Women — Verse 173
4:173 · an-Nisa`
Verse display
فَأَمَّا ٱلَّذِینَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ فَیُوَفِّیهِمۡ أُجُورَهُمۡ وَیَزِیدُهُم مِّن فَضۡلِهِۦۖ وَأَمَّا ٱلَّذِینَ ٱسۡتَنكَفُوا۟ وَٱسۡتَكۡبَرُوا۟ فَیُعَذِّبُهُمۡ عَذَابًا أَلِیمࣰا وَلَا یَجِدُونَ لَهُم مِّن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ وَلِیࣰّا وَلَا نَصِیرࣰا ١٧٣
fa-ammā alladhīna āmanū waʿamilū l-ṣāliḥāti fayuwaffīhim ujūrahum wayazīduhum min faḍlihi wa-ammā alladhīna is'tankafū wa-is'takbarū fayuʿadhibuhum ʿadhāban alīman walā yajidūna lahum min dūni l-lahi waliyyan walā naṣīra
Women / an-Nisa` (4:173)
Connections 2 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 (2) cited by only one commentator
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Q 19:30 (Maryam)
cited by
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Q 79:24 (an-Nazi`at)
cited by
By commentator who cites how many verses on this ayah
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Al-Qushairi Tafsir 1 verse 2 mentions total
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Kashani Tafsir 1 verse 2 mentions total
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.
to those who believe and do good works He will give due rewards and more of His bounty; to those who are disdainful and arrogant He will give an agonizing torment, and they will find no one besides God to protect or help them
fa-ammā alladhīna āmanū waʿamilū l-ṣāliḥāti fayuwaffīhim ujūrahum wayazīduhum min faḍlihi wa-ammā alladhīna is'tankafū wa-is'takbarū fayuʿadhibuhum ʿadhāban alīman walā yajidūna lahum min dūni l-lahi waliyyan walā naṣīra
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Tafsir Commentary
The Prophets and Angels Are Never too Proud to Worship Allah
Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said that, `proud', means insolent. Qatadah said that,
الْمَسِيحُ أَن يَكُونَ عَبْداً للَّهِ وَلاَ الْمَلَـئِكَةُ الْمُقَرَّبُونَ
(Al-Masih will never be too proud to be a servant of Allah nor the angels who are near (to Allah).) they will never be arrogant, Allah then said,
وَمَن يَسْتَنْكِفْ عَنْ عِبَادَتِهِ وَيَسْتَكْبِرْ فَسَيَحْشُرُهُمْ إِلَيهِ جَمِيعاً
(And whosoever rejects His worship and is proud, then He will gather them all together unto Himself.) on the Day of Resurrection. Then, Allah will judge between them with His just judgment that is never unjust or wrong.
فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَـتِ فَيُوَفِّيهِمْ أُجُورَهُمْ وَيَزيدُهُمْ مِّن فَضْلِهِ
(So, as for those who believed and did deeds of righteousness, He will give their (due) rewards, and more out of His bounty.) Allah will award them their full rewards for their righteous actions and will give them more of His bounty, kindness, ample mercy and favor.
وَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ اسْتَنكَفُواْ وَاسْتَكْبَرُواْ
(But as for those who refused His worship and were proud, ) out of arrogance, they refused to obey and worship Him,
فَيُعَذِّبُهُمْ عَذَاباً أَلُيماً وَلاَ يَجِدُونَ لَهُمْ مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَلِيّاً وَلاَ نَصِيراً
(He will punish them with a painful torment. And they will not find for themselves besides Allah any protector or helper.) In another Ayah, Allah said,
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِى سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَخِرِينَ
(Verily! Those who scorn My worship, they will surely enter Hell in humiliation,) degradation, disgrace and dishonor, for they were arrogant and rebellious.
