The Family of Imran, The House of Imran — Verse 70

The Envy the Jews Feel Towards Muslims; Their Wicked Plots Against Muslims Allah states that the Jews envy the faithful and wish they could misguide them. Allah states that the punishment of this behavior will fall back upon them, while they are unaware. Allah criticizes them, يأَهْلَ الْكِتَـبِ لِمَ تَكْفُرُونَ بِأَيَـتِ اللَّهِ وَأَنتُمْ تَشْهَدُونَ (O People of the Scripture!: Why do you disbelieve in the Ayat of Allah, while you bear witness.) You know for certain that Allah's Ayat are true and authentic, يأَهْلَ الْكِتَـبِ لِمَ تَلْبِسُونَ الْحَقَّ بِالْبَـطِلِ وَتَكْتُمُونَ الْحَقَّ وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ (O People of the Scripture: Why do you mix truth with falsehood and conceal the truth while you know) by hiding what is in your Books about the description of Muhammad , while you know what you do. وَقَالَت طَّآئِفَةٌ مِّنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَـبِ ءَامِنُواْ بِالَّذِي أُنزِلَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَجْهَ النَّهَارِ وَاكْفُرُواْ ءَاخِرَهُ (And a party of the People of the Scripture say: "Believe in the morning in that which is revealed to the believers, and reject it at the end of the day,) This is a wicked plan from the People of the Book to deceive Muslims who are weak in the religion. They decided that they would pretend to be believers in the beginning of the day, by attending the dawn prayer with the Muslims. However, when the day ended, they would revert to their old religion so that the ignorant people would say, "They reverted to their old religion because they uncovered some shortcomings in the Islamic religion." This is why they said next. لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ (so that they may turn back.) Ibn Abi Najih said that Mujahid commented about this Ayah, which refers to the Jews, "They attended the dawn prayer with the Prophet and disbelieved in the end of the day in order to misguide the people. This way, people would think that they have uncovered shortcomings in the religion that they briefly followed." وَلاَ تُؤْمِنُواْ إِلاَّ لِمَن تَبِعَ دِينَكُمْ ("And believe no one except the one who follows your religion.") They said, do not trust anyone with your secret knowledge, except those who follow your religion. Therefore, they say, do not expose your knowledge to Muslims in order to prevent them from believing in it and, thus, use it as proof against you. Allah replied, قُلْ إِنَّ الْهُدَى هُدَى اللَّهِ (Say: (O Prophet) "Verily, right guidance is the guidance of Allah.") Allah guides the hearts of the faithful to the perfect faith through the clear Ayat, plain proofs and unequivocal evidence that He has sent down to His servant and Messenger Muhammad ﷺ. This occurs, O you Jews, even though you hide the description of Muhammad . the unlettered Prophet whom you find in your Books that you received from the earlier Prophets. Allah's statement; أَن يُؤْتَى أَحَدٌ مِّثْلَ مَآ أُوتِيتُمْ أَوْ يُحَآجُّوكُمْ عِندَ رَبِّكُمْ ((And they say: ) "Do not believe that anyone can receive like that which you have received, otherwise they would engage you in argument before your Lord.") They say, "Do not disclose the knowledge that you have to the Muslims, to prevent them from learning it and thus becoming your equals. They will be even better because they will believe in it or will use it against you as evidence with your Lord, and thus establish Allah's proof against you in this life and the Hereafter." Allah said, قُلْ إِنَّ الْفَضْلَ بِيَدِ اللَّهِ يُؤْتِيهِ مَن يَشَآءُ (Say: "All the bounty is in the Hand of Allah; He grants to whom He wills.) meaning, all affairs are under His control, and He gives and takes. Verily, Allah gives faith, knowledge and sound comprehension to whomever He wills. He also misguides whomever He wills by blinding his sight, mind, sealing his heart, hearing and stamping his eyes closed. Allah has the perfect wisdom and the unequivocal proofs. وَاللَّهُ وَسِعٌ عَلِيمٌيَخْتَصُّ بِرَحْمَتِهِ مَن يَشَآءُ وَاللَّهُ ذُو الْفَضْلِ الْعَظِيمِ (And Allah is All-Sufficient for His creatures' needs, All-Knower." He selects for His mercy whom He wills and Allah is the Owner of great bounty.) meaning, He has endowed you, O believers, with tremendous virtue, in that He honored your Prophet Muhammad ﷺ over all other prophets, and by directing you to the best Shari`ah there is.

