Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (4/177)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

namely, his wife Wā'ilah and his son Canaan. “And those who believe”: that is, take aboard those who believed in you, as Allah, Exalted is He, says:

“But only a few had believed with him.”

They differed concerning their number (1). Qatadah, Ibn Jurayj, and Muhammad ibn Kab al-Qurazi said: There were only eight persons on the Ark: Noah, his wife (2), his three sons—Shem, Ham, and Japheth—and their wives.

[Al-Amash said: They were seven: Noah, his three sons, and his three daughters-in-law.] (3)

Ibn Ishaq said: They were ten, apart from their wives: Noah; his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth; and six people from among those who had believed in him, together with all their spouses.

Muqatil said: They were seventy-two persons, men and women, along with his three sons and their wives, making a total of seventy-eight: half of them men and half women.

It is reported from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, that he said: There were eighty men on Noah’s Ark, one of whom was Jurhum.

Muqatil said: 175/A Noah took Adam’s body with him and placed it crosswise between the men and women. All the beasts and birds came to Noah so that he might take them aboard.

Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: The first creature Noah took aboard was the ant, and the last was the donkey. When the donkey entered and its chest had come inside, Iblis clung to its tail, and its legs could not move forward. Noah began saying, “Woe to you! Enter!” It rose, but could not proceed, until Noah said, “Woe to you! Enter, even if Satan is with you”—a word that slipped from his tongue. When Noah said this, Satan released it, and the donkey entered, with Satan entering as well. Noah said to him, “What brought you aboard with me, enemy of Allah?” He replied, “Did you not say, ‘Enter, even if Satan is with you’?” Noah said, “Get away from me, enemy of Allah!” He replied, “You have no choice but to carry me with you.” Thus, as they claim, he was on the deck of the Ark.

It is also narrated from some of them that the snake and the scorpion came to Noah and said, “Take us aboard.” He replied, “You are both a cause of harm and affliction, so I will not take you aboard.” They said to him, “Take us aboard, and we guarantee you that we will not harm anyone who mentions you. Whoever recites, when fearing their harm, ‘Peace be upon Noah among all the worlds,’ will not be harmed by them.”

Al-Hasan said: Noah took aboard the Ark only creatures that give birth or lay eggs. As for creatures generated from mud, among the insects of the earth, such as bedbugs and mosquitoes, he took none of them aboard (4).

(1) See al-Tabari, 15:325-327. He said: “The correct view in this matter is to say as Allah said: ‘None believed with him except a few.’ He describes them as being few, but did not specify their number; nor is there any authentic report from the Messenger of Allah. One should therefore not go beyond the limit set by Allah when neither the Book of Allah nor a report from the Messenger of Allah specifies their number.” (2) Ibn Kathir said: “It was also said that Noah’s wife was with them on the Ark. This is open to question; rather, it appears that she perished, because she followed the religion of her people, and thus what befell them befell her, just as what befell the people of Lot befell Lot’s wife. Allah knows best and judges most wisely.” Tafsir, 2:446. (3) The text within the parentheses is omitted in manuscript B. (4) These accounts and others like them are mentioned by al-Suyuti in al-Durr, 4:423 ff. Ibn Atiyyah said in al-Muharrar al-Wajiz, 7:295: “... All of this consists of accounts that cannot be accepted as sound unless they are supported by evidence. And Allah knows best how it actually was.” See also above, p. 175, note 1.

