Tafsir of An-Naml 27:65-66

Surah An-Naml (The Ants): Verses 65–66

Verse 65:

قُل لَّا يَعْلَمُ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ الْغَيْبَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ ۚ وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ أَيَّانَ يُبْعَثُونَ Say: "None in the heavens and the earth knows the Unseen, except Allah. And they do not perceive when they will be resurrected."

Tafsir:

1. Establishing Allah's Exclusive Knowledge of the Unseen: After establishing that Allah is uniquely capable of power, the text shows that He is also uniquely qualified to possess knowledge of the Unseen (al-Ghayb). If this is established, it confirms that He alone is the worthy object of worship (al-Ilāh), because only the true God can justly reward those deserving of reward in a manner that cannot be confused with the punishment of the wicked.

2. Addressing the Apparent Contradiction (The Issue of Istithnā’ - Exception):
   • The Objection: The verse excepts Allah from those in the heavens and the earth who do not know the Unseen. Logically, an exception (istithnā’) implies that the excepted entity (Allah) must belong to the category from which the exception is made (those in the heavens and the earth). This would imply that Allah is physically located in the heavens and the earth.
   • The Refutation: This interpretation is rejected because those who claim Allah is in a location assert He is above the heavens, while those who deny location affirm He is free from all locations. By consensus, Allah is not physically in the heavens and the earth.
   • The Resolution (Ta’wīl - Figurative Interpretation): Therefore, the verse must be interpreted figuratively. We say Allah is "among those in the heavens and the earth" in the same sense that theologians state Allah is "in every place"—meaning His knowledge encompasses all places.
   • Addressing the Allegation of Mixed Meanings: One might argue that saying creatures are literally in the heavens/earth (by their physical presence) while Allah is figuratively there (by His knowledge) is impermissible, as a single expression cannot carry both literal and figurative meanings simultaneously.
   • The Counter-Argument: The presence of creatures in the heavens/earth is literal (their physical existence in spatial domains). Similarly, their presence in the context of knowledge is figurative (their awareness of those places). When we interpret "being in the heavens and the earth" in this verse as the figurative meaning—being known or encompassed by knowledge—then both Allah (whose knowledge covers everything) and the creatures (who are known) fall under this scope, making the exception valid.

Verse 66:

وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ أَيَّانَ يُبْعَثُونَ And they do not perceive when they will be resurrected.

Tafsir:

1. Meaning of Wa Mā Yashʿurūn: This phrase describes the inhabitants of the heavens and the earth, negating their knowledge of the Unseen.
2. Meaning of Ayyāna Yubʿathūn: This specifies a part of the Unseen: the timing of the Resurrection. Ayyān means "when" (a time), being a compound of ay (which) and ān (now/time). (A variant reading exists with a kasra on the hamza: Ayyāna).

Verse 67:

بَلِ ادَّارَكَ عِلْمُهُمْ فِي الْآخِرَةِ ۚ بَلْ هُمْ فِي شَكٍّ مِّنْهَا ۖ بَلْ هُم مِّنْهَا عُمُونَ Nay, their knowledge concerning the Hereafter has been completed [or exhausted]. Nay, they are in doubt thereof. Nay, they are blind to it.

Tafsir:

Al-Razi notes that the commentary of Al-Kashshāf on this verse is structured around three points:

First Point: The Twelve Readings of Iddāraka There are twelve recorded readings for the word Iddāraka, including: Bal iddaraka, Bal adraka, Bal idāraka, Bal tadāraka, Bal a’adraka (with two hamzas), Bal ā’adraka (with an intervening alif), Bal ādrka (with abbreviation/transfer), Bal idrak (with fatḥ on the lām and tashdīd on the dāl), and others derived from interrogative forms like A-bal adraka, Balā adraka, Balā a’adraka, or Am tadāraka or Adraka.

Second Point: Etymology

• Idāraka is derived from tadāraka, where the tā’ is assimilated into the dāl.
• Adraka is derived from the iftiʿāla pattern.