O People of the Scripture! Why do you disbelieve in God’s verses the Qur’ān that includes all the descriptions of Muhammad (s) when you yourselves bear witness? when you know that it is the truth.

O people of the scripture! Why do you disbelieve in God's verses when you yourselves bear witnessḍ �[You bore witness] before his mission ﷺ to the authenticity of his prophecy. What is it that brings you to error so that you disavow what you knowḍ�

O people of the scripture! Why do you disbelieve in God's verses when you yourselves bear witnessḍ �[You bore witness] before his mission ﷺ to the authenticity of his prophecy. What is it that brings you to error so that you disavow what you knowḍ�

يا أهل التوراة والإنجيل لم تجحدون آيات الله التي أنزلها على رسله في كتبكم، وفيها أن محمدًا صلى الله عليه وسلم هو الرسول المنتظر، وأن ما جاءكم به هو الحق، وأنتم تشهدون بذلك؟ ولكنكم تنكرونه.

قال تعالى منكرا عليهم "يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون" أي تعلمون صدقها وتتحققون حقها.

وأما النداء الثالث الذى اشتملت عليه هذه الآيات فهو قوله : { ياأهل الكتاب لِمَ تَكْفُرُونَ بِآيَاتِ الله وَأَنْتُمْ تَشْهَدُونَ } .أى : لماذا تكفرون بآيات الله - تعالى - التى يتلوها عليكم نبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم والحال أنكم تعلمون صدقها وصحتها علما يقينا كعلم المشاهدة والعيان ، وتعرفون أنه نبى حقا كما تعرفون أبناءكم .والاستفهام فى قوله { لِمَ تَكْفُرُونَ } لتوبيخهم والتعجيب من شأنهم ، وإنكار ما هم عليه من كفر بأيات الله مع علمهم بصدقها .وفى هذا النداء إشارة إلى أن ما أعطوه من علم كان يقتضى منهم أن يسارعوا إلى الإيمان لا أن يكفروا بآيات الله الدالة على صدق نبيه صلى الله عليه وسلم والتى تتناول القرآن الكريم ، والحجج والمعجزات التى جاءهم بها صلى الله عليه وسلم .

القول في تأويل قوله : يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ لِمَ تَكْفُرُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَأَنْتُمْ تَشْهَدُونَ (70)قال أبو جعفر: يعني بذلك جل ثناؤه: " يا أهل الكتاب "، من اليهود والنصارى =" لم تكفرون "، يقول: لم تجحدون =" بآيات الله "، يعني: بما في كتاب الله الذي أنـزله إليكم على ألسن أنبيائكم، من آيه وأدلته=" وأنتم تشهدون " أنه حق من عند ربكم.* * *وإنما هذا من الله عز وجل، توبيخٌ لأهل الكتابين على كفرهم بمحمد صلى الله عليه وسلم وجحودهم نبوّته، وهم يجدونه في كتبهم، مع شَهادتهم أن ما في كتبهم حقٌّ، وأنه من عند الله، كما:-7219 - حدثنا بشر قال، حدثنا يزيد قال، حدثنا سعيد، عن قتادة قوله: " يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون "، يقول: تشهدون أن نَعتَ محمد نبيّ الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في كتابكم، ثم تكفرون به وتنكرونه ولا تؤمنون به، وأنتم تجدونه مكتوبًا عندكم في التوراة والإنجيل: النَّبِيِّ الأُمِّيِّ الَّذِي يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَكَلِمَاتِهِ .7220 - حدثنا المثنى قال، حدثنا إسحاق قال، حدثنا ابن أبي جعفر، عن أبيه، عن الربيع: " يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون "، يقول: تشهدون أن نعتَ محمد في كتابكم، ثم تكفرون به ولا تؤمنون به، وأنتم تجدونه عندكم في التوراة والإنجيل: " النبيّ الأميّ".7221 - حدثني محمد قال، حدثنا أحمد قال، حدثنا أسباط، عن السدي: " يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون "،"آيات الله " محمد، وأما " تشهدون "، فيشهدون أنه الحق، يجدونه مكتوبًا عندهم.7222 - حدثنا القاسم قال، حدثنا الحسين قال، حدثنا حجاج، عن ابن جريج قوله: " يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون " أنّ الدين عند الله الإسلام، ليس لله دين غيره. (66)* * *------------------------الهوامش :(66) الأثر: 7222- أسقطت المطبوعة والمخطوطة: "حدثنا القاسم قال" ، فأثبتها ، وهو إسناد دائر في التفسير من أوله ، أقربه رقم: 7200 ، وسيأتي بعد قليل على الصواب ، رقم: 7226.

( يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله ) يعني القرآن وبيان نعت محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم ( وأنتم تشهدون ) أن نعته في التوراة والإنجيل مذكور

التفات إلى خطاب اليهود . والاستفهامُ إنكاري . والآيات : المعجزات ، ولذلك قال وأنتم تشهدون .

{ يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون } أي: ما الذي دعاكم إلى الكفر بآيات الله مع علمكم بأن ما أنتم عليه باطل، وأن ما جاءكم به محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم هو الحق الذي لا تشكون فيه، بل تشهدون به ويسر به بعضكم إلى بعض في بعض الأوقات، فهذا نهيهم عن ضلالهم.

قوله تعالى : يا أهل الكتاب لم تكفرون بآيات الله وأنتم تشهدون أي بصحة الآيات التي عندكم في كتبكم ; عن قتادة والسدي . وقيل : المعنى وأنتم تشهدون بمثلها من آيات الأنبياء التي أنتم مقرون بها .

The Makkan polytheists called their religion the faith of Abraham. Jews and Christians too bracketed their religious history with that of Abraham. In every age people have used the names of their prophets and saints to justify their own additions to and inventions in religion. After the passage of time, people fail to differentiate between the original religion and its later version. The later version is ultimately taken to be the real religion. The atmosphere surrounding it is such that, when the call to return to true and pure religion is given, its opponents find the easiest way to discredit it is by making public allegations that the caller is against the religion handed down to them by their saints. One who is the true representative of the religion of ‘saints’ is now rejected in the name of former saints. This is because what his opponents hold up as their yardstick is not actually the original version of religion as given by the saints of the past. Instead it is the body of alterations and additions made by later followers and subsequently accepted as the ‘religion of the saints’. This is like drawing a veil of falsehood over the truth. That is, making pronouncements which are invalid from the religious and logical point of view. But since the public does not have the ability to analyze them, it deems them to be right and is thus distanced from the truth. The hanif (monotheist) is one who treads the straight path of monotheism and the non-hanif is one who deviates from the straight path, going instead into by-lanes. Sometimes the secondary aspects of religion are so emphasized by the interpretation put upon them that they appear to be the main foci, the actual core of religion. In this way its fundamentals lose their significance and people stray from the straight thoroughfare of monotheism into the byways of unimportant issues.

The words in أَنتُمْ تَشْهَدُونَ (you are yourselves a witness - 70) and in أَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ (you know ( 71) should not be taken to mean that disbelief will become permissible for them if they do not attest to the truth or have no knowledge about it. This is because kufr (disbelief) is intrinsically an abominable thing to practice. This is prohibited under all conditions. However, the mention of kufr (disbelief) after knowledge and attestation is to increase the impact of reproachment.

(O People of the Scripture! Why disbelieve you in the revelations of Allah) Muhammad and the Qur'an, (when you (yourselves) bear witness (to the Truth)?) you know from your Scripture that Muhammad is a prophet sent by Allah.