As for those who believed who did righteous deeds He will pay them in full their wages the reward for their deeds and He will give them more of His bounty what no eye has seen no ear has heard and no man’s heart has ever wished for; and as for them who disdain and are too proud to worship Him He will chastise them with a painful chastisement which is the chastisement of the Fire and they shall not find for themselves besides God that is other than Him any friend to ward it off them or helper to protect them from it.
As for those who believed, in the annihilation at the source of the union by the effacement of attributes and the obliteration of essence, and who did righteous deeds, by being upright in [their] deeds and mindful of the differentiations of [God's] attributes and their self-disclosures, He will pay them in full their wages, and their attributes from the gardens of His attributes, and He will give them more of His bounty, by means of the existence that is bestowed on the essence after annihilation, and as for them who disdain, by manifesting their ego, and are too proud, becoming tyrannical upon the self-disclosures of the [divine] attributes and their being illumined by their light by manifesting themselves in these [attributes] and ascribing them to their own souls, as with [Pharaoh] the one who said I am your most high lord! [Q. 79:24], He will chastise them with a painful chastisement, for their veiling themselves behind the remnants of their essences and attributes, depriving them of the station of union; and they shall not find, besides God, any supporter, to support them in removing the veil of the essence, or helper, to help them [successfully] remove the proof-veil of the attributes, which is the affirmation of the Oneness of essence and the clear light, that is the differentiation at the source of the union, namely, the QurÌān, which is the knowledge of the union, and the Distinguishing Criterion, which is the knowledge of the differentiation.
As for those who believed, in the annihilation at the source of the union by the effacement of attributes and the obliteration of essence, and who did righteous deeds, by being upright in [their] deeds and mindful of the differentiations of [God's] attributes and their self-disclosures, He will pay them in full their wages, and their attributes from the gardens of His attributes, and He will give them more of His bounty, by means of the existence that is bestowed on the essence after annihilation, and as for them who disdain, by manifesting their ego, and are too proud, becoming tyrannical upon the self-disclosures of the [divine] attributes and their being illumined by their light by manifesting themselves in these [attributes] and ascribing them to their own souls, as with [Pharaoh] the one who said I am your most high lord! [Q. 79:24], He will chastise them with a painful chastisement, for their veiling themselves behind the remnants of their essences and attributes, depriving them of the station of union; and they shall not find, besides God, any supporter, to support them in removing the veil of the essence, or helper, to help them [successfully] remove the proof-veil of the attributes, which is the affirmation of the Oneness of essence and the clear light, that is the differentiation at the source of the union, namely, the QurÌān, which is the knowledge of the union, and the Distinguishing Criterion, which is the knowledge of the differentiation.
The Messiah would never disdain to be a servant of God neither would the angels who are nigh. Whoever disdains to worship Him and waxes proud He will assuredly muster them to Him all of them. As for those who believed who did righteous deeds He will pay them their wages in full and He will give them more of His bounty; How can they disdain the worship of Him when one's honor and dignity sharaf [comes] through worshipḍ How can they be too proud to humble themselves when one's ruin talaf [comes] from being too proudḍ Because of this matter the first words the Messiah spoke were Lo! I am God's servant [19:30]. Servants become beautiful in their humility toward [their] masters. This is something well known and without doubt. [The phrase] neither would the angels who are nigh does not imply that [the angels] are superior to the Messiah. Rather [God] was addressing them in accordance with their beliefs-they believed in the superiority of the angels over human beings.and as for those who disdain and are too proud He will chastise them with a painful chastisement and they shall not find for themselves besides God any friend or helper. The painful chastisement is that they will never attain to the communion [of lovers] after they have come to know His majesty. When what they know becomes indisputable they will know that they have been left behind. Their sorrow on that day for what has slipped away from them will be their most intense punishment.
