prostrations, saying about the Prayer-call, ‘Why do they have to bray like donkeys?' These verses were revealed in response to it (Qurtubi).

The Adhan

Qurtubi writes: There was no Adhan at Makkah. People were brought into assembly by the word that went around. It was introduced in Madinah. Three people seem to have dreamt of its wordings: `Abdullah ibn Zayd, `Umar ibn al-Khattab and Abu Bakr. It is also reported that the Prophet had heard these words in his Mi`raj journey. As for its legality, it is, according to some scholars, wajib on the Muslims, whenever and wherever they gather for Prayers. A hadith of Muslim says that when the Prophet went out in a campaign, he waited for the Adhan of Fajr. If the villagers did not raise the call, he attacked them. According to others it is Sunnah mu'akkadah. Therefore, according to Imam Shafe`i, Abu Hanifah, his two pupils, Thawri, Ahmad, Ishaq, Abu Thawr and Tabari, if a traveler did not say the Adhan, (and Prayed without saying it) he need not repeat his Prayers, but it is strongly reprehensible that he should do so. Further, Abu `Amr has said that Ahmad Ibn Hanbal, Ishaq b. Rahwayh, Da'ud b. `Ali and Muhammad ibn Jarir Tabari have ruled that in view of various reports, it seems to be perfectly alright to say both in the Adhan and Iqamah Allahu Akbar either four times, or, just twice. The Prophet and his Companions did it either way. Also, there is no difference in opinion that qad qamat al-salah should be added in Iqamah and said twice. Also, there is no difference of opinion over the issue that every Adhan has to be said after the entry of the Prayer-time (not before), except for the Fajr Adhan which can be said before dawn.

167. Suddi has reported that there was a Christian in the outskirts of Madinah who made fun of the Prayer-call. When the caller said, "I bear witness that Muhammad is His Messenger," he said in response, "Burnt be the liar." It so happened that once his slave-girl entered his room with a burning lamp. Something caught fire and spread quickly. It reduced the house to ashes along with the occupants (Ibn Jarir, Zamakhshari, Razi, Qurtubi).

Ibn Majah has an interesting report coming from Abu Mahzurah. He said: "I was travelling along with some people when we came across the Prophet and his party returning from Hunayn. (That is, he was in another party: Au.). It so happened that the Prophet's caller called for the Prayers. We moved aside and began to make fun of the call by shouting out in repetition. The Prophet heard us and sent for us. When we were presented he asked: ‘Whose voice was it that I heard rising highest?' Everyone pointed his finger at me. And they were not wrong. The Prophet ordered: ‘Stand up now and say the adhan.' So I rose up although nothing was more hateful to me than the Prophet and what he was ordering me do. Never the less, I stood before him and he began to say the words saying: ‘Say, "Allahu Akbar,"' and so on, until I had called out the whole of the adhan. When I was finished he beckoned me and gave me a little purse which had some sliver in it. Then he placed his hand upon the forehead (of Abu Mahzurah) and passed it over his face, then his chest, then his liver, until his hands had reached Abu Mahzura's navel. Then he said: ‘May Allah bless in you and over you.' I pleaded: ‘O Apostle of Allah. Allow me to call for Prayers in Makkah.' He said: ‘You have my permission.' With that all the hatred that was in me for him was gone from me and was replaced by love. I went up to ‘Itab b. Usayd - the Prophet's governor over Makkah - and by the order of the Prophet began to call for Prayers" (Qurtubi). IN varying details, the report is in Ahmad, Muslim and in four of the Sunan (i.e., Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Abu Da'ud and Nasa'i: Au.). Abu Mahzurah's real name was Samurah b. Mu`ayyir. He was one of the four Mu`adhdhins of the Prophet's time and enjoyed a long life (Ibn Kathir).

168. The reference of course, is to a certain class of them, for, there have always been people who have been deeply impressed by the Prayer-call. Majid quotes an English lady's response: "As the beautiful cadences are elaborated to rise and fall as the Muezzin moves around the minaret to call the four corners of the world beneath, I wonder how anyone can listen to that call unmoved. Surely does the Koranic Arabic hold as spell-bound as the reading of the Sacred Book thrills its hearers."

In his article on Bilal, ‘Aqqad has quoted La Fcadio Hern as saying: "Without any doubt, the serene Muslim call to Prayer, especially when one happens to hear it for the first time, has an entirely tranquilizing effect upon the heart" (Au.).

