قۇرئان كەرىم مەنىلىرىنىڭ تەرجىمىسى - قۇرئان كەرىمنىڭ ئىنگىلىزچە تەرجىمىسى د. ۋەلىيد بەلىھيش ئەلئۇمرىي تەرىپىدىن داۋاملىشىۋاتىدۇ.
Al-Isrā’
سُبۡحَٰنَ ٱلَّذِيٓ أَسۡرَىٰ بِعَبۡدِهِۦ لَيۡلٗا مِّنَ ٱلۡمَسۡجِدِ ٱلۡحَرَامِ إِلَى ٱلۡمَسۡجِدِ ٱلۡأَقۡصَا ٱلَّذِي بَٰرَكۡنَا حَوۡلَهُۥ لِنُرِيَهُۥ مِنۡ ءَايَٰتِنَآۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلۡبَصِيرُ
[3480] Subḥāna (lit. glorified/exalted/elevated) is an infinitive form (known in Arabic grammar as maṣdar, unbound in terms of circumstance or time) of the verb sabbaḥa denoting unquantifiably holding God Almighty way above all imperfections and flaws (cf. al-Alūsī, al-Shawkānī). Notably, words deriving from the root s-b-ḥ (to glorify) are repeated five times in this sura (Ayas: 1, 43, 44, 93, 108) so much so that this sura is also called Surah Subḥāna (cf. Ibn Abī Zamanīn, 5: 3, al-Fayrūzābādī, Baṣā’ir Dhawī al-Tamyīz, 1: 228).
God Almighty Who sent His Messenger (ﷺ) is exalted and High above all of the doubts that the Deniers cast at the Message and hurtful words they say about it and its honoured bearer. It also signifies that what will come to be said is of the greatest magnitude (cf. Ibn Kathīr, Ibn ʿĀshūr).
[3481] ‘His servant’ is unanimously agreed by exegetes, old and new, to be Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) (cf. Ibn al-Jawzī, al-Khāzin). This is a term of the greatest honour ever conferred on a human, as it signifies Divine ownership and recognition. This is why the station of servanthood, not Messengership or Prophethood, is used here in lieu of this unparalleled Sign (cf. Abū Ḥayyān, al-Shinqīṭī, Aḍwā’ al-Bayān, al-Anṣārī, Fatḥ al-Raḥmān).
[3482] This most wondrous journey known as al-isrā’ (lit. night travel) and al-miʿrāj (heavenly Ascension) and the Signs which Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) was made to see in them are detailed in a long hadith documented by Muslim (No. 162) and Aḥmad (No. 12505). The Noble Prophet (ﷺ) was taken on it both in his body and spirit, on both al-isrā’ and al-miʿrāj, not only by spirit or during sleep as some would have it, otherwise it would not be miraculous and a Sign of his Prophethood (al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr and al-Shinqīṭī among others argue this point at length).
[3483] Although ‘by night’ is semantically included in the verb asrā (travel by night), it is separated here and delivered in the indefinite form laylan to underline that this incident happened during only a part of a single night although the journey between Makkah and Jerusalem at that time used to take up to 40 days (cf. al-Zamakhsharī, al-Anṣārī, Fatḥ al-Raḥmān, Darwīsh, Iʿrāb al-Qur’ān wa Bayānuhu, 5: 394).
[3484] al-Masjid al-Ḥarām also known as al-Bayt al-ʿAtīq (the Ancient House) is the Holy Mosque of Makkah (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).
[3485] al-Masjid al-Aqṣā (lit. the Farthest Mosque) is agreed to be Bayt al-Maqdis (lit. the House of Holiness) (cf. al-Baghawī, Ibn Kathīr, Ibn Juzayy, al-Shawkānī, al-Shinqīṭī) in Jerusalem. Ibn ʿĀshūr pointedly notes that this is a previously unknown ‘innovative’ Qur’anic nomenclature. It is called the ‘farthest’ mosque because of its great distance from the Holy Mosque in Makkah (cf. al-Wāḥidī, al-Basīṭ).
Ibn ʿĀshūr takes this journey from al-Masjid al-Ḥarām to al-Masjid al-Aqṣā to be symbolic of how Islam encompasses all the monotheistic creeds in their most pristine state since the time of Abraham (عليه السلام) whose creed (millah) set its roots in Makkah and then branched out from Bayt al-Maqdis only to be topped off and sealed once again in Makkah with the advent of Islam. Prophet Muhammad’s (ﷺ) leadership of other Prophets and Messengers (عليهم السلام) in Prayer, during the night journey, in Bayt al-Maqdis (cf. Muslim: 162) in fact symbolizes his higher status than all of them (cf. Ibn Kathīr). This brings into relevance the high moral grounds on which Islam stands as found in this sura (Ayas: 22-39 below).
[3486] Bāraknā ḥawlahu (lit. around which We have blessed), i.e. the environs of which have been blessed with an abundance of water, greenery and crops, as well as it being a cradle for many a Prophet and a chosen person (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr al-Saʿdī).
