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Volume 4: Surah Baqarah, Verses 285-286
The
Apostle believes in what has been revealed to him from his Lord, and
(so do) the believers: they all believe in Allah and His angels and
His books and His apostles; We make no difference between any of His
apostles. and they say: "We hear and obey; our Lord! Thy forgiveness
(do we crave), and to Thee is
(our) march" (285). Allah does
not impose upon any soul a duty but to the extent of its ability; for it
is (the benefit of) what it
has earned, and upon it (the evil
of) what it has wrought;
"Our Lord! do not punish us if we forget or do a mistake; Our Lord! do not
lay on us a burden as Thou didst lay on those before us; Our Lord! do not
impose upon us that which we have not the strength to bear; and
pardon us and forgive us and have mercy on us; Thou art our Guardian, so
help us against the unbelieving people" (286).
GENERAL COMMENT
These are the
last verses of this chapter. They summarize the details given in it, and
recapitulate its main objective. As we mentioned at the beginning, the
chapter aimed to show that it was an integral part of the worship of Allah
to believe in all that He sent to His creatures through His apostles,
without making any difference between those apostles. It is this reality
which is described in the first of these verses: "The Apostle believes . .
between any of His apostles".
The chapter
then gives many stories of the Israelites: How Allah bestowed upon them
His countless bounties, like the Book, the prophethood, the kingdom, etc.,
and how they answered it with disobedience, rebellion, breach of covenant
and even infidelity. It is these stories that are obliquely hinted at in
the remaining part of the first and the whole of the second verse, where
the believers are reported as saying "We hear and obey", and then they go
on seeking the protection, forgiveness and help of Allah.
Thus, these
verses connect the end of the chapter with its beginning. The epilogue is
a mirror of the prologue.
Allah opens
this chapter by describing the qualities that are essential for a
God-fearing people, and without which they cannot discharge their duties
towards their Lord. He says that His pious and God-fearing servants
believe in the unseen, keep up prayer, spend out of the sustenance given
to them by Allah, believe in that which was revealed to the Apostle and to
the previous apostles and are sure of the life hereafter (vide verses 2-5
of this chapter). Allah guides them through the Qur'an; and then He shows
the contrast between them and the infidels and hypocrites.
Then
the talk turns to the affairs of the people of the Book and especially the
Jews. It explains how Allah, in His grace, guided them, and exalted them
with His bounties and favors. And what was their response to all those
favors? They became arrogant, disobeyed the commandments of Allah, and
repaid His bounties with ingratitude; they stood against Allah and His
apostles, bore malice against His angels, and made differences between one
apostle and the other, and one book and the other. As a result, Allah laid
on them heavy burdens, like the order to kill their own people; and
imposed upon them that which they had no strength to bear, like turning
them into apes, and sending lightening and plague from the sky on
them.
After going
into all these details, Allah recounts in these two verses the good
attributes of the Apostle and the believers who have followed him; He
shows that their condition is /in clear contrast with that of the people
of the Book. They have responded to the divine bounties and guidance with
submission and obedience; they believe in Allah, His angels, His books and
His apostles, without making any difference between any of the apostles.
And they know their own limitations as powerless mortals, and recognize
the all-pervasive power of Allah. Although they have unconditionally
submitted to the Caller towards the truth, they confess that they cannot
do justice to that Call because of their inherent weakness and ignorance.
They are afraid that they may transgress the limit by forgetfulness or
mistake, or that they may fall short in their duties of divine worship;
they are worried lest a sinful act puts them in disgrace, as happened with
the people of the Book before them. Therefore, they beseech the
All-merciful Lord and pray to Him not to punish them if they forget or
make a mistake, not to lay on them a burden and not to impose upon them
that which they have not the strength to bear; they entreat Him to pardon
them, to forgive their mistakes and to have mercy on them, and to help
them against the unbelieving people.
This is the
true place of these two verses in the scheme of this chapter; they are a
sort of resume of the chapter. This observation should be enough to
further repudiate the claims of the commentators
a) that these
verses were connected with the preceding one: "and whether you manifest
what is in your souls or hide it, Allah will call you to account for
it";
b) that this
preceding verse imposed a duty upon every soul beyond the limit of its
ability;
c) that the
first of these verses, "The Apostle believes . . . and to Thee is (our)
march", describes how the companions submitted to, and accepted, this
imposition of duty beyond the limit of their ability;
d) And that
the second of these verses, "Allah does not impose . . . help us against
the unbelieving people", abrogated that verse which imposed such duty.