The Messiah would never disdain to be a servant of God neither would the angels who are nigh. Whoever disdains to worship Him and waxes proud He will assuredly muster them to Him all of them. As for those who believed who did righteous deeds He will pay them their wages in full and He will give them more of His bounty; How can they disdain the worship of Him when one's honor and dignity sharaf [comes] through worshipḍ How can they be too proud to humble themselves when one's ruin talaf [comes] from being too proudḍ Because of this matter the first words the Messiah spoke were Lo! I am God's servant [19:30]. Servants become beautiful in their humility toward [their] masters. This is something well known and without doubt. [The phrase] neither would the angels who are nigh does not imply that [the angels] are superior to the Messiah. Rather [God] was addressing them in accordance with their beliefs-they believed in the superiority of the angels over human beings.and as for those who disdain and are too proud He will chastise them with a painful chastisement and they shall not find for themselves besides God any friend or helper. The painful chastisement is that they will never attain to the communion [of lovers] after they have come to know His majesty. When what they know becomes indisputable they will know that they have been left behind. Their sorrow on that day for what has slipped away from them will be their most intense punishment.
فأمَّا الذين صَدَّقوا بالله اعتقادًا وقولا وعملا واستقاموا على شريعته فيوفيهم ثواب أعمالهم، ويزيدُهم من فضله، وأما الذين امتنعوا عن طاعة الله، واستكبروا عن التذلل له فيعذبهم عذابًا موجعًا، ولا يجدون لهم وليًّا ينجيهم من عذابه، ولا ناصرًا ينصرهم من دون الله.
ولهذا قال "فأما الذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات فيوفيهم أجورهم ويزيدهم من فضله" أي فيعطيهم من الثواب على قدر أعمالهم الصالحة ويزيدهم على ذلك من فضله وإحسانه وسعة رحمته وامتنانه وقد روى ابن مردويه من طريق بقية عن إسماعيل بن عبد الله الكندي عن الأعمش عن سفيان عن عبد الله مرفوعا قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم "فيوفيهم أجورهم ويزيدهم من فضله" أجورهم قال "أدخلهم الجنة"ويزيدهم من فضله" قال "الشفاعة فيمن وجبت له النار ممن صنع إليهم المعروف في دنياهم" وهذا إسناد لا يثبت. وإذا روى عن ابن مسعود موقوفا فهو جيد "وأما الذين استنكفوا واستكبروا" أي امتنعوا من طاعة الله وعبادته واستكبروا عن ذلك "فيعذبهم عذابا أليما ولا يجدون لهم من دون الله وليا ولا نصيرا" كقوله "إن الذين يستكبرون عن عبادتي سيدخلون جهنم داخرين" أي صاغرين حقيرين ذليلين كما كانوا ممتنعين مستكبرين.
( فَأَمَّا الذين آمَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصالحات فَيُوَفِّيهِمْ أُجُورَهُمْ وَيَزيدُهُمْ مِّن فَضْلِهِ ) أى : أن مرجع العباد جميعا إلى الله من استكبر عن عبادته وامتنع ومن لم يفعل ذلك بل آمن وأطاع . فأما الذين آمنوا عملوا الأعمال الصالحات ، ولم يستنكفوا ولم يستكبروا ، فيسعطيهم - سبحانه - ثواب أعمالهم كاملة غير منقوصة ، ويزيدهم على ذلك شئنا عظيما من الرضا والفضل ومضاعفة الأجر .( وَأَمَّا الذين استنكفوا واستكبروا ) عن عبادة الله وطاعته ( فَيُعَذِّبُهُمْ عَذَاباً أَلِيماً ) لا يحيط به الوصف ( وَلاَ يَجِدُونَ لَهُمْ مِّن دُونِ الله وَلِيّاً ) أى أحدا يدافع عنهم ويلى أمورهم ، ولا يجدون كذلك " نصيرا " ينصرهم وينجيهم من عذاب الله وبأسه .
