The Wind-curved Sandhills, The Dunes, The Sandhills — Verse 6

And when mankind are gathered they the idols will be enemies to them to those who had worshipped them and they will deny they will disavow their worship the worship of those who had worshipped them.

Which was revealed in Makkah بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. The Qur'an is a Revelation from Allah and the Universe is His True Creation Allah informs that He has revealed the Book to His servant and Messenger Muhammad -- may Allah's blessings be upon him until the Day of Judgement. Allah then describes Himself as being of unimaginable glory, possessing ultimate wisdom in His statements and actions. Allah then says, مَا خَلَقْنَا السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضَ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَآ إِلاَّ بِالْحَقِّ (We created not the heavens and the earth and all that is between them except in truth,) meaning, not in idle play and falsehood. وَأَجَلٌ مُّسَمًّى (and for a specified term.) meaning, for a fixed and specified duration that will not increase or decrease. Allah continues, وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ عَمَّآ أُنذِرُواْ مُعْرِضُونَ (But those who disbelieve, turn away from that of which they are warned.) Meaning, the disbelievers are distracted from what is intended for them. Allah has indeed revealed to them a Book and sent to them a Messenger. Yet, they obstinately turn away from all of that. Therefore, they will soon realize the consequence of their behavior. Refuting the Idolators Allah then says, قُلْ (Say) meaning, to these idolators who worship others besides Allah. أَرَأَيْتُمْ مَّا تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ أَرُونِى مَاذَا خَلَقُواْ مِنَ الاٌّرْضِ (Think you about all that you invoke besides Allah Show me what they have created of the earth) (46:4) meaning, `show me the place that they have independently created from the earth.' أَمْ لَهُمْ شِرْكٌ فِى السَّمَـوَتِ (Or have they a share in the heavens) which means that they are not partners in anything in the heavens, nor on earth. They do not own even the thin membrane covering a date's pit. The dominion and control only belong to Allah, Exalted is He. `How then would you worship others or join them as partners with Him Who guided you to that Who called you to that Did He command you to do it, or is it something that you suggested yourselves' Thus, He says, ائْتُونِى بِكِتَـبٍ مِّن قَبْلِ هَـذَآ (Bring me a scripture prior to this) meaning, `bring a book from among the Books of Allah that have been revealed to the Prophets, that commands you to worship these idols.' أَوْ أَثَـرَةٍ مِّنْ عِلْمٍ (or some trace of knowledge,) meaning, `some clear evidence justifying this way you have chosen.' إِن كُنتُمْ صَـدِقِينَ (if you are truthful!) meaning, `you have absolutely no evidence for that -- neither textual (from revelation) nor rational.' For this reason, some recited it; (أَوْ أَثَرَةٍ مِنْ عِلْمٍ) "or something inherited from knowledge" meaning, `or true knowledge that you have inherited from anyone before you.' This is similar to Mujahid's statement when he said, أَوْ أَثَـرَةٍ مِّنْ عِلْمٍ (or some trace of knowledge.) "Or anyone who has inherited any knowledge." Allah then says, وَمَنْ أَضَلُّ مِمَّن يَدْعُو مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ مَن لاَّ يَسْتَجِيبُ لَهُ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَـمَةِ وَهُمْ عَن دُعَآئِهِمْ غَـفِلُونَ (And who is more astray than those who invokes besides Allah others who will not answer them until the Day of Resurrection, and who are unaware of their invocations to them) meaning, no one is more misguided than those who invoke idols instead of Allah, asking them for things that they cannot give -- until the Day of Judgment. They (the idols) are unaware of what he asks, they can neither hear, see, or act. This is because they are inanimate, senseless stones. Allah then says, وَإِذَا حُشِرَ النَّاسُ كَانُواْ لَهُمْ أَعْدَآءً وَكَانُواْ بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَـفِرِينَ (And when mankind are gathered, they will become their enemies and will deny their worship.) This is similar to Allah's saying: وَاتَّخَذُواْ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ ءالِهَةً لِّيَكُونُواْ لَهُمْ عِزّاً كَلاَّ سَيَكْفُرُونَ بِعِبَـدَتِهِمْ وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً (They have taken gods beside Allah, that they might give them dignity. No! They will deny their worship of them, and will be opponents to them.) (19:81, 82) meaning, they will betray them when they need them the most. (Ibrahim) Al-Khalil, peace be upon him, said: إِنَّمَا اتَّخَذْتُمْ مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ أَوْثَـناً مَّوَدَّةَ بَيْنِكُمْ فِى الْحَيَوةِ الدُّنْيَا ثُمَّ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ يَكْفُرُ بَعْضُكُمْ بِبَعْضٍ وَيَلْعَنُ بَعْضُكُمْ بَعْضاً وَمَأْوَاكُمُ النَّارُ وَمَا لَكُمْ مِّن نَّـصِرِينَ (You have taken only idols besides Allah! The love between you is only in the life of this world. On the Day of Resurrection, you shall disown each other and curse each other, and your abode will be the Fire, and you shall have no helpers.)(29:25)

وإذا حُشر الناس يوم القيامة للحساب والجزاء كانت الآلهة التي يدعونها في الدنيا لهم أعداء، تلعنهم وتتبرأ منهم، وتنكر علمها بعبادتهم إياها.

