Tafheem ul Quran
Surah 21 Al-Anbya, Ayat 87-88
وَ ذَا النُّوۡنِ اِذْ ذَّهَبَ مُغَاضِبًا فَظَنَّ اَنۡ لَّنۡ نَّـقۡدِرَ عَلَيۡهِ فَنَادٰى فِى الظُّلُمٰتِ اَنۡ لَّاۤ اِلٰهَ اِلَّاۤ اَنۡتَ سُبۡحٰنَكَ ۖ اِنِّىۡ كُنۡتُ مِنَ الظّٰلِمِيۡنَ ۖ ۚ
﴿21:87﴾
فَاسۡتَجَبۡنَا لَهٗۙ وَنَجَّيۡنٰهُ مِنَ الۡـغَمِّؕ وَكَذٰلِكَ نُـنْجِى الۡمُؤۡمِنِيۡنَ
﴿21:88﴾
(21:87) And We bestowed Our favour upon Dhu al-Nun.82 Recall,
when he went forth enraged,83 thinking We have no power to take him
to task.84 Eventually he cried out in the darkness:"85
There is no god but You. Glory be to You! I have done wrong." (21:88) Thereupon We accepted his prayer, and rescued him from grief. Thus
do We rescue the believers.
Notes
82. That is, Jonah, literally Dhun-Nun means the man of the fish. He was
called so because he was devoured by a fish by the command of Allah. (Also See
(Surah As-Saffaat, Ayat 142) and
(Surah Younus, Ayat 98 and its E.Ns 98-100).
83. Prophet Jonah left his people before he received Allah’s command for
migration.
84. He presumed that he should leave, the place which was going to be visited
by the scourge of Allah. This was not by itself an offence but it was an offence
for a Prophet to leave the place of his mission without the permission of Allah.
85. “Darkness”: the darkness in the belly of the fish and the darkness of
the sea over and above it.