Tafsir of Al-`Ankabut 29:63

Surah Al-'Ankabut (The Spider): Verse 63

{وَلَئِن سَأَلْتَهُم مَّنْ خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ لَيَقُولُنَّ اللَّه}

This verse implies that God is the source of sustenance (the cause of the means) and the Creator of the means is the Creator of the result. Therefore, sustenance comes from God.

Then, {فَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ} (Say: Praise be to Allah). This phrase is subject to several interpretations:

1. Interjection: It could be an inserted statement amidst the discourse, as if saying: "He revives the earth after its death [by sending down rain]... {بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْقِلُونَ} (Nay, most of them do not reason)." In this context, {الْحَمْدُ} (Praise) is mentioned to recall the blessing, similar to how a poet might say:

   "Indeed, eighty years have reached me, And they have made my hearing require an interpreter."

2. Connection to their Acknowledgment: It could mean that they acknowledge that these things (creation, control of the sun and moon) are from God, yet they do not act upon their knowledge. You (the Prophet) know and act accordingly, as do the believers. Therefore, say {الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ}, while most of them do not realize that all praise belongs to God, so they praise others for blessings that originate from God.

3. Highlighting Contradiction: It could mean that they claim these things are from God, yet they also claim divinity for other beings. Thus, the contradiction and flaw in their doctrine become apparent. Say {الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ} because of the clarity of their contradiction, and {وَأَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْقِلُونَ} (and most of them do not reason) regarding this contradiction or the falsehood of their position.

{وَلَئِن سَأَلْتَهُم مَّنْ خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ لَيَقُولُنَّ اللَّهُ فَأَنَّى يُؤْفَكُونَ} (This part is implied from the context leading to the next verse, as the previous section discussed their acknowledgment).

{وَمَا هَذِهِ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلَّا لَهْوٌ وَلَعِبٌ وَإِنَّ الدَّارَ الْآخِرَةَ لَهِيَ الْحَيَوَانُ لَوْ كَانُوا يَعْلَمُونَ} (And this worldly life is not but diversion and amusement. But the home of the Hereafter—that is indeed the [true] life, if only they knew.)