The Poets — Verse 211
26:211 · ash-Shu`ara`
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وَمَا یَنۢبَغِی لَهُمۡ وَمَا یَسۡتَطِیعُونَ ٢١١
wamā yanbaghī lahum wamā yastaṭīʿūn
The Poets / ash-Shu`ara` (26:211)
Connections 5 single-source 2 commentators
Multi-source connections
No verses on this ayah are cited by 2 or more commentators using numeric S:A notation. All extracted references come from a single source's commentary.
Single-source mentions (5) cited by only one commentator
By commentator who cites how many verses on this ayah
-
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (abridged) 4 verses
-
Ma'arif-ul-Quran 1 verse
Note: these connections are extracted from numeric S:A references inside the commentary text and are therefore biased toward mufassirun who use that notation. Prose-style references (e.g. "Surat al-Baqarah verse 30") will be added later, which should surface additional multi-source consensus.
it is neither in their interests nor in their power
wamā yanbaghī lahum wamā yastaṭīʿūn
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Tafsir Commentary
The Qur'an was brought down by Jibril, not Shaytan
Allah tells us about His Book, which falsehood cannot approach from before or behind it, sent down by the All-Wise, Worthy of all praise. He states that it has been brought down by the trustworthy Ruh (i.e., Jibril) who is helped by Allah,
وَمَا تَنَزَّلَتْ بِهِ الشَّيَـطِينُ
(And it is not the Shayatin who have brought it down.) Then He tells us that it could not be the case for three reasons that the Shayatin brought it down. One is that it would not suit them, i.e., they have no desire to do so and they do not want to, because their nature is to corrupt and misguide people, but this contains words enjoining what is right and forbidding what is evil, and light, guidance and mighty proofs. There is a big difference between this and the Shayatin, Allah says:
وَمَا يَنبَغِى لَهُمْ
(Neither would it suit them)
وَمَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ
(nor are they able.) meaning, even if they wanted to, they could not do it. Allah says:
لَوْ أَنزَلْنَا هَـذَا الْقُرْءَانَ عَلَى جَبَلٍ لَّرَأَيْتَهُ خَـشِعاً مُّتَصَدِّعاً مِّنْ خَشْيَةِ اللَّهِ
(Had We sent down this Qur'an on a mountain, you would surely have seen it humbling itself and rent asunder by the fear of Allah) (59:21). Then Allah explains that even if they wanted to and were able to bear it and convey it, they still would not be able to achieve that, because they were prevented from hearing the Qur'an when it was brought down, for the heavens were filled with guardians and shooting stars at the time when the Qur'an was being revealed to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, so none of the Shayatin could hear even one letter of it, lest there be any confusion in the matter. This is a part of Allah's mercy towards His servants, protection of His Laws, and support for His Book and His Messenger . Allah says:
إِنَّهُمْ عَنِ السَّمْعِ لَمَعْزُولُونَ
(Verily, they have been removed far from hearing it.) This is like what Allah tells us about the Jinn:
وَأَنَّا لَمَسْنَا السَّمَآءَ فَوَجَدْنَـهَا مُلِئَتْ حَرَساً شَدِيداً وَشُهُباً - وَأَنَّا كُنَّا نَقْعُدُ مِنْهَا مَقَـعِدَ لِلسَّمْعِ فَمَن يَسْتَمِعِ الاٌّنَ يَجِدْ لَهُ شِهَاباً رَّصَداً
(And we have sought to reach the heaven; but found it filled with stern guards and flaming fires. And verily, we used to sit there in stations, to (steal) a hearing, but any who listens now will find a flaming fire watching him in ambush.) until;
أَمْ أَرَادَ بِهِمْ رَبُّهُمْ رَشَداً
(or whether their Lord intends for them a right path) 72:8-10.
Neither would it behove befit them to bring it down nor are they capable of doing that.
وما تَنَزَّلَتْ بالقرآن على محمد الشياطين- كما يزعم الكفرة- ولا يصح منهم ذلك، وما يستطيعونه؛ لأنهم عن استماع القرآن من السماء محجوبون مرجومون بالشهب.
ولهذا قال تعالى "وما ينبغي لهم" وقوله تعالى "وما يستطيعون" أي ولو انبغى لهم لما استطاعوا ذلك قال الله تعالى "لو أنزلنا هذا القرآن على جبل لرأيته خاشعا متصدعا من خشية الله" ثم أنه لو انبغى لهم واستطاعوا حمله وتأديته لما وصلوا إلى ذلك لأنهم بمعزل عن استماع القرآن حال نزوله لأن السماء ملئت حرسا شديدا وشهبا في مدة إنزال القرآن على رسول الله فلم يخلص أحد من الشياطين إلى استماع حرف ولم يجد منه لئلا يشتبه الأمر وهذا من رحمة الله بعباده وحفظه لشرعه وتأييده لكتابه ولرسوله.
