The Troops, Throngs, The Companies — Verse 27

The Parable of Shirk وَلَقَدْ ضَرَبْنَا لِلنَّاسِ فِى هَـذَا الْقُرْءَانِ مِن كُلِّ مَثَلٍ (And indeed We have put forth for men, in this Qur'an every kind of parable) means, `We have explained things to mankind in it the Qur'an by setting forth examples and parables.' لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَذَكَّرُونَ (in order that they may remember.) Because parables bring the meaning closer to people's minds. As Allah says: ضَرَبَ لَكُمْ مَّثَلاً مِّنْ أَنفُسِكُمْ (He sets forth for you a parable from yourselves) (30:28). meaning, `so that you may learn it from yourselves.' And Allah says: وَتِلْكَ الاٌّمْثَالُ نَضْرِبُهَا لِلنَّاسِ وَمَا يَعْقِلُهَآ إِلاَّ الْعَـلِمُونَ (in Order that they may have Taqwa of Him.) (29:43). قُرْءَاناً عَرَبِيّاً غَيْرَ ذِى عِوَجٍ (An Arabic Qur'an, without any crookedness (therein)) means, it is in a plain Arabic tongue, with no crookedness, deviation or confusion. It is plain, clear proof. Allah has made it like this and has revealed it like this, لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ (in order that they may have Taqwa of Him) means, in order that they may heed the warnings contained therein, and strive to attain the promises therein. Then Allah says: ضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلاً رَّجُلاً فِيهِ شُرَكَآءُ مُتَشَـكِسُونَ (Allah puts forth a parable: a man belonging to many partners disputing with one another,) meaning, they were disputing concerning that slave in whom they all had a share. وَرَجُلاً سَلَماً لِّرَجُلٍ (and a (slave) man belonging entirely to one master.) means, no one owned him except that one man. هَلْ يَسْتَوِيَانِ مَثَلاً (Are those two equal in comparison) meaning, they are not the same. By the same token, the idolator who worships other gods besides Allah and the sincere believer who worships none besides Allah, with no partner or associate, are not equal. What comparison can there be between them Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, Mujahid and others said, "This Ayah is the parable of the idolator and the sincere believer." Because this parable is so clear and obvious, Allah then says: الْحَمْدُ للَّهِ (All the praises and thanks be to Allah!) i.e., for establishing proof against them. بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لاَ يَعْلَمُونَ (But most of them know not. ) means, and for this reason they associate others in worship with Allah. The fact that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and Quraysh will die, and how They will dispute before Allah Allah's saying; إِنَّكَ مَيِّتٌ وَإِنَّهُمْ مَّيِّتُونَ (Verily, you will die, and verily, they (too) will die.) This is one of the Ayat which Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, quoted when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ died, so that the people would realize that he had really died. Another Ayah which he quoted was: وَمَا مُحَمَّدٌ إِلاَّ رَسُولٌ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِهِ الرُّسُلُ أَفإِيْن مَّاتَ أَوْ قُتِلَ انقَلَبْتُمْ عَلَى أَعْقَـبِكُمْ وَمَن يَنقَلِبْ عَلَى عَقِبَيْهِ فَلَن يَضُرَّ اللَّهَ شَيْئاً وَسَيَجْزِى اللَّهُ الشَّـكِرِينَ (Muhammad is no more than a Messenger, and indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him. If he dies or is killed, will you then turn back on your heels And he who turns back on his heels, not the least harm will do to Allah; and Allah will give reward to those who are grateful.)