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Tafsir of Ar-Rum 30:43-44

Surah Ar-Rum 30:43

ﱑ ﱒ ﱓ ﱔ ﱕ ﱖ ﱗ ﱘ ﱙ ﱚ ﱛ ﱜ ﱝ ﱞ ﱟ ﱠ ﱡ

So direct your face toward the correct religion before a Day comes from Allah of which there is no repelling. That Day, they will be divided.

Tafsir

Mafatih al-Ghayb

Verse range: 30:43-44

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Surah Ar-Rum (The Romans): Verses 43-44

(43) So set your face toward the religion, inclining to truth, [adhering to] the fitrah of Allah upon which He has created all people. There is no altering the creation of Allah. That is the straight religion, but most of the people do not know.

When the disbeliever was warned against his state, the believer was commanded regarding his state. The Prophet (peace be upon him) was addressed so that the believer might know the virtue of what he is obligated to do, as he is commanded by the noblest of the Prophets. For the believers in this obligation, they hold the station of the Prophets, as the Prophet (PBUH) said: "Indeed, Allah has commanded His believing servants with what He commanded His sending messengers." We have already mentioned its meaning.
And His saying: **{before there comes a Day which there is no turning back from by Allah}** admits of two interpretations: 1. That the phrase **{by Allah}** is related to His saying **{comes}**. 2. That what is meant is **{there is no turning back from it by Allah}**, meaning Allah does not turn it back, and others are incapable of turning it back, so its occurrence is inevitable.
**{That Day, they will be separated.}** Meaning, they will be divided. Then, He indicated this separation by His saying: **{Whoever disbelieves, upon him is his disbelief, and whoever does righteous deeds, it is for themselves they are preparing.}**

Issues within the Verse:

Issue 1: He said: {Whoever disbelieves, upon him is his disbelief, and whoever does righteous deeds...} and did not say, "and whoever believes." This is because righteous deeds complete the faith, so mentioning them serves as an encouragement for the obligated person. As for disbelief, when it occurs, there is no weight given to deeds alongside it.

Another perspective is that disbelief is of two types:

  1. Action, which is polytheism (Shirk) and affirming it verbally.
  2. Omission, which is the absence of reflection and faith. Thus, a mature, intelligent person residing in the Prophet's city who does not come with faith is a disbeliever, whether he verbally affirms Shirk or not. However, faith necessarily requires righteous deeds, as true belief is an action of the heart, and saying "There is no god but Allah" is an action of the tongue; some form of this is indispensable.

Issue 2: He said: {upon him} (singular pronoun) and said {for themselves} (plural pronoun). This is an indication that Mercy is more encompassing than Wrath, so it includes him, his family, and his descendants. As for Wrath, it is preceded by Mercy and is incumbent upon the one who does evil.

Issue 3: He said: {upon him is his disbelief} and did not elaborate, but for the believer, He said: {for themselves they are preparing}, confirming the completeness of Mercy. When good is mentioned, it is explained and detailed as glad tidings, whereas for the opposite (disbelief), it is only alluded to.

(44) That He may recompense those who believed and did righteous deeds out of His bounty. Indeed, He does not love the disbelievers.