Tafsir of Al-Ma'idah 5:115

(God said: "I am sending it down to you") repeatedly, as indicated by the taf'il form. The response from Him, the Exalted, is in this form, while the supplication of the Prophet—upon him be peace and blessings—was in the form of verbs to display the perfection of kindness and beneficence, while also observing what occurred in the phrasing of those who asked. Starting the sentence with the particle of verification (inna) and making its predicate a noun serves as a confirmation of the promise, an indication that He, the Almighty and Exalted, will inevitably fulfill it, and a sign of continuity. This is the reading of the people of Medina, the Levant, and ‘Asim.

The others read, as Al-Tabarsi said, munazziluha with a light pronunciation, making inzal and tanzil synonymous. (So whoever disbelieves after that)—that is, after its descent while being among you—(I will punish him for that disbelief) with a punishment ('adhaban). This is a verbal noun meaning "tormenting," like mata' meaning "to allow to enjoy." It is said to be a source (infinitive) with omitted supplements, and its accusative case is based on it being an infinitive in both estimates. Others say it is accusative due to expansion and assimilation to the direct object by way of intensification, just as the adverb and the dependent of the active participle are likewise accusative. Abu al-Baqa’ permitted it to be accusative due to the omission of the preposition and the connection, in which case it would be the name of that which is used to punish. It is not hidden that the omission of the preposition is not consistent in cases other than an and anna when there is no ambiguity. The tanwin is for magnification, meaning "a great punishment."

His saying—the Almighty and Exalted—(I will not punish him) is in the position of an accusative as an adjective for it. The pronoun (referring to the ha in u'adhidbuhu) is in the position of the direct object, as in "I thought him, Zayd, standing." It occupies the place of the referent to the described noun, as has been said. It is explained that it then refers to the infinitive understood from the verb, thus having the meaning of the indefinite noun appearing after a negation in terms of generality, encompassing the aforementioned punishment and achieving the connection through generality. It was objected that the connection through generality was only mentioned by grammarians regarding a sentence acting as a predicate, so the adjective should not be measured by it. It is permissible for it to be of the category of "I beat him, the beating of Zayd," meaning "a punishment I do not punish any like it." Under this estimate, the pronoun refers to the aforementioned punishment, and the connection is to it. It is also said that the pronoun refers to "whoever" (man) with the assumption of two added nouns, meaning "I will not punish anyone among the worlds like his punishment."

(Meaning the inhabitants of their time or the worlds absolutely.) This punishment is either in this world—and those who disbelieved among them were punished by being transformed into apes and swine; this is reported from Qatada—or in the Hereafter. To this points what Abu al-Shaykh and others extracted from Ibn ‘Umar, may God be pleased with them both, who said: "The people most severely punished on the Day of Resurrection are those who disbelieved from the people of the Table and the hypocrites and the family of Pharaoh." This indicates that the Table did descend and some disbelieved afterward.

Ibn Jarir and others extracted from al-Hasan and Mujahid that when it was said to the people, "So whoever disbelieves," etc., they said: "We have no need for it," and so it did not descend. The majority hold the first view, and it is the reliable one. Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, and Ibn Abi Hatim extracted from ‘Ammar ibn Yasir, in both mawquf and marfu' form—the mawquf being more authentic—that he said: "The Table was sent down from heaven as bread and meat, and they were commanded not to betray and not to store for the morrow. But they betrayed and stored, and were transformed into apes and swine." The bread was of rice, as reported from ‘Ikrimah.

It is reported that when his people asked Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—that, and he supplicated, God the Exalted sent down upon them a red tray between two clouds—a cloud above it and a cloud below it—while they looked at it in the air, descending from heaven, hovering toward them. Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—was weeping out of fear of the condition imposed upon them regarding it. He continued to supplicate until the tray settled before him while the disciples were around him, smelling a sweet fragrance the like of which they had never smelled. Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—and the disciples fell down prostrating in gratitude to God the Exalted. The Jews came looking at them and saw what distressed them, then they turned away. Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—and those with him looked at it, and it was covered with a napkin. He—upon him be peace and blessings—said: "Who among us is boldest in uncovering it, most trustful in his soul, and best in trial before his Lord, so that we may see it, praise our Lord—the Almighty and Exalted—and eat from the provision which He has provided us?" They said: "O Spirit of God and His Word, you are most entitled to that." He stood up, renewed his ablution, entered his place of prayer, prayed several units, then wept at length and supplicated to God the Exalted to permit him to uncover it and to place in it for him and his people a blessing and a provision. Then he turned, sat around the Table, took the napkin, and said: "In the name of God, the Best of Providers," and uncovered it.

