Tafsir of Al-Mu'minoon 23:23-25

Al-Mu'minun (The Believers): Verses 23-25

And We sent Noah...

It is narrated that Noah's people said his name was originally Yashkur (Thankful), and he was later named Nuh (Noah) for several reasons:

1. Because of how much he lamented (nāḥa) over himself after supplicating for his people's destruction, which resulted in the Flood, causing him to regret it.
2. Because of his repeated appeals to his Lord concerning his son.
3. Because he passed by a leprous dog and told it, "Go away, you ugly one!" He was then admonished for this, and God said to him, "Do you blame Me for creating him, or do you blame the dog?"

These explanations are problematic because it is established that proper names do not inherently convey a quality about the named person.

As for His saying: {Worship God}, the meaning is that the Almighty sent him with the call to worship God alone. He could not invite them to this unless he had first invited them to know Him, because worshipping someone unknown is not permissible. It is only permissible and obligatory after knowledge has been established.

As for His saying: {You have no god other than Him}, this means that worshipping anyone other than God is impermissible, as there is no deity besides Him. The right to worship belongs to the One who bestowed creation, life, and what follows. If this right belongs exclusively to the Almighty, how can one worship that which neither benefits nor harms?

It was read as ghayruhu (nominative, based on position) and ghayrihi (genitive, based on spelling).

Furthermore, since this call was ineffective and they persisted in worshipping other than God, He warned them by saying: {Will you not fear?} This is a reprimand and a threat of avoiding punishment, so that they might turn away from their current state.

Then, the Almighty recounted their doubts regarding the prophethood of Noah (peace be upon him).

This doubt has two interpretations:

1. Since he is equal to all people in strength, understanding, knowledge, wealth, poverty, health, and sickness, it is impossible for him to be a Messenger of God. A Messenger must possess a high status and be beloved by God, and a beloved one must be distinguished from others by a higher rank and affection. Since Noah lacked these distinctions, they concluded that prophethood was absent in him.
2. This human shares all your characteristics, but he desires leadership and to be followed. He found no way to attain this except by claiming prophethood. This interpretation is confirmed by God's subsequent report about them: {He wants to gain favor over you}, meaning he wants to seek superiority over you and lead you, similar to God's saying: {And for you both shall be the greatness in the land} (Quran 17:37).

The explanation is that if God intended to guide humanity, He should have chosen the path most conducive to that goal. It is known that sending angels is far more conducive to this goal than sending humans, because of the angels' high status, powerful authority, and vast knowledge—people would submit to them without doubting their message. Since God did not do this, they concluded that He had not sent any Messenger at all.

The word hādhā (this) refers either to Noah (peace be upon him) or to what he conveyed to them—the call to worship God. They meant: We have never heard such speech, or such a person who is human claiming to be a Messenger of God.

The explanation of this doubt is that they were a people who relied solely on imitation (taqlīd) and adherence to the sayings of their forefathers in all their beliefs. Since they did not find this method supporting Noah's prophethood, they judged it to be false.

The Judge (Al-Qadi) suggests that they might mean his claim to be a sent Messenger, as it is not impossible that the time before their fathers was a period of spiritual interregnum (fatrah). Alternatively, they might mean his call to worship God alone, as their forefathers were idol worshippers.

Al-Jinnah (madness) here means insanity or being possessed by a jinn. The ignorant masses often attribute insanity to the influence of jinn. This doubt was a tactic to sway the common people, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) acted contrary to their customs. Their leaders told the masses that he was insane, and how could an insane person be a Messenger?

This has two possibilities:

1. It is connected to the preceding statement: Since he is mad, wait a while until the outcome of his affair becomes clear. If he recovers, fine; otherwise, you can kill him.
2. It is a new statement addressed to their people: Wait, for if he is truly a Prophet, God will support and strengthen his cause, and then we will follow him. If he is a liar, God will abandon and invalidate his cause, and then we will be rid of him.

These are the sum of the doubts God recounted from them. Know that the Almighty did not mention the answers to these doubts because of their weakness and the clarity of their falsehood.

Every rational person knows that a Messenger becomes a Messenger not because he is of angelic nature, but because he is distinguished from others by miracles. Whether he is of angelic or human nature, upon the appearance of a miracle, he must be accepted as a Messenger. In fact, making the Messenger human is preferable, as explained in previous Surahs, because shared humanity fosters familiarity and closeness.

As for their saying {He wants to gain favor over you}:

• If they meant he desires to manifest his virtue so that they are compelled to obey him, this is obligatory upon the Messenger.
• If they meant he wants to rise above them through tyranny and arrogance, the Prophets are pure from such behavior.

As for their saying, {We have not heard of this}, this is arguing the non-existence of something based on the non-existence of imitation. This is utterly baseless, because the existence of imitation does not prove the existence of the thing itself, so how can its absence prove its non-existence?

As for their saying {He is only a man afflicted with madness}, they lied, because they knew by necessity the perfection of his intellect.

As for their saying, {So wait for him}, this is weak, because if the proof of his prophethood—the miracle—appears, they must accept his word immediately. It is not permissible to postpone acceptance until his worldly power is established, because worldly power does not prove truthfulness. If the miracle does not appear, it is not permissible to accept his word, whether his worldly power appears or not. Since these answers are so obvious, God, the Exalted, omitted mentioning them.

**{7 < Say, "My Lord, support me because they have denied me." * So We inspired him, "Construct the ark under Our supervision and by Our command. Then, when Our command comes and the surface of the earth overflows, embark in it of every kind two [of every species] and your family, except those about whom the word [of doom] has already been passed. And do not address Me concerning those who have wronged; indeed, they are to be drowned." * And when you and those with you are established on the ark, say, "Praise be to God, who has saved us from the wrongdoing people." * And say, "My Lord, let me land with a blessed landing, and You are the best of those who bring to land." * Indeed, in that are signs, and indeed, We were putting [people] to the test. > 7

<}**