Anwar Al-Quran

Verses 12–18

49. Al-Hujuraat · The Inner Apartments

Madinan18 verses

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱجْتَنِبُوا۟ كَثِيرًۭا مِّنَ ٱلظَّنِّ إِنَّ بَعْضَ ٱلظَّنِّ إِثْمٌۭ ۖ وَلَا تَجَسَّسُوا۟ وَلَا يَغْتَب بَّعْضُكُم بَعْضًا ۚ أَيُحِبُّ أَحَدُكُمْ أَن يَأْكُلَ لَحْمَ أَخِيهِ مَيْتًۭا فَكَرِهْتُمُوهُ ۚ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ تَوَّابٌۭ رَّحِيمٌۭ

49:12O you who have faith! Avoid much suspicion; indeed some suspicions are sins. And do not spy on one another or backbite. Will any of you love to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it. Be wary of Allah; indeed Allah is all-clement, all-merciful.12

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَٰكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍۢ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَٰكُمْ شُعُوبًۭا وَقَبَآئِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ أَتْقَىٰكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌۭ

49:13O mankind! Indeed, We created you from a male and a female, and made you nations and tribes that you may identify yourselves with one another. Indeed the noblest of you in the sight of Allah is the most Godwary among you. Indeed Allah is all-knowing, all-aware.3

۞ قَالَتِ ٱلْأَعْرَابُ ءَامَنَّا ۖ قُل لَّمْ تُؤْمِنُوا۟ وَلَٰكِن قُولُوٓا۟ أَسْلَمْنَا وَلَمَّا يَدْخُلِ ٱلْإِيمَٰنُ فِى قُلُوبِكُمْ ۖ وَإِن تُطِيعُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ لَا يَلِتْكُم مِّنْ أَعْمَٰلِكُمْ شَيْـًٔا ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌۭ رَّحِيمٌ

49:14The Bedouins say, ‘We have faith.’ Say, ‘You do not have faith yet; rather, say, ‘‘We have embraced Islam,’’ for faith has not yet entered into your hearts. Yet if you obey Allah and His Apostle, He will not stint anything of [the reward of] your works. Indeed Allah is all-forgiving, all-merciful.’

إِنَّمَا ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَرْتَابُوا۟ وَجَٰهَدُوا۟ بِأَمْوَٰلِهِمْ وَأَنفُسِهِمْ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلصَّٰدِقُونَ

49:15The faithful are only those who have attained faith in Allah and His Apostle and then have never doubted, and who wage jihad with their possessions and their persons in the way of Allah. It is they who are the truthful.

قُلْ أَتُعَلِّمُونَ ٱللَّهَ بِدِينِكُمْ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمٌۭ

49:16Say, ‘Will you inform Allah about your faith while Allah knows whatever there is in the heavens and whatever there is in the earth, and Allah has knowledge of all things?’

يَمُنُّونَ عَلَيْكَ أَنْ أَسْلَمُوا۟ ۖ قُل لَّا تَمُنُّوا۟ عَلَىَّ إِسْلَٰمَكُم ۖ بَلِ ٱللَّهُ يَمُنُّ عَلَيْكُمْ أَنْ هَدَىٰكُمْ لِلْإِيمَٰنِ إِن كُنتُمْ صَٰدِقِينَ

49:17They count it as a favour to you that they have embraced Islam. Say, ‘Do not count your embracing of Islam as a favour to me. No, it is Allah who has done you a favour in that He has guided you to faith, if you are truthful [in your claim].

إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَعْلَمُ غَيْبَ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ بَصِيرٌۢ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ

49:18Indeed Allah knows the Unseen of the heavens and the earth, and Allah watches what you do.’

Tafsir

Commentary on this passage

Verse 12

1.May Allah destroy the people who have invented and promoted so many instruments of espionage that a neighbour sees nothing wrong in spying on the private activities of his neighbour with a binocular and considers it to be a sign of advanced societies. They have made backbiting a means of warming up social gatherings. Thus man has become a maneater forever. Indeed one who has no regard for his brother cannot be expected to have any mercy for others.

Verse 13

2.In Islam the standard of superiority and greatness is not nationality or tribe, but it is piety and character. Where the son of Nuh (a.s.) is drowned and Salman is admitted among the Ahle Bayt (a.s.). Those who feel superior on the basis of their lineage must derive a lesson from this ayat and understand the basis of distinctions in Islam.

Verse 15

3.Those who doubted in prophethood after the Treaty of Hudaibiya must examine their faith and the other people also keep the standard of the ayat in mind and decide about faith and Islam.

Verse 17

4.Unfortunately though Islam guided them towards faith these people stopped at Islam and on top of that they began to behave as if they have done a favour on the Almighty by accepting Islam while humanity and courtesy demanded that they have acknowledged the favours of the Almighty and reached upto faith and they should not have doubts in any other belief and should have sacrificed their wealth and lives in the way of Allah. They should neither have practiced miserliness nor fled from the battlefield.

Footnotes

Explanations of words and phrases in these verses

  1. Benefit

    It should be clear that all these teachings are for the creation of a righteous society and for the protection of wealth, life and honour. Therefore if at any time there is no possibility of reforming the society without spying this is not only correct but necessary and the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.s.) had himself appointed such people who used to gather intelligence.

  2. 1

    When both the negative and positive aspects of a thing are known it is said to be doubtful and when only one aspect attracts, that aspect is called Zann (conjecture) and when the second aspect is totally eliminated the thing reaches certainly and it is compared to absoluteness. Zann can be for goodness and the expecting of bad is denounced and that is why some ‘doubts’ are said to be sin.

  3. 2

    Tajassu - It is to search for the defects of someone else and to find out his secrets and gheebat is to relate the known defects to others and if that person did not possess this defect it would have amount to be an allegation (Bohtan). Gheebat is behind ones back and through it a personality is injured. That is why it is compared to consuming the flesh of a dead brother, which is not liked by anyone.

  4. 3

    Allah created people into different races and groups so that they would know each other and there would be co-operation among them at various levels and man has made it the very basis of tribal and communal strife. May Allah guide these people and protect the world from their mischief.