169. Ibn `Abbas has said that a group of Jews comprising of such important men as Abu Yasir, Rafi` b. abi Rafi`, Zayd, Khalid and others came to the Prophet and asked him what he thought of the previous Prophets. He told them that he believed in the Prophethood of Ibrahim, Isma`i, counting many others including Jesus. When they heard his name they jumped and said that they did not know of any religion worse than that of the Prophet. Thereupon Allah revealed this verse (Ibn Jarir, Zamakhshari, Qurtubi).

The above report explains why the following verse used the words, "worse than that." It was first the Jews who had used the words "worse than that" to describe the Islamic message (Au.).

170. Are the present-day monkeys and swine the transfigured people of the past? Ahmad has a report which says that the Companions of the Prophet asked him whether the present day swine and apes were descendants of those who were transformed for their sins. He replied:

« إن الله تعالى لم يهلك قوما أو يمسخ قوما فيجعل لهم نسلا ولا عاقبة ، وإن القردة والخنازير كانت قبل ذلك »

"No. Allah Most High did not destroy a nation, or disfigure them and then brought out their progeny nor did He leave anyone behind (i.e., they all perished). As for the swine and apes of today, they were in existence since before them" (Ibn Kathir).

171. The use of the prefix "fi" before "yusari`una" (instead of "ila") gives out the sense of a people who are sunk in perfidy and debauchery and run to every evil they discover (Manar).

172. Majid writes: "Compare the denunciation in their own Scriptures: ‘Their feet run fast to evil, and make haste to shed blood.' (Pr. 1: 16) ‘Your iniquities have separated you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you... Your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongues hath muttered perverseness. None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth; they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity ... Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their path' (Is. 59: 2-7)."

173. Majid quotes again: "Compare the OT:- ‘They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity. The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire' (Mi. 3: 10-11)."

Note how true this is when applied to today's Israelis. (Au.)

Majid also quotes: ‘Thy princes are rebellious and companions of thieves; every one loveth gifts and followeth after rewards; they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.' (Is. 1: 23) ‘Yea, they are greatly dogs which can never have enough' (56: 11)."

174. That is, evil was their transgression (Ibn Kathir).

175. The Salaf, such as Ibn `Abbas and Dahhak, used to say that this is the toughest of Allah's indictments against the scholars (Ibn Jarir, Razi, Ibn Kathir, Shawkani). This is because, as they say, "He who does not prevent an evil is a doer himself."

And the Prophet has said in a sahih hadith of Abu Da’ud and others:

مَا مِنْ قَوْمٍ يُعْمَلُ فِيهِمْ بِالْمَعَاصِي هُمْ أَعَزُّ وَأَكْثَرُ مِمَّنْ يَعْمَلُهُ لَمْ يُغَيِّرُوهُ إِلَّا عمَّهُمْ اللَّهُ بِعِقَابٍ

"No people in whom sins are committed while they are stronger and larger in numbers against those who commit the sins, except that Allah sends down a common punishment” (Qurtubi).

Ahmad also has this report. In fact, Ibn Majah has the additional comment that they are punished before their death (Ibn Kathir).

The above hadith has been declared Hasan (Au.).

176. The word sana`a of the original implies a crafty act or one which requires some skill (Qurtubi).

As Raghib has pointed out, the "sana`a" of the original implies not only a more forceful act, but also a more deliberate one than the simple "fa`ala." Every "sani`" is also a "fa`il" but every "fa`il" is not a "sani`" (Manar).

177. Ibn Ishaq, Tabarani (in his Awsat) and Ibn Marduwayh have reported Ibn `Abbas as saying that a Jew called Nabbash b. Qays said to the Prophet: "Your Lord is miserly. He does not spend." But Abu al-Sheikh has said that it was Finhas who had made this statement, prompting the revelation of this verse (Shawkani).

Shabbir comments: "The people of the Book contemporaneous to the Prophet were so advanced in their rebellious attitudes and insolence toward religion that they had lost all distinction between mortal men and God. They could utter such blasphemies against Allah that could raise the hair on any believer's head, but to them it was no more than a casual statement of no consequence.

Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Qatadah, Suddi and Dahhak have said that what the Jews meant when they said: "Allah's hands are fettered" is that God is miserly (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir).

In other words, the word "hand," its fettering, or its outstretching is not to be understood in the literal sense (Au.).

