1. For explanation, see (E.Ns 1, 2 of Surah Al-Hadid), and (E.Ns 36, 37, 41 of Surah Al-Hashr). This introduction bears a deep relevance to the theme that follows. In spite of the fact that the Jews of Arabia were witnessing clear signs of Prophethood in the person of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his high character and works and in spite of the clear good news given by the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) in the Torah, which only applied to him, they were denying him only because they did not want to acknowledge the prophethood of a person who did not belong to their own community and race. They openly proclaimed that they would believe only in that which had come to them, and would not accept any teaching, which came through a non-Israelite prophet, even if it was from God. For this attitude in the following verses they have been reproved. Hence the reason for beginning the discourse with the introductory sentence. First, it says that everything in the universe is glorifying Allah; that is, the entire universe testifies that Allah is free from all those faults and weaknesses because of which the Jews have formed the concept of their racial superiority. He is not related to anyone. He has nothing to do with favoritism. He treats all His creatures with equal justice, mercy and care. No particular race and nation is His favorite so that He may be bound to bless it whatever it may do. And He is not prejudiced against any race or nation so that He may deprive it of His bounties even if it possesses all the good qualities. Then, it says that He is the Sovereign; that is, no worldly power can restrict His authority and powers, as if to say: You, O Jews, are His servants and subjects. It is not for you to decide whom He should appoint His Messenger, and whom He should not, for your guidance. Then, it says that He is Holy; that is, He is far exalted and glorified that His judgments may be mistaken. Human judgments may have mistakes but His decrees are perfect. In the end, two more attributes of Allah have been mentioned. That He is All-Mighty, i.e. none can fight Him and win and that He is All-Wise, i.e. whatever He does, it is always the very demand of wisdom, and His plans and designs are so wellplanned that none in the world can hinder and frustrate them.

2. Here the word ummi (gentile) has been used as a Jewish term and there is a subtlety in it. The verse means: The All- Mighty and All-Wise Allah has raised a Messenger (peace be upon him) among the Arabs whom the Jews contemptuously consider the gentiles and much below themselves, The Messenger (peace be upon him) has not risen of his own wish and will, but has been raised by Him Who is the Sovereign of the universe, Who is All-Mighty and All-Wise, Whose power can be resisted and opposed only to one’s own loss and peril.

One should know that the word ummi has occurred in the Quran at several places but in different meanings at different places. At one place it has been used for the people who do not possess any revealed scripture, which they may he following, as in (Surah Aal-Imran, Ayat 20), where it has been said: Ask those who possess the Book and those who do not possess (ummis); Have you accepted Islam. Here, the ummis imply the Arab polytheists, and they have been regarded as a separate class from the followers of the Book, i.e. the Jews and the Christians. At another place, it has been used for the illiterate people among the Jews and Christians, who are ignorant of the Book of Allah, as in( Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 78): Among the Jews there are some illiterate people (ummis) who have no knowledge of the Book but are guided by mere conjecture and guesswork. At still another place, this word has been used purely as a Jewish term, which implies all the non-Jewish people, as in (Surah Aal-Imran, Ayat 75) (The actual cause of this dishonesty of theirs is that they say): We are not to be called to account for out behavior towards the non-Jews (ummis). This third meaning of ummi is implied in the verse under discussion. It is a synonym of the Hebrew word goyim, which has been translated gentiles in the English Bible and implies all the non-Jewish or the non-Israelite people of the world.

But the real significance of this Jewish term cannot be understood only by this explanation of it. The Hebrew word goyim originally was used only in the meaning of a nation, but gradually the Jews reserved it first for the nation other then themselves, then they gave it the special meaning that all the nations other than the Jews were un-civilized, irreligious, unclean and contemptible; so much so that in its connotations of hatred and contempt this word even surpassed the Greek term barbarian which they used for all the non-Greeks. In rabbinical literature, goyim are such contemptible people, who cannot be considered human, who cannot be made companions in a journey, who cannot be saved even if one of them is drowning. The Jews believed that the Messiah of the future would destroy all the goyim and burn them to annihilation (For further explanation, see( E.N. 64 of Surah Aal-Imran).