وإن الشياطين ( وَمَا يَنبَغِي لَهُمْ ) ذلك إذ هم يدعون إلى الضلالة والقرآن يدعو إلى الهداية ( وَمَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ ) أن ينزلوا به ولا يقدرون على ذلك أصلا .
(وَمَا يَنْبَغِي لَهُمْ) يقول: وما ينبغي للشياطين أن ينـزلوا به عليه, ولا يصلح لهم ذلك.(وَمَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ) يقول: وما يستطيعون أن يتنـزلوا به, لأنهم لا يصلون إلى استماعه في المكان الذي هو به من السماء.
( وما ينبغي لهم ) أن ينزلوا بالقرآن ) ( وما يستطيعون ) ذلك .
وَمَا يَنْبَغِي لَهُمْ وَمَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ (211) فضمير { ينبغي } عائد إلى ما عاد عليه ضمير { به } ، أي ما ينبغي القرآن لهم ، أي ما ينبغي أن ينزلوا به كما زعم المشركون . ومفعول { يستطيعون } محذوف ، أي ما يستطيعونه . وأعيدت الضمائر بصيغة العقلاء بعد أن أضمر لهم بضمير غير العقلاء في قوله : { وما تنزلت } اعتباراً بملابسة ذلك للكهان . وقد تقدم في سورة الحجر أن صنفاً من الشياطين يتهيّأ للتلقي بما يسمَّى استراق السمع وأنه يصرف عنه بالشُّهب
وَمَا يَنْبَغِي لَهُمْ ) أي: لا يليق بحالهم ولا يناسبهم ( وَمَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ ) ذلك.
وما ينبغي لهم وما يستطيعون أي برمي الشهب كما مضى في سورة [ ص: 131 ] ( الحجر ) بيانه . وقرأ الحسن ومحمد بن السميقع ( وما تنزلت به الشياطون ) قال المهدوي : وهو غير جائز في العربية ومخالف للخط . وقال النحاس : وهذا غلط عند جميع النحويين ; وسمعت علي بن سليمان يقول سمعت محمد بن يزيد يقول : هذا غلط عند العلماء ، إنما يكون بدخول شبهة ; لما رأى الحسن في آخره ياء ونونا وهو في موضع رفع اشتبه عليه بالجمع المسلم فغلط ، وفي الحديث : احذروا زلة العالم وقد قرأ هو مع الناس : وإذا خلوا إلى شياطينهم ولو كان هذا بالواو في موضع رفع لوجب حذف النون للإضافة . وقال الثعلبي : قال الفراء : غلط الشيخ - يعني الحسن - فقيل ذلك للنضر بن شميل فقال : إن جاز أن يحتج بقول رؤبة والعجاج وذويهما ، جاز أن يحتج بقول الحسن وصاحبه . مع أنا نعلم أنهما لم يقرآ بذلك إلا وقد سمعا في ذلك شيئا ; وقال المؤرج : إن كان الشيطان من " شاط يشيط " كان لقراءتهما وجه . وقال يونس بن حبيب : سمعت أعرابيا يقول دخلنا بساتين من ورائها بساتون ; فقلت : ما أشبه هذا بقراءة الحسن .
When, on behalf of God, the call for Truth appears at the level of a prophet, it appears in its final and perfect shape. That is why it becomes necessary for God’s punishment to visit any community which denies the prophet. However, until this punishment is actually administered, man considers himself safe from it. In order to prove the divine call baseless, he adopts various tactics. Sometimes he derides the prophet’s personality and sometimes he calls the Divine revelation brought by him spurious. Sometimes he says that if God is against them, why does He not punish them? The only responsibility of the prophet, or the preacher acting on behalf of the prophet, is that he should make the people aware of the Truth. All matters over and above that are the responsibility of God and He shows them this when He wills.
أَفَرَأَيْتَ إِن مَّتَّعْنَاهُمْ سِنِينَ ﴿205﴾
So tell me, If We give them enjoyment for years, - 26:205.
There is a hint in this verse that those who are bestowed with long life in this world by Allah Ta’ ala, it is His grace on them. But those who show ingratitude for this grace and do not submit to Islam, to them this respite and grace will not be of any avail. Imam Zuhri (رح) has related that Sayyidna ` Umar ibn ` Abdul Aziz (رح) used to recite this verse every morning by holding his beard and addressing his Self:
نھارک یا مغرور سھو و غفلۃ ولیلک نوم والرّدیٰ لک لازم
فلا انت فی الایقاظ یقظان حازم ولا انت فی النّوّام ناجِ و سالم
وتعٰی الٰی ما سوف تکرہ غبّہ کذٰلک فی الدّنیا تعیش البھایٔم
` O the duped one! Your whole day is spent in negligence and the night in sleep, while death is inevitable for you. Neither you are awake among the alert and woken nor are you the one who will get salvation from among the sleepers. You keep endeavoring for things which will soon bring you unpleasant results. Cattle and animals live like this in the world'.
(It is not meet for them) the devils are not fit to do so, (nor is it in their power) nor could they do this,