(3:144). The meaning of this Ayah is that you will certainly depart this world and be gathered before Allah in the Hereafter. You will dispute the issues of Tawhid and Shirk before Allah, things over which you disputed in this world, and He will judge between you with truth, and He is the Judge, the All-Knowing. So, He will save the sincere believers who worship Him alone, and He will punish the disbelievers who deny His Oneness and associate others in worship with Him. Although this Ayah speaks about the believers and disbelievers, and how they will dispute in the Hereafter, it also includes all disputants in this world, for their disputes will come back to them in the Hereafter. Ibn Abi Hatim, may Allah have mercy on him, recorded that Ibn Az-Zubayr, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "When the Ayah ثُمَّ إِنَّكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ عِندَ رَبِّكُمْ تَخْتَصِمُونَ (Then, on the Day of Resurrection, you will be disputing before your Lord.) was revealed, Az-Zubayr, may Allah be pleased with him, said, `O Messenger of Allah, will we repeat our disputes' He said, «نَعَم» (Yes.) He (Az-Zubayr) said, `This is a very serious matter."' Ahmad recorded from Az-Zubayr bin Al-`Awwam, may Allah be pleased with him, that when this Surah was revealed to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: إِنَّكَ مَيِّتٌ وَإِنَّهُمْ مَّيِّتُونَ - ثُمَّ إِنَّكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ عِندَ رَبِّكُمْ تَخْتَصِمُونَ (Verily, you will die, and verily, they (too) will die. Then, on the Day of Resurrection, you will be disputing before your Lord.) Az-Zubayr, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "O Messenger of Allah, will the sins that we committed against others in this world be repeated for us" He said, «نَعَمْ، لَيُكَرَّرَنَّ عَلَيْكُمْ حَتْى يُؤَدَّى إِلَى كُلِّ ذِي حَقَ حَقُّه» (Yes, they will be repeated until everyone who is entitled will have his rights restored to him. ) Az-Zubayr, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "By Allah, it is a very serious matter." It was also recorded by At-Tirmidhi, who said "Hasan Sahih." `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: ثُمَّ إِنَّكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ عِندَ رَبِّكُمْ تَخْتَصِمُونَ (Then, on the Day of Resurrection, you will be disputing before your Lord.) means, the truthful one will dispute with the liar, the oppressed will dispute with the oppressor, the one who is guided will dispute with the one who is misguided and the weak will dispute with the arrogant. Ibn Mandah recorded in Kitab Ar-Ruh that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "The people will dispute on the Day of Resurrection, to the extent that the soul will dispute with the body. The soul will say to the body, `You did such and such,' and the body will say to the soul, `You told me to do it and you tempted me.' Then Allah will send an angel to judge between them, and he will say, `You two are like a man who cannot walk but can see, and a man who cannot see but can walk.' They went into a garden and the one who could not walk said to the one who was blind, `I see fruit there, but I cannot reach it.' The blind man said, `Climb on me and get it.' So he climbed on him and got it. So which of them is the wrongdoer They will say, `Both of them.' The angel will say to them, `You have passed judgement against yourselves.' The body was a means of transportation for the soul." Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Sa`id bin Jubayr said that Ibn `Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "This Ayah was revealed and we did not know what it was revealed about: ثُمَّ إِنَّكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ عِندَ رَبِّكُمْ تَخْتَصِمُونَ (Then, on the Day of Resurrection, you will be disputing before your Lord.)" He said, "We said, what will we dispute about There is no dispute between us and the People of the Book, so what will we dispute about Until the Fitnah occurred." Then Ibn `Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "This is what our Lord promised us we would dispute about." This was recorded by An-Nasa'i.

