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16. An-Nahl

The Bee · Meccan · 128 ayahs

سُورَةُ النَّحۡلِ

Reading Tafsir al-Jalalayn by Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli & Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti

Ayahs 1–10 of 128

بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

1

أَتَىٰٓ أَمْرُ ٱللَّهِ فَلَا تَسْتَعْجِلُوهُ ۚ سُبْحَٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَٰلَىٰ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ

The command of Allah is coming, so be not impatient for it. Exalted is He and high above what they associate with Him.

When the idolaters found chastisement slow in coming the following was revealed God’s commandment has come that is the Hour has come this verb atā is in the past tense because it means that the event therein described will come to pass in other words it God’s commandment is close at hand so do not seek to hasten it do not demand it before its due time for it will come to pass without doubt. Glory be to Him — an affirmation of His transcendence — and exalted be He above what they associate with Him in the way of others.

2

يُنَزِّلُ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ بِٱلرُّوحِ مِنْ أَمْرِهِۦ عَلَىٰ مَن يَشَآءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِۦٓ أَنْ أَنذِرُوٓا۟ أَنَّهُۥ لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّآ أَنَا۠ فَٱتَّقُونِ

He sends down the angels, with the inspiration of His command, upon whom He wills of His servants, [telling them], "Warn that there is no deity except Me; so fear Me."

He sends down the angels namely Gabriel with the Spirit with the Revelation of His command by His will to whomever He will of His servants and these are the prophets saying that an is explicative Warn threaten the disbelievers with chastisement and make them aware that there is no God save Me so fear Me fear Me.

3

خَلَقَ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ بِٱلْحَقِّ ۚ تَعَٰلَىٰ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ

He created the heavens and earth in truth. High is He above what they associate with Him.

He created the heavens and the earth with the Truth that is with the purpose of manifesting truth. Exalted be He above what they associate with Him in the way of idols.

4

خَلَقَ ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ مِن نُّطْفَةٍۢ فَإِذَا هُوَ خَصِيمٌۭ مُّبِينٌۭ

He created man from a sperm-drop; then at once, he is a clear adversary.

He created man from a drop of fluid of sperm until He makes him strong and tough yet behold! he is disputatious extremely quarrelsome openly making this disputatiousness clear in his rejection of resurrection contending Who shall revive the bones when they are decayed? Q. 3678.

5

وَٱلْأَنْعَٰمَ خَلَقَهَا ۗ لَكُمْ فِيهَا دِفْءٌۭ وَمَنَٰفِعُ وَمِنْهَا تَأْكُلُونَ

And the grazing livestock He has created for you; in them is warmth and [numerous] benefits, and from them you eat.

And the cattle camels cows and sheep al-an‘āma ‘cattle’ is in the accusative because of the implied verb governing it as explained by the following words khalaqahā lakum He created them for you you being included among the number of mankind. In them there is warmth that by which you keep warm in the way of clothes and garments taken from their hairs and wools as well as other uses such as their offspring milk and for you to ride and of them you eat the adverbial clause wa-minhā ‘of them’ precedes the verb for the purpose of establishing harmony with the end-rhyme of the Qur’ānic verse;

6

وَلَكُمْ فِيهَا جَمَالٌ حِينَ تُرِيحُونَ وَحِينَ تَسْرَحُونَ

And for you in them is [the enjoyment of] beauty when you bring them in [for the evening] and when you send them out [to pasture].

and for you there is in them beauty adornment when you bring them home to rest when you return them to their resting places in the evening and when you drive them forth to pasture when you bring them out to the grazing pastures in the morning.

7

وَتَحْمِلُ أَثْقَالَكُمْ إِلَىٰ بَلَدٍۢ لَّمْ تَكُونُوا۟ بَٰلِغِيهِ إِلَّا بِشِقِّ ٱلْأَنفُسِ ۚ إِنَّ رَبَّكُمْ لَرَءُوفٌۭ رَّحِيمٌۭ

And they carry your loads to a land you could not have reached except with difficulty to yourselves. Indeed, your Lord is Kind and Merciful.

And they bear your burdens your baggage to a land which you could not reach without being on camel-back save with great trouble to yourselves save by straining them. Indeed your Lord is Gentle Merciful to you in having created these for you.

8

وَٱلْخَيْلَ وَٱلْبِغَالَ وَٱلْحَمِيرَ لِتَرْكَبُوهَا وَزِينَةًۭ ۚ وَيَخْلُقُ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

And [He created] the horses, mules and donkeys for you to ride and [as] adornment. And He creates that which you do not know.

And He created horses and mules and asses that you may ride them and for adornment wa-zīnatan is an object denoting reason; the use of both of these reasons ‘to ride’ and ‘for adornment’ as illustrations of God’s graces does not preclude that they may have been created for other purposes such as for consumption in the case of horses — which is established as lawful by a hadīth in both Sahīhs of Bukhārī and Muslim; and He creates what you do not know of marvelous and strange things.

9

وَعَلَى ٱللَّهِ قَصْدُ ٱلسَّبِيلِ وَمِنْهَا جَآئِرٌۭ ۚ وَلَوْ شَآءَ لَهَدَىٰكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

And upon Allah is the direction of the [right] way, and among the various paths are those deviating. And if He willed, He could have guided you all.

And God’s is the direction of the way that is to point out the straight path and some of them that is the paths are deviant swerving away from straightness. And had He willed to guide you He would have guided you to seek the way all so that you would be rightly guided of your own choice.

10

هُوَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنزَلَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءًۭ ۖ لَّكُم مِّنْهُ شَرَابٌۭ وَمِنْهُ شَجَرٌۭ فِيهِ تُسِيمُونَ

It is He who sends down rain from the sky; from it is drink and from it is foliage in which you pasture [animals].

He it is Who sends down water from the heaven whence you have drink for you to drink and whence are trees which grow because of this water whereat you let your animals graze.

Commentary: Tafsir al-Jalalayn by Jalal al-Din al-Mahalli & Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti. Qur'an text and translation via AlQuran Cloud.