القول في تأويل قوله : فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ فَيُوَفِّيهِمْ أُجُورَهُمْ وَيَزِيدُهُمْ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ وَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ اسْتَنْكَفُوا وَاسْتَكْبَرُوا فَيُعَذِّبُهُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا وَلا يَجِدُونَ لَهُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ وَلِيًّا وَلا نَصِيرًا (173)قال أبو جعفر: يعني جل ثناؤه بذلك: فأما المؤمنون المقرّون بوحدانية الله، الخاضعون له بالطاعة، المتذلِّلون له بالعبودية، والعاملون الصالحات من الأعمال، وذلك: أن يَرِدُوا على ربهم قد آمنوا به وبرسله، وعملوا بما أتاهم به رسله من عند ربهم، من فعل ما أمرهم به، واجتناب ما أمرهم باجتنابه=" فيوفِّيهم أجورهم "، يقول: فيؤتيهم جزاءَ أعمالهم الصالحة وافيًا تامًّا (18) =" ويزيدهم من فضله "، يعني جل ثناؤه: ويزيدهم على ما وعدهم من الجزاء على أعمالهم الصالحة والثواب عليها، من الفضل والزيادة ما لم يعرّفهم مبلغه، (19) ولم يحدّ لهم منتهاه. وذلك أن الله وعد من جاء من عباده المؤمنين بالحسنة الواحدة عشرَ أمثالها من الثواب والجزاء. فذلك هو أجر كلِّ عامل على عمله الصالح من أهل الإيمان المحدود مبلغه، والزيادة على ذلك تفضُّل من الله عليهم، وإن كان كل ذلك من فضله على عباده. غيرَ أن الذي وعد عبادَه المؤمنين أن يُوفيهم فلا ينقصهم من الثواب على أعمالهم الصالحة، هو ما حَدُّ مبلغه من العَشْر، والزيادة على ذلك غير محدود مبلغها، فيزيد من شاء من خلقه على ذلك قدر ما يشاء، لا حدّ لقَدْره يوقف عليه.* * *وقد قال بعضهم: الزيادة إلى سبعمائة ضعف.وقال آخرون: إلى ألفين.وقد ذكرت اختلاف المختلفين في ذلك فيما مضى قبل، بما أغنى عن إعادته في هذا الموضع . (20)* * *وقوله: " وأما الذين استنكفوا واستكبروا "، فإنه يعني: وأما الذين تعظَّموا عن الإقرار لله بالعبودية، والإذعان له بالطاعة، واستكبروا عن التذلّل لألوهته وعبادته، وتسليم الربوبيّة والوحدانية له=" فيعذبهم عذابًا أليمًا "، يعني: عذابًا موجعًا=" ولا يجدون لهم من دون الله وليًّا ولا نصيرًا "، يقول: ولا يجد المستنكفون من عبادته والمستكبرون عنها، إذا عذبهم الله الأليم من عذابه، سوى الله لأنفسهم وليًّا ينجيهم من عذابه وينقذهم منه=" ولا نصيرًا "، يعني: ولا ناصرًا ينصرهم فيستنقذهم من ربهم، ويدفع عنهم بقوّته ما أحلَّ بهم من نقمته، كالذي كانوا يفعلون بهم إذا أرادهم غيرهم من أهل الدنيا في الدنيا بسوء، من نصرتهم والمدافعة عنهم . (21)-------------------الهوامش :(18) انظر تفسير"يوفيهم أجورهم" فيما سلف 6 : 465 / 7 : 364.(19) انظر تفسير"الفضل" فيما سلف من فهارس اللغة.(20) انظر ما سلف 5 : 512-516.(21) انظر تفسير"ولي" و"نصير" فيما سلف من فهارس اللغة.
