Tafsir of Al-An'am 6:92

(And this is a Book We have sent down): This is a verification of the sending down of the Holy Qur'an, following the confirmation of the sending down of that which is indicated by the Torah, and a refutation of their heinous statement, occurring successively after the refutation and the use of the indefinite form "a Book" to denote majesty. The sentence "(We have sent down)" is in the nominative position as an adjective for it.

His saying, the Almighty, (blessed): That is, of great benefit and utility, for it contains the benefits of both abodes and the sciences of the ancients and the moderns. This is an adjective following an adjective. The Imam said: It is the established custom of Allah, the Almighty, that he who seeks this Book and holds fast to it attains the honor of this world and the happiness of the Hereafter. We have witnessed—praise be to Allah, the Mighty and Majestic—the fruit of our service to it in this world, so we ask Him not to deprive us of the happiness of the Hereafter, for He is the Benevolent, the Merciful.

His saying, the Majestic and Exalted, (confirming what came before it): This is another adjective. The genitive construction, according to what Abu al-Baqa’ asserted, is not genuine (i.e., it does not provide definiteness). The intent by "that which" (al-ladhi) is the Torah, because it is the greatest book revealed before it, and because the address is directed to the Jews. As for that which encompasses it and other heavenly books, this has been narrated from al-Hasan. The use of the masculine for the relative pronoun "that which" (al-ladhi) is in consideration of the "Book," or the "sent down one," or similar. The meaning of its being "before it" (between its hands) is that it preceded it, for everything that is "between the hands" is such. Its confirmation of all [previous scriptures] lies in establishing monotheism, commanding it, negating polytheism, forbidding it, and [confirming] all the foundations of the laws that are not abrogated.

(And that you may warn the Mother of Cities): It is said: This is a conjunction to that which the adjective of the Book indicates, as if it were said: We have sent it down for blessings, for the confirmation of that which preceded it, and for warning. The scholar (al-Allamah) chose the second [view], that it is a conjunction to the explicit description—i.e., a blessed Book and existing for the purpose of warning. He claimed that with this, there is no need for such artifice, for the conjunction of a prepositional phrase to a singular noun in the chapter of the predicate and the adjective is frequent. The claim that the motive for it is the emptiness of those preceding adjectives from the conjunction letter, and that the coupling of this one with it requires saying that if adjectives are multiplied and the first is not conjoined, conjunction is prohibited or ugly—in reality, the contrary is true.

The preferable view is to say: The motive is that the wording and the meaning require it. As for the meaning, warning is as indicated by [His saying]: (And this Qur’an has been revealed to me that I may warn you thereby). If it were conjoined, it would be to the first of the adjectives, according to the preferred view in conjunction when [adjectives] are multiplied. It is not elegant to conjoin the rationale (the cause) to that for which the rationale is given, nor to conjoin a prepositional phrase to a verbal sentence; for it is like saying: "This is a man who stood before me and to serve me," and it is as you see. From this, the verbal motive is known.

It is also permitted that it be the cause for a deleted [element] estimated as following or preceding—i.e., "And that you may warn, We sent it down," or "And We sent it down." The placement of the prepositional phrase first is for the sake of importance or for restrictive implication. It may also be a conjunction to an implied [element], i.e., "To give glad tidings and to warn." In any case, there is a deleted noun in the speech, i.e., the people of the Mother of Cities. The intent by it is the honored Makkah; it was so named because it is the prayer direction (qiblah) for the people of the villages and their place of pilgrimage, and they gather around it as children gather around a compassionate mother, and they revere it as one reveres a mother. This is transmitted from al-Zajjaj and al-Jubba’i. Or [it is named so] because it is the greatest of the villages in status, so others are subordinate to it, just as the branch follows the root. It is said: Because the earth was spread out from beneath it, so it is as if it emerged from beneath it just as children emerge from beneath a mother. Or because it is the location of the first house established for mankind, and this is transmitted from al-Suddi.

Abu Bakr narrated from ‘Asim: (li-yundhira) with the yā’—that is, the third-person prefix—based on metaphorical attribution to the Book, because it is the means of warning.

(And those around it): From the people of the cities and the nomads, in the Easts and the Wests, because of the universality of his mission—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—which the Qur’an proclaims in more than one verse. The wording does not reject this interpretation. Thus, there is no support in the verse for a group of the Jews who claimed that he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—was sent to the Arabs specifically. Even so, it is possible to say: Those were specified by mention because they are the most worthy of his warning—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—like His saying: (And warn your closest kindred). For this reason, the book of every messenger was sent in the language of his people.

(And those who believe in the Hereafter): And in what is in it of reward and punishment. He who restricted himself to the second [i.e., the punishment] in the explanation observed the precedence of the warning. (believe in it): That is, in the Book. It is said: Or in Muhammad—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—because they fear the punishment and desire the reward, and that constantly compels them to reflect and contemplate until they believe in him.

(And they maintain their prayers): It is possible that "prayer" is intended to mean absolute obedience metaphorically, or that the part which is the pillar of religion and the mark of faith was deemed sufficient—and for this reason, faith was metaphorically applied to it, as in His saying: (And never would Allah have made your faith [i.e., your prayers towards Jerusalem] go to waste).