And verily We have struck coined for mankind in this Qur’ān every kind of similitude that perhaps they may remember that perhaps they may be admonished —

ولقد ضربنا لهؤلاء المشركين بالله في هذا القرآن من كل مثل من أمثال القرون الخالية تخويفًا وتحذيرًا؛ ليتذكروا فينزجروا عما هم عليه مقيمون من الكفر بالله. وجعلنا هذا القرآن عربيًا واضح الألفاظ سهل المعاني، لا لَبْس فيه ولا انحراف؛ لعلهم يتقون الله بامتثال أوامره واجتناب نواهيه.

يقول تعالى "ولقد ضربنا للناس في هذا القرآن من كل مثل" أي بينا للناس فيه بضرب الأمثال "لعلهم يتذكرون" فإن المثل يقرب المعنى إلى الأذهان كما قال تبارك وتعالى "ضرب لكم مثلا من أنفسكم" أي تعلمونه من أنفسكم وقال عز وجل "وتلك الأمثال نضربها للناس وما يعقلها إلا العالمون".

ثم كرر - سبحانه - مدحه للقرآن الكريم ، بأن بين أنه مشتمل على كل مثل نافع للناس ، وأنه لا لبس فيه ولا اختلاف ، وساق مثلا للمشرك الذى يعبد آلهة كثيرة ، وللمؤمن الذى يبعد إلها واحدا ، وبين أن جميع الناس سيعمهم الموت . وأنهم جميعا سيرجعون إلى الله للحساب ، فقال - تعالى - :( وَلَقَدْ ضَرَبْنَا لِلنَّاسِ فِي هذا القرآن . . . ) .اللام فى قوله - تعالى - : ( وَلَقَدْ ضَرَبْنَا لِلنَّاسِ . . . ) موطئة للقسم .أى : والله لقد ضربنا وكررنا بأساليب متنوعة فى هذا القرآن العظيم ، من كل مثل يحتاج إليه الناس فى أمورهم وشئونهم ، وينتفعون به فى دنياهم ودينهم .وقوله - تعالى - : ( لَّعَلَّهُمْ يَتَذَكَّرُونَ ) تعليل لضرب المثل . أى فعلنا ذلك فى كتابنا الذى هو أحسن الحديث ، كى يتعظوا ويتذكروا ما أمرناهم به ، أو نهيناهم عنه .فلعل هنا بمعنى كى التعليلية ، وهذا التعليل إنما هو بالنسبة إلى غيره - تعالى - .

القول في تأويل قوله تعالى : وَلَقَدْ ضَرَبْنَا لِلنَّاسِ فِي هَذَا الْقُرْآنِ مِنْ كُلِّ مَثَلٍ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَذَكَّرُونَ (27)يقول تعالى ذكره: ولقد مثلنا لهؤلاء المشركين بالله من كل مثل من أمثال القرون للأمم الخالية, تخويفا منا لهم وتحذيرا( لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَذَكَّرُونَ ) يقول: ليتذكروا فينـزجروا عما هم عليه مقيمون من الكفر بالله.

( ولقد ضربنا للناس في هذا القرآن من كل مثل لعلهم يتذكرون ) يتعظون .

وَلَقَدْ ضَرَبْنَا لِلنَّاسِ فِي هَذَا الْقُرْآَنِ مِنْ كُلِّ مَثَلٍ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَذَكَّرُونَ (27) عطف على جملة { الله نَزَّلَ أحْسَنَ الحَدِيثِ إلى قوله : فَما لهُ مِن هَادٍ } [ الزمر : 23 ] ، تتمة للتنويه بالقرآن وإرشاده ، وللتعريض بتسفيه أحلام الذين كذّبوا به وأعرضوا عن الاهتداء بهديه . وتأكيد الخبر بلام القسم وحرففِ التحقيق منظور فيه إلى حال الفريق الذين لم يتدبروا القرآن وطعنوا فيه وأنكروا أنه من عند الله .والتعريف في { الناس } للاستغراق ، أي لجميع الناس ، فإن الله بعث محمداً صلى الله عليه وسلم للناس كافة .وضَرْب المثل : ذِكره ووصفُه ، وقد تقدم في قوله تعالى : { إن اللَّه لا يستحيِّ أن يضرب مثلاً } في سورة [ البقرة : 26 ] . وتنوين { مَثَلٍ } للتعظيم والشرف ، أي من كل أشرف الأمثال ، فالمعنى : ذكرنا للناس في القرآن أمثالاً هي بعض من كل أنفع الأمثال وأشرفها . والمراد : شرف نفعها .وخُصّت أمثال القرآن بالذكر من بين مزايا القرآن لأجل لَفت بصائرهم للتدبر في ناحية عظيمة من نواحي إعجازه وهي بلاغة أمثاله ، فإن بلغاءهم كانوا يتنافسون في جَودة الأمثال وإصابتها المحزّ من تشبيه الحالة بالحالة . وتقدم هذا عند قوله تعالى : { ولقد صرفنا للناس في هذا القرآن من كل مثل فأبى أكثر الناس إلا كفوراً } في سورة [ الإِسراء : 89 ] ، وتقدم في قوله : { ولقَد ضَرَبنا للنَّاسسِ في هذَا القُرْآننِ مِن كل مَثَلٍ } في سورة [ الروم : 58 ] .ومعنى الرجاء في { لَعَلَّهُم يتذَكَّرُونَ } منصرف إلى أن حالهم عند ضرب الأمثال القرآنية كحال من يرجو الناس منه أن يتذكر ، وهذا مِثل نظائر هذا الترجي الواقع في القرآن ، وتقدم في سورة البقرة .ومعنى التذكر : التأمل والتدبر لينكشف لهم ما هم غافلون عنه سواء ما سبق لهم به علم فنسُوه وشُغلوا عنه بسفسَاففِ الأمور ، وما لم يسبق لهم علم به مما شأنه أن يستبصره الرأي الأصيل حتى إذا انكشف له كان كالشيء الذي سبق له علمه وذهِل عنه ، فمعنى التذكر معنى بديع شامل لهذه الخصائص .وهذا وصفُ القرآن في حدّ ذاته إن صادف عقلاً صافياً ونفساً مجردة عن المكابرة فتذكر به المؤمنون به من قبل ، وتذكّر به من كان التذكّر به سبباً في إيمانه بعد كفره بسرعة أو ببطء ، وأما الذين لم يتذكروا به فإن عدم تذكرهم لنقص في فطرتهم وتغشية العناد لألبابهم . وكذلك معنى قوله : { لعلَّهُم يتَّقُونَ } .

