ការបកប្រែអត្ថន័យ ជំពូក​ អាល់អាក់រ៉ហ្វ - ការបកប្រែជាភាសាអង់គ្លេស - បណ្ឌិត វ៉ាលីទព្លីហាស្ហ អូម៉ើរី - កំពុងដំណើរការលើវា - លេខ​ទំព័រ 151 - សព្វវចនាធិប្បាយនៃគម្ពីគួរអាន

Al-A‘rāf

1 : 7

الٓمٓصٓ

(1) Alif, Lām, Mīm, Ṣād^[1566].

[1566] These disjointed letters, highlighting the inimitable nature of the Qur’an (cf. 2: 1), are meant as a challenge to those who argue with the Prophet (ﷺ) and the Believers regarding the Truthfulness of the Message.

2 : 7

كِتَٰبٌ أُنزِلَ إِلَيۡكَ فَلَا يَكُن فِي صَدۡرِكَ حَرَجٞ مِّنۡهُ لِتُنذِرَ بِهِۦ وَذِكۡرَىٰ لِلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ

(2) A Book^[1567] that has been sent down to you ˹Muhammad˺ – let there not be unease in your chest about it^[1568] – so that you may warn with it, and it be a reminder to the Believers.

[1567] The Qur’an, God’s most potent Message to humanity (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī). It is the ‘eye-opener’ Book (cf. 6: 92 and 155) that needs to be both professed and adhered to. Ibn ʿĀshūr opines that the use of the word ‘Book’ in the indefinite form is, among other rhetorical purposes, meant to underline the greatness of the Qur’an. Riḍā, on the other hand, goes to say that the ‘Book’ is so well-known that it needs no defining, and hence the use of the indefinite form.
Significantly, ’Book’ is the very first word in this sura. The Qur’an explains and expounds upon the divide that separates good and evil; it is the Distinguisher (al-Furqān) which shows rightfulness from wrongfulness and sets Truth apart from falsehood: “Blessed is He Who sent down the Distinguisher to His servant that he may be a warner to all beings” (25: 1); “…indeed there has come to you a Light and a clarifying Book ˹The Qur’an˺; *by it Allah guides those who follow His Pleasure to the path of peace and delivers them from utter darkness into light with His permission; He guides them to a Straight Path” (5: 15-16).
[1568] Anyone who is entrusted with a task of this great a magnitude, who guides humanity to light and dispels the darkness in which they live, and suffers as a result all sorts of oppression and harm, will very understandably experience trepidation when looking at the task that lies ahead.

3 : 7

ٱتَّبِعُواْ مَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيۡكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمۡ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُواْ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوۡلِيَآءَۗ قَلِيلٗا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ

(3) Follow ˹you people˺ what was sent down to you from your Lord and do not follow allies besides Him—˹how˺ little do you heed!^[1569]

[1569] This aya captures the essence of the Message; that the Qur’an, and it alone, is to be followed should one want to be truly guided (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).

4 : 7

وَكَم مِّن قَرۡيَةٍ أَهۡلَكۡنَٰهَا فَجَآءَهَا بَأۡسُنَا بَيَٰتًا أَوۡ هُمۡ قَآئِلُونَ

(4) ^[1570]How many a town have We destroyed and Our Might befallen it^[1571] ˹while they were fast asleep˺ at night, or as they were resting during the day!^[1572]