3. These characteristics of the Prophet (peace be upon him) have been mentioned at four places in the Quran and everywhere with a different object. These have been mentioned in (Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 29) to tell the Arabs that the mission of the Prophet, which they were regarding as a calamity and affliction for themselves, was indeed a great blessing for which the Prophets Abraham and Ishmael (peace be upon them) had been praying for their children. In( Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 151), these have been mentioned to exhort the Muslims to recognize the true worth of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and to derive full benefit from the blessing which they had been granted in the form of his Apostleship. These have been reiterated in (Surah Aal-Imran, Ayat 164) to make the hypocrites and the people of weak faith realize what great favor Allah had done to them by raising His Messenger (peace be upon him) among them, and how foolish they were in not appreciating this. Now, here in this Surah these have been repeated for the fourth time with the object to tell the Jews: The mission that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is performing in front of you, is evidently the mission of a Messenger. He is reciting the revelations of Allah, the language, themes and style of which testify that these are indeed divine revelations. He is purifying and reforming the lives of the people, cleansing their morals and habits and dealings of every evil element, and adorning them with the finest moral qualities. This is the same task which all the Prophets before him have been performing. Then he does not rest content only with the recitation of the revelations, but he is making the people understand the real aim of the divine Book by word and deed and by the practical model of his life and imparting to them the wisdom and knowledge which none but the Prophets have imparted so far. This very character and way of life and practical model is the conspicuous characteristic of the Prophets by which they are recognized. Then how stubborn you are that you refuse to recognize and believe in the Messenger (peace be upon him) whose truth is manifestly proved by his wonderful works only because Allah has not raised him among you but among the people whom you call the ummis (gentiles).

4. This is another proof of his prophethood, which has been presented to open eyes of the Jews. These people had been living in Arabia for centuries and no aspect of the religious, moral, social and cultural life of the Arabs was hidden from them. Referring to the state of their previous life it is being said: You are an eyewitness of the revolution that has taken place in the life of this nation within a few years under the guidance and leadership of Muhammad (peace be upon him). You are fully aware of the condition in which these people were involved before embracing Islam. You are also aware of their transformation afterwards, and you are also witnessing the condition of those people of this very nation, who have not yet embraced Islam. Is the clear and manifest difference which even a blind man can perceive not enough to convince you that this revolution can be brought about by none but a Prophet.

5. That is, the prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him) is not restricted only to the Arabs but is meant for other nations and races as well, who have not yet joined the believers, but are going to be born till the Last Day. The word minhum (of them) in the original can have two meanings:

(1) That those other people will be of the ummis i.e. the non-Israelite nations of the world.

(2) That they will be believers in Muhammad (peace be upon him), though they have not yet joined the believers, but will join them later on. Thus, this verse is one of those verses which explicitly state that the Message of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is meant for all mankind forever. The other places where this theme has occurred in the Quran are: (Surah Aal-Imran, Ayat 19); (Surah Al-Aaraf, Ayat 158); (Surah Al-Anbiya, Ayat 107); (Surah Al-Furqan, Ayat 1); (Surah Saba, Ayat 28). (For further explanation, see (E.N. 47 of Surah Saba).

6. That is, it is a manifestation of Allah’s own power and wisdom that among an un-civilized, un-lettered people He has raised a great Prophet (peace be upon him), whose teachings are so revolutionary and contain such eternal and universal principles as can provide a sound basis for the whole of mankind to be a single unified community, which can obtain guidance from those principles forever. An impostor, however hard he may have tried, could not have attained this position and rank. Not to speak of a backward people like the Arabs; even the most intelligent and talented man of the most advanced nation of the world cannot have the power that he may revolutionize a nation so completely, and then give such comprehensive principles to the world that all mankind may follow it as one community and be able to run a universal and all-pervasive system of one way of life and one civilization forever. This is a miracle which has taken place only by Allah’s power, and only Allah on the basis of His wisdom has chosen the person, the country and the nation for it.

7. This sentence has two meanings, a general meaning and a special meaning. The general meaning is that the people who were entrusted with the knowledge and practice of the Torah and with the responsibility of guiding the world according to it, neither understood this responsibility nor discharged it as they should have. The special meaning is being the bearers of the Torah these people should have been foremost to join hands with the Messenger (peace be upon him), good news about whose advent had been already given in the Torah, but, instead, they have been in the forefront to oppose him and have thus failed to fulfill the demand of the teaching of the Torah.

8. That is, just as a donkey loaded with books does not know what it is loaded with, so are these people loaded with the Torah and they do not know what this Book was sent for and what are its demands.

