Tafsir of Maryam 19:59-60

Surah Maryam (19): Verses 59–62

[59] فخلف من بعدهم خلف وأضاعوا الصلاة واتبعوا الشهوات فسوف يلقون غيا

It is known that after the Almighty described these Prophets with praiseworthy attributes, encouraging us to emulate their path, He then mentioned those who are their opposite, saying: "Then there succeeded them successors (khalaf)".

The apparent meaning is that after these Prophets, successors from their offspring followed. The term khalafa (with fath on the lām) is used for successors following good, while khalf (with sukūn on the lām) is used for successors following evil. This is like the difference between waʿd (promise) for good and waʿīd (threat) for evil.

The Prophet (PBUH) said: "In God there is a khalf (successor/replacement) for every perished thing." And in the poetry of Labīd:

"Gone are those in whose protection life was lived, And I remain among successors (khalf) like the skin of a mangy camel."

Then, He described them by "neglecting the prayer and following their desires."

Neglecting the prayer is contrasted with the description of the righteous who "fell down prostrating" (Surah As-Sajdah: 15). Following desires is contrasted with their "weeping" (referring to the Prophets), as their weeping indicates their fear of God, while these successors following their desires indicates their lack of fear.

The apparent meaning of "Then there succeeded them successors (khalaf)" is that they abandoned the path [of the Prophets]. Abandonment can mean never performing it at all, or not performing it at its appointed time, though the former is more apparent.

As for "following their desires," Ibn Abbas (may God be pleased with him) said they were the Jews who abandoned the obligatory prayers, drank wine, and permitted marrying a sister from the father's side.

Some used the verse "except for one who repents, believes, and does righteous work" as evidence that the one who abandons prayer is an unbeliever. Our scholars used this verse to argue that faith is not the action itself, because God mentioned "believes and does righteous work," conjoining righteous work to faith, meaning the conjoined is different from the one it is conjoined to.

Al-Kaʿbī responded by saying that God differentiated between repentance and faith, and repentance is a component of faith; similarly, righteous work is a component of faith even if differentiated. This response is weak because conjoining faith to repentance implies a difference between them—repentance is resolving to cease sin, while faith is affirmation in God, and they are distinct. The same applies here.

Then, the Almighty clarified that whoever has this description "will meet with ruin (ghayy)." Several interpretations of ghayy were mentioned:

1. General Misguidance: Among Arabs, every evil is ghayy, and every good is rashād (guidance). The poet said:

   "Whoever meets good, people will praise his affair, And whoever goes astray (yaghwī), he will not lack a blamer for his straying."

2. Recompense for Misguidance: Al-Zajjāj said: "they will meet with ruin (yalqawna ghayyan)" means they will meet the recompense of ruin, like His saying: "He will be made to meet with a grievous penalty (athāman)" (Al-Furqan: 68), meaning the punishment for sins.
3. A Valley in Hell: Ghayy refers to a path away from the Garden of Paradise.
4. A Specific Place in Hell: Ghayy is a valley in Hell from which one seeks refuge in its ravines.

The first two interpretations are closer, as the meaning is linguistically sound. If there is a place in Hell named that, it is permissible, but it does not exclude the previously mentioned meanings, which are linguistically coherent.

Then, the Almighty clarified that this warning is for those who do not repent. As for those who "repent, believe, and do righteous work," they will have Paradise, and no injustice will befall them.

Here arise two questions:

First Question: The exception implies that repentance, faith, and righteous work are necessary. However, this is not always the case. For instance, if someone repents from disbelief but the time for prayer has not arrived, or if a woman is menstruating, prayer is not obligatory. Zakat is also not obligatory, nor is fasting. If such a person dies at that moment, they are among the saved, yet no action was performed by them. Thus, the reward should not be contingent upon righteous action.

(Answer): This situation is rare, and the verse refers to the general case.

Second Question: His statement "and they will not be wronged at all" is only valid if the reward is deserved based on action. If the reward were purely by grace, injustice would be impossible. However, according to your school of thought (Mu'tazilite view implied here), the servant has no right based on their action except through God's promise.

(Answer): Since the situation resembles a matter of deserving, the ruling associated with deserving is applied to it.

[62] جنات عدن التي وعد الرحمن عباده بالغيب إنه كان وعده مأتيا

Gardens of Eden, which the Most Merciful has promised His servants unseen; indeed, His promise is to be fulfilled.

[63] لا يسمعون فيها لغوا إلا سلاما ولهم رزقهم فيها بكرة وعشيا

They will not hear therein any idle talk, except [the utterance of] "Peace," and they will have their provision therein morning and evening.

[64] تلك الجنة التي نورث من عبادنا من كان تقيا

That is the Paradise which We cause to inherit to those of Our servants who were righteous (taqiyy).