وقوله تبارك وتعالى "وإذا حشر الناس كانوا لهم أعداء وكانوا بعبادتهم كافرين" كقوله عز وجل "واتخذوا من دون الله آلهة ليكونوا لهم عزا كلا سيكفرون بعبادتهم ويكونون عليهم ضدا" أي سيخونونهم أحرج ما يكونون إليهم وقال الخليل عليه الصلاة والسلام "إنما اتخذتم من دون الله أوثانا مودة بينكم في الحياة الدنيا ثم يوم القيامة يكفر بعضكم ببعض ويلعن بعضكم بعضا ومأواكم النار وما لكم من ناصرين".

ثم بين ما يكون بين العابدين من عداوة يوم القيامة فقال : ( وَإِذَا حُشِرَ الناس كَانُواْ لَهُمْ أَعْدَآءً وَكَانُواْ بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَافِرِينَ ) .أى : وإذا جمع الله - تعالى - الناس للحساب والجزاء يوم القيامة ، صار الكفار مع من بعدوهم من دون الله أعداء ، يلعن بعضهم بعضا ، ( وَكَانُواْ ) أى : المعبودن ( بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ ) أى بعبادة الكفر إياهم ( كَافِرِينَ ) أى : جاحدين مكذبين .وشبيه بهذه الآية قوله - تعالى - : ( واتخذوا مِن دُونِ الله آلِهَةً لِّيَكُونُواْ لَهُمْ عِزّاً كَلاَّ سَيَكْفُرُونَ بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً ) .وقوله - سبحانه - : ( وَقَالَ إِنَّمَا اتخذتم مِّن دُونِ الله أَوْثَاناً مَّوَدَّةَ بَيْنِكُمْ فِي الحياة الدنيا ثُمَّ يَوْمَ القيامة يَكْفُرُ بَعْضُكُمْ بِبَعْضٍ وَيَلْعَنُ بَعْضُكُمْ بَعْضاً وَمَأْوَاكُمُ النار وَمَا لَكُمْ مِّن نَّاصِرِينَ ) .

القول في تأويل قوله تعالى : وَإِذَا حُشِرَ النَّاسُ كَانُوا لَهُمْ أَعْدَاءً وَكَانُوا بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَافِرِينَ (6)يقول تعالى ذكره: وإذا جُمع الناس يوم القيامة لموقف الحساب, كانت هذه الآلهة التي يدعونها في الدنيا لهم أعداء, لأنهم يتبرءون منهم ( وَكَانُوا بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَافِرِينَ ) يقول تعالى ذكره: وكانت آلهتهم التي يعبدونها في الدنيا بعبادتهم جاحدين, لأنهم يقولون يوم القيامة: ما أمرناهم بعبادتنا, ولا شعرنا بعبادتهم إيانا, تبرأنا إليك منهم يا ربنا.

( وإذا حشر الناس كانوا لهم أعداء وكانوا بعبادتهم كافرين ) جاحدين ، بيانه قوله : " تبرأنا إليك ما كانوا إيانا يعبدون " ( القصص - 63 ) .

وَإِذَا حُشِرَ النَّاسُ كَانُوا لَهُمْ أَعْدَاءً وَكَانُوا بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَافِرِينَ (6(وضميرا { كانوا } في الموضعين يجوز أن يَعودا إلى { ممن يدعو من دون الله } فإن المشركين يعادُون أصنامهم يوم القيامة إذ يجدونها من أسباب شقائهم . ويجوز أن يعودا إلى { من لا يستجيب له } فإن الأصنام يجوز أن تعطى حياة يومئذٍ فتنطق بالتبرّي عن عُبادها ومن عبادتهم إياها ، قال تعالى : { ويوم القيامة يكفرون بشرككم } [ فاطر : 14 ] وقال : { ويوم يحشرهم وما يعبدون من دون الله فيقول أأنتم أضللتم عبادي هؤلاء أم هم ضلّوا السبيل قالوا سبحانك ما كان ينبغي لنا أن نتخذ من دونك من أولياء ولكن متعتهم وآباءهم حتى نَسُوا الذكر وكانوا قوماً بُوراً فقد كذبوكم بما تقولون } [ الفرقان : 17 19 ] .ويجوز أن يكون قوله : { كانوا لهم أعداء وكانوا بعبادتهم كافرين } جارياً على التشبيه البليغ لمشابهتها للأعداء والمنكرين للعبادة في دلالتها على ما يفضي إلى شقائهم وكذبهم كقوله تعالى : { وما زادوهم غير تتبيب } [ هود : 101 ] .وعطف جملة { وإذا حشر الناس } الخ على ما قبلها لمناسبة ذكر يوم القيامة . ومن بديع تفنن القرآن توزيع معاد الضمائر في هذه الآية مع تماثلها في اللفظ وهذا يتدرج في محسِّن الجمع مع التفريق وأدق .

