Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (3/248)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

means: the disbelievers said to the believers, “Do you know that Salih has been sent to you by his Lord?” They replied, “We believe in that with which he has been sent.”

“The arrogant ones said, ‘Indeed, we disbelieve in that which you believe.’ (76) So they hamstrung the she-camel, defied the command of their Lord, and said, ‘O Salih, bring us what you promise us, if you are truly one of the messengers.’ (77) Then the earthquake seized them, and they lay lifeless in their homes. (78) So he turned away from them and said, ‘O my people, I have certainly conveyed to you the message of my Lord and given you sincere advice, but you do not love those who offer sincere advice.’ (79)”

“The arrogant ones said, ‘Indeed, we disbelieve in that which you believe’”: that is, they denied it.

“So they hamstrung the she-camel.” Al-Azhari said: Hamstringing is the severing of a camel’s hamstring. Slaughtering a camel at the neck was then also called hamstringing, because the one who slaughters a camel first hamstrings it and then slaughters it. “And they defied the command of their Lord”: defiance is going to extremes in falsehood. One says that a person acted defiantly when he behaved arrogantly. The meaning is that they disobeyed Allah, abandoned His command concerning the she-camel, and denied their prophet. “And they said, ‘O Salih, bring us what you promise us’”—that is, of punishment—“if you are truly one of the messengers.”

“Then the earthquake seized them”: this is the shaking and movement of the earth. They were destroyed by the mighty blast and the earthquake. “And they lay in their homes”: it was said that this means their dwellings. It was also said that it means in their land and town; this is why the word for dwelling is singular. “Lifeless”: silent and dead. It was said that they all fell dead upon their faces.

“So he turned away”: Salih withdrew from them, “and said, ‘O my people, I have certainly conveyed to you the message of my Lord and given you sincere advice, but you do not love those who offer sincere advice.’” If it is asked: How could he address them by saying, “I have certainly conveyed to you the message of my Lord and given you sincere advice,” after they had perished in the earthquake?

It is said: This was like the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, addressing the disbelievers among those slain at Badr after he had them cast into the well. He began calling them by their names and the names of their fathers: “Would it have pleased you had you obeyed Allah and His Messenger? We have indeed found true what our Lord promised us; have you found true what your Lord promised you?” Umar said, “O Messenger of Allah, are you speaking to bodies that have no souls?” The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “By Him in Whose Hand is Muhammad’s soul” (1), “you do not hear what I say any better than they do, but they cannot answer.” (2)

(1) An addition from manuscript “B” and from Sahih al-Bukhari. (2) Part of the hadith of Anas ibn Malik, recorded by al-Bukhari in Kitab al-Maghazi, chapter “The Killing of Abu Jahl,” 7:300-301. In the same place, he also narrates from Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, that the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, stood over the well of Badr and said: “Have you found what your Lord promised you to be true?” He then said: “They now hear what I am saying.” When this was mentioned to Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, she said: “The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, only said: ‘They now know that what I used to tell them was the truth.’” She then recited: “Indeed, you cannot make the dead hear,” continuing to the end of the verse. This was among the matters in which the Mother of the Believers, Aisha, corrected Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, holding that he had erred in reporting the wording, “They hear,” and that the correct wording was, “They know.” Al-Bayhaqi said: Knowledge does not preclude hearing. The answer regarding the verse is that Allah does not make them hear while they are dead; rather, Allah brought them to life so that they heard, as Qatada said. Neither Umar nor his son, may Allah be pleased with them both, was alone in reporting this; Abu Talha also reported it. Al-Tabarani narrates a similar report from Ibn Masud with an authentic chain of transmission, and another, similar report from Abdullah ibn Saydan, which states: “They said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, do they hear?’ He replied, ‘They hear as you hear, but they do not reply.’” In the hadith of Ibn Masud, the wording is: “But today they do not reply.” Remarkably, Ibn Ishaq’s Maghazi, through the transmission of Yunus ibn Bukayr with a sound chain from Aisha, contains a report like that of Abu Talha, including the words: “You do not hear what I say more clearly than they do.” Ahmad also recorded it with a fair chain of transmission. If this report is established, it appears that Aisha withdrew her objection after the reports of these Companions had been confirmed to her, since she had not witnessed the incident. See in detail: Fath al-Bari, 7:303-304; al-Ijaba li-Irad ma Istadrakathu Aisha ala al-Sahaba, by al-Zarkashi, pp. 99-100; al-Rawd al-Unuf, by al-Suhayli, 2:74.

يَعْنِي: قَالَ الْكُفَّارُ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ، ﴿أَتَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ صَالِحًا مُرْسَلٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِ﴾ إِلَيْكُمْ، ﴿قَالُوا إِنَّا بِمَا أُرْسِلَ بِهِ مُؤْمِنُونَ﴾ ﴿قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا إِنَّا بِالَّذِي آمَنْتُمْ بِهِ كَافِرُونَ (٧٦) فَعَقَرُوا النَّاقَةَ وَعَتَوْا عَنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّهِمْ وَقَالُوا يَا صَالِحُ ائْتِنَا بِمَا تَعِدُنَا إِنْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ (٧٧) فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ فَأَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِهِمْ جَاثِمِينَ (٧٨) فَتَوَلَّى عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَةَ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ وَلَكِنْ لَا تُحِبُّونَ النَّاصِحِينَ (٧٩) ﴾ ﴿قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا إِنَّا بِالَّذِي آمَنْتُمْ بِهِ كَافِرُونَ﴾ جَاحِدُونَ. ﴿فَعَقَرُوا النَّاقَةَ﴾ قَالَ الْأَزْهَرِيُّ: الْعَقْرُ هُوَ قَطْعُ عُرْقُوبِ الْبَعِيرِ، ثُمَّ جَعَلَ النَّحْرَ عَقْرًا لِأَنَّ نَاحِرَ الْبَعِيرِ يَعْقِرُهُ ثُمَّ يَنْحَرُهُ، ﴿وَعَتَوْا عَنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّهِمْ﴾ وَالْعُتُوُّ الْغُلُوُّ فِي الْبَاطِلِ، يُقَالُ: عَتَا يَعْتُو عُتُوًّا: إِذَا اسْتَكْبَرُوا، وَالْمَعْنَى: عَصَوُا اللَّهَ وَتَرَكُوا أَمْرَهُ فِي النَّاقَةِ وَكَذَّبُوا نَبِيَّهُمْ. ﴿وَقَالُوا يَا صَالِحُ ائْتِنَا بِمَا تَعِدُنَا﴾ أَيْ: مِنَ الْعَذَابِ، ﴿إِنْ كُنْتَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ﴾ ﴿فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ﴾ وَهِيَ زَلْزَلَةُ الْأَرْضِ وَحَرَكَتُهَا وَأَهْلَكُوا بِالصَّيْحَةِ وَالرَّجْفَةِ، ﴿فَأَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِهِمْ﴾ قِيلَ: أَرَادَ الدِّيَارَ. وَقِيلَ: أَرَادَ فِي أَرْضِهِمْ وَبَلْدَتِهِمْ، وَلِذَلِكَ وَحَّدَ الدَّارَ، ﴿جَاثِمِينَ﴾ خَامِدَيْنِ مَيِّتِينِ. قِيلَ: سَقَطُوا عَلَى وُجُوهِهِمْ مَوْتَى عَنْ آخِرِهِمْ. ﴿فَتَوَلَّى﴾ أَعْرَضَ صَالِحٌ، ﴿عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَةَ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ وَلَكِنْ لَا تُحِبُّونَ النَّاصِحِينَ﴾ فَإِنْ قِيلَ: كَيْفَ خَاطَبَهُمْ بِقَوْلِهِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَةَ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ بَعْدَمَا هَلَكُوا بِالرَّجْفَةِ؟ قِيلَ: كَمَا خَاطَبَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ الْكُفَّارَ مِنْ قَتْلَى بَدْرٍ حِينَ أَلْقَاهُمْ فِي الْقَلِيبِ، فَجَعَلَ يُنَادِيهِمْ بِأَسْمَائِهِمْ وَأَسْمَاءِ آبَائِهِمْ: أَيَسُرُّكُمْ أَنَّكُمْ أَطَعْتُمُ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ فَإِنَّا قَدْ وَجَدْنَا مَا وَعَدَنَا رَبُّنَا حَقًّا، فَهَلْ وَجَدْتُمْ مَا وَعَدَ رَبُّكُمْ حَقًّا؟ فَقَالَ عُمَرُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا تُكَلِّمُ مِنْ أَجْسَادٍ لَا أَرْوَاحَ لَهَا؟ فَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ: ["وَالَّذِي نَفْسُ مُحَمَّدٍ بِيَدِهِ"] (١) مَا أَنْتُمْ بِأَسْمَعَ لِمَا أَقُولُ مِنْهُمْ، وَلَكِنْ لَا يُجِيبُونَ" (٢) .

(١) زيادة من "ب" ومن صحيح البخاري. (٢) قطعة من حديث أنس بن مالك، أخرجه البخاري في المغازي، باب قتل أبي جهل: ٧ / ٣٠٠-٣٠١. وأخرج أيضا في الموضع نفسه عن ابن عمر ﵄ قال: وقف النبي ﷺ على قليب بدر، فقال: "هل وجدتم ما وعد ربكم حقا؟ ثم قال: إنهم الآن يسمعون ما أقول" فذُكِر لعائشة فقالت: إنما قال النبي ﷺ: إنهم الآن ليعلمون أن الذي كنت أقول لهم هو الحق، ثم قرأت: "إنك لا تسمع الموتى" حتى قرأت الآية. فكان هذا مما استدركته أم المؤمنين عائشة ﵂ على ابن عمر ﵄ وأنه وهم في قوله "ليسمعون"، وإنما هو بلفظ "إنهم ليعلمون". قال البيهقي: العلم لا يمنع من السماع. والجواب عن الآية: أنه لا يُسْمِعُهم وهم موتى. ولكن الله أحياهم حتى سمعوا، كما قال قتادة. ولم ينفرد عمر ولا ابنه ﵄ بحكاية ذلك، بل وافقهما: أبو طلحة، وللطبراني من حديث ابن مسعود مثله بإسناد صحيح، ومن حديث عبد الله بن سيدان نحوه، وفيه: "قالوا يا رسول الله وهل يسمعون"؟ قال: "يسمعون كما تسمعون، ولكن لا يجيبون"، وفي حديث ابن مسعود: "ولكنهم اليوم لا يجيبون". ومن الغريب أن في المغازي لابن إسحاق رواية يونس بن بكير بإسناد جيد عن عائشة مثل حديث أبي طلحة وفيه: "ما أنتم بأسمع لما أقول منهم" وأخرجه أحمد بإسناد حسن، فإن كان محفوظا فكأنها رجعت عن الإنكار، لما ثبت عندها من رواية هؤلاء الصحابة، لكونها لم تشهد القصة. انظر بالتفصيل: فتح الباري: ٧ / ٣٠٣-٣٠٤، الإجابة لإيراد ما استدركته عائشة على الصحابة للزركشي: ص (٩٩-١٠٠) ، الروض الأنف للسهيلي: ٢ / ٧٤.