Tafsir of Ar-Ra'd 13:41

Then, He—Glory be to Him—comforted His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) with the dawn of victory, saying, Exalted is His Majesty:

(Do they not see...) The interrogation denotes denunciation, and the waw (and) is a conjunction to an implied element required by the context—meaning: Have they denied the descent of what We promised them, or have they doubted it? Or, have they not looked into that and seen:

(that We come to the land)—meaning the land of the disbelievers—(reducing it from its borders?)—from its sides—by conquering it bit by bit, annexing it to the Abode of Islam, and removing its people through killing, captivity, and expulsion. Is this not a prelude to that? Similar to this verse is His saying: (Do they not see that We come to the land, reducing it from its borders? Are they the victors?) This has been narrated from Ibn Abbas, al-Hasan, al-Dahhak, Atiyyah, al-Suddi, and others.

It is also narrated from Ibn Abbas—and al-Hakim recorded it from him and authenticated it—that the "reduction of the land" is the death of its notables and leaders, and the departure of its scholars. In a narration from Abu Hurayrah, he elevates it to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), limiting it to the latter. It is also narrated from Mujahid that the intended meaning of "the land" is its genus, and "the borders" (al-atraf), as has been said, means the "nobles" (al-ashraf). The arrival of this term with this meaning is reported from Tha'lab, and al-Wahidi cited as evidence for it the verse of al-Farazdaq: And ask regarding us and you, when the borders (atraf) of every tribe arrive, as to who protects. Close to this is the statement of Ibn al-A'rabi: "The tarf and al-tarf is the noble man." And the saying of some: "The tarf of everything is its best part." They include in this the saying of Ali—may Allah ennoble his face—: "Knowledge is like valleys; in whichever valley you take from it, you have lost, so take from everything its tarf (best part)." Ibn Atiyyah said: He intended the choice parts. You know that the more apparent meaning is "sides."

Al-Wahidi claimed that interpreting the verse according to the former (geographical conquest) is what is appropriate, but the Imam objected by saying that it is possible to argue for the appropriateness of the second, and the formulation of the verse upon it would be: Do they not see that We bring about changes in the world—ruin after prosperity, death after life, humiliation after honor, and deficiency after perfection? These are changes perceived by the senses, so what makes them feel secure that Allah—Exalted be He—will not turn the matter against them, making them humiliated after they were honored, and conquered after they were conquerors? It is as you see.

It is also said: Its reduction is the destruction of those who perished among the nations before the Quraysh and the ruin of their lands; meaning, do they not see the destruction of those before them and the ruin of their dwellings, so how can they feel secure from that which befell them? The first (conquest) is also more consistent with the context than that. There is no doubt about the magnificence in the expression "coming," which signals a powerful seizing, as in His saying: (And We shall turn to whatever deeds they did and make them scattered dust.) In the Shahabi marginalia, the meaning is: Our command and Our punishment come to it. The clause "reducing it" is in the position of a state (hal) from the subject of "coming" or from its object. Al-Dahhak read it as nunaqqisuha (with emphasis), from the transitive naqasa (to reduce) via the doubling of the letter, as stated in al-Bahr.

(And Allah judges) whatever He wills, however He wills. He has already judged for you and your followers glory and success, and against your enemies and opponents, defeat and humiliation, just as those with vision witness from the signs and evidences. The shift from the first-person ("We come") to the third-person ("Allah judges") and basing the judgment on the Majestic Name (Allah) to denote magnificence, cultivate awe, and realize the content of the news by pointing to the cause—this is something whose excellence is not hidden. It is a parenthetical clause brought to confirm the purport of what preceded it.

His saying—Glory be to Him—(there is no repeller of His judgment) is also a parenthesis to explain the high status of His judgment—Majestic is He. It is said: It is in the accusative case as a state (hal), as if it were said: And Allah judges, with His judgment being effective, just as you say: "Zayd came, with no turban on his head, nor a cap"—meaning bare-headed. This is the view of al-Zamakhshari. It is said that he interpreted the nominal sentence as a single concept because its detachment from the waw (when occurring as a hal) is not eloquent according to him. It is not hidden from you that considering it a parenthetical clause is better and higher.

A mu'aqqib (repeller) is one who returns to a thing to invalidate it. Its reality is one who follows up a matter with invalidation. From this, one who seeks a right from another is called a mu'aqqib, because he follows his opponent and pursues him for payment. Labid said: Until, in the evening, she becomes restless, and the demand of the one pursuing his right, the oppressed, stirs her. Sometimes a procrastinator is called a mu'aqqib because he follows every demand with a refusal. From Abu Ali: "He 'aqqabani (procrastinated) regarding my right." Seeking a thing is also called ta'aqqub. Al-Raghib permitted that this meaning be intended here, with the speech being a prohibition for people to delve into questioning His judgment and wisdom if they are hidden from them; this would be from the category of prohibiting the discussion of the secret of Divine Decree.

(And He is swift in reckoning): In a little while, He will reckon with them and recompense them in the Hereafter, after He has punished them with killing, captivity, and expulsion in this world, just as is witnessed. It is as if it were said: Do not consider their punishment slow, for it is coming inevitably, and everything that is coming is near. Ibn Abbas said: The meaning is "swift in retribution."