Tafsir of An-Nur 24:55

His saying, Exalted is He, "God has promised those of you who believe..." is an address to the Messenger of God (peace and blessings of God be upon him) and those who believed with him. Thus, the verse contains a variation in address, for the Almighty addressed those who were swearing [oaths] on the condition of turning away, then He diverted [the address] away from them to the steadfast believers. This is like an intercalation (i'tirad), based on what will come later, God willing, regarding "And establish prayer" being a conjunction to His saying, Exalted is He, "And obey God."

The benefit of this is that since the preceding speech indicated that he [the Prophet] should command them to obey directly and not fear their harm, He emphasized that he (peace and blessings of God be upon him) and those with him are the victors; so, how could there be any room for fear? If you wish, consider it a new beginning (isti'naf) brought to emphasize what the speech conveys—the negation of harm—in the most eloquent manner, without considering it an intercalation, for in the aforementioned conjunction is that which you will hear, God willing.

The "from" (min) is explanatory (bayaniyya), and the prepositional phrase is placed between the sentence "believe" and the sentence conjoined to it which enters with it into the scope of the relative clause—that is, His saying, "and do righteous deeds"—while being placed after in His saying, "God has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds... forgiveness and a great reward." It is said this is to indicate that the basis for the establishment of successorship (istikhlaf) is faith; hence, the soundest view is that one is not removed [from power] due to emergent wickedness (fisq), a view supported by authentic traditions and the relevance of righteousness in the initiation of the pledge. As for forgiveness and the great reward, both are primary, so the delay [of the mention] was appropriate. It is also said that this is to hasten the joy of those addressed, as the verse was driven by that purpose.

Others said: The address is to those who swore oaths, and the speech completes His saying, "And if you obey him, you will be guided," by explaining what they have in the immediate term regarding successorship and what follows from it, and in the hereafter what cannot be measured, as embedded in His saying, "so that you may receive mercy." The preposition "from" is for partition (tab'id), and the matter of the intercalation remains as it is. Some elite scholars did not approve of this, because if "believed" is in the past tense, it is not correct, as there were none among them who had believed at the time of the address. If it is made to mean the present tense, as is familiar in reports from God, then, despite its inappropriateness in this context, it would not be a proof for the validity of the order of the Caliphs, and it would not correspond to reality, for among those elite [addressed] were some who had not yet believed, nor was there anyone among the swearers who attained the Caliphate. [End quote, and it contains a point, but it perhaps does not harm the purpose].

Abu al-Sa'ud favored the connection of the speech to that, and claimed it is a new beginning reinforcing the noble promise mentioned in His saying, "And if you obey him, you will be guided," articulating it by way of explicit statement and clarifying the details of what was generalized therein regarding the types of religious and worldly happiness—which are the effects of guidance—and containing what is intended by the "obedience" to which guidance is linked. He held that those meant by "those who believe" are all who are characterized by faith after disbelief, absolutely, from any group and at any time—not only those who believed from the group of hypocrites, nor only those who believed after the descent of the noble verse, by necessity of the generality of the noble promise. He held that the address is not to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and the sincere believers with him, nor to those who encompass them and others from the nation, nor to the hypocrites specifically, but to the general body of disbelievers, and that "from" is for partition. Regarding the nuance of the placement, he said: It is to show the originality and deep-rooted nature of faith in following up [with] effects and rulings, and to signal that it is the first thing requested of them and the most important of what is incumbent upon them. As for the delay in the verse of Surah Al-Fath, it is because "from" there is explanatory, and the pronoun refers to those who are with him (peace and blessings of God be upon him) from the pure believers, and there is no doubt that they combine faith with righteous deeds and persevere in them, so their description must come after mentioning their noble qualities in their entirety. [End quote].

