Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (4/206)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

“Had your Lord so willed, He could have made mankind one community, but they will continue to differ, except those to whom your Lord has shown mercy. And for that purpose He created them. And the word of your Lord has been fulfilled: ‘I will surely fill Hell with jinn and mankind all together.’” (118–119)

His saying, exalted is He: “Why, then”—that is, why were there not—“among the generations before you,” whom We destroyed, “people of baqiyyah,” meaning people of discernment. It is also said: people of obedience; and it is said: people of goodness. One says that a man possesses baqiyyah when there is goodness in him. The meaning is: Why were there not, among the generations before you, people possessing goodness who forbade corruption in the land? [It is also said that it means: people possessing a remnant of goodness. One says that a man retains a remnant of goodness when he possesses a praiseworthy trait.] (1)

“Who forbade corruption in the land”: that is, who undertook to forbid corruption. The expression conveys negation; in other words, there were no people of baqiyyah among them. “Except a few”: this is a disconnected exception, meaning: rather, a few “of those whom We saved from among them”—namely, the followers of the prophets—used to forbid corruption in the land. “But the wrongdoers followed that in which they had been indulged”: that is, they were given a life of ease; a mutraf is one who is given a life of luxury. Muqatil ibn Hayyan said: They were granted it. Al-Farra said: [They had become accustomed to comforts, pleasures, and preferring this world.] (2) That is, the wrongdoers followed the comforts and pleasures to which they had become accustomed, and preferred this world to the Hereafter. “And they were guilty”: that is, disbelievers.

“And your Lord would never destroy towns unjustly”: that is, He would not destroy them merely because of their polytheism while “their people were reforming” their mutual affairs, dealing fairly with one another and not wronging one another. Rather, He destroys them when they wrong one another. It is also said that He would not destroy them through any injustice on His part while they were righteous in their deeds; rather, He destroys them because of their disbelief and their commission of evil deeds.

His saying, exalted is He: “Had your Lord so willed, He could have made all mankind one community,” following one religion. “But they will continue to differ,” adhering to various religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, Magianism, and polytheism.

“Except those to whom your Lord has shown mercy”: that is, except those to whom your Lord has shown mercy and guided to the truth; they do not differ. “And for that purpose He created them.” Al-Hasan and Ata said: He created them for differing. Ashhab said: I asked Malik about this verse, and he replied: “He created them so that one group would be in Paradise and another group in the Blazing Fire.”

(1) Omitted in manuscript B. (2) Omitted in manuscript B.

