Tafsir of Ad-Dhariyat 51:57

(I do not desire from them any provision, nor do I desire that they should feed Me.)

This is an elucidation of the fact that the state of the Exalted—exalted is His status—with His servants is not like the state of masters with their slaves. Masters possess slaves to seek their help in acquiring their livelihoods and provisions, but the Owner of all owners, the Exalted, denies that His relationship with them is for such a purpose. It is as if He, Glory be to Him, says: I do not desire to seek help from them as masters seek help from their slaves, so let them occupy themselves with that for which they were created: My worship.

The Imam mentions two aspects regarding this: First, that it is to dispel the illusion of need arising from creating them for worship. Second, that it is to confirm their status as creatures created for worship. He explained this by stating that an action, by convention, must have a benefit. However, slaves are of two types: one type is for demonstrating majesty by standing before their masters and honoring them, like the slaves of kings; and the second type are those taken for benefit in acquiring provisions or preparing them. It is as if He, Glory be to Him, says: I have created them, and there must be some benefit in them. Let them contemplate themselves: are they of the category from whom the acquisition of provision is sought? No, they are not. Thus: (I do not desire from them any provision). Are they of those from whom the preparation of sustenance is sought, like a cook or one who brings food? No, they are not. Thus: (nor do I desire that they should feed Me). Since they are slaves of the first category, they should not neglect veneration.

The apparent meaning is that I do not desire from them provision for Myself, due to His saying: (nor do I desire that they should feed Me). The Imam inclined toward this and mentioned subtle points in the verse:

First: That He, Glory be to Him, repeated the negation of two desires, because a master might demand that a slave earn for him—which is the request for provision—or he might not demand it if he has ample wealth, yet he might demand the fulfillment of his needs, such as guarding his wealth and placing food before him from his own possessions. Thus, negating the first desire does not necessitate negating the second; so He repeated the prohibition in the sense of: I desire neither this nor that.

Second: The order of the two negations, as contained in this majestic arrangement, is a form of escalation (taraqqi) to demonstrate His enrichment, Exalted is He. It is as if He, Glory be to Him, says: I do not ask of them provision, nor what is less than that—which is the placing of food before a master—as this is something often requested of slaves if the acquisition of wealth is not requested of them.

Third: That He, Exalted is He, said: (I do not desire from them any provision) rather than "I do not desire that they provide for Me," because the acquisition of wealth is for seeking the substance, not the act. And He, Glory be to Him, said: (nor do I desire that they should feed Me) rather than "I do not desire food from them," because this is to indicate being free of need from what a slave who is not commanded to acquire wealth performs, such as a slave with ample wealth whose need is for the act itself.

Fourth: That He, Majestic is He, singled out the feeding for mention because the lowest degree of seeking help is for a master to seek help from his slave in preparing the matter of food, and negating the lowest necessitates negating the highest by the principle of priority (awla). It is as if it were said: I desire from them neither the substance nor the act.

Fifth: That "Ma" (what/that) is for negating the present, yet the intent is the worldly life and what one encounters in it, rather than negating the future, because it is known and evident that after a slave dies, it is not appropriate to ask him for provision or feeding. This is the end of it; contemplate it.

It is understood from the apparent speech of Al-Zamakhshari that the meaning is: I do not desire from them any provision for Myself. In Al-Bahr, it is stated: "I do not desire from them any provision," meaning that they should provide for themselves or others. And "nor do I desire that they should feed Me," meaning that they should feed My creatures. It is therefore based on an elided genitive noun, as Ibn Abbas said. Similar to this is what was said: the meaning is "I do not desire that they provide for anyone of My creatures, nor do I desire that they feed him." The feeding is attributed to Him, Glory be to Him, because all are the dependents ('ayal) of Allah, and whoever feeds the dependents of someone is as if he fed him. In the Hadith: "O My servant, I became ill and you did not visit Me; I became hungry and you did not feed Me." This is as the Hadith itself clarifies: "My servant became ill and you did not visit him; he became hungry and you did not feed him."

It has been said: the verse is preceded by a silent "say," so it is in the sense of His, Glory be to Him, saying: (Say, "I do not ask of you for it any payment.") The use of the third person in it is to preserve the narrative, as in such cases, both the third person and the direct address are permissible, as has been recited in His, the Almighty’s, saying: (Say to those who disbelieve, "You will be overcome"). It is also said: The intent is "Say to them and regarding them," which makes the third person in "from them" and "they feed Me" appropriate. This does not contradict the recitation of "Indeed, I am the Provider" later on, for it would then be a justification for the command to speak or to obey, not for the lack of desire. Yes, there is no doubt that this is a very far-fetched interpretation.