( فأما الذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات فيوفيهم أجورهم ويزيدهم من فضله ) من التضعيف ما لا عين رأت ولا أذن سمعت ولا خطر على قلب بشر ، ( وأما الذين استنكفوا واستكبروا ) عن عبادته ، ( فيعذبهم عذابا أليما ولا يجدون لهم من دون الله وليا ولا نصيرا )
وقوله : { ومن يستنكف عن عبادته } الآية تخلّص إلى تهديد المشركين كما أنبأ عنه قوله : { وأمَّا الَّذين استنكفوا واستكبروا فيعذّبهم عذاباً أليماً ولا يجدون لهم من دون الله وليَّاً ولا نصيرا } .وضمير الجمع في قوله : { فسيحشرهم } عائد إلى غير مذكور في الكلام ، بل إلى معلوم من المقام ، أي فسَيَحْشُر النّاسَ إليه جميعاً كما دلّ عليه التفصيل المفرّع عليه وهو قوله : { فأمّا الذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات } الخ . وضمير { ولا يجدون } عائد إلى { الَّذين استنكفوا واستكبروا } ، أي لا يجدون وليّاً حين يحشر الله النّاس جميعاً . ويجوز أن يعود إلى الَّذين { استنكفوا واستكبروا } ويكون { جميعاً } بمعنى مجموعين إلى غيرهم ، منصوباً ، فإنّ لفظ جميع له استعمالات جمّة : منها أن يكون وصفاً بمعنى المجتمع ، وفي كلام عمر للعبّاس وعليّ : «ثم جئتُماني وأمركما جميع» أي متّفق مجموع ، فيكون منصوباً على الحال وليس تأكيداً . وذكر فريق المؤمنين في التفصيل يدلّ على أحد التقديرين .والتوفية أصلها إعطاء الشيء وافياً ، أي زائداً على المقدار المطلوب ، ولمّا كان تحقّق المساواة يخفَى لقلّة المَوازين عندهم ، ولاعتمادهم على الكيل ، جعلوا تحقّق المساواة بمقدار فيه فضْل على المقدار المساوي ، أطلقت التوفية على إعطاء المعادل؛ وتُقابَل بالخسان وبالغبن ، قال تعالى حكاية عن شعيب { أوفوا الكيل ولا تكونوا من المخسرين } [ الشعراء : 181 ] ولذلك قال هنا : { ويزيدُهم من فضله } ، وهذه التوفية والزيادة يرجعان إلى تقدير يعلمه الله تعالى .وقوله : { ولا يجدون لهم من دون الله وليّاً ولا نصيراً } تأييس لهم إذ قد عرف عند العرب وغيرهم ، من أمم ذلك العصر ، الاعتماد عند الضيق على الأولياء والنصراء ليكفّوا عنهم المصائب بالقتال أو الفداء ، قال النابغة :يأمُلْنَ رِحلة نَصر وابن سيَّار ... ولذلك كثر في القرآن نفي الوليّ ، والنصير ، والفداء { فلَن يُقبل من أحدهم ملء الأرض ذهباً ولو افتدى به أولئك لهم عذابٌ أليمٌ وما لهم من ناصرين } [ آل عمران : 91 ] .
ثم فصل حكمه فيهم فقال: { فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ } أي: جمعوا بين الإيمان المأمور به، وعمل الصالحات من واجبات ومستحبات، من حقوق الله وحقوق عباده. { فَيُوَفِّيهِمْ أُجُورَهُمْ } أي: الأجور التي رتبها على الأعمال، كُلٌّ بحسب إيمانه وعمله. { وَيَزِيدُهُم مِن فَضْلِهِ } من الثواب الذي لم تنله أعمالهم ولم تصل إليه أفعالهم، ولم يخطر على قلوبهم. ودخل في ذلك كل ما في الجنة من المآكل والمشارب، والمناكح، والمناظر والسرور، ونعيم القلب والروح، ونعيم البدن، بل يدخل في ذلك كل خير ديني ودنيوي رتب على الإيمان والعمل الصالح. { وَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ اسْتَنكَفُوا وَاسْتَكْبَرُوا } أي: عن عبادة الله تعالى { فَيُعَذِّبُهُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا } وهو سخط الله وغضبه، والنار الموقدة التي تطلع على الأفئدة. { وَلَا يَجِدُونَ لَهُم مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَلِيًّا وَلَا نَصِيرًا } أي: لا يجدون أحدا من الخلق يتولاهم فيحصل لهم المطلوب، ولا مَن ينصرهم فيدفع عنهم المرهوب، بل قد تخلى عنهم أرحم الراحمين، وتركهم في عذابهم خالدين، وما حكم به تعالى فلا رادّ لحكمه ولا مغيّر لقضائه.
