Tafsir of An-Nisa' 4:78

"Wherever you are, death will reach you." It is possible that this is a new discourse initiated by Allah Almighty by way of shifting the address, diverting it away from the Master of the Addressees (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), who was mentioned first. This is done out of concern for holding [the hypocrites] accountable after having clarified the insignificance of the world and the majesty of the Hereafter through him (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), in which case the sentence has no grammatical status. It is also possible that it is included within the "saying" that was commanded [in the preceding verse], in which case the sentence is in the accusative case.

Many have posited that what preceded is the answer to the first of their statements [in verse 77], and this [verse] is the answer to the second. As if, when they said, "Why have You prescribed fighting for us?", they were answered by explaining the wisdom—that it was prescribed so that their enjoyment might increase and their benefit be magnified, for it necessitates the enjoyment of the Hereafter. And when they said, "Why did You not postpone it...?", they were answered with, "Wherever you are"—whether traveling or at home—"death will reach you," because there is a predetermined time for it, and going out to fight does not prevent it.

The expression "reach" (idrak) serves as an intimation that, despite the people’s extreme distancing of themselves from the causes of death, the time of its arrival is drawing near to them with the passing of every breath and every moment; it is as if they are fleeing from it while it is diligently pursuing them, not faltering for a single breath in its pursuit.

Talha bin Sulayman recited yudrikukum (it will reach you) in the nominative case (raf'), and there is disagreement regarding its derivation. It is said: It is due to the omission of the fa (the particle of consequence), as in the verse cited by Sibawayh: "Whoever does good, Allah rewards him, and evil with evil, in the sight of God, are equals." The outward meaning of al-Kashshaf is to be content with the estimation of the fa. Others have estimated a subject with it, meaning: "As for you, death will reach you." It is also said that it is a case of putting the last first, and the answer to the conditional clause is omitted, meaning: "Death will reach you wherever you are; [death] will reach you." This was objected to on the grounds that this only sounds appropriate when what precedes it is requesting it, such as in the saying: "O Aqra' bin Habis, O Aqra', if your brother is thrown [in wrestling], you are thrown," or when the particle is not a conditional noun. This was answered by saying that the first condition, even if attributed to Sibawayh, is also reported from him in an absolute sense, and the second condition is not relied upon by the verifiers.

It is also said that the nominative case is based on the illusion that the condition is in the past tense, for in that case, it is not mandatory for the jussive (apocopate) sign to appear in the answer, because when the particle’s effect did not appear in the near, it is not mandatory for it to appear in the distant. The objection raised against this—that the condition being past and the consequence being present is only appropriate with the particle in because it flips the past into the meaning of the future—renders Aynama kuntum yudrikukum al-mawt [using past tense verbs] unsuitable except for the sake of narrating the past and intending to bring it to mind, which is a matter for consideration. Indeed, the objection holds that it contains forced interpretation, for as Ibn al-Munir said, what is "imagined" should be the original or something that is frequent in usage until it becomes like the original, and what is imagined here is not such.

It is also said that yudrikukum is an initial statement, and aynama takunu is connected to "you will not be wronged [even a thread]." This was objected to, as al-Shihab said: "It is not sound in meaning or construction." As for the former, it is because its connection to what precedes it is inappropriate, since "you will not be wronged a thread" refers to the Hereafter, so the generalization [of death] does not suit it. As for the latter, it would necessitate that what precedes the conditional noun acts upon it, which is not correct due to its being placed at the head of the sentence. This was answered regarding the first by saying there is no obstacle to generalizing "and you will not be wronged" to both the world and the Hereafter, or that the meaning is that nothing will be diminished from the duration of the appointed term, not the ajwad (the best things), and thus the speech is harmonized. Regarding the second, it is said that the connection to what precedes it, as al-Halabi and al-Safaqsi said, is a connection of meaning, not grammatical function, on the premise that aynama takunu is a conditional clause whose answer is omitted—estimated as "you will not be wronged"—and what precedes it is the evidence for the answer. You know that this derivation, even if one committed to defending it as you see, is contrary to the apparent meaning that comes to mind. The most appropriate of derivations is that it is due to the omission of the fa, which is what al-Mubarrad chose; the claim that omission is only due to necessity is in the realm of prohibition.

"Even if you were in towers"—meaning palaces—as said by Mujahid, Qatada, and Ibn Jurayj. From al-Suddi and al-Rabi' (may Allah be pleased with them), it is that they are palaces in the lowest heaven. It is also said that what is meant are the known constellations of the sky. From Abu Ali al-Jubba'i, it is the houses above palaces. From Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both): they are fortresses and castles. It is the plural of burj, and its root comes from tabarruj, which is displaying; from it comes, "A woman tabarrajat," when she shows her beauty.