{ وَإِذَا حُشرَ النَّاسُ كَانُوا لَهُمْ أَعْدَاءً } يلعن بعضهم بعضا ويتبرأ بعضهم من بعض { وَكَانُوا بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَافِرِينَ }

قوله تعالى : وإذا حشر الناس كانوا لهم أعداء وكانوا بعبادتهم كافرين.قوله تعالى : وإذا حشر الناس يريد يوم القيامة . كانوا لهم أعداء أي هؤلاء المعبودون أعداء الكفار يوم القيامة . فالملائكة أعداء الكفار ، والجن والشياطين يتبرءون غدا من عبدتهم ، ويلعن بعضهم بعضا . ويجوز أن تكون الأصنام للكفار الذين عبدوها أعداء ، على تقدير خلق الحياة لها ، دليله قوله تعالى : تبرأنا إليك ما كانوا إيانا يعبدون وقيل : عادوا معبوداتهم لأنهم كانوا سبب هلاكهم ، وجحد المعبودون عبادتهم ، وهو قوله : وكانوا بعبادتهم كافرين

Knowledge is in fact of two types: revealed and established. The former reached man through the prophets, while the latter was established as such by means of research and experiments carried out by human beings. Neither of these two types of knowledge indicates that there is any being worthy of worship except the one and only God. When neither supports the concept of polytheism, how can a polytheistic credo be appropriate for man? One who seeks the support of any thing or any being other than God, will find himself abandoned by that thing or being in the Hereafter.

Commentary قُلْ أَرَ‌أَيْتُم مَّا تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّـهِ (Say, "Tell me about those whom you invoke instead of Allah,...46:4) In these verses, the claim of the polytheists about the existence of some other gods has been refuted by demanding a proof to substantiate this claim, because no claim can be accepted, neither rationally nor according to the religious principles, unless it is proved by concrete evidences to support it. Then dealing with all possible types of arguments, it has been proved that they do not have any evidence or proof in their favor, and that their insisting on such a baseless claim is nothing but deviation from the truth. The arguments have been classified by these verses in three types. One is a rational argument. Verse 4 negates any argument of this type in their favor by saying, أَرُ‌ونِي مَاذَا خَلَقُوا مِنَ الْأَرْ‌ضِ أَمْ لَهُمْ شِرْ‌كٌ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ "Show me what they have created of the earth; Or have they a share in (the creation of the heavens?" (46:4) The second type of argument is that which refers to and relies on the statement of an authority. It is obvious that, in any matter concerning Allah, no one can be an authority except Allah Himself, and His statements can be proved either by the divine books, like Torah, Injil or Qur'an, or by the sayings of the prophets sent by Him. Negation of the first type of authority in their case is established by saying, ائْتُونِي بِكِتَابٍ مِّن قَبْلِ هَـٰذَا "Bring to me a book (revealed) before this one, (46:4) " meaning that if you have any proof of this type, then bring the book revealed before the Qur'an which allows idol-worship. And the second type of argument (that may be based on the saying of a prophet) has been negated by saying, أَوْ أَثَارَ‌ةٍ مِّنْ عِلْمٍ "or a trace of knowledge," (46:4) meaning thereby that if you cannot bring any revealed book to prove the validity of idol-worship, then at least put forward any authentic saying of any prophet which proves your contention. And if you can do neither, then your words and deeds are totally misguided. The original word used in the text is 'atharah' which is an infinitive in the sense of 'reporting' and has been explained by ` Ikrimah and Muqatil to mean a dictum of a prophet. The explanation given above is taken from the Tafsir of Qurtubi, and this is the explanation accepted by most exegetes. There are some other views in the interpretation of this verse, but they are neither well-established, nor in full harmony with the textual structure. Therefore, they are not adopted by the majority of the exegetes. (Allah knows best)

(And when mankind are gathered (to the Judgement) will become) i.e. the idols (enemies for them) i.e. for the people who worshipped them, (and will become) the idols (deniers of having been worshipped) by those who had worshipped them.

And when mankind are gathered, [at the Resurrection], they will be enemies to them... He said:[This] concerns their lower selves, which led them into following them, [they will be turned against them] as a penalty for their allowing their desire to rule [over them], for they [their lower selves] will bear witness against them. Indeed, the Messenger of God said: �Truly, the severest foe of man is his self that is between his two sides.� His words, Exalted is He: