Tafsir al-Sadi - Abd al-Rahman al-Sadi’ - (691)

Tafsir al-SadiAbd al-Rahman al-Sadi’

(42–43) “They swore by Allah their most solemn oaths that, if a warner came to them, they would be better guided than any one of the nations. Yet when a warner came to them, it only increased their aversion—* out of arrogance in the land and evil scheming. But evil schemes engulf none but their own perpetrators. Are they awaiting anything other than the way of the former peoples? You will never find any change in Allah’s established way, nor will you ever find any alteration in Allah’s established way.”

That is, those who denied you, O Messenger of Allah, swore oaths to which they lent the greatest solemnity: “If a warner came to them, they would be better guided than any one of the nations”—that is, better guided than the Jews and Christians [the People of the Scriptures]. Yet they did not honor those oaths and pledges.

“When a warner came to them,” they were not guided and did not become better guided than any of the nations. Indeed, they did not even remain at their previous level of misguidance; rather, “it only increased their aversion,” adding still more misguidance, transgression, and stubborn defiance.

Their aforementioned oath was not motivated by sound intent or a desire for the truth—for had it been, they would have been enabled to attain it. Rather, it stemmed from arrogance in the land toward other people and toward the truth, as well as from the specious show they made in their speech. Through it, they sought to scheme and deceive, presenting themselves as people of truth who were eager to seek it, so that the credulous would be deceived and those who followed others would fall in behind them.

“But evil schemes”—whose intended purpose is evil and whose outcome and objective are wicked and false—“engulf none but their own perpetrators.” Their scheming therefore recoiled upon them. Through these claims and oaths, Allah made clear to His servants that they were lying falsifiers. Their disgrace thus became evident, their shame was exposed, and their evil intent was revealed. Their plotting recoiled upon them, and Allah turned their scheme back against them.

Nothing remained for them but to await the punishment that would descend upon them. This is Allah’s established way concerning the former peoples, which is neither replaced nor changed: everyone who persists in wrongdoing, stubborn defiance, and arrogance toward Allah’s servants will have His retribution descend upon him and His blessings withdrawn from him. Let these people, then, await the fate that befell those before them.

﴿٤٢ - ٤٣﴾ ﴿وَأَقْسَمُوا بِاللَّهِ جَهْدَ أَيْمَانِهِمْ لَئِنْ جَاءَهُمْ نَذِيرٌ لَيَكُونُنَّ أَهْدَى مِنْ إِحْدَى الأمَمِ فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ نَذِيرٌ مَا زَادَهُمْ إِلا نُفُورًا * اسْتِكْبَارًا فِي الأرْضِ وَمَكْرَ السَّيِّئِ وَلا يَحِيقُ الْمَكْرُ السَّيِّئُ إِلا بِأَهْلِهِ فَهَلْ يَنْظُرُونَ إِلا سُنَّةَ الأوَّلِينَ فَلَنْ تَجِدَ لِسُنَّةِ اللَّهِ تَبْدِيلا وَلَنْ تَجِدَ لِسُنَّةِ اللَّهِ تَحْوِيلا﴾ . أي وأقسم هؤلاء، الذين كذبوك يا رسول الله، قسما اجتهدوا فيه بالأيمان الغليظة. ﴿لَئِنْ جَاءَهُمْ نَذِيرٌ لَيَكُونُنَّ أَهْدَى مِنْ إِحْدَى الأمَمِ﴾ أي: أهدى من اليهود والنصارى [أهل الكتب] ، فلم يفوا بتلك الإقسامات والعهود. ﴿فَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ نَذِيرٌ﴾ لم يهتدوا، ولم يصيروا أهدى من إحدى الأمم، بل لم يدوموا على ضلالهم الذي كان، بل ﴿مَا زَادَهُمْ﴾ ذلك ﴿إِلا نُفُورًا﴾ وزيادة ضلال وبغي وعناد. وليس إقسامهم المذكور، لقصد حسن، وطلب للحق، وإلا لوفقوا له، ولكنه صادر عن استكبار في الأرض على الخلق، وعلى الحق، وبهرجة في كلامهم هذا، يريدون به المكر والخداع، وأنهم أهل الحق، الحريصون على طلبه، فيغتر به المغترون، ويمشي خلفهم المقتدون. ﴿وَلا يَحِيقُ الْمَكْرُ السَّيِّئُ﴾ الذي مقصوده مقصود سيئ، ومآله وما يرمي إليه سيئ باطل ﴿إِلا بِأَهْلِهِ﴾ فمكرهم إنما يعود عليهم، وقد أبان الله لعباده في هذه المقالات وتلك الإقسامات، أنهم كذبة في ذلك مزورون، فاستبان خزيهم، وظهرت فضيحتهم، وتبين قصدهم السيئ، فعاد مكرهم في نحورهم، ورد الله كيدهم في صدورهم. فلم يبق لهم إلا انتظار ما يحل بهم من العذاب، الذي هو سنة الله في الأولين، التي لا تبدل ولا تغير، أن كل من سار في الظلم والعناد والاستكبار على العباد، أن يحل به نقمته، وتسلب عنه نعمته، فَلْيَتَرَّقب هؤلاء، ما فعل بأولئك.