"Built up"—meaning coated with shid, which is gypsum, as said by Ikrimah; or made tall in height, as said by al-Zajjaj; it is from the saying "He ashada the building," meaning he raised it. Mujahid recited it as mashyada with a fatha on the mim and a light ya, as in the Almighty’s saying: "A built-up palace." Abu Nu’aym bin Maysarah recited mashyada with a kasra on the ya as a metaphorical usage, like "a pleasant life" (‘ishah radiyah) and "a poetic poem." The conjoined sentence is like the other—meaning: even if you were not in towers, and even if you were, etc.—and omission has been consistent in such cases due to the clarity of the indication.

"And if good befalls them, they say, 'This is from Allah'; but if evil befalls them, they say, 'This is from you.'" It was revealed, according to what is narrated from al-Hasan and Ibn Zayd, regarding the Jews. This is because provision had been expanded for them, but when the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came to Medina and called them to faith, and they disbelieved, [provision] was withheld from them to some extent. They said, "We have continued to see deficit in our fruits and farms ever since this man came to us." So the meaning is: if they are struck by a blessing or ease, they attribute it to Allah Almighty; and if they are struck by a calamity of drought or high prices, they attribute it to you, being pessimistic, as was told of their predecessors in His saying: "And if a misfortune befalls them, they interpret it as an evil omen from Moses and those with him." To this went al-Zajjaj, al-Farra', al-Balkhi, and al-Jubba'i. It is also said it was revealed regarding the hypocrites, Ibn Ubayy and his companions, who stayed back from fighting on the day of Uhud and said to those who were killed: "Had they been with us, they would not have died nor been killed." So the meaning is: if a bounty falls to them, they say: "This is from Allah Almighty," and if a defeat falls to them, they say: "This is from your poor planning." This is what is narrated from Ibn Abbas and Qatada. It is also said it was revealed concerning those mentioned before, but this is not correct. Many have corrected that it was revealed regarding both the Jews and the hypocrites together, when they were pessimistic about the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) when he arrived in Medina and they suffered from drought. According to this, what is meant by "good" and "evil" here is blessing and calamity. It is common for them to be used for obedience and disobedience, and many verifiers have gone to this, supporting it by attributing the [concept of] isaba (befalling) to both, and the author of al-Kashf even made it a clear evidence for it, and that it is more suitable for the context because of the mention of death and safety beforehand.

"Say, 'All is from Allah.'" A command to him (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to refute their false claim and corrupt belief, and to guide them to the truth by explaining the attribution of everything to Him, the Almighty, in summary. That is: each of the blessing and the calamity is from the side of Allah Almighty, by way of creation and bringing into existence, without my having any input in the occurrence of any of it in any way, as you claim. Rather, the occurrence of the former is from Him, the Almighty, by essence as a grace, and the occurrence of the latter is by way of the sins of those who are afflicted by it as a punishment, as will be explained.

This summary response is in the meaning of what was said in refutation of the predecessors of the Jews in His saying: "Their omen is only with Allah." That is: the cause of their good and their evil is with Allah Almighty, not with anyone else, such that it might be attributed to him and they take him as an omen. This was stated by Shaykh al-Islam. From this, one learns the invalidation of what was said: "The people did not believe that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was the doer of evil as they believed that Allah Almighty was the doer of good; rather, they were pessimistic about him." And may he be protected, peace and blessings be upon him, so how could this be a rebuttal to them? There is no need for what the Second Allamah replied with, that the answer is not merely His saying, "Say: All is from Allah," but rather it extends to His saying, "Whatever of evil befalls you, etc."

"But what is the matter with these people, that they do not understand any speech?" That is: any speech by which they are admonished, which is the Quran, or any speech at all, or everything that has occurred and its time has drawn near. The speech is from Him, the Almighty, interrupting between the explained and its explanation, intended to shame them for their ignorance, to vilify their state, and to express wonder at the perfection of their stupidity. The fa is for ordering what follows it upon what precedes it. The negated sentence is a circumstantial clause, and its agent is what is in the prepositional phrase regarding "stability" or the phrase itself. The meaning is: Since the matter is as such, then what is the matter with these people, while they are in a state of being cut off from understanding the texts of the Quran which declare that everything is flowing from Allah Almighty, or cut off from understanding any speech at all, treating it like animals that have no understanding, or cut off from comprehending the vicissitudes of time and its change until they know that He is the real doer for it, in whose hand are all matters, and no one has any input alongside Him? It is permissible for the sentence to be a new beginning based on a question that arose from the interrogation, which is apparent. On both interpretations, the speech is cast in a way of exaggeration regarding their lack of understanding, so it does not contradict their belief that good is from Allah Almighty. It is understood from the speech of some that what is meant by "the speech" is what they uttered just now, since it necessitates the multiplicity of the Creator, which entails polytheism leading to the corruption of the world, and that what is within the command is a refutation of this necessity, and it was brought forward because it is more important.