Moreover, our
explanation is in perfect harmony with the reported "reason of revelation"
of this chapter, that it was the first chapter revealed at Medina. The
Prophet emigrated to Medina, and settled therein; the Medinite believers,
that is, the Helpers (ansar), eagerly accepted the divine religion,
and stood up to help the Apostle of Allah with their properties and lives;
the Emigrant believers (muhajirun) abandoned their
properties and homes, and left their families and children in the cause of
Islam, and came to Medina to remain with the Messenger of Allah
(s.a.w.a.). That was indeed the time when Allah should have praised them
for their answering the Call of His Prophet with acceptance and obedience,
and thanked them for their submission.
The last
sentence "Thou art our Guardian, so help us against the unbelieving
people" also indicates that this prayer was at a time when Islam had begun
its march forward, and when there was danger of attack from the
unbelievers.
This verse
contains wonders of elocution; there is generality followed by
specification, and brevity by amplification; it shows the servants of
Allah the perfect way of submission and servitude; and, in short, contains
all the basic elements of perfection and felicity.
COMMENTARY
QUR'AN: The Apostle
believes in what has been revealed to him from his Lord, and (so do)
the believers:
This
makes known the belief of the Apostle and the believers. The Apostle has
been mentioned separately as the one who believes in what has been
revealed to him from his Lord; then the believers have been joined to him
in this virtue; it has been done to maintain the dignity of the Apostle.
It is the usual style of the Qur’an: On such occasions, it first mentions
the name of the Apostle separately, and thereafter the believers are
joined to him. Look, for example, at following verses: . . . then Allah
sent down His tranquility on His Apostle and on the believers (48:26)
; . . . on the day on which Allah will not abase the Prophet and those
who believe with him . . . (66:8).
QUR’AN: they all
believe in Allah and His angels and His books and His apostles:
This
specifies the generality of the preceding sentence: “What has been
revealed” to the Messenger of Allah demands belief in Allah and acceptance
of the truth of the books and apostles and angels who are Allah’s honored
servants. Whoever believes in what has been revealed to the Messenger of
Allah must believe in all those things, in a suitable manner.
QUR’AN: We make no
difference between any of His apostles:
It is the
quotation of the believers’ saying, without using the introductory verb,
“They said”. We have explained in the commentary of verse 2:127 (And
when Ibrahim and Isma’il were raising the foundations of the House; “Our
Lord! accept from us; surely Thou art the Hearing, the Knowing”)
the general reason for this type of quotation, and how it is one of
the most elegant styles of the Qur’an. Apart from that basic reason of
portraying the speakers before the eyes and ears of the imagination there
was in this case one particular reason for omission of the words ‘They
said’: this speech depicts the believers’ state of mind; it does not
describe their verbal declaration. Even if we suppose that they actually
uttered these words, each of them must have done so individually and in
his heart; they never said it jointly and together by their tongues. It
was only their shared faith that announced this belief, not in words but
in their state of minds, which spoke louder than the words.
This verse
quotes two sayings of the believers, one after another, but with different
styles: “We make no difference. . .” is without the words ‘They said’;
then the sentence is followed immediately by, “and they say: ‘We hear and
obey . . .’ “ which, as we see, is introduced with, “they say “. Yet both
are the believers’ sayings when they answered the Call of the Prophet.
The reason for this difference is that the first
sentence describes the state of their minds, while the second was actually
uttered by them in words.
The verse begins by describing the belief of all
the believers, “everyone of them” taken separately. Then it turns to
plural verbs and pronouns (We make no difference . . . ), and it continues up to the end. What was done in
this respect by the people of the Book was done by their whole of their
nations. The Jews made a difference between Musa on the one hand, and ‘Isa
and Muhammad on the other; the Christians made a difference between Musa
and ‘Isa on one hand, and Muhammad on the other. Thus they became divided into many groups and
sects, although Allah had created them one people. Also, they were
chastised and heavy burdens were imposed on the whole of their groups
jointly, not separately. And the prayer at the end of the verse ‘to be
helped against the unbelieving people’ was, likewise, a collective affair.
Therefore, all these things demanded plural words. In contrast to this,
“belief “ is a personal and individual matter, and it was appropriate to
describe it in an individualistic style and a singular number.
QUR’AN: And they say: “We hear and obey; Our Lord! Thy
forgiveness (do we crave), and
to Thee is (our) march":
“We hear and obey” is not information; it is the
declaration of their submission to the divine command. To hear
allegorically means to accept and believe in; to obey is used for
complying with order. Together these two words point to the acceptance of
the call through believing with the heart and doing one’s duty with the
body. Thus hearing and obeying refer to perfect belief.
Their declaration to hear and obey is, thus,
fulfillment of the rights Allah has on His servants; it is the sum total
of the duties that Allah has imposed upon them: to hear and to obey. It is
the “worship” mentioned in the following verses: And I did not create the jinn and the human beings
except that they should worship Me. I do not desire from them any
sustenance and I do not desire that they should feed Me (51:56-57) ; Did I not enjoin you, 0 children of Adam! that
you should not worship the Satan? Surely, he is you open enemy, and that
you should worship Me; this is the
right way (36:60-61).