[3487] On that night, Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) (as related in al-Bukhārī: 349; Muslim: 162; Imām Aḥmad: 12505) came to see some of the great wonders which are pieces of evidences of God’s limitless ability (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Shinqīṭī).
[3488] God Almighty was All-Hearing of His Messenger’s (ﷺ) supplications in that dark hour of his and answered them. Furthermore, He was All-Seeing whereby He protected him in the darkness of the night (cf. al-Samʿānī).
وَءَاتَيۡنَا مُوسَى ٱلۡكِتَٰبَ وَجَعَلۡنَٰهُ هُدٗى لِّبَنِيٓ إِسۡرَٰٓءِيلَ أَلَّا تَتَّخِذُواْ مِن دُونِي وَكِيلٗا
[3489] Reference is given here to the Message of Prophet Moses (عليه السلام), which was a great blessing to his people, through which they thrived in their land and by the dereliction of duty towards the dictates of which they earned God Almighty’s Wrath. The Believers are to take note of this and cherish their own Message (cf. Ibn ʿĀshūr).
[3490] That is, the Torah (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).
[3491] Wakīl denotes one who is entrusted with the management of another person’s affairs (cf. Ibn Qutaybah, Gharīb al-Qur’ān, Ibn Fāris, Maqāyīs al-Lughah, al-Iṣfahānī, al-Mufradāt). Here, they were specifically told not to entrust their affairs to any other besides God Almighty because this necessitates total servitude and submission and not doing so amounts to Associating others with Him (سبحانه وتعالى) (cf. al-Saʿdī, Ibn Kathīr).
al-Rāzī explains, the importance of this particular dictate, and its relevance in this context: “Allah mentions His honouring of Muhammad (ﷺ) through the night travel (isrā’), then immediately after that, He mentions His honouring of Mūsā (عليه السلام) by sending the Torah down to him, then He describes the Torah as ‘guidance’, then He explains that the Torah was guidance because it contained the prohibition not to take a Trustee (Wakīl) besides Him. That is Monotheism. The total sum of what has been said boils down to the fact that no ‘ascension (miʿrāj), or degree, or loftiness is higher than Monotheism. A person is to entrust none of his affairs to any besides Allah! One should always remember the command: “Put your trust in Allah—sufficient is Allah ˹indeed˺ as Trustee!”” (4: 81).
ذُرِّيَّةَ مَنۡ حَمَلۡنَا مَعَ نُوحٍۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ عَبۡدٗا شَكُورٗا
[3492] Prophet Noah (عليه السلام) being a truly dutiful servant to God is given here as a point of reference to the Children of Israel; they needed to be like him, thank God for His favour and Associate none with Him. (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Shinqīṭī). Inheritance of and prominence in the land are dependent on emulating such a great example (cf. Ibn al-Qayyim, ʿUddat al-Ṣābirīn, p. 118).
He from all their godly forefathers, who were no less than the Prophets Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (q), is brought to the fore here because his case gives a potent example; salvation in the ark with him was given only to his pious sons but his rebellious son who refused to follow him was ruined. Should the Children of Israel be like their forefathers who mounted the ‘ark of Divine guidance’, they would be safe, if not then ruination would be their inevitable end (cf. Ibn ʿĀshūr).
وَقَضَيۡنَآ إِلَىٰ بَنِيٓ إِسۡرَٰٓءِيلَ فِي ٱلۡكِتَٰبِ لَتُفۡسِدُنَّ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ مَرَّتَيۡنِ وَلَتَعۡلُنَّ عُلُوّٗا كَبِيرٗا
[3493] This passage describes in a nutshell, the peaks and valleys of the cycle of life of the Jewish people and what they are tied to; they would thrive as long as they follow the guidance as found in God’s Message to them (cf. al-Rāzī. Ibn ʿĀshūr).
[3494] In his translation, Muhammad Assad opines: “…probably applying to predictions contained in the Torah, Leviticus xxvi, 14-39 and Deuteronomy xxviii, 15-68…”. However, since the Torah (al-Tawrāh) that was sent down to Moses (عليه السلام) is nowhere to be found in its intact original language and form, we cannot point out these passages for sure, especially given their sensitive nature.
[3495] That is through rebelling, sinning and riding roughshod over the dictates of the Torah (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Wāḥidī, al-Wajīz, Ibn ʿAṭiyyah, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).
[3496] Exactly which incidents these two are has proven, given the political situation of the time, to be a very hotly contested issue among exegetes old and, especially, new, with some believing that both have come to pass, others believing that at least the ‘latter one’ is yet to come. However, God Almighty’s never changing Canon, the natural law of cause and effect, and promise to them is that whenever they ‘sow corruption in the land’ God will have them humbled and subdued at the hands of others.
Throughout history such incidents did actually take place: the Assyrians under King Sennacherib overran Palestine in the seventh century B.C. and caused the disappearance of the greater part of the Hebrew nation (the ten lost tribes), and the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar II, about one hundred years later, pillaged the city and destroyed the Temple and carried off the remainder of the Children of Israel into captivity. Also the Romans, under Emperor Titus (Flavius Vespasianus), in the year 70 C.E. later on, ransacked Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple.