قوله تعالى : ولقد ضربنا للناس في هذا القرآن من كل مثل لعلهم يتذكرونقوله تعالى : ولقد ضربنا للناس في هذا القرآن من كل مثل أي من كل مثل يحتاجون إليه ، مثل قوله تعالى : ما فرطنا في الكتاب من شيء وقيل : أي : ما ذكرناه من [ ص: 225 ] إهلاك الأمم السالفة مثل لهؤلاء ." لعلهم يتذكرون " : يتعظون .

The Quran’s statements are in a language intelligible to man and within the sphere of his knowledge, so that nobody should have any difficulty in understanding them. Here, in symbolic language, it has been explained that the principle of the Unity of God as compared to polytheism is more rational and consistent with nature. Indeed, the functioning of the external universe is indicative of the fact that a single Will is operative in it. Had there been many intentions operative therein, the system of the universe could not have run so harmoniously. Moreover, man’s nature is also such that it prefers unity in loyalty. It is entirely against man’s nature to subscribe to different kinds of loyalties, as a result of which he is unable to do justice to any of them. All arguments and possibilities indicate that there is only one God, who is the Creator of man and who is worthy of being worshipped by him. In the present world, this fact is proclaimed through men like us. On the Day of Judgement, this will be declared by the Creator of the Universe Himself. At that time, denial of this fact will be impossible.

Commentary Verse أَفَمَن يَتَّقِي بِوَجْهِهِ (Tell Me about the one who tries to save himself from the worst punishment with his face ...) carries a description of the terrifying scenario of Jahannam. If one faces something hurtful in his mortal life, he tries to fight it off by using his hands and feet as defensive shields to protect his face. But, refuge with Allah, the people of Jahannam will not be able to use even their hands and feet to defend themselves. The punishment that comes will fall directly on their faces. Even if he wished to ward off the punishment in defense, he would have no option but to use his very face as the shield, because he would have been thrown in Jahannam with his hands and feet tied. We seek refuge with Allah from such a fate. Out of the authorities of Tafsir, ` Ata and Ibn Zayd said that a person condemned to Jahannam will have his hands and feet tied before being dragged in there. (Qurtubi)

(And verily We have coined for mankind) We exposited for people (in this Qur'an all kinds of similitudes, that haply they may reflect) that haply they may take heed;