Third Point: Meanings of Idraka The word Idraka has several meanings:

1. Completion/Exhaustion: It means knowledge has reached its end or completion.
2. Succession/Firmness: Idrāka can mean succession or becoming firmly established.

Interpretive Views on the Meaning:

• View 1: Knowledge is Complete (Ironic): The causes and proofs necessitating the certainty of the Resurrection have been fully presented to them, yet they remain doubtful and ignorant. This is linked to the following phrases: "Nay, they are in doubt thereof. Nay, they are blind to it." This refers to the polytheists among the inhabitants of the heavens and earth. Their actions are attributed to the whole group, similar to saying "The people of so-and-so did this," even if only some of them did it.
  • Objection: The context is establishing Allah's exclusive knowledge of the Unseen, and that creatures know nothing of it, including the Resurrection time. How does describing the polytheists as denying the Resurrection fit, especially when the proofs for it are so strong?
  • Answer: Allah is essentially saying: How can they claim knowledge of the Unseen when they doubt the Hereafter, whose proofs are clear and overwhelming? If they are heedless of this obvious matter, how can they know the most hidden of things (the Unseen)?

• View 2: Mockery (Sarcasm): Describing their knowledge as "complete" is mockery, like saying to the most ignorant person, "What knowledge do you possess?" because they doubt something whose path is clear.

• View 3: Termination/Decay: Adraka means "ended" or "perished," like saying a fruit has adrakat (reached its end/ripeness), after which it ceases to exist. Al-Hasan interpreted it as their knowledge has dissolved (idmhallat). Tadāraka means they followed one another into destruction.

Interpretations of the Interrogative Readings:

• If read as Interrogative (A’adraka or Am Adraka): This is a form of rhetorical denial, questioning the very notion that their knowledge has been completed.
• If read as Balā Adraka (Yes, it is complete): Since Balā follows the negation "they do not perceive," it implies "Yes, they do perceive." This perception is then explained by "their knowledge is complete in the Hereafter," used ironically to exaggerate the negation of knowledge. It means their perception of the Resurrection time is that they do not know it, thus achieving the highest level of negating perception.
• If read as Balā A’adraka (Yes, do they perceive?): It means, "Yes, they perceive when they will be resurrected," but this is immediately followed by denying their knowledge of its occurrence, meaning they have no perception of its timing.

The Significance of the Three Stages of Denial: These three phrases (no perception, doubt, blindness) serve to explain the degrees of their condition:

1. First, they do not perceive the time of resurrection.
2. Second, they do not know the Resurrection will occur at all.
3. Third, they are lost in doubt and uncertainty.
4. Fourth, the worst state: blindness.

Subtle Point: Allah made the Hereafter the source (mabda’) of their blindness, hence the preposition min (from/out of) is used rather than ʿan (about/concerning). This implies that their preoccupation with the Hereafter (or lack thereof) is what has rendered them like beasts.

(The text then transitions to the next verses, 68-77, which are quoted below.)

Verses 68–77 (Quoted):

{ وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَإِذَا كُنَّا تُرَابًا وَآبَاؤُنَا أَإِنَّا لَمُخْرَجُونَ * لَقَدْ وُعِدْنَا هَٰذَا نَحْنُ وَآبَاؤُنَا مِن قَبْلُ إِنْ هَٰذَا إِلَّا أَسَاطِيرُ الْأَوَّلِينَ * قُلْ سِيرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ فَانظُرُوا كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُجْرِمِينَ * وَلَا تَحْزَنْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا تَكُن فِي ضَيْقٍ مِّمَّا يَمْكُرُونَ * وَيَقُولُونَ مَتَىٰ هَٰذَا الْوَعْدُ إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ * قُلْ عَسَىٰ أَن يَكُونَ قَرِيبًا رُّدِفَ لَكُم بَعْضُ الَّذِي تَسْتَعْجِلُونَ * وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَذُو فَضْلٍ عَلَى النَّاسِ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَشْكُرُونَ * وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَيَعْلَمُ مَا تُكِنُّ صُدُورُهُمْ وَمَا يُعْلِنُونَ * وَمَا مِنْ غَائِبَةٍ فِي السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مُّبِينٍ }