يَعْنِي: امْرَأَتَهُ وَاعِلَةَ وَابْنَهُ كَنْعَانَ، ﴿وَمَنْ آمَنَ﴾ يَعْنِي: وَاحْمِلْ مَنْ آمَنَ بِكَ، كَمَا قَالَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى: ﴿وَمَا آمَنَ مَعَهُ إِلَّا قَلِيلٌ﴾ وَاخْتَلَفُوا فِي عَدَدِهِمْ (١) : قَالَ قَتَادَةُ وَابْنُ جُرَيْجٍ وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ كَعْبٍ الْقُرَظِيُّ: لَمْ يَكُنْ فِي السَّفِينَةِ إِلَّا ثَمَانِيَةُ نَفَرٍ: نُوحٌ، وَامْرَأَتُهُ (٢) ، وَثَلَاثَةُ بَنِينَ لَهُ سَامٌ وَحَامٌ ويافثُ، وَنِسَاؤُهُمْ. [وَقَالَ الْأَعْمَشُ: كَانُوا سَبْعَةً نُوحٌ وَثَلَاثَةُ بَنِينَ لَهُ، وَثَلَاثُ كَنَائِنَ لَهُ] (٣) . وَقَالَ ابْنُ إِسْحَاقَ: كَانُوا عَشَرَةً سِوَى نِسَائِهِمْ، نُوحٌ وَبَنُوهُ سَامٌ وَحَامٌ ويافثُ وَسِتَّةُ أُنَاسٍ مِمَّنْ كَانَ آمَنَ بِهِ وَأَزْوَاجُهُمْ جَمِيعًا. وَقَالَ مُقَاتِلٌ: كَانُوا اثْنَيْنِ وَسَبْعِينَ نَفَرًا رَجُلًا وَامْرَأَةً وَبَنِيهِ الثَّلَاثَةَ وَنِسَاءَهُمْ، فَجَمِيعُهُمْ ثَمَانِيَةٌ وَسَبْعُونَ، نِصْفُهُمْ رِجَالٌ وَنِصْفُهُمْ نِسَاءٌ. وَعَنْ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ﵄ قَالَ: كَانَ فِي سَفِينَةِ نُوحٍ ثَمَانُونَ رَجُلًا أَحَدُهُمْ جُرْهُمُ. قال مقاتل: ١٧٥/أحَمَلَ نُوحٌ مَعَهُ جَسَدَ آدَمَ فَجَعَلَهُ مُعْتَرِضًا بَيْنَ الرِّجَالِ وَالنِّسَاءِ وَقَصَدَ نُوحًا جَمِيعُ الدَّوَابِّ وَالطُّيُورِ لِيَحْمِلَهَا. قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ ﵄: أَوَّلُ مَا حَمَلَ نُوحٌ الدُّرَّةَ وَآخَرُ مَا حَمَلَ الْحِمَارُ، فَلَمَّا دَخَلَ الْحِمَارُ وَدَخَلَ صَدْرُهُ تَعَلَّقَ إِبْلِيسُ بِذَنَبِهِ، فَلَمْ يَسْتَقِلَّ رِجْلَاهُ، فَجَعَلَ نُوحٌ يَقُولُ: وَيْحَكَ ادْخُلْ: فَنَهَضَ فَلَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ، حَتَّى قَالَ نُوحٌ: وَيَحَكَ ادْخُلْ وَإِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ مَعَكَ كَلِمَةٌ زَلَّتْ عَلَى لِسَانِهِ، فَلَمَّا قَالَهَا نُوحٌ خَلَّى الشَّيْطَانُ سَبِيلَهُ فَدَخَلَ وَدَخَلَ الشَّيْطَانُ، فَقَالَ لَهُ نُوحٌ: مَا أَدْخَلَكَ عَلَيَّ يَا عَدُوَّ اللَّهِ؟ قَالَ: أَلَمْ تَقُلِ ادْخُلْ وَإِنْ كَانَ الشَّيْطَانُ مَعَكَ، قَالَ: اخْرُجْ عَنِّي يَا عَدُوَّ اللَّهِ، قَالَ: مَالَكَ بُدٌّ مِنْ أَنْ تَحْمِلَنِي مَعَكَ، فَكَانَ فِيمَا يَزْعُمُونَ فِي ظَهْرِ الْفُلْكِ. وَرُوِيَ عَنْ بَعْضِهِمْ: أَنَّ الْحَيَّةَ وَالْعَقْرَبَ أَتَيَا نُوحًا فَقَالَتَا: احْمِلْنَا، فَقَالَ: إِنَّكُمَا سَبَبُ الضُّرِّ وَالْبَلَاءِ، فَلَا أَحْمِلُكُمَا، فَقَالَتَا لَهُ: احْمِلْنَا وَنَحْنُ نَضْمَنُ لَكَ أَنْ لَا نَضُرَّ أَحَدًا ذَكَرَكَ فَمَنْ قَرَأَ حِينَ خَافَ مَضَرَّتَهُمَا " سَلَامٌ عَلَى نُوحٍ فِي الْعَالَمِينَ " مَا ضَرَّتَاهُ. قَالَ الْحَسَنُ: لَمْ يَحْمِلْ نُوحٌ فِي السَّفِينَةِ إِلَّا مَا يَلِدُ وَيَبِيضُ، فَأَمَّا مَا يَتَوَلَّدُ مِنَ الطِّينِ مِنْ حَشَرَاتِ الْأَرْضِ كَالْبَقِّ وَالْبَعُوضِ فَلَمْ يَحْمِلْ مِنْهَا شَيْئًا (٤) .

(١) انظر في هذه الأقوال: الطبري: ١٥ / ٣٢٥-٣٢٧ وقال: "والصواب من القول في ذلك أن يقال كما قال الله: "وما آمن معه إلا قليل"، يصفهم بأنهم كانوا قليلا، ولم يَحُدَّ عددهم بمقدار، ولا خبر عن رسول الله ﷺ صحيح. فلا ينبغي أن يُتجاوز في ذلك حدُّ الله، إذا لم يكن لمبلغ عدد ذلك حدّ من كتاب الله، أو أثر عن رسول الله ﷺ". (٢) قال ابن كثير ﵀: "وقيل: بل امرأة نوح كانت معهم في السفينة. وهذا فيه نظر، بل الظاهر أنها هلكت، لأنها كانت على دين قومها، فأصابها ما أصابهم، كما أصاب امرأة لوط ما أصاب قومها، والله أعلم وأحكم" التفسير: ٢ / ٤٤٦. (٣) ما بين القوسين ساقط من "ب". (٤) هذه القصص وأمثالها، ذكرها السيوطي في الدر: ٤ / ٤٢٣ وما بعدها. قال ابن عطية في المحرر الوجيز: ٧ / ٢٩٥ " ... وهذا كله قصص لا يصح إلا لو استند، والله أعلم كيف كان". وانظر فيما سبق ص (١٧٥) تعليق (١) .