Al-Tafsīr al-Qayyim - Ibn al-Qayyim - (240)

Al-Tafsīr al-QayyimIbn al-Qayyim

in this situation, just as they would then confuse themselves.” For, upon seeing the angel in human form, they would say, “This is a human being, not an angel.” This is the meaning of the verse.

6:27–28 “If only you could see when they are made to stand before the Fire! They will say, ‘If only we could be sent back! We would not deny our Lord’s signs, and we would be among the believers.’ Rather, what they used to conceal before has become apparent to them. Were they sent back, they would return to what they had been forbidden. They are certainly liars.”

Most commentators have hovered around the meaning of this verse without offering a satisfying explanation. Examine their statements: you will find that they neither heal the sick nor quench the thirsty.

The verse’s meaning is loftier and more profound than their explanations suggest. They failed to discern the purpose of the shift introduced by “Rather,” or what it was that became apparent to them and that they had previously concealed. They assumed that what became apparent to them was the punishment. When they found that this did not fit the words “what they used to conceal before,” they posited an omitted noun, yielding the sense: “news of what they used to conceal before.” But this presented them with another difficulty for which they had no answer: these people had not concealed their polytheism and disbelief. Rather, they had openly professed it, called others to it, and fought for it. When the commentators recognized this objection, they said that, at certain stages and stations of the Resurrection, these people would conceal and deny their polytheism, saying, “By Allah, our Lord, we were not polytheists.” Then, when they were made to stand before the Fire, the recompense for what they had concealed would become apparent to them.

Al-Wāhidī said, “This is the position of the Quran commentators.”

Yet the proponents of this view have accomplished nothing. The context, the shift introduced by “Rather,” the statement that, were they sent back, they would return to what they had been forbidden, and their words, “By Allah, our Lord, we were not polytheists”—none of this accords with their explanation. Reflect on it.

Another group, including al-Zajjāj, said: “Rather, what became apparent to the followers was what their leaders had concealed from them concerning the Resurrection.” This explanation itself needs explaining, and its artificiality is plain.

في هذه الحال ما يَلْبِسُونَ على أنفسهم حينئذ فإنهم يقولون: إذا رأوا الملك في صورة الإنسان لقالوا: هذا إنسان وليس بملك. هذا معنى الآية. ٦: ٢٧- ٢٨ وَلَوْ تَرى إِذْ وُقِفُوا عَلَى النَّارِ فَقالُوا يا لَيْتَنا نُرَدُّ وَلا نُكَذِّبَ بِآياتِ رَبِّنا وَنَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ. بَلْ بَدا لَهُمْ ما كانُوا يُخْفُونَ مِنْ قَبْلُ، وَلَوْ رُدُّوا لَعادُوا لِما نُهُوا عَنْهُ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَكاذِبُونَ. وقد حام أكثر المفسرين حول معنى هذه الآية، وما أوردوا ما يشفي. فراجع أقوالهم تجدها لا تشفي عليلا، ولا تروي غليلا. الآية معناها أجل وأعظم مما فسر وهابه. ولم يتفطنوا لوجه الإضراب ب «بل» ولا للأمر الذي بدا لهم، وكانوا يخفونه وظنوا أن الذي بدا لهم هو العذاب. فلما لم يروا ذلك ملتئما مع قوله ما كانُوا يُخْفُونَ مِنْ قَبْلُ قدروا مضافا محذوفا، وهو خبر ما كانوا يحقون من قبل، فدخل عليهم أمر آخر، لا جواب لهم عنه. وهو: أن القوم لم يكونوا يخفون شركهم وكفرهم، بل كانوا يظهرونه، ويدعون إليه، ويحاربون عليه. ولما علموا أن هذا ورد عليهم، قالوا: إن القوم في بعض موارد القيامة ومواطنها أخفوا شركهم وجحدوه، وقالوا: وَاللَّهِ رَبِّنا ما كُنَّا مُشْرِكِينَ فلما وقفوا على النار بدا لهم جزاء ذلك الذي أخفوه. قال الواحدي: وعلى هذا أهل التفسير. ولم يصنع أرباب هذا القول شيئا. فإن السياق والإضراب ب «بل» والإخبار عنهم بأنهم لو ردوا لعادوا لما نهوا عنه، وقولهم «والله ربنا ما كنا مشركين» لا يلتئم بهذا الذي ذكروه. فتأمله. وقالت طائفة، منهم الزجاج: بل لاتباع ما أخفاه عنهم الرؤساء، من أمر البعث. وهذا التفسير يحتاج إلى تفسير، وفيه من التكليف ما ليس بخاف.