Jonah: (88-89) And Moses said, "Our Lord..."

Know that when Moses (peace be upon him) had fully displayed the overwhelming, manifest miracles, and saw the people persisting in denial, obstinacy, and rejection, he began to supplicate against them. It is proper for one who invokes a curse upon others to first mention the reason for their commission of those crimes. Their crime was that, due to their love of the world, they abandoned religion. For this reason, Moses (peace be upon him) said: {Our Lord, indeed You have given Pharaoh and his chiefs splendor and wealth in the worldly life} (Jonah 10:88).

"Splendor" (Zīnah) refers to health, beauty, clothing, mounts, and household furnishings. "Wealth" (Māl) is what exceeds these things, whether tangible or intangible.

Then he said: {that they may lead astray from Your path} (Jonah 10:88). Regarding this, there are two issues:

Ḥamzah and al-Kisā’ī and ‘Āṣim recited {li-yuḍillū} (to lead astray) with a ḍammah on the yā’ (implying the passive voice: "that they may be led astray"). The rest recited it with a fatḥah on the yā’ (implying the active voice: "that they may lead astray").

Our scholars use this verse as evidence that God Almighty leads people astray and wills their misguidance. This is supported in two ways:

1. The lām (the letter Lām) in {li-yuḍillū} is the lām al-ta‘līl (the lām of causation/purpose). The meaning is: Moses said, "O Lord of Might, You gave them this splendor and wealth so that they may lead others astray." This indicates that God Almighty wills the misguidance of the accountable.
2. He also said: {and harden their hearts} (Jonah 10:89), and God Almighty replied: {Your supplication has been answered} (Jonah 10:89). This also indicates the intended meaning.

The Judge (al-Qāḍī) argued that the meaning you mentioned is not permissible, based on several grounds:

1. It is established that God Almighty is transcendent (free) from performing ugly acts, and willing disbelief is an ugly act.
2. If He willed that, the disbelievers would be obedient to God due to their disbelief, because obedience means doing what aligns with the Will. If they were obedient in this way, they would not deserve to be cursed regarding the destruction of their wealth and the hardening of their hearts.
3. If we permitted that He wills the misguidance of His servants, we would permit Him to send prophets to call people to misguidance, and to strengthen deceitful, misguided callers by manifesting miracles through them. This would demolish religion and invalidate trust in the Qur'an.
4. It is not permissible for Him to say to Moses and Aaron (peace be upon them): {Then speak to him a gentle word; perhaps he may remember or fear} (Ṭā-Hā 20:44), nor to say: {And We did take the people of Pharaoh through years [of drought] and a lessening in fruits that they might give thanks} (Al-A‘rāf 7:130). Yet, He intended misguidance for them and gave them blessings so that they might be misguided—this is contradictory. Therefore, one must be interpreted to align with the other.
5. It is not permissible to say that Moses (peace be upon him) prayed that God destroy their wealth so that they would not believe, while he was intensely desiring their faith.

Know that we have elaborated extensively on multiplying these arguments in many places in this book.

If this premise (that God does not will misguidance) is established, then the interpretation of this phrase is obligatory, based on several views:

1. The Lām of Consequence (Lām al-‘Āqibah): The lām in {li-yuḍillū} is the lām of consequence, as in His saying: {So the people of Pharaoh picked him up [so that he would become] an enemy and a source of grief to them} (Al-Qaṣaṣ 28:8). Since the consequence for Pharaoh's people was misguidance, and God informed Moses of this, the expression uses this word to convey that meaning.
2. The Lām of Negation (Implicit Lā): The meaning is: {Our Lord, lest they be led astray from Your path} (li-’allā yuḍillū). The negative particle lā (lest/not) is omitted because the intellect implies it, as in {Allah makes clear to you [His rulings] that you may not err} (An-Nisā’ 4:176), meaning "that you may not err." Similar omissions occur, such as in {They said, "Yes, we testify." Lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection...} (Al-A‘rāf 7:172), meaning "lest you say." Such omission is frequent in speech.
3. The Lām of Wonder/Inquiry: Moses (peace be upon him) mentioned this as an expression of astonishment mixed with rejection. The implied meaning is: "Did You give them that, and their only purpose for spending this wealth is for that [misguidance]?" He essentially said: "Did You give them splendor and wealth for the purpose of leading them astray from God's path?" The interrogative particle is omitted, similar to the poet's saying:

   "Did your eye lie to you, or did you see in the darkness of the night a phantom of Rabāb?" He meant: "Did your eye lie to you?" Thus, it is similar here.