You know that the address being to the general body of disbelievers is contrary to the apparent meaning, and interpreting the past tense verb to encompass both the past and the future is likewise [forced]. Furthermore, what he mentioned is far from the occasion of revelation; for Ibn al-Mundhir, Al-Tabarani in Al-Awsat, Al-Hakim (who authenticated it), Ibn Marduyah, Al-Bayhaqi in Al-Dala'il, and Al-Diya in Al-Mukhtara recorded from Ubayy ibn Ka'b (may God be pleased with him) who said: "When the Messenger of God (peace and blessings of God be upon him) came to Medina and the Ansar gave them refuge, the Arabs cast stones at them from a single bow, so they would not sleep at night except in armor, and they would not wake up except in it. They said, 'Do you think we will live until we sleep securely, fearing none but God?' Then descended: 'God has promised those of you who believe...'" With this, the deduction from the verse regarding the validity of the order of the Caliphs is not possible at all, but perhaps he does not hold this and is content with what is clearer in indication.

From Ibn Abbas and Mujahid, [it is] general to the nation of Muhammad (peace and blessings of God be upon him). They used the term "nation" absolutely, and it is applied to the nation of response and the nation of invitation, but the most common usage is the first. So, do not be heedless. If "from" is explanatory, the meaning is: God has promised those who believe—who are you—that "He will surely grant them successorship upon the earth," meaning He will make them successors disposing [of affairs] in it as kings dispose of their subjects, or successors to those they feared from among the disbelievers by granting them victory over them and inheriting their land. The "land," as it is said, refers to the Arabian Peninsula, or it is said, it is his [the Prophet's] abode, from the east of the earth to its west, for in the Sahih: "The earth was gathered for me, so I was shown its easts and its wests, and the kingdom of my nation will reach what was gathered for me of it." The "Lām" is for the response of an implied oath, and the second object of "promised" is omitted, indicated by the response—that is, God promised those who believe their successorship, and swore that He would surely grant them successorship. It is also permissible that His promise, being inevitably fulfilled, is treated as an oath; Al-Zajjaj went to this, and "He will surely grant them successorship" is treated as the object, so there is no omission.

The "ka" in His saying, "as He granted successorship," is for similarity (masdariyya), and the prepositional phrase is connected to an omitted [term] that serves as an adjective to an omitted source—that is, He will surely grant them successorship as a successorship occurring like the successorship of "those before them." They are the Children of Israel, whom God (the Almighty and Majestic) granted successorship in the Levant after destroying the tyrants, and likewise in Egypt, according to what is said—that it came under their control after the destruction of Pharaoh, even if they did not return to it; or they and those before them from the believing nations whom God (the Almighty) settled on the earth after destroying their enemies from among the oppressive disbelievers.

It was read "as He was granted successorship" (kama ustukhlima) in the passive voice; thus, the estimation is: "He will surely grant them successorship on earth, so they will be made successors therein, a successorship, meaning, a 'being made successors' occurring like the 'being made successors' of those before them."

"And He will surely establish for them their religion"—conjoined to "He will surely grant them successorship," and the speech regarding it is the same. Its delay behind [the successorship], despite it being the most sublime of the promised desires and the greatest, is because it is like an effect of the aforementioned successorship. It is also said: because souls are more inclined toward immediate fortunes, so these promises are more effective in persuasion. "Establishment" (tamkin) at its root is placing something in a location, then it was used for its consequence, which is stability and confirmation. The meaning is: He will surely make their religion fixed and established by having Him, the Exalted, elevate its status and strengthen its pillars through His support, and magnify its people in the eyes of their enemies who exhaust their days and nights in scheming to extinguish its lights and stir up men and horses to erase its traces. Thus, it shall be in such a state that they despair of gathering [to act] because they are scattered from it, so that it may disappear, and their souls barely suggest to them to stand between them and it, so that it might become a thing of the past.

It is also said: The meaning is that He will make it confirmed and established such that they continue to act according to its rulings and return to it in all they do or leave. The root of tamkin is to make something a place for another, and expressing it by this term is to indicate the completeness of the religion's stability, the soundness of its rulings, and its safety from change and substitution, as it is based on a simile with the earth in stability and permanence, alongside what it contains of observing the appropriateness between it and the successorship upon the earth. [End quote, and it contains discussion]. The precedence of the prepositional phrase over the direct object is to hasten the declaration that the promise is one of their benefits, with yearning for what is delayed, and because placing it between it and its description—that is, His saying, "which He has approved for them"—and delaying it behind the description involves an impairment of the eloquence of the noble arrangement that is not hidden. In the attribution of the religion—the religion of Islam—to them, and then describing it as having been approved for them, there is increased encouragement for it and confirmation upon it.

"And He will surely substitute for them" (with tashdid); Ibn Kathir, Ibn Bakr, Al-Hasan, and Ibn Muhaysin read it with takhfif (from ibdal). 'Abd ibn Humayd recorded this from 'Asim, and it is conjoined to "He will surely grant them successorship" or "He will surely establish." "After their fear" (by the requirements of human nature in the world from their enemies in religion) "security" that cannot be measured. It is also said the fear in the world is of the punishment of the hereafter, otherwise it is in the hereafter. This was favored [by some] because the speech is further from the possibility of being an emphasis in any way, unlike [the other interpretation] in the first case.

You know that the first [interpretation] is more consistent with the situation, and the traditions reported regarding the occasion of revelation require it, and the matter of the possibility of emphasis is trivial.

"They worship Me" (the sentence is permissible to be in the place of an accusative state/adverbial [hal] from "those" first, to restrict the promise to steadfastness in monotheism, because what is in the scope of the relative clause—faith and righteous deeds—is in the past tense since it indicates the origin of being characterized by it, while what was mentioned was brought in the present tense, which indicates renewed continuity). Or it is from the pronoun returning to them in "He will surely grant them successorship" or in "He will surely substitute for them." It is also permissible for it to be a new beginning, either merely for praising those believers—meaning "they worship Me"—or to explain the cause of the successorship and what is organized with it in the string of the promise. His saying, "associating nothing with Me," is a state from the "waw" in "They worship Me," or from "those," or it is evidence of the state, or a new beginning. The accusative [nasb] of "something" is because it is an object—that is, anything that is associated with Him—or a cognate accusative, meaning "any part of association." The meaning of worship and non-association is clear.

'Abd ibn Humayd recorded from Ibn Abbas (may God be pleased with them) that he said regarding His saying, "They worship Me, associating nothing with Me": "They fear no one except Me." He and others recorded from Mujahid something similar. Perhaps they both intended by that to explain "associating nothing with Me," as if they considered fearing other than God to be a type of association. On this basis, the [grammatical] state-hood of the sentence from the "waw" was chosen, as if it were said: "They worship Me, not fearing anyone except Me." It is also permissible that they intended to explain what is meant by the combination of "They worship Me, associating nothing with Me," as if they claimed that the absence of fear of anyone other than the Almighty is one of the necessities of worship and monotheism, and that the sentence "They worship Me," etc., is a new beginning to explain what they attain in security, as if it were said: "They are secure with Me, as they fear no one except God." The subtlety of using the first-person singular pronoun in "They worship Me, associating nothing with Me," rather than the third-person or the pronoun of majesty, is not hidden.

"And whoever disbelieves" (meaning whoever apostatizes from the believers) "after that" (meaning after the attainment of what was promised) "then those" (the apostates, far from the truth) "are the defiantly disobedient." [55]

Meaning: The complete ones in disobedience and exiting the boundaries of disbelief and tyranny, as they have no excuse then, not even the weight of a gnat. It is said: Disbelief here is from kufran (ingratitude), not from kufr (disbelief opposing faith). This was narrated from Abu al-'Aliyah, and their completeness in disobedience is due to the greatness of the blessing which they disbelieved. It is said: That is an allusion to the previous promise itself. In Irshad al-'Aql al-Salim, it is stated that the meaning is: whoever is characterized by disbelief by remaining and persisting in it and is not affected by what passed of encouragement and intimidation after that noble promise and what was detailed of the lofty demands necessitating the utmost importance in attaining them, then those are the complete ones in disobedience. That the intended meaning of "disbelieves" is what was mentioned is more appropriate for the context than it being apostasy or ingratitude for blessings. [End quote]. The first is better in my view, for it is the apparent [meaning], and in the speech regarding it is an aggrandizement of the value of what was promised, in that after its attainment, no excuse remains for anyone who apostatizes. Its strong appropriateness for the context is not hidden. This is the apparent meaning of the statement of Hudhayfah (may God be pleased with him); for Ibn Marduyah recorded from Abu al-Sha'tha who said: "I was sitting with Hudhayfah and Ibn Mas'ud (may God be pleased with them), and Hudhayfah said: 'Hypocrisy has passed; hypocrisy was only during the time of the Messenger of God (peace and blessings of God be upon him), and it is only disbelief after faith.' Ibn Mas'ud laughed, then said: 'On what do you say that?' He said: 'By this verse: "God has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds..." to the end of the verse.'" It is as if Ibn Mas'ud's laughter was due to that being surprising, and his silence after the deduction is apparent in his acceptance of what the mine of the secret of the Messenger of God (peace and blessings of God be upon him) understood from the verse. "Whoever" (man) can be a relative pronoun and can be conditional. The sentence "whoever disbelieves," etc., is said to be conjoined to the sentence "God has promised," etc., or to an omitted sentence, as if it were said: "Whoever believes, they are the winners, and whoever disbelieves," etc. It is also said that this sentence, as well as the sentence "They worship Me," is an explanatory new beginning. As for the first, the question arises from His saying, "God has promised," etc., as if it were said: "What is incumbent upon the believers after this noble promise or after its attainment?" So it was said: "They worship Me, associating nothing with Me." As for the second, the question arises from the mentioned response, as if it were said: "If they do not do [that], what then?" So it was said: "And whoever disbelieves after that, then those are the defiantly disobedient." Their recompense is known, and it is as you see.

Furthermore, many have deduced from this verse the validity of the caliphate of the four Caliphs (may God be pleased with them), because God (the Almighty) promised in it those who were in the presence of the mission from among the believers successorship, the establishment of religion, and great security from enemies. It is necessary that what He promised occurs, by the necessity of the impossibility of a breach in His promise (the Almighty), and the totality did not occur except in their era. Thus, each of them was a true successor by God's granting him successorship as He promised (Great and Exalted is He). It is not required that the successorship be general to all those present who were addressed; rather, its occurrence in them [is sufficient], like [saying] "The sons of so-and-so killed so-and-so"—this does not negate the generality of the address to everyone, nor that "from" is explanatory. Likewise, it is not negated by the strife that occurred in the caliphate of Uthman and Ali (may God be pleased with them), for the intended meaning of security is security from the enemies of religion, who are the disbelievers, as previously stated.

Some of the Ahl al-Sunnah set it up as a proof against the Shia in their belief that the caliphate of the three Caliphs is invalid, and they did not use it to deduce the validity of the caliphate of the Commander (may God honor his face) because it is conceded by the Shia. The proofs are many for both parties against whoever denies it from among the Nawasib (may they receive from God what they deserve). He said: "God (the Almighty) promised in it a gathering of righteous believers who were present at the time of its descent with what He promised of successorship and what accompanies it, and His promise (the Exalted) is true. It did not occur except in the era of the three. The Mahdi was definitely not present at the time of descent by consensus, so it is not possible to construe the verse as a promise to him of that. And the Commander (may God honor his face), even if he were present then, the approved religion did not prevail as is its right in his time (may God be pleased with him) according to the Shia's claim; rather, it became in a worse state, according to their claim, than it was in the era of the disbelievers, as Al-Murtada stated explicitly in Tanzeeh al-Anbiya' wal-A'immah. In fact, all Shia books state explicitly that the Commander and his followers were hiding their religion and showing the religion of the opponents out of taqiyyah (dissimulation), and perfect security was not achieved in his time (may God be pleased with him). The people of the Levant, Egypt, and the Maghreb were denying the origin of his Imamate and did not accept his rulings, and they are disbelievers according to the Shia's claim, and the majority of the Commander's army were fearing and cautious to the extreme of them. Despite this, the Commander was an individual, so it is not possible for him to be intended by 'those who believe' so that he (may God be pleased with him) would be the embodiment of the verse as they claim; for carrying a plural noun to refer to one is contrary to their principles, as the least of the plural in their view is three. As for the other Imams who were born afterwards, there is no possibility of intending them by the verse, as they were not present at the time of its descent, and they did not attain dominance on earth, and their religion—approved for them—did not become current, and they were not secure; rather, they were fearful of the enemies of religion, practicing taqiyyah from them, as the Shia agreed. Thus, it follows that the three Caliphs are the embodiment of the verse, so their caliphate is true, which is what is required."

Al-Tabarsi claimed that the address is to the Prophet and his household (peace and blessings of God be upon him), so they are those promised successorship and what accompanies it. It suffices for that that the promise be realized in the time of the Mahdi (may God be pleased with him), and this does not negate his non-existence at the time of the verse's descent, for oral address does not specifically pertain to those present. Likewise, it does not negate the non-attainment of it for all, for the speech is similar to "The sons of so-and-so killed so-and-so." He deduced this from what Al-'Ayyashi narrated with his chain of authority from Ali ibn al-Husayn (may God be pleased with them) that he recited the verse and said: "They are, by God, our followers, the household. This will be done for them at the hands of a man from us, and he is the Mahdi of this nation, and he is the one about whom the Messenger of God (peace and blessings of God be upon him) said: 'If only one day remained of the world, God (the Almighty) would extend that day until a man from my descendants, whose name matches my name, takes charge, filling the earth with justice and fairness as it was filled with oppression and tyranny.'"

He claimed that the like of that was narrated from Abu Ja'far and Abu 'Abd Allah (may God be pleased with them). This, despite what it contains that the context and authentic reports regarding the occasion of revelation reject, and the Shia reports—their state is not hidden, especially to those who have looked into Al-Tuhfa Al-Ithna 'Ashariyya. Yes, there has come through our path what might be used to seek familiarity for them in this station, but it is not relied upon, just like their reports. That is what 'Abd ibn Humayd recorded from 'Atiyyah, that he (peace and blessings of God be upon him) recited the verse and said: "The people of the house here," and gestured with his hand toward the Qiblah. Some of them claimed the like of what you heard from Al-Tabarsi, except that he said: "It is concerning all the people of the house: Ali (may God honor his face) and the rest of the twelve Imams, and this will be realized in them at the time of the Raj'ah (Return) when the Qaim (may God be pleased with him) rises." He claimed that it is one of the proofs for the Raj'ah, and this has added another melody to the drum. Mulla 'Abd Allah al-Mashhadi said in his book Izhar al-Haqq to invalidate the deduction from it for the validity of the three Caliphs' caliphate: "It is possible that 'successorship' is in the linguistic sense, which is bringing one [to be] behind another, i.e., after him, as in His saying regarding the Children of Israel: 'Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy and make you successors in the land.' So, the furthest that can be proven is that they are successors in the linguistic sense, and the dispute is not there; rather, it is in the technical sense, which is a meaning invented after the passing of the Prophet (peace and blessings of God be upon him)."

It was answered that if this were to be complete, the deduction for them regarding the caliphate of the Commander (may God honor his face) in the technical sense would not be complete via the hadith "You are to me as Aaron was to Moses," reinforced by what the Almighty recounted about Moses (peace be upon him) in his saying to Aaron: "Take my place among my people," and by what they see of his saying (peace and blessings of God be upon him): "O Ali, you are my successor after me." Likewise, the deduction for them regarding the Imamate of the Commander (may God honor his face) via what the word "Imam" contains would not be complete, for it was not used in the Glorious Book in the technical sense at all; rather, it was used in the sense of a prophet, guide, leader, and one followed in an affair, whether good or evil. Whenever one claims the understanding of the technical meaning from that by way of implication, let him also claim the understanding of the technical meaning from "successor." Perhaps it is claimed that its understanding from it is stronger, because whenever it occurs in the Glorious Book, it is paired with the phrase "in the land," which indicates the general disposal [of affairs] that is the affair of a successor in that sense. Moreover, the basis of the deduction for the caliphate of the three from this verse is not merely the word "successorship," until the purpose of the dissenter is fulfilled, but rather that [is done] with consideration of its attribution to God (the Almighty). If linguistic successorship is attributed to God (the Almighty), it has become a religious successorship. One might ask in this matter from the Shia scholars: The bringing of the Children of Israel to the place of the people of Pharaoh and the Amalekites, and making them dispose of the land of Egypt and the Levant—was it a right or not? I do not think they would say anything but that it was a right. In that case, it is incumbent upon them to say it regarding the verse, for there is no difference. Thus, the purpose is fulfilled. This is the summary of what was said in this station.

What I incline toward is that the verse is manifest in the integrity of the three Caliphs (may God be pleased with them) regarding what the Shia accused them of—of oppression, tyranny, and disposing of the land without right—due to the emergence of the establishment of religion and security from its enemies in their time. It is hardly appropriate to express gratitude for an invalid disposal whose consequence is severe torment. Likewise, it is hardly appropriate to express gratitude for what the verse contains to the people of their era, despite them being the leaders who hold the knot and the unknotting, if they were—and they are far from it—as the Shia claim regarding them. Whenever their integrity from what they say is proven by that, we are satisfied with it. This does not depend except on their being characterized by faith and righteous deeds at the time of the verse's descent, and the Shia's denial of that is a denial of necessities. That the intended meaning of the verse is Ali (may God honor his face), or the Mahdi (may God be pleased with him), or the people of the house absolutely, is something that no fair person would say.

In the speech of the Commander (may God honor his face) is that which dictates, by its flow, the opposite of what the Shia are upon. For in Nahj al-Balagha, when Umar ibn al-Khattab (may God be pleased with him) consulted the Commander (may God honor his face) regarding his going forth to fight the Persians when they gathered for war, he said to him: "This affair was not made victorious, nor was it let down, by [numerical] abundance or paucity. It is the religion of God which He made manifest, and His army which He strengthened and supported until it reached what it reached and rose where it rose. We are upon a promise from God (the Almighty), as He said (Mighty is His name): 'God has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds... He will surely grant them successorship upon the earth as He granted successorship to those before them... and He will surely substitute for them, after their fear, security.' God (the Almighty) is the fulfiller of His promise and the supporter of His army. The position of the leader in Islam is like the position of the thread in the necklace; if the thread is severed, it scatters, and many a scattered thing does not gather. Though the Arabs today are few, they are many through Islam and mighty through unity. So, be a pole, and turn the millstone with the Arabs, and keep them as the fuel for the fire of war. For if you depart from this land, the Arabs will fall upon you from their edges and quarters until what you leave behind of vulnerabilities is more important to you than what is before you. The non-Arabs have approached the time to look at you tomorrow, saying: 'This is the root of the Arabs; if you sever it, you will have rest.' That will be more intense for their eagerness for you and their greed for you. As for what you mentioned of their number, we did not fight in the past by [numerical] abundance, but we fight by victory and support." [End quote]. So reflect on that, and God (the Almighty) will undertake your guidance.