[1570] Now that the defining criterion, the Qur’an, the Distinguisher, which has to be ‘heeded’, has been introduced, this passage brings into light the fate of those who lost their souls and rebelled against God’s Signs; destruction in this world and Punishment in the Hereafter (cf. al-Rāzī).
[1571] God, the All-Just, will only inflict punishment on those whom He forewarned and who were made aware of their wrongs through the communication of the Message and warning (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr): “˹These˺ Messengers ˹were sent as˺ deliverers of glad tidings and warnings, so that people would have no pretext against Allah after the Messengers ˹coming to them˺—verily Allah is Most Prevailing, All-Wise” (4: 165); “That, for your Lord will not destroy towns unjustly while their people are unaware” (6: 131).
[1572] That is in a state when people feel most safe and secure and least expect disaster to hit; so much so that the warning becomes more real and the message hard-hitting: “Do those who have plotted evil deeds feel secure that God will not cause the Earth to engulf them, or that the punishment will not come upon them whence they are not aware? *Or that He will not seize them in the midst of their going to and fro, and they will be powerless to thwart ˹it˺? *Or that He will not seize them with a gradual diminishing? And truly your Lord is Kind, Merciful” (16: 45-47).

5 : 7

فَمَا كَانَ دَعۡوَىٰهُمۡ إِذۡ جَآءَهُم بَأۡسُنَآ إِلَّآ أَن قَالُوٓاْ إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَٰلِمِينَ

(5) Then their only plea, when Our Might befell them, was to say: “We have indeed been wrongdoers!”^[1573]

[1573] Faced with this most truthful fact, they could say nothing but admit guilt: “And how many a town have We destroyed because of its wrong doing, and We established after them a different people! *When they felt Our Might, they fled at once. *“Do not run, and come back to that which you were living lavishly in and your homes; so that you will be questioned.” *They cried: “Woe to us! We have surely been wrongdoers!” *That cry of theirs did not cease until We made them burnt-off stubble” (21: 11-15).

6 : 7

فَلَنَسۡـَٔلَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ أُرۡسِلَ إِلَيۡهِمۡ وَلَنَسۡـَٔلَنَّ ٱلۡمُرۡسَلِينَ

(6) We shall surely ask the ones to whom it ˹the Message˺ was sent and We shall surely ask the ones who were sent ˹the Messengers˺^[1574].

[1574] That God does not wrong anyone by the smallest amount, entails that He brings witnesses to testify either for or against those who are held to account on the Day of Judgement. These witnesses are no less than the most honourable Prophets that God sent to each nation to show them the Straight Path that leads to His Pleasure (cf. al-Rāzī): “How ˹will they fare˺, when we bring forward a witness from every nation, and We bring you ˹Muhammad˺ as witness against these!” (4: 41).

7 : 7

فَلَنَقُصَّنَّ عَلَيۡهِم بِعِلۡمٖۖ وَمَا كُنَّا غَآئِبِينَ

(7) Then We shall surely recount for them, out of ˹real˺ knowledge; ˹verily˺ We were not absent^[1575].

[1575] Almighty God Who is Ever-Present at all times and Whose angels keep a minute record of people’s deeds, will recount for them what they said and what they did on the Day of Judgement (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Baghawī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).

8 : 7

وَٱلۡوَزۡنُ يَوۡمَئِذٍ ٱلۡحَقُّۚ فَمَن ثَقُلَتۡ مَوَٰزِينُهُۥ فَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡمُفۡلِحُونَ

(8) ^[1576]The weighing on that Day is truthful; the one whose scales are heavy, then these are the successful;

[1576] The outcome of this Reckoning is that these deeds will be weighed on the Scales; the one who did good, his deeds will tip the Scale to his side and thus attain salvation and great reward, but the one whose deeds are ‘light’ and not weighty enough to tip the scale in his favour will be consigned to the worst of suffering (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Wāḥidī, al-Wajīz, al-Saʿdī): “And We will place the Scales of justice for the Day of Judgement, so that no soul will be wronged in the least. Even if it was the weight of a mustard seed, We will bring it. And We are sufficient as a Reckoner” (21: 47); “Verily Allah does not deal ˹anyone˺ unjustly as much as a mote’s weight; if it is a ˹one˺ good deed done, then He multiplies it and grants from His Own ˹additionally˺ a great reward” (4: 40).
Abū al-Dardā’ (رضي الله عنه) narrated that he heard the Prophet (ﷺ) say: “Nothing is put on the Scale bearing more weight than good manners. The person of good moral behaviour attains the rank of the person known for upholding Prayers and fasting” (Abū Dāwūd: 4799, al-Tirmidhī: 2003); Abū Hurayrah (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “Two words; light on the tongue, heavy on the Scale, loved by the Most Merciful: subḥāna Allah-i wa bi ḥamdihī, subḥāna Allah-i l-ʿAẓīm (Glory be to Allah and in Gratitude for Him I do glorify Him. Glory be to Allah, the Most Great)” (al-Bukhārī: 6682, Muslim: 2694).

