Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (6/277)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

“And if We were to send a wind and they saw it turn yellow, they would surely persist in disbelief thereafter. For you cannot make the dead hear, nor can you make the deaf hear the call when they turn away, retreating. Nor can you guide the blind away from their misguidance. You can make none hear except those who believe in Our signs and submit to Allah. Allah is the One who created you from weakness; then, after weakness, He gave you strength; then, after strength, He gave you weakness and gray hair. He creates whatever He wills, and He is the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful.” (51–54)

“So observe the trace of Allah’s mercy”: this is how the people of the Hijaz, Basra, and Abu Bakr recited it (1). The others recited it in the plural: “the traces of Allah’s mercy.” By Allah’s mercy, He means the rain; that is, observe its beautiful effect upon the earth. Muqatil said: “The trace of Allah’s mercy” means His blessing, namely the vegetation.

“How He brings the earth to life after its death. Indeed, that is surely the One who will bring the dead to life”: that is, the One who brings the earth to life is surely the One who will bring the dead to life. “And He is fully capable of all things.”

“And if We were to send a wind,” cold and harmful, and it ruined the crops, “then they saw it turn yellow”: that is, they saw the vegetation and crops become yellow after having been green. “They would surely persist”: they would become so. “Thereafter”: that is, after the crops had turned yellow. “In disbelief”: they would deny the blessing that had preceded it. In other words, they rejoice when there is abundance; yet if I were to send a punishment upon their crops, they would deny My former blessing.

“For you cannot make the dead hear, nor can you make the deaf hear the call when they turn away, retreating. Nor can you guide the blind away from their misguidance. You can make none hear except those who believe in Our signs and submit to Allah.” (2)

“Allah is the One who created you from weakness”: the word “weakness” has been recited with either a u-vowel or an a-vowel on the letter dad. The u-vowel is the dialect of Quraysh, while the a-vowel is the dialect of Tamim. The meaning of “from weakness” is: from a sperm-drop; that is, from something characterized by weakness—from fluid characterized by weakness—as He says:

(1) This indicates that the author, may Allah have mercy on him, preferred the singular form, athar (report), which is the reading attested in the manuscript. Similar instances recur and will also appear later. (2) Allah the Exalted says: Just as it is not within your power to make the dead hear while they are in their graves, nor to convey your words to the deaf when they turn away from you, likewise you are unable to guide the blind to the truth and turn them back from their misguidance. Rather, this belongs to Allah alone: by His power, He makes the dead hear the voices of the living whenever He wills, and He guides whomever He wills and leads astray whomever He wills. No one besides Him possesses this power. Hence, Allah the Exalted says: “You can make hear only those who believe in Our signs; they are Muslims,” that is, submissive, responsive, and obedient. Such are those who hear the truth and follow it; this is the state of the believers. The former comparison, however, describes the disbelievers. See: Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 3:439.