4. The Lām of Supplication: Some said this lām is the lām of supplication (which is makhsūrah—voweled with a kasrah—and governs the following verb in the jussive mood, though it begins a sentence). One says, "May God forgive the believers" (li-yaghfira). The meaning here is: "O Lord, afflict them with misguidance from Your path."
5. The Lām of Causation (Apparent, Not Actual): This lām is for causation, but based on the apparent situation, not the ultimate reality. The explanation is that since God gave them this wealth, and that wealth became the cause for increased tyranny and disbelief, this situation resembled the case where one gives wealth for the purpose of misguidance. Thus, the statement was phrased using the language of causation due to this resemblance.
6. Misguidance Meaning Destruction: We explained in the exegesis of {by which He misguides many} (Al-Baqarah 2:26) at the beginning of Sūrat al-Baqarah that ḍalāl (misguidance) sometimes means destruction in the Qur'an. It is said that water is in the milk (al-mā’ fī al-laban) meaning it is destroyed within it.

If this is established, then the meaning of {Our Lord, that they may lead astray from Your path} is: "that they may be destroyed and perish." This is analogous to His saying: {So let not their wealth and their children impress you. Allah only intends to punish them therewith in the worldly life} (At-Tawbah 9:55). This summarizes what has been said on this topic.

Know that we have answered these views many times in this book, but it is fine to reiterate some here. We say that the following points indicate that the occurrence of misguidance comes from God Almighty:

1. The servant only intends to attain guidance. Since guidance did not occur, but rather misguidance—which he does not desire—occurred, we know that its occurrence is not from the servant but from God Almighty.
   • If they argue: He thought this misguidance was guidance, so He caused it to happen and brought it into existence.
   • We reply: In that case, his endeavor to acquire this ignorance was due to prior ignorance. If that prior ignorance was due to another ignorance, it would necessitate an infinite regress, which is impossible. Thus, these ignorances and misguidances must terminate in a first ignorance and a first misguidance, which cannot be created by the servant, as he detested it and desired its opposite. Therefore, it must be from God Almighty.
2. God Almighty created creation such that they intensely love wealth and status, and they cannot remove this love from themselves. The existence of this love necessitates turning away from whomever employs them, necessitates arrogance toward Him, and necessitates ignoring His word, which in turn necessitates disbelief. These matters follow one another necessarily. Therefore, the agent of this disbelief must be the One who created man inherently inclined to love wealth and status.
3. The Greatest Proof: Power regarding two opposites is equal. One side cannot be favored over the other except by a determining factor (murajjiḥ). This factor cannot be from the servant, otherwise the argument returns to him. Therefore, it must be from God Almighty. If so, guidance and misguidance are both from God Almighty.
4. God Almighty gave Pharaoh and his people worldly splendor and wealth, strengthened the love for that wealth and status in their hearts, and instilled in their nature a strong aversion to serving Moses (peace be upon him) and submitting to him. Especially since Pharaoh was like a benefactor and nurturer to him, and aversion to serving such a person is deeply rooted in the heart. All of this necessitates their turning away from accepting Moses's call and their persistence in denying his truthfulness. Thus, it is proven by rational proof that God Almighty giving Pharaoh and his people worldly splendor and wealth must necessarily result in their misguidance. Therefore, what the apparent meaning of the text implies is confirmed by clear intellect. How, then, can the apparent meaning be abandoned in such a context, and how can one resort to such weak, contrived interpretations?

Now that this is known, we say:

1. The First View (Lām of Consequence): This is weak because Moses (peace be upon him) was not aware of the consequences.
   • If they argue: God informed him of it.
   • We reply: If God informed him that they would not believe, then the occurrence of belief from them would be impossible, as that would imply God's report was false, which is impossible. And what leads to the impossible is impossible.
2. The Second View (Lām implying negation, li-’allā): This interpretation was mentioned by Abū ‘Alī al-Jubbā’ī in his Tafsīr. I say: When he began interpreting {Whatever good reaches you is from Allah, and whatever evil befalls you is from yourself} (An-Nisā’ 4:79), he quoted some of our colleagues who recited {from yourself} (fa-min nafsik) as an interrogative expression of denial. He then rejected this recitation, saying it implies distortion and alteration of the Qur'an and opens the door to the interpretations of the esotericists (Bāṭiniyyah), vehemently denying that recitation. The view he mentioned here is worse than that, because it turns a negation into an affirmation and an affirmation into a negation. Permitting it opens the door to no longer relying on the Qur'an, neither in its negation nor its affirmation, thus invalidating the Qur'an entirely. This is precisely the refutation against the view that it implies an interrogative expression of denial: permitting it necessitates permitting the like in all other contexts. Perhaps God Almighty said {and establish the prayer and when We took...} as an expression of denial and astonishment.

