Tafsir al-Sadi - Abd al-Rahman al-Sadi’ - (442)

Tafsir al-SadiAbd al-Rahman al-Sadi’

(51–55) “Allah says, ‘Do not take two gods for worship. He is only One God, so fear Me alone. * To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and the earth, and everlasting devotion is due to Him alone. Will you then fear anyone other than Allah? * Whatever blessing you have is from Allah. Then, whenever adversity touches you, it is to Him that you cry out. * Then, when He removes the adversity from you, a group among you at once associates others with their Lord.’”

Allah Most High commands that He alone be worshipped, without any partner, and cites His sole bestowal of blessings and His oneness as proof of this. He says, “Do not take two gods for worship”—that is, do not assign Him a partner in His divinity. “He is only One God,” unique in His magnificent attributes and alone in all His acts. Just as He is One in His Essence, names, attributes, and acts, you must single Him out in worship. Hence He says, “So fear Me alone.” That is, fear Me, obey My commands, and avoid what I have forbidden, without associating any created being with Me, for they all belong to Allah Most High and are under His ownership.

“To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and the earth, and everlasting devotion is due to Him alone.” That is, religion, worship, and humble submission at all times belong to Allah alone. All created beings must devote these sincerely to Allah and fully embrace servitude to Him. “Will you then fear anyone other than Allah,” whether from among the inhabitants of the earth or the heavens? They possess no power either to harm or benefit you. Allah alone bestows gifts and shows kindness. “Whatever blessing you have,” outward or inward, “is from Allah”; no one shares with Him in granting it. “Then, whenever adversity touches you,” whether poverty, illness, or hardship, “it is to Him that you cry out.” That is, you raise your voices in supplication and humble entreaty, knowing that no one but Him can remove harm and hardship. Thus, He who alone grants you what you love and averts from you what you hate is the only One who deserves to be worshipped.

Yet many people wrong themselves and deny Allah’s blessing upon them. Once He has delivered them from hardship and they find themselves in ease, they associate with Him some of His needy creatures. Hence He says:

﴿٥١ - ٥٥﴾ ﴿وَقَالَ اللَّهُ لا تَتَّخِذُوا إِلَهَيْنِ اثْنَيْنِ إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ فَإِيَّايَ فَارْهَبُونِ * وَلَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأرْضِ وَلَهُ الدِّينُ وَاصِبًا أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَتَّقُونَ * وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ فَمِنَ اللَّهِ ثُمَّ إِذَا مَسَّكُمُ الضُّرُّ فَإِلَيْهِ تَجْأَرُونَ * ثُمَّ إِذَا كَشَفَ الضُّرَّ عَنْكُمْ إِذَا فَرِيقٌ مِنْكُمْ بِرَبِّهِمْ يُشْرِكُونَ﴾ . يأمر تعالى بعبادته وحده لا شريك له، ويستدل على ذلك بانفراده بالنعم والوحدانية فقال: ﴿لا تَتَّخِذُوا إِلَهَيْنِ اثْنَيْنِ﴾ أي: تجعلون له شريكا في إلهيته، وهو ﴿إِنَّمَا هُوَ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ﴾ متوحد في الأوصاف العظيمة متفرد بالأفعال كلها. فكما أنه الواحد في ذاته وأسمائه ونعوته وأفعاله، فلتوحِّدوه في عبادته، ولهذا قال: ﴿فَإِيَّايَ فَارْهَبُونِ﴾ أي: خافوني وامتثلوا أمري، واجتنبوا نهيي من غير أن تشركوا بي شيئا من المخلوقات، فإنها كلها لله تعالى مملوكة. ﴿وَلَهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأرْضِ وَلَهُ الدِّينُ وَاصِبًا﴾ أي: الدين والعبادة والذل في جميع الأوقات لله وحده على الخلق أن يخلصوه لله وينصبغوا بعبوديته. ﴿أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَتَّقُونَ﴾ من أهل الأرض أو أهل السماوات فإنهم لا يملكون لكم ضرا ولا نفعا، والله المنفرد بالعطاء والإحسان ﴿وَمَا بِكُمْ مِنْ نِعْمَةٍ﴾ ظاهرة وباطنة ﴿فَمِنَ اللَّهِ﴾ لا أحد يشركه فيها، ﴿ثُمَّ إِذَا مَسَّكُمُ الضُّرُّ﴾ من فقر ومرض وشدة ﴿فَإِلَيْهِ تَجْأَرُونَ﴾ أي: تضجون بالدعاء والتضرع لعلمكم أنه لا يدفع الضر والشدة إلا هو، فالذي انفرد بإعطائكم ما تحبون، وصرف ما تكرهون، هو الذي لا تنبغي العبادة إلا له وحده. ولكن كثيرا من الناس يظلمون أنفسهم، ويجحدون نعمة الله عليهم إذا نجاهم من الشدة فصاروا في حال الرخاء أشركوا به بعض مخلوقاته الفقيرة، ولهذا قال: