Tafsir of An-Nisa' 4:172

(The Messiah will never disdain): This is a resumption affirming the aforementioned transcendence. It is narrated that a delegation from Najran said to our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): "O Muhammad, why do you disparage our companion?" He replied: "Who is your companion?" They said: "Isa (Jesus), peace be upon him." He asked: "And what do you wish for me to say about him?" They replied: "Say that he is the servant of Allah and His Messenger." Thereupon, this verse was revealed.

Istinkaf (disdain/refusal) is a form of the verbal noun istif'al derived from nakf. Its root, as al-Raghib states, is to push away something, like wiping tears from the cheek with a finger. They say, "a sea that is not yunkaf," meaning it cannot be drained. From this is the verse: "Were it not for the affection you mention, your eyes would not be drained (yunkaf) of tears." Others say nakf means speaking evil. It is also said: "He has no nakf nor wakf in this matter." The form istaf'ala is used here for negation, as al-Mubarrad stated. In al-Asas, it is stated that istankafa and nakafa mean to abstain and recoil out of pride and indignation. Al-Zajjaj said: Istinkaf is haughtiness in refusing something, which is not necessarily the case with istikbar (arrogance). The meaning is: He will neither disdain nor abstain. It is narrated from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that the Messiah will never be too arrogant.

(To be a servant of Allah): That is, from being a servant to Allah the Exalted, continuing in His worship and obedience as per the function of servitude. How could he, when that is the highest degree of honor? Qadi Iyad alluded to the honor of servitude by saying: "What increased me in wonder and pride, To the point that with my foot I nearly stepped upon the Pleiades, Was my entry under Your saying: 'O My servants,' And Your making Your best creation a Prophet for me."

Restricting the mention to his (peace be upon him) lack of disdain for this—despite his state being one of boasting about it, as his conditions indicate and his sayings articulate—is because it occurs in the context of responding to what the disbelievers said, as you have learned. This is the secret behind making the object of the disdain being a "servant to Him" rather than saying "from the worship of Allah" and similar phrases. It also carries, as has been said, a profound benefit: the completeness of his (peace be upon him) total purity from any disdain, for this description is continuous, and it entails the description of worship; thus, the lack of disdain for being a servant necessitates the lack of disdain for the act itself. This is unlike the description of "worship," which is a renewed state that does not necessitate continuity; it suffices for one to be characterized by it if it occurs even once. Thus, the lack of disdain for it does not necessitate the lack of disdain for its continuity.

What indicates his (peace be upon him) servitude in the books of the Christians is that Paul said in his second epistle: "Consider this Apostle, the high priest of our faith, Jesus, who was faithful to Him who created him, just as Moses was in all his states, except that he is better than Moses." Mark also said in his Gospel: "Jesus said: 'My soul is sorrowful even unto death.' Then he fell on his face, praying to Allah the Exalted, and said: 'O Father, all things are within Your power, remove this cup from me, but not as I will, but as You will.' Then he fell on his face praying to Allah the Exalted." The indication in this is manifest; he is the seeker, and Allah the Exalted is the One sought. He is the one praying, and Allah the Exalted is the One to whom prayer is directed. What servitude is greater than this? The texts of the Gospels are explicit regarding his servitude (peace be upon him) in more than one place.

(Nor the angels brought near): This is connected to "the Messiah," as is apparent. That is: The angels brought near will not disdain to be servants of Allah the Exalted. It has been said that it is connected to the hidden pronoun in yakuna or 'abdan, because it is an adjective, but that is invalid. Estimating the predicate of the verb is necessary according to the majority. It is also said that by "the angels" is meant each one of them, so there is no need for estimation. Some claimed it is a conjunction of sentences and insisted on estimating the verb, but that is as you see.

Qadi Abu Bakr, al-Halimi, and the Mu'tazilah used this verse as an argument that angels are superior to the Prophets (peace and blessings be upon them), because the context, the rules of semantics, and the speech of the Arabs necessitate ascending from the excellent to the most excellent. The meaning would be: he does not disdain, nor does the one above him. Just as one might say, "The vizier would not disdain this matter, nor would the Sultan," and not the reverse.

It was answered that although the verse is a rebuttal to the Christians, it incorporates a rebuttal to those who worship angels—those who share with them the error of raising some created beings from the rank of servitude to the rank of divinity. "Brought near" was specified because they were the ones worshipped, unlike others. This answer was refuted by saying that this does not negate the superiority of the second, as required by the science of semantics. It was said: There is no objection, as it is known from the exposition that it is rebutted, because the primary object is the matter of the Messiah, hence he was mentioned first. Even if one were to concede that it does not negate superiority, it also does not prove it, just as if you say, "Zayd did not do this, nor did 'Amr." This suffices to refute the opponent's argument.

(He will gather them to Himself all together): That is, both those who disdain and their counterparts, as indicated by the mention of the Messiah and the angels brought near not disdaining. The mention of one of the two parties in the detailed section was omitted, relying on the information provided by the elaboration, and confident that the summoning of one necessitates the summoning of the other, due to the universality of the gathering for all creation. Similarly, the mention of one of the two groups was omitted in the detailed section when He said: "As for those who believed in Allah and held fast to Him," despite the address being universal to both, in confidence of the same. Therefore, it cannot be said: "The detail does not correspond to the detailed," because it includes both parties while the detailed part mentions one. It is said in justifying the correspondence: The intention of the gathering is to reward.