As for the rest of the answers, their weakness is self-evident.

Furthermore, God Almighty recounts Moses (peace be upon him) saying: {Our Lord, destroy their wealth} (Jonah 10:88). We mentioned the meaning of ṭams (destruction/obliteration) when interpreting {before We obliterate faces} (An-Nisā’ 4:47). Ṭams is transformation/mutilation. Ibn ‘Abbās (may God be pleased with him) said: We heard that the dirhams and dinars turned into inscribed stones, retaining their shape as whole coins, halves, and thirds, and their sugar turned into stone.

Then he said: {and harden their hearts} (Jonah 10:89). Hardening the hearts means securing them so that faith cannot enter them. Al-Wāḥidī said: This is evidence that God Almighty does this to whomever He wills, otherwise Moses’s request would not have been appropriate.

Then he said: {so they will not believe until they see the painful punishment} (Jonah 10:89). There are two possibilities here:

1. It may be coordinated with {that they may lead astray} (li-yuḍillū). The structure would be: "Our Lord, that they may lead astray from Your path, and so they will not believe until they see the painful punishment." And the phrase {Our Lord, destroy their wealth and harden their hearts} would be an inserted clause.
2. It may be the response to {and harden} (wa-’ashdid). The meaning is: "Harden and seal their hearts so that they will not believe, for they deserve that."

Then God Almighty said: {Your supplication has been answered} (Jonah 10:89). There are two views:

1. Ibn ‘Abbās (may God be pleased with him) said that Moses was supplicating while Aaron was saying Āmīn (Amen). That is why it is said: {Your supplication has been answered} (dual form, referring to both). This is because whoever says Āmīn when a supplicator prays is also a supplicator, as the meaning of Āmīn is "Respond [O God]," making him a petitioner just as the original speaker is a petitioner.
2. It is not unlikely that each of them uttered this supplication. The utmost that can be said is that God recounted this supplication from Moses by saying: {And Moses said, "Our Lord, indeed You have given Pharaoh and his chiefs splendor and wealth..."} However, this does not negate that Aaron also uttered that supplication.

As for {So remain steadfast} (fa-staqimā), it means: Remain steadfast upon the call and the mission, and in increasing the establishment of the proof. Noah remained with his people for a thousand years less fifty years, so do not be hasty. Ibn Jurayj said that Pharaoh remained [after this supplication] for forty years.

As for {and do not follow the way of those who do not know} (Jonah 10:89), there are two points of discussion:

The meaning is: Do not follow the way of the ignorant who think that if a supplication is answered, the intended result must occur immediately. God may answer a person's request, but He only delivers it at its appointed time. Haste issues only from the ignorant. This is like what was said to Noah (peace be upon him): {I advise you, lest you be among the ignorant} (Hūd 11:46).

Know that this prohibition does not indicate that this [haste] actually occurred from Moses (peace be upon him), just as His saying {If you should associate [anything with Allah], your work would surely become worthless} (Az-Zumar 39:65) does not indicate that polytheism occurred from him.

Al-Zajjāj said that {wa-lā tattabi‘ān} (and do not follow) is in the jussive mood, meaning {wa-lā tattabi‘ā} (dual imperative). However, the emphatic nūn (nūn with a shaddah) entered the prohibition for emphasis and was vocalized with a kasrah due to its preceding sukūn (the sukūn of the preceding nūn). The kasrah was preferred because it comes after an alif and resembles the dual nūn. Ibn ‘Āmir recited it with a lightened nūn (wa-lā tattabi‘ān).

{And We took the Children of Israel across the sea. Then Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them in tyranny and enmity, until when he was about to drown, he said, "I believe that there is no god except the One in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of those who submit [to Him]"} (Jonah 10:90)

{And We took the Children of Israel across the sea} (Jonah 10:90). Then Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them out of tyranny and enmity.

{until when the drowning overtook him, he said, "I believe that there is no god except the One in whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am of those who submit [to Him]"} (Jonah 10:90).

{“Have you believed now while you have been in disobedience before and were of the corrupters?} (Jonah 10:91)

{“Have you believed now while you have been in disobedience before and were of the corrupters?} (Jonah 10:91).

{So today We will save you in body that you may be a sign to those who come after you. And indeed, many of the people, of Our signs, are heedless"} (Jonah 10:92)

{So today We will save you in body that you may be a sign to those who come after you. And indeed, many of the people, of Our signs, are heedless} (Jonah 10:92).