Corruption and domineering in the land are not befitting of a nation that bases its rule on Divine Revelation. Such betrayal of the Message and the corruption of ‘the homeland of revelation’ naturally brings about the grave consequence of foreign occupation driven by humiliation and subversion.
فَإِذَا جَآءَ وَعۡدُ أُولَىٰهُمَا بَعَثۡنَا عَلَيۡكُمۡ عِبَادٗا لَّنَآ أُوْلِي بَأۡسٖ شَدِيدٖ فَجَاسُواْ خِلَٰلَ ٱلدِّيَارِۚ وَكَانَ وَعۡدٗا مَّفۡعُولٗا
[3497] That is, when the punishment for such rebellion is due (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).
[3498] Ulī ba’s shadīd, that is of terrible might and toughness (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Saʿdī).
[3499] Fa-jāsū khilāla al-diyāri, i.e. these ‘soldiers of God’ would move freely to and fro between houses pillaging and ransacking (cf. al-Tafsīr al-Muyassar, al-Tafsīr al-Mukhtaṣar).
ثُمَّ رَدَدۡنَا لَكُمُ ٱلۡكَرَّةَ عَلَيۡهِمۡ وَأَمۡدَدۡنَٰكُم بِأَمۡوَٰلٖ وَبَنِينَ وَجَعَلۡنَٰكُمۡ أَكۡثَرَ نَفِيرًا
[3500] This turn of fortune happens after self-appraisal, sincere repentance and mending of their ways (cf. Ibn al-Jawzī, al-Qurṭubī, al-Nasafī).
[3501] Akthara nafīran, that is you mobilize more soldiers in war than your enemy (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, al-Saʿdī). Originally, it means those who rally (yanfuru) with a person, his clan and kith and kin (cf. Ibn Qutaybah, Gharīb al-Qur’ān, p. 23; al-Iṣfahānī, al-Mufradāt).
إِنۡ أَحۡسَنتُمۡ أَحۡسَنتُمۡ لِأَنفُسِكُمۡۖ وَإِنۡ أَسَأۡتُمۡ فَلَهَاۚ فَإِذَا جَآءَ وَعۡدُ ٱلۡأٓخِرَةِ لِيَسُـُٔواْ وُجُوهَكُمۡ وَلِيَدۡخُلُواْ ٱلۡمَسۡجِدَ كَمَا دَخَلُوهُ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٖ وَلِيُتَبِّرُواْ مَا عَلَوۡاْ تَتۡبِيرًا
[3502] This is a moral, lesson-drawing interpolation, between the telling of the two promises, underlining the law of cause and effect. They were made to gain the upper hand over their enemy because they did well by repenting, but should they revert to their old ways, then they have only themselves to blame for the consequences: “Had the People of the Book ˹truly˺ Believed and were Mindful, We would have surely absolved them of their misdeeds and admitted them into the Gardens of bliss; *and had they upheld the Torah and the Evangel and what was sent down to them from their Lord, they would have eaten ˹blissfully˺ from above them and from under their feet; among them there is an upright nation, yet many of them are vile indeed for what they commit” (5: 65-66); “And that you should seek your Lord’s forgiveness and thereafter repent to Him; ˹may˺ He make you enjoy pleasurably until a stated term and grant every good doer ˹the reward of ˺ his good doing” (11: 3).
[3503] “Whenever He saves them, they no sooner wrongfully transgress in the land. O people, your transgression is ˹only˺ against your own selves” (10: 23).
[3504] Yasū’ū wujūhakum (defile your faces), is to make the effect of hurt (masā’ah) show on the affected person’s face (cf. al-Wāḥidī, al-Basīṭ, al-Biqāʿī, Naẓm al-Durar); through killing, taking hostage, submission and humiliation (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, Ibn Kathīr). This is how desperate they would be as they would not be able to put on a brave face and hide from each other and/or their enemies how bad they feel.
[3505] It would be inappropriate to translate masjid here as ‘mosque’ as the word is only said of Muslim places of worship in English, whereas in Qur’anic Arabic it could mean any place where God is worshipped and prostrated (yusjudu) to (cf. commentary on 2:114, al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Baghawī, among others). Besides, this would exclude other readings.
Here, it obviously denotes a dearly cherished ‘place of prostration’ for the Jews, which has a great symbolic value. Most exegetes identify this with Bayt al-Maqdis (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Abū Ḥayyān, Ibn Kathīr, Ibn Juzayy, al-Tafsīr al-Muyassar, al-Tafsīr al-Mukhtaṣar).
Translating it as ‘temple’, on the other hand, equally misses another possible reading, i.e. that it would become a masjid (cf. al-Tafsīr al-Mukhtaṣar) and amounts to outright superimposing of one’s views on what is found in the Qur’an itself. It would also break the intertextual connection with al-Masjid al-Aqṣā that is found in Aya 1 above.
[3506] It would be a total, unsparing and remorseless wreckage (cf. al-Tafsīr al-Muyassar, al-Tafsīr al- al-Mukhtaṣar).