9 : 7

وَمَنۡ خَفَّتۡ مَوَٰزِينُهُۥ فَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ خَسِرُوٓاْ أَنفُسَهُم بِمَا كَانُواْ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا يَظۡلِمُونَ

(9) ˹while˺ the one whose scales are light, then these are the ones who lost their souls, for wrongfully dealing with Our Signs^[1577].

[1577] The word ‘Signs’, meaning that which they rejected is deployed throughout this sura on 22 occasions. Indeed it is one of the most recurrent Qur’anic lexical items. In its plural form alone it is to be found 280 times in the Qur’an. God would never leave people in the dark without showing them His Signs, but it is up to them to choose to Believe or Deny: “We shall show them Our Signs in the horizons, and within themselves, until it becomes clear to them that it is the Truth” (41: 53).

10 : 7

وَلَقَدۡ مَكَّنَّٰكُمۡ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَجَعَلۡنَا لَكُمۡ فِيهَا مَعَٰيِشَۗ قَلِيلٗا مَّا تَشۡكُرُونَ

(10) ^[1578]Indeed We had empowered you on Earth and We made into it for you many a livelihood—˹how˺ little do you give thanks!^[1579]

[1578] What follows is the first episode in the long history of the epic struggle between good and evil, which is unravelled in what is to come later in this sura. It begins with a gentle reminder to people of God’s most benevolent favour on them, their livelihoods, which they find all around them, a constant reminder of their Most Benevolent Lord. Then it goes on to account for God’s most generous favour; the creation and honouring of humans over other beings: “Indeed, We have honoured the children of Adam, carried them on land and sea, granted them good and lawful provisions, and privileged them far above many of Our creatures” (17: 70).
[1579] Indeed God’s favours to humanity are boundless; they are being catered and provided for profusely so that they may ponder this ‘Sign’, pay heed and thank their Creator (cf. al-Rāzī, Ibn ʿĀshūr): “Indeed Allah is bountiful to people, but most of them are thankless” (2: 243); “He has given you all that you asked Him for. If you were to count God’s favours, you could never calculate them: man is truly unjust and ungrateful” (14: 34).

11 : 7

وَلَقَدۡ خَلَقۡنَٰكُمۡ ثُمَّ صَوَّرۡنَٰكُمۡ ثُمَّ قُلۡنَا لِلۡمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ ٱسۡجُدُواْ لِأٓدَمَ فَسَجَدُوٓاْ إِلَّآ إِبۡلِيسَ لَمۡ يَكُن مِّنَ ٱلسَّٰجِدِينَ

(11) ^[1580]We had indeed created you, then We formed you, then We said to the angels: “Prostrate to Adam!” They all prostrated except Iblīs; he was not among those who prostrated^[1581].

[1580] The favour of provision is followed by that of creation and the honouring of the father of humanity (Ibn ʿĀshūr, al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar).
[1581] This story, which took place at the dawn of the creation of the very first human ever, Adam the father of humanity, bears special significance and is told over a number of times in the Qur’an, throwing new light on it as per the occasion of its mention. Earlier, it was told in Sura al-Baqarah (Ayas 30-39), which ends with: a stark forewarning: “We said: “Go down all of you, whenever guidance comes to you from Me whoever follows it will have neither fear nor will they grieve. *As for those who Deny and disbelieve in our Signs these are the company of the Fire; forever they will abide therein” (2: 38-39).