Tafsir of Al-`Ankabut 29:51-52

Surah Al-'Ankabut (The Spider): Verses 51-52

Verse 51:

أَوَلَمْ يَكْفِهِمْ أَنَّا أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ يُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ Or is it not sufficient for them that We have sent down to you the Book which is recited to them?

Exegesis: If the revelation of a sign is stipulated [as proof], then only the revelation of a sign is required. The Quran has been revealed, and it is a manifest and enduring miracle.

The phrase, "Or is it not sufficient for them..." implies that the Quran is a sign that surpasses all sufficiency. This is analogous to saying, "Is it not enough for the wrongdoer that he is not struck, such that he now expects honor?" This suggests that refraining from striking him is already a great deal in his case. Similarly, the revelation of the Book is more than sufficient.

The Quran is a more complete miracle than all preceding miracles for several reasons:

1. Permanence: Previous miracles, like the staff turning into a serpent or the raising of the dead, were transient. If someone disbelieved in their occurrence, it would be impossible to prove them without the Book. The Quran, however, remains. If someone denies it, we challenge them: "Produce a chapter like it."
2. Universality: The staff turning into a serpent occurred in one specific location, unseen by those elsewhere. The Quran has reached the East and the West, heard by everyone. A subtle point here is that the Prophet's signs included things not confined to one place, such as the splitting of the moon, which encompassed the entire Earth (as an eclipse does). This universality reflects that his prophethood was general, not restricted to one region. Furthermore, the drying up of Lake Sāwah and the collapse of Khosrow's palace in other regions served as a general announcement that a universal matter was coming.
3. Immunity to Accusation: Regarding other miracles, the obstinate disbeliever might claim it was mere sorcery or trickery involving potions. This accusation cannot be leveled against the Quran.

Verse 51 (Continued):

إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَرَحْمَةً وَذِكْرَىٰ لِقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ Indeed, in that is a mercy and a reminder for a people who believe.

Exegesis: The phrase "Indeed, in that is a mercy" refers to Our making the Quran a miracle as a mercy upon the servants, so that they may know the truthful one. We have explained that manifesting a miracle through a truthful person is a mercy from God. He could have refrained from doing so, leaving people in the predicament of either rejecting the truthful or accepting the liar, as a prophet cannot be distinguished from a false claimant without a miracle. But God does what He wills and judges as He wills.

The phrase "and a reminder" points to the Quran being an enduring miracle that serves as a reminder for all who remain throughout time.

The phrase "for a people who believe" means this mercy is specific to the believers. For the disbelievers, the miracle served as a source of wrath because it cut off their excuses and nullified their denial.

Verse 52:

قُلْ كَفَىٰ بِاللَّهِ شَهِيدًا بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَكُمْ ۖ وَمَنْ عِندَهُ عِلْمُ الْكِتَابِ Say, "Sufficient is Allah as a witness between me and you, and [also] he who has knowledge of the Scripture."

Exegesis: When his message became clear, his proof shone brightly, yet the obstinate People of the Scripture did not believe, he said what a truthful person says when he is denied, having presented all evidence of his truthfulness. God knows my truthfulness and your denial, O obstinate one, and He is a witness over what I say, judging between you and me. This is all a warning and a threat, which serves to confirm and reinforce the message.

He clarified that God is sufficient witness by stating: "He knows what is in the heavens and the earth."

Here is a point of discussion: In the end of Surah Ar-Ra'd (13:43), Allah says: "...And those who disbelieve say, 'You are not a messenger.' Say, 'Sufficient is Allah as a witness between me and you, and [also] he who has knowledge of the Scripture.'" There, the testimony of the People of the Scripture is mentioned last. In this Surah (Al-'Ankabut), it is mentioned first: "Those to whom We gave the Scripture believe in it..." (47). Some of the People of the Scripture believe in it.

We say: The discourse in Ar-Ra'd was directed towards the polytheists, so God used the testimony of others to establish proof against them. Moreover, God's testimony is stronger in compelling them than the testimony of others. Here, the discourse is directed towards the People of the Scripture themselves. A person's testimony against himself—his own admission—is the strongest form of argument against him, so what is most compelling to them is mentioned first.

Verse 53:

وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِالْبَاطِلِ وَكَفَرُوا بِاللَّهِ أُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ And those who believe in falsehood and disbelieve in Allah—those are the losers.

Exegesis: This refers to those who believe in anything other than Allah, because everything other than Allah is falsehood (bāṭil), as everything other than Him is perishable, according to His saying: "Everything will perish except His Face" (28:88). Everything that perishes is false, and everything other than Allah is perishable; thus, whoever believes in anything other than Allah has believed in falsehood.

There are several issues concerning this verse:

Issue 1: The phrase "Those are the losers" implies exclusivity (Ḥaṣr). If someone commits only one of the two acts—believing in falsehood OR disbelieving in Allah—they should not be considered losers. We reply that it is impossible for someone to commit one without the other:

• Whoever believes in something other than Allah has committed shirk (associating partners with God). Since what they worship is weak, ignorant, contingent, and false, they implicitly treat God as being like them, which constitutes a denial and disbelief in God.
• Whoever disbelieves in God and denies Him is asserting that the universe exists without a Creator, implying the universe itself is necessary (wājib). The necessary entity is God. Thus, they are asserting that something other than God is God, which is an affirmation and belief in something other than God.

Issue 2: If believing in falsehood is equivalent to disbelieving in God, is the conjunction (linking the two acts) merely for emphasis, like saying, "Stand up and don't sit down"? We say no, it has a purpose beyond emphasis: the second part is mentioned to highlight the ugliness of the first part, like saying, "Do you speak falsehood and abandon the truth?"—this shows how ugly speaking falsehood is.

Issue 3: Does this include the People of the Scripture? Do they believe in falsehood and disbelieve in God? Yes, because when the truth of the Prophet's miracle from God became established for them, yet they stubbornly insisted it came from someone other than God, it is like seeing someone throw stones and being certain the thrower is Zayd. Even if asked who threw the stones, they would say Zayd. Similarly, when they were certain God performed the miracle but claimed Muhammad performed it, they are effectively claiming Muhammad is God (belief in falsehood). Furthermore, by claiming the performer of the miracle is not God, despite being certain of the specific performer (God), they are asserting that the specific entity (God) is not God (disbelief in Him).

This does not apply to someone who says, "Perhaps the action was God's, or perhaps it was the servant's." That person merely misunderstands the attribution, like someone seeing stones thrown without seeing the thrower, and mistakenly attributing it to Zayd. If they then see the actual thrower is not Zayd, they do not necessarily insist on calling him Zayd. However, if they see the actual thrower and the throwing, and then say, "Zayd threw these stones," they are definitively asserting that this specific person is Zayd. The difference lies in the obstinacy and prior knowledge of the People of the Scripture that God performed the miracle while they attributed it to others.

The statement "Those are the losers" implies the most complete form of loss. The one who loses their capital and incurs debts is worse off than one who loses their capital but has no debts. They spent their lives worshipping other than God, gaining no benefit, and accumulated the debt of neglecting obligations, for which they will be held accountable when they have no capacity [to pay].

Verse 54:

وَيَسْتَعْجِلُونَكَ بِالْعَذَابِ ۖ وَلَوْلَا أَجَلٌ مُّسَمًّى لَّجَاءَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ ۖ وَلَيَأْتِيَنَّهُم بَغْتَةً وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ And they urge you to hasten the punishment. And if there were not a specified term, the punishment would have come to them. And it will surely come to them suddenly while they do not perceive.