Imam Razi points out that some people believe that the phrase "Allah's hand" is to be understood in the literal sense. They cite verses, such as 175 of surah al-A`raf, to substantiate their claim. But there are several problems with this kind of literal interpretation. Firstly, such an interpretation leads to Allah having a form, or a body. But a body cannot be separated from movement. That makes Him a caused being, which is unacceptable. Further, limbs necessarily have dimensions. And dimensions impose limits, which is also wrong to imagine of Allah. Therefore, He cannot have Hands in the literal sense. As for the Salaf, their belief was that Allah has Hands and other limbs that He has spoken of. But we do not know anything about their reality. Therefore, we believe in the words, without taking them in the literal sense and without seeking further clarification.

178. Whether this is taken as a curse, or as a statement of fact or not, it remains true that the Jews are the most miserly people on the earth. Apart from the dictionary definition of the term in olden dictionaries and the stories that circulated in the West, including one dramatized by Shakespeare, immortalizing the Jewish attitude to money, it might also be noted that despite being much richer than the Arabs in its neighborhood, thanks to the billions sent to it by the Jews of the West and because of the monetary and non-monetary help by the Western nations to this outpost, the state of Israel has not spent a penny as aid on any of the extremely poor nations such as those of Africa, while an ordinary Jew enjoys the life standard of American citizens at the cost of their taxes (Au.).

179. That is, Allah is extremely generous, bestowing without measure. The phrase "both His hands" has been interpreted to be alluding to His bounties of this present and the next world (Shawkani).

A hadith of the Sahihayn says:

إِنَّ يَمِينَ اللَّهِ مَلْأَى لَا يَغِيضُهَا نَفَقَةٌ سَحَّاءُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ أَرَأَيْتُمْ مَا أَنْفَقَ مُنْذُ خَلَقَ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فَإِنَّهُ لَمْ يَنْقُصْ مَا فِي يَمِينِهِ وَعَرْشُهُ عَلَى الْمَاءِ وَبِيَدِهِ الْأُخْرَى الْفَيْضُ أَوْ الْقَبْضُ يَرْفَعُ وَيَخْفِضُ

"Allah's Right hand is full. Expending day and night does not exhaust what He has. Do you not you see that He has been expending from the day He created this world, but that has not exhausted what His right hand possesses?" (The Prophet further said): "His ‘Arsh is on water. In His other hand is "al-Fayd" (the bestowal) or "al-Qabd” (withholding) – [according to other versions, "the Balance": Au.]. He elevates or lowers."

He also said,

“Expend, and you will be expended upon (i.e., replenished).” - Ibn Kathir.

180. That is, Allah bestows upon whom He will and in measures He will. He said at another place (42: 27):

وَلَوْ بَسَطَ اللَّهُ الرِّزْقَ لِعِبَادِهِ لَبَغَوْا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَكِنْ يُنَزِّلُ بِقَدَرٍ مَا يَشَاءُ إِنَّهُ بِعِبَادِهِ خَبِيرٌ بَصِيرٌ [الشورى : 27]

"Were Allah to plentifully bestow upon His slaves, surely they would rebel in the land. Therefore, He sends down (sustenance) in measures He will" (Au.).

Keeping in mind that the Jews had actually uttered the words the Qur'an has mentioned here, the following from Asad might yet be read with profit: "The phrase "one's hand is shackled" is a metaphorical expression denoting niggardliness, just as its opposite - "his hands is stretched out wide" - signifies generosity (Zamakhshari). However, these two phrases have a wider meaning as well, namely, "lack of power" and "unlimited power", respectively (Razi). It would appear that the Jews of Medina, seeing the poverty of the Muslims, derided the latter's conviction that they were struggling in God's cause and that the Qur'an was divinely revealed. Thus, the "saying" of the Jews mentioned in this verse, "God's hand is shackled", as well as the parallel one in 3: 181, "God is poor while we are rich", is an elliptical description of their attitude towards Islam and the Muslims - an attitude of disbelief and sarcasm which could be thus paraphrased: "If it were true that you Muslims are doing God's will, He would have bestowed upon you power and riches; but your poverty and your weakness contradict your claim - or else this claim of yours amounts, in effect, to saying that God cannot help you." This outstanding example of the elliptical mode of expression (ijaz) so often employed in the Qur'an has, however, a meaning that goes far beyond the historical circumstances to which it refers: it illustrates an attitude of mind which mistakenly identifies worldly riches or power with one's being, spiritually, "on the right way". In the next sentence the Qur'an takes issue with this attitude and declares, in an equally elliptical manner, that all who see in material success an alleged evidence of God's approval are blind to spiritual truths and, therefore, morally powerless and utterly self-condemned in the sight of God."