﴿وَلَئِنْ أَرْسَلْنَا رِيحًا فَرَأَوْهُ مُصْفَرًّا لَظَلُّوا مِنْ بَعْدِهِ يَكْفُرُونَ (٥١) فَإِنَّكَ لَا تُسْمِعُ الْمَوْتَى وَلَا تُسْمِعُ الصُّمَّ الدُّعَاءَ إِذَا وَلَّوْا مُدْبِرِينَ (٥٢) وَمَا أَنْتَ بِهَادِي الْعُمْيِ عَنْ ضَلَالَتِهِمْ إِنْ تُسْمِعُ إِلَّا مَنْ يُؤْمِنُ بِآيَاتِنَا فَهُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ (٥٣) اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ مِنْ ضَعْفٍ ثُمَّ جَعَلَ مِنْ بَعْدِ ضَعْفٍ قُوَّةً ثُمَّ جَعَلَ مِنْ بَعْدِ قُوَّةٍ ضَعْفًا وَشَيْبَةً يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ وَهُوَ الْعَلِيمُ الْقَدِيرُ (٥٤) ﴾ ﴿فَانْظُرْ إِلَى آثَارِ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ﴾ هَكَذَا قَرَأَ أَهْلُ الْحِجَازِ، وَالْبَصْرَةِ، وَأَبُو بَكْرٍ (١) . وَقَرَأَ الْآخَرُونَ: ﴿إِلَى آثَارِ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ﴾ عَلَى الْجَمْعِ، أَرَادَ بِرَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ: الْمَطَرَ، أَيِ: انْظُرْ إِلَى حُسْنِ تَأْثِيرِهِ فِي الْأَرْضِ، وَقَالَ مُقَاتِلٌ: أَثَرُ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ أَيْ: نِعْمَتُهُ وَهُوَ النَّبْتُ، ﴿كَيْفَ يُحْيِي الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا إِنَّ ذَلِكَ لَمُحْيِي الْمَوْتَى﴾ يَعْنِي: إِنَّ ذلك الذي يحي الْأَرْضَ لَمُحْيِي الْمَوْتَى، ﴿وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ﴾ ﴿وَلَئِنْ أَرْسَلْنَا رِيحًا﴾ بَارِدَةً مُضِرَّةً فَأَفْسَدَتِ الزَّرْعَ، ﴿فَرَأَوْهُ مُصْفَرًّا﴾ أَيْ: رَأَوُا النَّبْتَ وَالزَّرْعَ مُصْفَرًّا بَعْدَ الْخُضْرَةِ، ﴿لَظَلُّوا﴾ لَصَارُوا، ﴿مِنْ بَعْدِهِ﴾ أَيْ: مِنْ بَعْدِ اصْفِرَارِ الزَّرْعِ، ﴿يَكْفُرُونَ﴾ يَجْحَدُونَ مَا سَلَفَ مِنَ النِّعْمَةِ، يَعْنِي: أَنَّهُمْ يَفْرَحُونَ عِنْدَ الْخِصْبِ، وَلَوْ أَرْسَلْتُ عَذَابًا عَلَى زَرْعِهِمْ جَحَدُوا سَالِفَ نِعْمَتِي. ﴿فَإِنَّكَ لَا تُسْمِعُ الْمَوْتَى وَلَا تُسْمِعُ الصُّمَّ الدُّعَاءَ إِذَا وَلَّوْا مُدْبِرِينَ وَمَا أَنْتَ بِهَادِي الْعُمْيِ عَنْ ضَلَالَتِهِمْ إِنْ تُسْمِعُ إِلَّا مَنْ يُؤْمِنُ بِآيَاتِنَا فَهُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ﴾ (٢) . ﴿اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ مِنْ ضَعْفٍ﴾ قُرِئَ بِضَمِّ الضَّادِ وَفَتْحِهَا، فَالضَّمُّ لُغَةُ قُرَيْشٍ، وَالْفَتْحُ لُغَةُ تَمِيمٍ، وَمَعْنَى "مِنْ ضَعْفٍ"، أَيْ: مِنْ نُطْفَةٍ، يُرِيدُ مِنْ ذِي ضَعْفٍ، أَيْ: مِنْ مَاءٍ ذِي ضَعْفٍ كَمَا قَالَ

(١) إشارة إلى أن المصنف ﵀ قدم الأفراد "أثر" وهي المثبتة في المخطوطة. وقد تكرر مثل هذا، وسيأتي أيضا. (٢) يقول تعالى: كما أنك ليس في قدرتك أن تسمع الأموات في أجدائها، ولا تبلغ كلامك الصم الذين لا يسمعون، وهم مع ذلك مدبرون عنك، كذلك لا تقدر على هداية العميان عن الحق وردهم عن ضلالتهم، بل ذلك إلى الله، فإنه تعالى بقدرته يسمع الأموات أصوات الأحياء إذا شاء ويهدي من يشاء ويضل من يشاء، وليس ذلك لأحد سواه، ولهذا قال تعالى: "إن تسمع من يؤمن بآياتنا فهم مسلمون" أي: خاضعون مستجيبون مطيعون، فأولئك هم الذين يسمعون الحق ويتبعونه وهذا حال المؤمنين، والأول مثل الكافرين". انظر: تفسير ابن كثير: ٣ / ٤٣٩.