And Allah has decreed on His Own Self a right for
His servants, in consideration of the above-mentioned duty imposed on
them, that is, forgiveness. It is a thing which nobody can do without - right from the apostles and the prophets
to an ordinary believers. Allah promised them that He would forgive them
if they obeyed and worshipped Him. This promise was the first thing
ordained when the shari ‘ah was given to Adam: We said: Get down
you there from all together; and when there comes to you a guidance from
Me, then whoever follows My guidance, no fear shall come upon them, nor
shall they grieve (2:38). And it is what forgiveness
means.
The believers said “We hear and obey”; their
declaration of faith and obedience was unconditional, they did what was
expected of them about the rights of
their Lord. Then they asked the Lord to bestow upon them His promised
grace, that is, forgiveness. They said: “Thy forgiveness (do we crave),
and to Thee is (our) march.” “al-Maghfirah”, and al-ghufran,
both of which are translated as “forgiveness”, literally mean “to cover”.
When Allah forgives the sin of a servant, the due punishment is averted
from him; in other words, Allah covers and hides his shortcomings. This
grace will be bestowed upon the servant when he reaches His Lord. That is
why they said, soon after praying for forgiveness, “and to Thee is (our)
march.”
QUR’AN: Allah does not impose upon any soul a duty but
to the extent of its ability; for it is (the benefit of) what it
has earned, and upon it (the evil of) what it has wrought:
“al-Wus‘”
is ability and power. Originally, the word was used for dimension, to show
the area or capacity of a place or receptacle; then the power of man was
thought of as a receptacle from which his actions come forth. A man has
the ability to do a certain task; it is as though the said task is
accommodated in his ability. On the other hand, a task which he cannot do
is too great for his power and ability. In this way, the word ‘dimension’
came to mean power and ability.
As mentioned above, it is the sum total of the
rights of Allah on man that he should hear and obey. Obviously, man can
say “I hear” only about that which he can understand; how can he answer by
hearing and accepting what he cannot understand? Also, he can say “I obey”
only about that which can be performed by his faculties and organs
directly or through some tools. Obedience means that man follows the given
order, and his faculties and organs are actuated to perform accordingly.
The question of obedience does not arise about things that cannot be done;
for example, if one is told to hear by his eyes, or to sit in two rooms at
the same time, or that one should be born from his parents a second time.
No such order can be given by any sane person. When the believers answer
the Call of religion with hearing and obedience, it means that the Call is
about such things that are within their power and ability; and it is these
things which man obeys or disobeys, earning for himself what will benefit
him or harm him. The “earning”, mentioned in this verse, is the best proof
to show that what man earns, he earns through his ability and
power.
The words of Allah “Allah does not impose upon any
soul . . .” describe the divinely
established system that Allah does not impose upon His servants what is
beyond their power; for example, He does not tell them to believe in that
which is beyond their understanding; nor does He ordain for them a duty
which they cannot do. This is, also, the custom of all sane persons. It is
a sentence that is neither more nor less than the believers’ declaration
“We hear and obey”; it agrees with it perfectly.
This sentence, that is, “Allah does not impose
upon any soul. . .”, is in perfect
harmony with the preceding and the following sentences. It is related to
the preceding one, as it shows that Allah does not impose any duty except
that which the servants can hear and obey, that is, which is within their
ability and power.
And it is related to the following sentences, as
it shows that what the Apostle and the believers prayed for - that Allah
should not punish them if they forget or do a mistake, and should not lay
on them burden as He laid on past nations, and should not impose upon them
anything which they do not have strength to bear - was not an imposition beyond
the extent of their ability, although such things, if imposed, could cause
hardship. When Allah imposes upon a group that which they have not the
strength to bear, it is not the imposition of a duty; it is the imposition
of a punishment for their transgression and rebellion.
Forgetfulness and committing
mistakes, per se, are beyond man’s power; but, more often than not,
it is man himself who paves the way for them. It is possible to prevent
these two (forgetfulness and erring) by desisting from those things which
cause them. It is especially true in cases where one forgets or commits a
mistake because of his wrong choice.
The same may be said about
laying on one a burden like that which was laid upon previous people. It
refers to the cases in which Allah imposed hard rules in place of easy
ones, when those people went against those easy rules. It was not the
unwarrantable imposition of duty beyond one’s ability; it was brought upon
them by those people themselves because of their wrong choice. And such
punishing rules are not bad in law.
