Tafsir al-Baghawi - Al-Baghawi - (2/107)

Tafsir al-BaghawiAl-Baghawi

“They remembered Allah”: that is, they remembered Allah’s threat and that Allah would call them to account. Muqatil ibn Hayyan said: “They remembered Allah verbally when committing sins.”

“And sought forgiveness for their sins—and who forgives sins except Allah?” That is: Does anyone forgive sins except Allah?

“And they did not persist in what they had done”: that is, they did not continue or remain steadfast upon it; rather, they repented, turned back to Allah, and sought forgiveness. The basic meaning of persistence is remaining firmly upon something. Al-Hasan said: “A servant’s deliberate commission of a sin is persistence until he repents.”

Al-Suddi said: “Persistence is to remain silent and abandon seeking forgiveness.” Abd al-Wahid al-Mulayhi informed us; Abu Mansur al-Sam'ani informed us; Abu Ja'far al-Rayani informed us; Humayd ibn Zanjawayh informed us; Yahya ibn Yahya told us; Abd al-Hamid ibn Abd al-Rahman told us, from Uthman ibn Waqid al-Umari, from Abu Nusayrah, who said: “I met a client of Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, and said to him, ‘Did you hear anything from Abu Bakr?’ He said, ‘Yes. I heard him say that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “Whoever seeks forgiveness is not persisting in sin, even if he returns to it seventy times in a day.”’” (1)

“And they know”: Ibn Abbas, al-Hasan, Muqatil, and al-Kalbi said: They know that it is an act of disobedience. It was also said: They know that persistence is harmful. Al-Dahhak said: They know that Allah possesses the power to forgive sins. Al-Husayn ibn al-Fadl said: They know that they have a Lord who forgives sins. And it was said: They know that Allah is not overburdened by pardoning sins, even if they are many. It was also said: They know that, if they seek forgiveness, they will be forgiven.

“Those—their reward is forgiveness from their Lord, and gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein forever. Excellent is the reward of those who do righteous deeds.” (136)

“Those—their reward is forgiveness from their Lord, and gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein forever. Excellent is the reward of those who do righteous deeds.”

(1) Abu Dawud recorded it in al-Witr, under “Seeking Forgiveness,” 2:150; and al-Tirmidhi in al-Da'awat, under “Various Hadiths on Supplications,” 10:4. He said: “This is a gharib hadith; we know it only through the hadith of Abu Nusayrah, and its chain is not strong.” It was also recorded by al-Marwazi in Musnad Abi Bakr al-Siddiq, nos. 121-122, pp. 155-156. Its chain also contains an unknown narrator, namely Abu Bakr’s freedman. Al-Tabari recorded it in his Tafsir, 7:225-226. Abu Ya'la and al-Bazzar also recorded it. Al-Bazzar said: “We know it only through the hadith of Abu Bakr by this route; Abu Nusayrah and his shaykh are unknown.” Ibn Hajar said: “It has a supporting report, recorded by al-Tabarani in al-Du'a from Ibn Abbas.” See al-Kafi al-Shaf, p. 32. Ibn Kathir mentioned it in his Tafsir, 1:409, and said: “It was narrated by Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, and al-Bazzar in his Musnad, through Uthman ibn Waqid, whom Yahya ibn Ma'in declared trustworthy, and his shaykh Abu Bakr al-Maqasiti, whose name was Salim ibn Ubayd, whom Imam Ahmad and Ibn Hibban declared trustworthy. As for the statement of Ali ibn al-Madini and al-Tirmidhi that the chain of this hadith is not particularly strong, it apparently refers to the unknown status of Abu Bakr’s freedman. Yet the unknown status of someone like him does not detract from the report, for he was a senior Tabi'i, and his association with Abu Bakr is sufficient.”

