Tafsir al-Sadi - Abd al-Rahman al-Sadi’ - (804)

Tafsir al-SadiAbd al-Rahman al-Sadi’

(12–15) “Before them, the people of Noah denied the truth, as did the people of al-Rass and Thamūd, * as well as Ād, Pharaoh, and the people of Lot, * the people of the Thicket, and the people of Tubba. All of them denied the messengers, so My warning came to pass. * Were We wearied by the first creation? Rather, they are confused about a new creation.”

That is, the nations before them denied their noble messengers and eminent prophets. Noah was denied by his people; [Thamūd denied Sālih] (1); Ād denied Hūd; the people of Lot denied Lot; the people of the Thicket denied Shuayb; and the people of Tubba denied their messenger. Tubba was the title of every king who ruled Yemen in pre-Islamic times (2). The people of Tubba denied the messenger whom Allah sent to them. Allah has not informed us who that messenger was or which of the Tubba kings he lived under. This was—Allah knows best—because the matter was well known among the Arabs, since those people were pure Arabs whose history was not obscure to them, particularly an event as momentous as this.

All these peoples denied the messengers Allah sent to them, and so Allah’s warning and punishment fell upon them. You who deny Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, are no better than they were, nor ⦗805⦘ were their messengers dearer to Allah than your Messenger. Therefore, beware of committing their sin, lest what befell them also befall you.

Allah Most High then cited the first creation—namely, the first origination (3)—as proof of the second creation, which is the creation of the Hereafter.

Just as (4) He brought them into existence from nothing, He will restore them after their death and after they have become [dust] and decayed remains. He said: “Were We wearied,” meaning: Were We incapable, and did Our power prove inadequate, “by the first creation?” That is not so; We were neither incapable nor wearied by it. Nor are they in doubt about that. Rather, “they are confused about a new creation.” This is what they doubted and found perplexing, even though there is no basis for confusion, for restoring creation is easier than originating it. As Allah Most High says: “He is the One who originates creation and then restores it, and that is easier for Him.”

(1) An addition from the margin of B. (2) This is the reading in B; A reads: “and the people of Tubba—Tubba was the title given to every king who ruled Yemen in former times.” (3) B reads: “the first creation.” (4) This is the reading in B; A reads: “and that, just as He…”

﴿١٢-١٥﴾ ﴿كَذَّبَتْ قَبْلَهُمْ قَوْمُ نُوحٍ وَأَصْحَابُ الرَّسِّ وَثَمُودُ * وَعَادٌ وَفِرْعَوْنُ وَإِخْوَانُ لُوطٍ * وَأَصْحَابُ الأيْكَةِ وَقَوْمُ تُبَّعٍ كُلٌّ كَذَّبَ الرُّسُلَ فَحَقَّ وَعِيدِ * أَفَعَيِينَا بِالْخَلْقِ الأوَّلِ بَلْ هُمْ فِي لَبْسٍ مِنْ خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍ﴾ . أي: كذب الذين من قبلهم من الأمم، رسلهم الكرام، وأنبياءهم العظام، كـ "نوح" كذبه قومه، [وثمود كذبوا صالحًا] (١) وعاد، كذبوا "هودًا " وإخوان لوط كذبوا "لوطًا " وأصحاب الأيكة كذبوا "شعيبًا " وقوم تبع، وتبع كل ملك ملك اليمن في الزمان السابق قبل الإسلام (٢) فقوم تبع كذبوا الرسول، الذي أرسله الله إليهم، ولم يخبرنا الله من هو ذلك الرسول، وأي تبع من التبابعة، لأنه -والله أعلم- كان مشهورًا عند العرب لكونهم من العرب العرباء، الذين لا تخفى ماجرياتهم على العرب خصوصًا مثل هذه الحادثة العظيمة. فهؤلاء كلهم كذبوا الرسل، الذين أرسلهم الله إليهم، فحق عليهم وعيد الله وعقوبته، ولستم أيها المكذبون لمحمد ﷺ، خيرًا منهم، ولا ⦗٨٠٥⦘ رسلهم أكرم على الله من رسولكم، فاحذروا جرمهم، لئلا يصيبكم ما أصابهم. ثم استدل تعالى بالخلق الأول -وهو المنشأ الأول (٣) - على الخلق الآخر، وهو النشأة الآخرة. فكما (٤) أنه الذي أوجدهم بعد العدم، كذلك يعيدهم بعد موتهم وصيرورتهم إلى [الرفات] والرمم، فقال: ﴿أَفَعَيِينَا﴾ أي: أفعجزنا وضعفت قدرتنا ﴿بِالْخَلْقِ الأوَّلِ﴾ ؟ ليس الأمر كذلك، فلم نعجز ونعي عن ذلك، وليسوا في شك من ذلك، وإنما هم في لبس من خلق جديد هذا الذي شكوا فيه، والتبس عليهم أمره، مع أنه لا محل للبس فيه، لأن الإعادة، أهون من الابتداء كما قال تعالى: ﴿وَهُوَ الَّذِي يَبْدَأُ الْخَلْقَ ثُمَّ يُعِيدُهُ وَهُوَ أَهْوَنُ عَلَيْهِ﴾ .

(١) زيادة من هامش ب. (٢) كذا في ب، وفي أ: وقوم تبع وهو كل ملك ملك اليمن في الزمان السابق يقال له تبع. (٣) في ب: النشأة الأولى. (٤) كذا في ب، وفي أ: وأنه كما أنه.