QUR’AN:
Our Lord! do
not punish us if we forget or do a mistake:
They first said, “We hear
and obey” which showed their unconditional surrender and obedience. Then
they looked at themselves and became aware of their intrinsically weak and
imperfect being. Also, they remembered what had happened to previous
nations. This prompted them to beseech their Lord for mercy, and they
prayed to Him not to take them to task as He had done with past people.
They sought His protection because Allah had taught them that
there was no power or strength except from Allah, and that nothing can
save from Allah’s displeasure except His mercy.
Why did the Apostle prayed
to Allah in these words when he was sinless and protected from mistake and
forgetfulness? He did so because his sinlessness had come from Allah; he
was protected from mistake and forgetfulness by Allah’s protection.
Therefore, it was quite in order for him to include himself in the
group of
believers to ask from his Lord what he knew was a grace of the
Lord.
QUR’AN:
Our Lord! do
not lay on us a burden as Thou didst lay on those before
us:
“al-Isr” (burden) is also interpreted
as detaining a thing by force. This is not very far from the first
meaning: If a thing is confined and detained forcefully it puts a
heavy burden on
it.
“Those before us” refers to
the people of the Book and especially the Jews, because
this chapter describes many stories about them; and because the seventh
chapter, inter alia, refers to the Apostle of Islam in these words:
. . . and removes from them (the people of Torah and Injil)
their burden and the shackles which were upon them . . . (7:157).
QUR’AN: Our Lord!
do not impose upon us that which we have not the strength to bear:
It does not refer to
unbearable rules of the shari ‘ah, because reason does not allow
such rules, and Allah has Himself said that He does not impose any duty
beyond one’s limit of ability; and the words of the believers “We hear and
obey” show that Allah’s commandments are within their ability to
understand and act.
This sentence in fact refers
to severe punishments meted out to previous peoples - the imposition of
retaliatory hard rules, sending upon them severe chastisements or
transforming them into animals or insects.
QUR’AN: And pardon
us and forgive us and have mercy on us:
“al-Afw” (is
to erase the signs of a thing); "al-maghfirah" is to cover it ;
“ar-rahmah" is mercy. From the linguistic point of view, the three,
sentences proceed from branch to root and from particular to general. The
believers beseech Allah first to erase and eradicate the sign of their sin
(by removing its due punishment from them), then they ask Him to cover and
hide the sin (by letting all concerned forget about it completely) ;
lastly they crave for His mercy that will cover the sin and make them
worthy of of His grace.
The three sentences are in
conjunction with the previous ones: “Our Lord! do not punish us if we
forget or do a mistake . . . “ The context
shows that the pardon, forgiveness and mercy asked for are in connection
with such sins which they might commit by forgetfulness or mistake.
Therefore, the forgiveness asked for in this verse is in a particular
context; it is not like the forgiveness asked for in
the previous verse, “Thy forgiveness (do we crave) “, which is an
unrestricted and unconditional forgiveness in consideration of the
believers’ unrestricted and unconditional acceptance of the
Call.
It is clear from the above
that there is no repetition of the prayer of forgiveness, because both are
in separate contexts.
In these prayers the word
“Lord” has been repeated four times. This was done to invoke the divine
mercy. The name “Lord” by contrast, hints to the servitude and total
dependence of
the beseecher.
QUR’AN:
Thou art our
Guardian, so help us against the unbelieving people:
It is an independent
sentence and a separate prayer. “al-Mawla" means ‘helper’ - not any helper, but that
one who looks after the affairs of the helped one. The root word is
al-wilayah (to govern, to rule, to take charge of). Allah is the Ruler
of the believers; therefore, He is their Guardian in all their affairs.
Allah says: ...and Allah is the Guardian of the believers (3:68);
That is because Allah is the Master of those who believe, and because
the unbelievers have no master for them (47:11).
This prayer of theirs shows
that their only desire, after hearing and obeying the basic religion, was
to spread the true faith and to fight in the way of Allah to establish the
word of truth,
so that all the nations could unite in that cause. Allah says: Say:
“This is my way: I invite you unto Allah; with clear sight (are) I
and he who follows me; and glory be to Allah, and I am not of the
polytheists” (12:108). To call to the faith of monotheism is the way
of true religion. It involves one in fighting, enjoining the good and
forbidding the evil, and in all the methods of propagation of religion.
This is done to remove the root of discord from the human species. The
importance attached to this endeavor may be understood from the verse:
He has prescribed for you of the religion what He enjoined upon Nuh and
that which We have revealed unto you, and that which We enjoined upon
Ibrahim and Musa and Isa, that establish the religion and be not divided
therein (42:13).
This prayer of the believers
(Thou are our Guardian, so help us...) proves that the first
thing that came into their minds after firmly deciding to hear and obey,
was the general call to invite the whole of mankind to the religion’ of
truth. And Allah knows better.
Wa‘l-hamdu li‘llah
(And praise
and thank be to Allah).
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