Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (4/299)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

“Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, the Great, the Most High. (9) It is all the same to Him whether any of you speaks secretly or openly, whether one hides himself by night or moves about openly by day. (10) Each person has successive angels before him and behind him, guarding him by Allah’s command. Indeed, Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change what is within themselves. And when Allah wills adversity for a people, none can avert it, and they have no protector apart from Him. (11)”

“Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, the Great”: He is the One beneath whom everything stands. “The Most High”: the One exalted above all things by His power.

Allah the Exalted says: “It is all the same to Him whether any of you speaks secretly or openly,” meaning that the one who speaks secretly and the one who speaks openly are alike in Allah’s knowledge. “Whether one hides himself by night,” that is, conceals himself in the darkness of night, “or moves about openly by day,” that is, goes along his way openly. A sarb, with the s fatḥah and the r sukūn, means a road. (1)

Al-Qutaybi said: “Moves about by day” means one who goes about attending to his needs. Ibn Abbas said regarding this verse: (2) He is a man engaged in suspicious conduct, who conceals himself by night; then, when he comes out by day, he makes people think that he is innocent of sin. (3) It was also said that “one who hides himself by night” means one who is manifest, based on their expression, “I made the thing apparent,” whereas “I concealed it” means, “I hid it.” And “one who moves about by day” means one who is concealed, having entered into a passage.

“Each person has successive angels”: that is, Allah the Exalted has angels who take turns among you by night and by day. When the angels of the night ascend, the angels of the day come after them; and when the angels of the day ascend, the angels of the night come after them. Succession means returning after having begun. The feminine form is used because its singular is mu'aqqib and its plural is mu'aqqibah, and then

(1) Scholars of Arabic differed over the word *sarb*: some say, “He is secure in his *sarb*,” with the letter sin pronounced with fathah; others say, “He is secure in his *sirb*,” with the sin pronounced with kasrah. See al-Tabari, 16:367. (2) Omitted from manuscript B. (3) Al-Tabari, 16:367.

﴿عَالِمُ الْغَيْبِ وَالشَّهَادَةِ الْكَبِيرُ الْمُتَعَالِ (٩) سَوَاءٌ مِنْكُمْ مَنْ أَسَرَّ الْقَوْلَ وَمَنْ جَهَرَ بِهِ وَمَنْ هُوَ مُسْتَخْفٍ بِاللَّيْلِ وَسَارِبٌ بِالنَّهَارِ (١٠) لَهُ مُعَقِّبَاتٌ مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ يَحْفَظُونَهُ مِنْ أَمْرِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّى يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنْفُسِهِمْ وَإِذَا أَرَادَ اللَّهُ بِقَوْمٍ سُوءًا فَلَا مَرَدَّ لَهُ وَمَا لَهُمْ مِنْ دُونِهِ مِنْ وَالٍ (١١) ﴾ . ﴿عَالِمُ الْغَيْبِ وَالشَّهَادَةِ الْكَبِيرُ﴾ الَّذِي كَلُّ شَيْءٍ دُونَهُ، ﴿الْمُتَعَالِ﴾ الْمُسْتَعْلِي عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ بِقُدْرَتِهِ. قَوْلُهُ تَعَالَى: ﴿سَوَاءٌ مِنْكُمْ مَنْ أَسَرَّ الْقَوْلَ وَمَنْ جَهَرَ بِهِ﴾ أَيْ: يَسْتَوِي فِي عِلْمِ اللَّهِ الْمُسِرُّ بِالْقَوْلِ وَالْجَاهِرُ بِهِ، ﴿وَمَنْ هُوَ مُسْتَخْفٍ بِاللَّيْلِ﴾ أَيْ: مُسْتَتِرٌ بِظُلْمَةِ اللَّيْلِ، ﴿وَسَارِبٌ بِالنَّهَارِ﴾ أَيْ: ذَاهِبٌ فِي سَرْبِهِ ظَاهِرٌ. وَالسَّرْبُ -بِفَتْحِ السِّينِ وَسُكُونِ الرَّاءِ-: الطَّرِيقُ (١) . قَالَ الْقُتَيْبِيُّ: سَارِبٌ بِالنَّهَارِ: أَيْ مُتَصَرِّفٌ فِي حَوَائِجِهِ. قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ [فِي هَذِهِ الْآيَةِ] (٢) هُوَ صَاحِبُ رِيبَةٍ، مُسْتَخْفٍ بِاللَّيْلِ، فَإِذَا خَرَجَ بِالنَّهَارِ أَرَى النَّاسَ أَنَّهُ بَرِيءٌ مِنَ الْإِثْمِ (٣) . وَقِيلَ: مُسْتَخْفٍ بِاللَّيْلِ، أَيْ: ظَاهِرٌ، مِنْ قَوْلِهِمْ: خَفِيتُ الشَّيْءَ؛ إِذَا أَظْهَرْتَهُ، وَأَخْفَيْتُهُ: إِذَا كَتَمْتَهُ. وَسَارِبٌ بِالنَّهَارِ: أَيْ مُتَوَارٍ دَاخِلٌ فِي سَرْبٍ. ﴿لَهُ مُعَقِّبَاتٌ﴾ أَيْ: لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى مَلَائِكَةٌ يَتَعَاقَبُونَ فِيكُمْ بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ، فَإِذَا صَعِدَتْ مَلَائِكَةُ اللَّيْلِ جَاءَ فِي عَقِبِهَا مَلَائِكَةُ النَّهَارِ، وَإِذَا صَعِدَتْ مَلَائِكَةُ النَّهَارِ جَاءَ فِي عَقِبِهَا مَلَائِكَةُ اللَّيْلِ. وَالتَّعْقِيبُ: الْعَوْدُ بَعْدَ الْبَدْءِ، وَإِنَّمَا ذُكِرَ بِلَفْظِ التَّأْنِيثِ لِأَنَّ وَاحِدَهَا مُعَقِّبٌ، وَجَمْعَهُ مُعَقِّبَةٌ، ثُمَّ

(١) اختلف أهل العلم بكلام العرب في "السرب": فقال بعضهم: "هو آمن في سربه"، بفتح السين. وقال بعضهم: "هو آمن في سربه" بكسر السين. انظر: الطبري: ١٦ / ٣٦٧. (٢) ساقط من "ب". (٣) الطبري: ١٦ / ٣٦٧.