Vertaling van de betekenissen Edele Qur'an - Engelse vertaling - Dr. Walid Bleysh Al-Omari - Wordt momenteel aan gewerkt.
فَإِن كَذَّبُوكَ فَقُل رَّبُّكُمۡ ذُو رَحۡمَةٖ وَٰسِعَةٖ وَلَا يُرَدُّ بَأۡسُهُۥ عَنِ ٱلۡقَوۡمِ ٱلۡمُجۡرِمِينَ
[1528] That is to say, although your Lord’s Mercy is rightly vast, do not be fooled by the slackening of His reins for you, as His Might may catch up with you at any time so heed Him well (cf. al-Anṣārī, Fatḥ al-Raḥmān).
سَيَقُولُ ٱلَّذِينَ أَشۡرَكُواْ لَوۡ شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ مَآ أَشۡرَكۡنَا وَلَآ ءَابَآؤُنَا وَلَا حَرَّمۡنَا مِن شَيۡءٖۚ كَذَٰلِكَ كَذَّبَ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبۡلِهِمۡ حَتَّىٰ ذَاقُواْ بَأۡسَنَاۗ قُلۡ هَلۡ عِندَكُم مِّنۡ عِلۡمٖ فَتُخۡرِجُوهُ لَنَآۖ إِن تَتَّبِعُونَ إِلَّا ٱلظَّنَّ وَإِنۡ أَنتُمۡ إِلَّا تَخۡرُصُونَ
[1529] Now that it is their presumed turn to respond to the arguments put forward to them, assuming their position, God quotes this time-worn pretext of the rejecters of the Truth; blaming their Denial on God (cf. al-Rāzī, al-Biqāʿī): “The Associators said: “Had Allah wished, neither we nor our fathers would have worshipped anything other than Him, nor prohibited anything without His command”. The same was done by those before them. Is not the Messengers’ duty only to deliver ˹the Message˺ clearly?” (16: 35)
[1530] They argue by citing predestination (al-qadar), yet they were given the choice of choosing the path they follow in life whilst being sent Messengers to show them the right path: “…and pointed out to him ˹man˺ the two clear ways ˹of good and evil˺?” (90: 10); “We showed him the way, be he thankful or be he ardently Denying” (76: 3); “… and by the soul and how He formed it; *And inspired it ˹with discernment of ˺ its wickedness and its righteousness” (91: 7-8). Thus endowed, blaming their evil doings on God’s will is nothing more than scapegoating, a weak ploy meant either to evade responsibility or to quiet one’s nagging conscience. Yet it could also be meant merely for the sake of arguing back.
[1531] The example of earlier nations is given here to confirm that God is not pleased with the path they chose for themselves no matter what line of argument they take, so that they may rethink. Earlier in the sura (Aya 11) they were bade to: “Travel the land and look what was the fate of the deniers”.
[1532] In actuality, this is what they base their ‘laws’ on, a fact stated earlier in Aya 116 above and alluded to throughout the sura.
قُلۡ فَلِلَّهِ ٱلۡحُجَّةُ ٱلۡبَٰلِغَةُۖ فَلَوۡ شَآءَ لَهَدَىٰكُمۡ أَجۡمَعِينَ
[1533] Cf. Aya 107 above.
قُلۡ هَلُمَّ شُهَدَآءَكُمُ ٱلَّذِينَ يَشۡهَدُونَ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ حَرَّمَ هَٰذَاۖ فَإِن شَهِدُواْ فَلَا تَشۡهَدۡ مَعَهُمۡۚ وَلَا تَتَّبِعۡ أَهۡوَآءَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُواْ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا وَٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤۡمِنُونَ بِٱلۡأٓخِرَةِ وَهُم بِرَبِّهِمۡ يَعۡدِلُونَ
[1534] Their fallacious stance is again revisited to drive the message home.
[1535] That is even if they decide to come up with some forgery of their own to attempt additional challenge.
۞ قُلۡ تَعَالَوۡاْ أَتۡلُ مَا حَرَّمَ رَبُّكُمۡ عَلَيۡكُمۡۖ أَلَّا تُشۡرِكُواْ بِهِۦ شَيۡـٔٗاۖ وَبِٱلۡوَٰلِدَيۡنِ إِحۡسَٰنٗاۖ وَلَا تَقۡتُلُوٓاْ أَوۡلَٰدَكُم مِّنۡ إِمۡلَٰقٖ نَّحۡنُ نَرۡزُقُكُمۡ وَإِيَّاهُمۡۖ وَلَا تَقۡرَبُواْ ٱلۡفَوَٰحِشَ مَا ظَهَرَ مِنۡهَا وَمَا بَطَنَۖ وَلَا تَقۡتُلُواْ ٱلنَّفۡسَ ٱلَّتِي حَرَّمَ ٱللَّهُ إِلَّا بِٱلۡحَقِّۚ ذَٰلِكُمۡ وَصَّىٰكُم بِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَعۡقِلُونَ
[1536] This passage further exposes the immorality of their practices by detailing ten ‘real’ high morals of God’s religion and what they stand for (cf. al-Rāzī, Riḍā): worshipping only the Sole rightful God Almighty, being kind to one’s parents, not killing one’s children under any circumstance (which over-rules their such practice) and being affectionate and charitable to them (cf. Ibn Kathīr), staying aloof from all vices and immoral acts, not killing other humans unless having a legal right to do so, striking a distance from the money of orphans, the most vulnerable segment in society, being fair and equitable in trade and financial dealings, passing a just judgement and uttering fair words at all times, and upholding one’s duty to God by obeying His commands and steering away from what He forbade; indeed this is a Straight Path!
It has to be noted that the principles mentioned here are of both a global and local purport as they at once address humans throughout times and places even though they address and highlight the particular moral failings of the Arabs at the time of revelation. The passage is further divided into two parts; the first deals with doing away with all forms of vice, and the second deals with basic virtues.
[1537] Pure monotheism (tawḥīd), worshipping God Almighty alone, is the fountain-head of all virtue whereas Associating with God is, by contrast, the source of all evil. So, clearing this Association out and wholly subscribing to this foremost foundational principle comes first in the list of virtues (cf. al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar).
[1538] This is a major moral principle which is recurrently revisited in the Qur’an and is almost invariably coupled with worshipping God Almighty alone (cf. 2: 83, 4: 36, 17: 32). Little wonder really because parents are the source of one’s existence and one’s first benefactors after God (cf. al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar).
[1539] This is the vilest of all vices so that it is singled out before the rest. ‘Vices’ here are preceded by killing one’s own children and followed by killing other people, because violating a sacrosanct soul is a most serious act of infringement of Divine laws (cf. al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar).
[1540] Cf. Aya 5: 32: “…whoever kills a person – unless for killing another or spreading corruption in the land – it shall be as if he killed all people and whoever saves a life then it is as if he gave life to all people”.
[1541] The person who abides by these commandments is indeed endowed with sound reason (cf. Ibn ʿUthaymīn, al-Qawl al-Mufīd ʿalā Kitāb al-Tawḥīd, 1/39).