﴿وَلَوْ شَاءَ رَبُّكَ لَجَعَلَ النَّاسَ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً وَلَا يَزَالُونَ مُخْتَلِفِينَ (١١٨) إِلَّا مَنْ رَحِمَ رَبُّكَ وَلِذَلِكَ خَلَقَهُمْ وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ أَجْمَعِينَ (١١٩) ﴾ . قَوْلُهُ ﷿: ﴿فَلَوْلَا﴾ فَهَلَّا ﴿كَانَ مِنَ الْقُرُونِ﴾ الَّتِي أَهْلَكْنَاهُمْ، ﴿مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ﴾ وَالْآيَةُ لِلتَّوْبِيخِ ﴿أُولُو بَقِيَّةٍ﴾ أَيْ: أُولُو تَمْيِيزٍ. وَقِيلَ: أُولُو طَاعَةٍ. وَقِيلَ: أُولُو خَيْرٍ. يُقَالُ: فُلَانٌ ذُو بَقِيَّةٍ إِذَا كَانَ فِيهِ خَيْرٌ. مَعْنَاهُ: فَهَلَّا كَانَ مِنَ الْقُرُونِ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ مَنْ فِيهِ خَيْرٌ يَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَسَادِ فِي الْأَرْضِ؟ [وَقِيلَ: مَعْنَاهُ أُولُو بَقِيَّةٍ مِنْ خَيْرٍ. يُقَالُ: فُلَانٌ عَلَى بَقِيَّةٍ مِنَ الْخَيْرِ إِذَا كَانَ عَلَى خَصْلَةٍ مَحْمُودَةٍ] (١) . ﴿يَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْفَسَادِ فِي الْأَرْضِ﴾ أَيْ يَقُومُونَ بِالنَّهْيِ عَنِ الْفَسَادِ، وَمَعْنَاهُ جَحَدَ، أَيْ: لَمْ يَكُنْ فِيهِمْ أُولُو بَقِيَّةٍ. ﴿إِلَّا قَلِيلًا﴾ هَذَا اسْتِثْنَاءٌ مُنْقَطِعٌ مَعْنَاهُ: لَكِنَّ قَلِيلًا ﴿مِمَّنْ أَنْجَيْنَا مِنْهُمْ﴾ وَهُمْ أَتْبَاعُ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ كَانُوا يَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْفَسَادِ فِي الْأَرْضِ. ﴿وَاتَّبَعَ الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا مَا أُتْرِفُوا﴾ نُعِّمُوا، ﴿فِيهِ﴾ وَالْمُتْرَفُ: الْمُنَعَّمُ. وَقَالَ مُقَاتِلُ بْنُ حَيَّانَ: خُوِّلُوا. وَقَالَ الْفَرَّاءُ: [عُوِّدُوا مِنَ النَّعِيمِ وَاللَّذَّاتِ وَإِيثَارِ الدُّنْيَا] (٢) أَيْ: وَاتَّبَعَ الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا مَا عُوِّدُوا مِنَ النَّعِيمِ وَاللَّذَّاتِ وَإِيثَارِ الدُّنْيَا عَلَى الْآخِرَةِ. ﴿وَكَانُوا مُجْرِمِينَ﴾ كَافِرِينَ. ﴿وَمَا كَانَ رَبُّكَ لِيُهْلِكَ الْقُرَى بِظُلْمٍ﴾ أَيْ: لَا يُهْلِكُهُمْ بِشِرْكِهِمْ، ﴿وَأَهْلُهَا مُصْلِحُونَ﴾ فِيمَا بَيْنَهُمْ يَتَعَاطَوْنَ الْإِنْصَافَ وَلَا يَظْلِمُ بَعْضُهُمْ بَعْضًا، وَإِنَّمَا يُهْلِكُهُمْ إِذَا تَظَالَمُوا، وَقِيلَ: لَا يُهْلِكُهُمْ بِظُلْمٍ مِنْهُ وَهُمْ مُصْلِحُونَ فِي أَعْمَالِهِمْ، وَلَكِنْ يُهْلِكُهُمْ بِكُفْرِهِمْ وَرُكُوبِهِمُ السَّيِّئَاتِ. قَوْلُهُ ﷿: ﴿وَلَوْ شَاءَ رَبُّكَ لَجَعَلَ النَّاسَ﴾ كُلَّهُمْ ﴿أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً﴾ عَلَى دِينٍ وَاحِدٍ. ﴿وَلَا يَزَالُونَ مُخْتَلِفِينَ﴾ عَلَى أَدْيَانٍ شَتَّى مِنْ بَيْنِ يَهُودِيٍّ وَنَصْرَانِيٍّ، وَمَجُوسِيٍّ، وَمُشْرِكٍ. ﴿إِلَّا مَنْ رَحِمَ رَبُّكَ﴾ مَعْنَاهُ: لَكِنَّ مَنْ رَحِمَ رَبُّكَ فَهَدَاهُمْ إِلَى الْحَقِّ، فَهُمْ لَا يَخْتَلِفُونَ، ﴿وَلِذَلِكَ خَلَقَهُمْ﴾ قَالَ الْحَسَنُ وَعَطَاءٌ: وَلِلِاخْتِلَافِ خَلْقَهُمْ. وَقَالَ أَشْهَبُ: سَأَلْتُ مَالِكًا عَنْ هَذِهِ الْآيَةِ، فَقَالَ: خَلَقَهُمْ لِيَكُونَ فَرِيقٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ وَفَرِيقٌ فِي السَّعِيرِ.

(١) ساقط من "ب". (٢) ساقط من "ب".