181. That is, Allah has cast hatred among the Jews, so that there will never be any internal unity among them. However, some have thought that the allusion is to the enmity between the Jews and Christians (Alusi and others).

182. It was customary of the pre-Islamic Arabs that when they decided on a war, they kindled a fire on a hill top (Alusi).

183. The importance of taqwa is apparent. (When someone spoke of faith) Hasan (al-Busri) exclaimed:

هذا العمود فأين الاطناب

"Well. This is the post (i.e., faith), but where are the ropes (i.e., taqwa for erecting the tent of Islam)?" – Kashshaf.

184. (That is, had they lived by those Revelations which is supported by a hadith according to which: Au.):

عَنْ زِيَادِ بْنِ لَبِيدٍ قَالَ ذَكَرَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ شَيْئًا قَالَ وَذَاكَ عِنْدَ أَوَانِ ذَهَابِ الْعِلْمِ قَالَ قُلْنَا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ يَذْهَبُ الْعِلْمُ وَنَحْنُ نَقْرَأُ الْقُرْآنَ وَنُقْرِئُهُ أَبْنَاءَنَا وَيُقْرِئُهُ أَبْنَاؤُنَا أَبْنَاءَهُمْ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ قَالَ ثَكِلَتْكَ أُمُّكَ يَا ابْنَ أُمِّ لَبِيدٍ إِنْ كُنْتُ لَأَرَاكَ مِنْ أَفْقَهِ رَجُلٍ بِالْمَدِينَةِ أَوَلَيْسَ هَذِهِ الْيَهُودُ وَالنَّصَارَى يَقْرَءُونَ التَّوْرَاةَ وَالْإِنْجِيلَ فَلَا يَنْتَفِعُونَ مِمَّا فِيهِمَا بِشَيْءٍ

Once the Prophet was speaking of something when he said: "That would happen (to the Muslims) because they would have lost knowledge;" at that Ziyad b. Lubayd asked: "How could that happen, O Messenger of Allah, when we teach our children the Qur'an and they will teach their children (and that will go on) until the Day of Resurrection?" The Prophet replied: "Your mother may lose you O Ibn Lubayd. I thought you were the most learned man of Madinah. Do the Jews and Christians not read the Tawrah and Injil, but profit nothing from them?" The hadith is in Ahmad and Ibn Majah, and is a sahih narration (Ibn Kathir).

185. Some scholars have interpreted these words to mean that as a consequence of their belief, they would have drawn their sustenance in abundance, without much hardship (Ibn Kathir).

Mufti Shafi` points out that this is not the general rule, rather a reminder to a specific people to the effect that had they observed their Book, Allah would have given them free sustenance. Otherwise, the general promise to all believers of all times is that of a "goodly life," which has nothing to do with their material well-being.

Alusi writes: The promise of forgiveness and rewards in the Hereafter is of general nature: applicable to all the peoples of the Book of all times. However, the worldly rewards stated in the verse seem to be especially for the people of the Book contemporary to the Prophet. Had they believed in the Prophet, they would have been blessed with an easy sustenance in this world. This later promise of immediate ease is, obviously, not for all the peoples of the Book of all times, for we see many of them those who believed in our Prophet, but are poor in application, yet living a life of great comfort, while, conversely, many of the newly-converted people of the Book who observe the Tawrah, Injil and the Qur'an meticulously, live a life of stress and wants. Indeed, the observation is that some of those who had been leading a luxurious life previous to acceptance of Islam, actually ran their ship into rough waters after the acceptance of Islam and a faithful application of its commandments to their lives.

Probably it is the difficulty of verse 66 which prompts the following from Asad. "(This) is an allusion to the blessing which accompanies the realization of a spiritual truth, as well as the social happiness which is bound to follow an observance of the moral principles laid down in the genuine teachings of the Bible." He also adds: "It should be borne in mind that the phrase "if they would but truly observe (law annahum aqamu) the Torah and Gospel", etc., implies an observance of those scriptures in their genuine spirit, free of the arbitrary distortions due to that "wishful thinking" of which the Qur'an so often accuses the Jews and the Christians - such as the Jewish concept of "the chosen people", or the Christian doctrines relating to the alleged divinity of Jesus and the "vicarious redemption" of his followers."

186. Such as Najashi the king of Negus, the former Jew `Abdullah ibn Sallam, and many others who saw in the Prophet a true Messenger and fearlessly acknowledged it (Ibn Kathir, Razi, Qurtubi and others).