فأما الذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات فيوفيهم أجورهم ويزيدهم من فضله إلى [ ص: 387 ] قوله : نصيرا . وأصل يستنكف نكف ، فالياء والسين والتاء زوائد ؛ يقال : نكفت من الشيء واستنكفت منه وأنكفته أي نزهته عما يستنكف منه ؛ ومنه الحديث سئل عن " سبحان الله " فقال : إنكاف الله من كل سوء يعني تنزيهه وتقديسه عن الأنداد والأولاد . وقال الزجاج : استنكف أي أنف مأخوذ من نكفت الدمع إذا نحيته بإصبعك عن خدك ، ومنه الحديث ما ينكف العرق عن جبينه أي ما ينقطع ؛ ومنه الحديث جاء بجيش لا ينكف آخره أي لا ينقطع آخره . وقيل : هو من النكف وهو العيب ؛ يقال : ما عليه في هذا الأمر نكف ولا وكف أي عيب : أي لن يمتنع المسيح ولن يتنزه من العبودية ولن ينقطع عنها ولن يعيبها .
God alone possesses all power. All human beings are His helpless servants. By scaling the heights of awareness, man discovers that God is all powerful and man is quite powerless. Prophets and angels have reached the highest stage of such awareness. That is why their realization of God’s greatness and powerfulness and of their own helplessness surpasses that of all others. The real test of man lies in his ability to acknowledge this. One who has realized his own helplessness has, in essence, found out how he relates to God. The aware person is one who has eyes: he will reach his destination successfully. The unaware person is one who is blind. He will wander around going astray until he falls into the pit of abomination.
From the affirmation of Allah's absolute purity and the refutation of assumed Godhood of Sayyidna 'Isa (علیہ السلام) earlier, the text now moves to further strengthen the argument by showing that Sayyidna 'Isa (علیہ السلام) would himself confess to being a servant of Allah and so will the angels (which includes Sayyidna Jibra'il (علیہ السلام) alleged to be a person of Trinity). Then, follows the warning for those who choose to retract in distaste and the good news for those who believe and are good in deeds for they will be rewarded for their belief and deeds with many more added graces from Allah.
Commentary
The Honour of being a servant of Allah
Maulana Shabbir Ahmad ` Usmani, in his comments on the opening statement of Verse 172: لَّن يَسْتَنكِفَ الْمَسِيحُ أَن يَكُونَ عَبْدًا لِّلَّـهِ (The Masih shall never spurn being a slave of Allah, nor shall the angels, the close ones), says that so it is because being a servant of Allah, being devoted to His worship and being obedient to His will and command, is an honour by itself and certainly a nobility of the highest class. Sayyidna Masih (علیہ السلام) and the close angels are the best testifiers to the worth and value of this blessing. How could they spurn an honour like that? Quite contrary to this, the worst disgrace and dishonour there can be imagined lies in worshipping someone other than Allah. This is what the Christians did when they took Sayyidna Masih (علیہ السلام) as the son of Allah and the object of their worship. Similar was the case with disbelievers who took angels as daughters of Allah and started worshipping them alongwith their idols. So, for them, there is punishment, and disgrace. (Notes in Tafsir Usmani)
(Then, as for those who believed) in Muhammad and the Qur'an (and did good works) acts of obedience in that which is between them and their Lord, (unto them will He pay their wages) their reward in Paradise (in full, adding unto them of His bounty) of His favour; (and as for those who were scornful and proud) too proud to believe in Muhammad and the Qur'an, (them will He punish with a painful doom). (And they will not find for them, against Allah, any protecting friend) any relative to benefit them (or helper) to save them from Allah's punishment.