﴿ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ﴾ أَيْ: ذَكَرُوا وَعِيدَ اللَّهِ، وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ سَائِلُهُمْ، وَقَالَ مُقَاتِلُ بْنُ حَيَّانَ: ذَكَرُوا اللَّهَ بِاللِّسَانِ عِنْدَ الذُّنُوبِ. ﴿فَاسْتَغْفَرُوا لِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَمَنْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ﴾ أَيْ: وَهَلْ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ. ﴿وَلَمْ يُصِرُّوا عَلَى مَا فَعَلُوا﴾ أَيْ: لَمْ يُقِيمُوا وَلَمْ يَثْبُتُوا عَلَيْهِ وَلَكِنْ تَابُوا وَأَنَابُوا وَاسْتَغْفَرُوا، وَأَصْلُ الْإِصْرَارِ: الثَّبَاتُ عَلَى الشَّيْءِ وَقَالَ الْحَسَنُ: إِتْيَانُ الْعَبْدِ ذَنْبًا عَمْدًا إِصْرَارٌ حَتَّى يَتُوبَ. وَقَالَ السُّدِّيُّ: الْإِصْرَارُ: السُّكُوتُ وَتَرْكُ الِاسْتِغْفَارَ. أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ الْمُلَيْحِيُّ، أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو مَنْصُورٍ السَّمْعَانِيُّ، أَخْبَرَنَا أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ الرَّيَّانِيُّ، أَخْبَرَنَا حُمَيْدُ بْنُ زَنْجُوَيْهِ، أَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ يَحْيَى، أَنَا عَبْدُ الْحَمِيدِ بْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ، عَنْ عُثْمَانَ بْنِ وَاقِدٍ الْعُمَرِيِّ، عَنْ أَبِي نُصَيْرَةَ، قَالَ: لَقِيتُ مَوْلًى لِأَبِي بَكْرٍ ﵁ فَقُلْتُ لَهُ: أَسَمِعْتَ مِنْ أَبِي بَكْرٍ شَيْئًا؟ قَالَ: نَعَمْ سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ: قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ﷺ: " مَا أَصَرَّ مَنِ اسْتَغْفَرَ، وَإِنْ عَادَ فِي الْيَوْمِ سَبْعِينَ مَرَّةً" (١) . ﴿وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ﴾ قَالَ ابْنُ عَبَّاسٍ وَالْحَسَنُ وَمُقَاتِلٌ وَالْكَلْبِيُّ: وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهَا مَعْصِيَةٌ، وَقِيلَ: وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ الْإِصْرَارَ ضَارٌّ، وَقَالَ الضَّحَّاكُ: وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَمْلِكُ مَغْفِرَةَ الذُّنُوبِ، وَقَالَ الْحُسَيْنُ بْنُ الْفَضْلِ وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ لَهُمْ رَبًّا يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ، وَقِيلَ: وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَتَعَاظَمُهُ الْعَفْوُ عَنِ الذُّنُوبِ وَإِنْ كَثُرَتْ وَقِيلَ: وَهُمْ يَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُمْ إِنِ اسْتَغْفَرُوا غُفِرَ لَهُمْ. ﴿أُولَئِكَ جَزَاؤُهُمْ مَغْفِرَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَجَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا وَنِعْمَ أَجْرُ الْعَامِلِينَ (١٣٦) ﴾ ﴿أُولَئِكَ جَزَاؤُهُمْ مَغْفِرَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَجَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا وَنِعْمَ أَجْرُ الْعَامِلِينَ﴾

(١) أخرجه أبو داود في الوتر في الاستغفار: ٢ / ١٥٠ والترمذي في الدعوات باب أحاديث شتى في الدعوات: ١٠ / ٤ وقال: هذا حديث غريب إنما نعرفه من حديث أبي نصيرة وليس إسناده بالقوي، وأخرجه المروزي في مسند أبي بكر، الصديق برقم (١٢١ - ١٢٢) ص ١٥٥ - ١٥٦. والحديث فيه أيضا مجهول وهو مولى أبي بكر وأخرجه الطبري في التفسير: ٧ / ٢٢٥ - ٢٢٦. وأخرجه أبو يعلى والبزار وقال: البزار: لا نحفظه إلا من حديث أبي بكر بهذا الطريق وأبو نصيرة وشيخه لا يعرفان قال ابن حجر: له شاهد أخرجه الطبراني في الدعاء من حديث ابن عباس انظر: الكافي الشاف ص ٣٢. وذكره ابن كثير في التفسير: ١ / ٤٠٩ وقال: "رواه أبو دواد والترمذي والبزار في مسنده من حديث عثمان بن واقد - وقد وثقه يحيى ابن معين به - وشيخه أبو بكر المقاسطي واسمه سالم بن عبيد: وثقه الإمام أحمد وابن حبان. وقول على بن المديني والترمذي: ليس إسناد هذا الحديث بذاك. فالظاهر: أنه لأجل جهالة مولى أبي بكر. ولكن جهالة مثله لا تضر لأنه تابعي كبير. ويكفيه نسبته إلى أبي بكر.