Exegesis of Sūrah Ya Sīn

Question: Allah, the Exalted, says in Sūrah Ya Sīn:
“Yā Sīn.
By the wise Qur’an,
indeed you are one of the messengers,
on a straight path,
a revelation sent down by the All-Mighty, the Most Merciful,
so that you may warn a people whose forefathers were never warned, and so they are heedless.
The word has already proven true against most of them, so they will not believe.
We have placed shackles on their necks up to their chins, so their heads are forced up.
And We have set a barrier before them and a barrier behind them, and We have covered them so they do not see.” (Ya Sīn 36:1-9)

What is the meaning of these verses, and who are the people who “were never warned,” when Allah also says, “We certainly sent to every nation a messenger saying, ‘Worship Allah and shun false gods’” (al-Naḥl 16:36)?

Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.

“Yā Sīn”: the sound position is that this belongs to the disjointed letters that appear at the beginnings of certain sūrahs, and Allah—glorified and exalted—alone knows the purpose behind them.

“By the wise Qur’an”: this is an oath sworn by Allah, exalted is He, upon the Qur’an, which is His Speech and the verses He has revealed. The oath underscores the majesty of this Qur’an, for Allah has sworn by it.

“Al-ḥakīm (the wise)”: that is, perfected and free of deficiency or contradiction; falsehood does not approach it from before it or from behind.

“Indeed you are among the messengers”: this is the subject of the oath. Allah, exalted is He, swore by the wise Qur’an that Muḥammad is truly among the messengers. Thus Allah Himself affirms the prophethood of our Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ and swears to it, glorious and sublime is He.

“On a straight path”: meaning, O Messenger, you are upon a clear and sound way—the path of Allah, mighty and majestic.