9. That is, they are even worst than a donkey, who is without sense and therefore is excusable. But these people have intelligence, they read and teach the Torah and are fully aware of its meaning. Yet they are turning away from its guidance and refusing willfully to acknowledge and believe in the Prophet (peace be upon him) who even according to the Torah teaches the truth. They are guilty not because of ignorance but because of denying Allah’s revelation deliberately.

10. This point is noteworthy. It has not been said: O Jews. But: O you who have became Jews, or who have adopted Judaism, the reason being that the way of life brought by the Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) and the Prophets after and before him, was Islam itself. None of those Prophets was a Jew, nor had Judaism been born in their time, but Judaism as such came into being much later. It is ascribed to the tribe which descended from Judah, the fourth son of the Prophet Jacob (peace be upon him). When after the Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him), his kingdom broke into two parts, this tribe became ruler over the state which came to be known as Judea. The other tribes of the Israelites established their separate state which became famous as Samaria. Then Assyria not only destroyed Samaria but also wiped out those Israelite tribes which had founded that state. After that only the decedents of Judah besides those of Benjamin remained. Who because of the predominance of the descendants of Judah, began to be called the Jews. Judaism is the name of the framework of the doctrines, customs, and religious rules and regulations which the priests, rabbis and learned men of this race prepared according to their own ideas, theories and trends for many centuries. This framework started being shaped in the 4th century B.C. and continued to develop till the 5th century A.D. It contains a very small element of the divine guidance brought by the Messengers of Allah, and even that element has been corrupted. That is why at many places in the Quran they have been addressed as alladhina hadu, O you who have become Jews. All of these were not the Israelites but there were among them also converts who had embraced Judaism. Whenever in the Quran the children of Israel have been addressed, the words are: O children of Israel, and where the followers of Judaism have been addressed, the words are; alladhina hadu, O you who have become Jews.

11. At several places in the Quran, their claim has been described in detail, as in (Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 111), they say: none shall enter Paradise unless he be a Jew. In( Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayat 80): The fire of Hell is not going to touch us, and even if it does at all, it will be only for a few days, and in (Surah Al-Maidah, Ayat 18): We are the sons of Allah and His beloved ones. Same such claims are also found in the books of the Jews themselves. The world at least knows that they regard themselves as the chosen people of God, and cherish the false notion that Cod has a special relationship with them, which is not shared by any other human group or class.

12. This has been stated for the second time in the Quran, addressing the Jews. First, in (Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayats 94- 96), it was said, Say to them: If the abode of the Hereafter with Allah is exclusively reserved for you and not for the rest of mankind, then you should long for death, if you are sincere in your claim. Believe it that they will never wish for it, for (they are fully aware of) what they have sent before them for the Hereafter. And Allah knows well the mentality of the transgressors. You will find that of all mankind, they are the greediest for life; any they are even greedier than the idolaters. Each one of them longs to have a life of a thousand years, but a long life can by no means remove them away from the doom, for Allah is watching whatever they are doing. Now the same thing has been repeated here. But this is not a mere repetition. In the verses of Surah Al-Baqarah, it was said when no war had yet taken place between the Muslims and the Jews. In this Surah it was reiterated at the time when after several battles their power in Arabia had been finally and absolutely crushed. These battles and their results proved by experience and observation that what had been said in Surah Al-Baqarah was correct. In Al-Madinah and Khaiber, the Jewish strength was much superior to that of the Muslims both in numbers and in resources. Then they had the pagans of Arabia and the hypocrites of Al-Madinah also as their allies who were bent upon wiping out the Muslims. But in spite of this great disparity in numbers the Muslims overwhelmed the Jews mainly because they were least afraid of dying for the cause of Allah. They were rather fond of it, and would enter the battlefield fully prepared to embrace death. For they believed that they were fighting in the way of God and had complete faith that the one who fell martyr in His way would be blessed with Paradise. Contrary to this, the Jews were not prepared to fight and lay down their life for any cause, neither the cause of God, nor the cause of their nation nor for their own self, properties and honor. They only loved to live, in whatever way or fashion it be. This had made them cowardly.

13. In other words, their flight from death is not without a reason. Whatever they may say, their conscience is fully aware of how they are behaving towards Allah and His religion and what consequences can be expected of the misdeeds they are committing in the world. That is why they are afraid to appear at the court of God.