Thereupon, there was upon it a huge grilled fish, having no scales, no bones in its belly, and oil flowing from it. Around it were arranged vegetables of every kind except leek. At its head was vinegar, at its tail was salt, and around the vegetables were five loaves of bread. On one of them were olives, on another some dates, and on another five pomegranates. In another narration: on one of them olives, on the second honey, on the third butter, on the fourth cheese, and on the fifth dried meat. Simon asked him about it, and he answered him with what was reported previously.

Then they said to him—peace and blessings be upon him—"We would like you to show us a sign from these signs." He said—peace be upon him—: "Glory be to God the Exalted! Have you not had enough?" Then he said: "O fish, return by the permission of God as you were, alive." God the Exalted brought it to life by His power, and it twitched and returned alive and fresh, licking its lips as a lion licks its lips, its eyes turning, having a glimmer, and the scales returned to it. The people were terrified of it and fled. He—peace and blessings be upon him—said to them: "What is the matter with you? You ask for a sign, and when your Lord shows it to you, you dislike it. How much I fear for you because of what you do! O fish, return by the permission of God the Exalted as you were, grilled."

Then he invited them to eat. They said: "O Spirit of God, you are the one who should begin." He said: "God forbid! Let the one who requested it begin." When they saw the refusal of their Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—they feared that its descent was a wrath and that eating it was the same, so they abstained. He—peace and blessings be upon him—invited the poor and the chronically ill to it and said: "Eat from the provision of your Lord and the supplication of your Prophet, and praise God the Exalted who sent it down to you so that its delight is for you and its punishment for others. Begin all of you with the name of God and conclude with the praise of God." They did so, and one thousand three hundred people, men and women, ate from it and finished satisfied, each of them belching. Jesus—peace be upon him—and the disciples looked at what was on it, and it was in the same state as when it descended from heaven; nothing had been diminished from it. Then it was raised to heaven while they were watching. Every poor person who ate from it became independent, and every sick person among them who ate from it was healed, and they remained wealthy and healthy until they departed from this world. The disciples and their companions who refused to eat from it felt a regret that caused their eyelids to weep, and its longing remained in their hearts. When the Table descended after that, the Children of Israel would come to it from every place, struggling, pushing one another—the wealthy, the poor, women, children, elders, the healthy, and the sick—climbing over one another. When Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—saw that, he made it a turn among them; it would descend one day and not the next.

They remained in that state for forty days, descending upon them occasionally at the time of the late morning (duha). It would remain placed, and people would eat from it until, when they said so, it ascended from them by the permission of God the Exalted to the expanse of the sky while they watched its shadow on the earth until it disappeared from them. Then God the Exalted revealed to Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—: "Make My provision for the orphans, the needy, and the chronically ill, not the wealthy among the people." When God the Exalted did that, the wealthy grew suspicious of it and disparaged it until they doubted it in their own hearts and cast doubt upon it to the people, spreading ugly and abominable talk about it. The Devil attained his purpose from them and cast his whispers into the hearts of those who doubted. When Jesus—peace be upon him—learned that from them, he said: "You are ruined! By the God of the Messiah, you asked your Prophet to request the Table for you from your Lord, and when He did and sent it down to you as a mercy and a provision and showed you signs and lessons in it, you denied it and doubted it. So expect punishment, for it is descending upon you, if God the Exalted does not show you mercy." God the Exalted revealed to Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—: "I am taking those who deny My condition, and I will punish from among them whoever disbelieves in the Table after its descent with a punishment I will not inflict upon anyone in the worlds." When evening came, the doubters went to their beds in the best of states with their wives, secure, and at the end of the night, God the Exalted transformed them into swine, and they awoke following filth in the refuse heaps.

Abu al-Shaykh extracted from Ibn ‘Abbas, may God be pleased with them both, that Jesus—peace and blessings be upon him—said to the Children of Israel: "Will you fast for thirty days and then ask Him, so He may give you what you asked for? For the reward of the worker is upon the one for whom he worked." They did so, then said: "O Teacher of Good, you told us that the reward of the worker is upon the one for whom he worked, and you ordered us to fast thirty days, and we did so, and we would not work for anyone for thirty days without him feeding us: 'So can your Lord send down to us a Table from heaven?'" up to His saying—the Exalted—: "anyone in the worlds." The angels came flying with a Table from heaven upon which were seven fish and seven loaves of bread until they placed it before them, and the last of the people ate from it as the first had eaten. It is reported from him that the Table used to descend upon them wherever they alighted. From Wahb ibn Munabbih it is reported that four thousand people would sit at the Table, and when they ate something, God the Exalted would replace it with the like, and they remained like that for as long as God the Almighty and Exalted willed.