Tafsir of Hud 11:70

This is a metonymy indicating that they were not extending their hands toward the food, which necessitates that they were not eating. It has been said that the negation is a metonymy based on the narration that they would poke the meat with arrows in their hands; however, there is no substance to this, and there is doubt in the heart regarding the authenticity of this narration, as such poking resembles mere play, and the angels—peace be upon them—are far removed from such behavior.

"Saw" (ra'a) is said to be intellectual (meaning: he knew), in which case the sentence "not reaching" is the second object. The obvious interpretation, however, is that it is visual, and the sentence is in the position of a circumstantial qualifier (hal). It contains evidence that it is part of the etiquette of a host to observe whether the guest is eating or not, though they mentioned that this should be done by glancing and stealing looks, not by staring, for that makes the guest feel inadequate in their eating.

"...he felt them to be strange..." (nakarahum), meaning: he felt them to be alien/repugnant.

"...and sensed..." (awjasa), meaning: he perceived and realized. It is also said: he harbored.

"...within himself fear of them" (khifah), meaning: fear. Its root is the state a person is in due to fear. Perhaps it was chosen for emphasis, as he intuited the matter despite his prior ignorance of them and his lack of knowledge regarding who they were—as indicated by the account in Surah Adh-Dhariyat, where he says: "Peace; [you are] a people unknown." They were angels, and he feared they had been sent to punish his people for a matter for which Allah had rebuked him.

"They said..."—when they saw the effect of that upon him—peace be upon him—or after Allah had informed them of it, or after he had said to them what is recorded in Surah Al-Hijr: "We are afraid of you." The literal meaning suggests that there was an actual utterance, not merely a potential one. It is also suggested that this was because they knew that his realizing they were angels would necessitate fear, as they do not descend except for punishment. It is said that Allah granted the angels, in an absolute sense, knowledge not granted to others, as He says: "They know what you do." In the Sahih, it is narrated that the angels said, "Lord, this servant of Yours wishes to commit a sin," and this is an argument that angels possess knowledge of the secrets of the heart. However, in authentic reports, there is evidence explicitly to the contrary, and neither the verse nor the report mentioned are fit as evidence for this claim.

Attributing the statement to them collectively indicates that they all said, "Do not fear." It is possible that the speaker was one of them, and frequently the action of a few is attributed to the whole in such contexts. The manifest meaning of His words: "We have been sent..." is an incipience that serves as a justification for the aforementioned prohibition, just as His words: "We give you good tidings..." is similarly an incipience, for their being sent to another people necessitates his safety from fear—meaning: "We have been sent with punishment to the people of Lot specifically."

It is understood from what we have mentioned that he—peace be upon him—sensed that they were angels, and this is the view of Ibn Abbas—may Allah be pleased with them both. One may cite as evidence their saying: "Do not fear; we have been sent..." For, as is clear to anyone with the slightest taste, this is only said to someone who recognizes them but does not know why they were sent, thus causing fear. As for the "strangeness" (inkar) implied by his feeling them to be alien, it is not the same as the "strangeness" mentioned in Adh-Dhariyat; thus, there is no contradiction in the "strangeness" there occurring before the food was brought, and here occurring after it.

Some have argued that he—peace be upon him—did not know they were angels until they said to him: "Do not fear; we have been sent..." The reason for his fear was that they did not partake of his food, so he thought they intended him harm, as that was the custom at the time. He—peace be upon him—was staying in an isolated area, away from his people. This is a narration from Ibn Abbas, extracted by Ishaq bin Bishr and Ibn Asakir. It is also said that the cause of his fear was that they entered without permission and at an inappropriate time.

The scholar Al-Tayyibi said: The truth is that the fear stemmed from the combination of them being "strange" and their abstaining from food, as known from the verses regarding this story. If he had known they were angels, he would not have brought food before them nor urged them to eat. They shifted to saying: "We have been sent to the people of Lot" to encompass all meanings so that the intent would be understood.

This contains a refutation of Al-Zamakhshari, whose statements differed in explaining the fear; he attributed it sometimes to his knowing they were angels, and other times to their not having partaken of his food. Perhaps he meant by that, knowledge gained after the food was brought. What Al-Tayyibi mentioned—that if he had known they were angels he would not have brought food—is not a valid objection; for it is possible he feared them after bringing it, first because they did not partake, and then, after intuiting that they were angels, he feared them because angels descend for punishment. Al-Zamakhshari cited one of the two fears in one place and the other elsewhere.

Some investigators have said that the explanation that they were angels is the one that allows His words: "Do not fear; we give you good tidings of a learned boy" to align with what precedes them. For if the fear were due to them being of a strange appearance, the justification with His words: "We give you good tidings" would not be appropriate. Rather, it is a justification for the prohibition of fear arising from them being angels sent for punishment. It is as if they said: "Do not fear; we give you good tidings of a learned boy, and we have been sent to the people of Lot." Thus, it arrived according to the brevity of the Quran by mentioning one of the justifications in one place and the other in another. There is no doubt that in Surah Al-Hijr there is brevity, by folding the narrative of the agitation, the hastening with the roasted calf, and their failure to partake of his food, because the purpose of the story there is to exhort and warn so as to provide a lesson through the state of Ibrahim—peace be upon him—and the glad tidings and honor he received, versus the state of the people of Lot—peace be upon him—and the evil and disgrace they were doomed to.

As for the Shaykh al-Islam—may mercy be upon him—he said: The apparent meaning is what was mentioned, but it is not so, for His words: "He said, 'What is your business, O messengers?' They said, 'We have been sent to a criminal people'" is explicit that they said it in response to his question—peace be upon him—and he abbreviated the speech, deeming that sufficient.

This was challenged by saying: It may be said that this does not invalidate the interpretation based on the manifest meaning, for it is possible they said that as a justification for the prohibition of fear. Yet, even if "sending them with punishment" was intended, it remains general; it was not presented in a way that reveals what kind of punishment it is—whether it is total annihilation or not. So he—peace be upon him—asked to verify that, as if he said: "O you who are sent to the people of Lot, what is this momentous affair you have been sent with?" They answered him with what includes an explanation of that, while pointing to the cause of the descent of that affair upon them. The conclusion is that the question in that verse is about the "business" (khitb)—the momentous affair. And there is nothing strange in the omission by the later [revelation] in reliance upon the earlier [revelation].