Al-Ahqaf: (17) And he who said to his parents...

It is known that after the Almighty described the dutiful son to his parents in the preceding verse, He describes the disobedient son to his parents in this verse, saying: {...and he who said to his parents, "Uff to you both..."}

There are two opinions regarding this verse:

1. The first opinion: It was revealed concerning 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr. They say that his parents used to call him to Islam, but he refused, saying, "Uff to you both." Those who hold this view argue for its validity by citing that when Mu'awiyah wrote to Marwan to take the pledge of allegiance for Yazid, 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr said, "You have brought forth a Heraclite matter (a strange, tyrannical decree), pledging allegiance for your sons?" Marwan then replied, "O people, this is the one about whom Allah said: {And he who said to his parents, 'Uff to you both...'}"

2. The second opinion: It does not refer to a specific person, but rather to everyone characterized by this description—everyone whose parents called him to the true religion, yet he refused and denied it. This, in our view, is the correct opinion.

This is supported by several points:

• First Point: The Almighty described this person who said "Uff to you both" and {Do you promise me...} by saying: {Those are the ones against whom the Word has been fulfilled, among the nations which had passed on before them of jinn and mankind. Indeed, they were the losers.} Undoubtedly, 'Abd al-Rahman later believed and his Islam became good, and he became one of the leaders of the Muslims. Thus, applying the verse to him is invalidated.
  • If they argue that when his parents called him to Islam and informed him of the Resurrection, he said: {Do you promise me that I will be brought forth?} meaning, resurrected from the grave, {when generations have already passed before me?} meaning, the nations that perished. He said, "I have not seen any of them resurrected, so where is 'Abd Allah ibn Jud'an, and where is so-and-so?" If you know this, then we say that His statement {Those are the ones against whom the Word has been fulfilled} refers to those whom 'Abd al-Rahman mentioned—the disbelievers who died before him—and it is they who deserved the decree. In summary, it refers back to those indicated by {when generations have already passed before me}, not to the one indicated by {And he who said to his parents, 'Uff to you both...'}. This is what al-Kallabi mentioned in refuting this evidence, and it is sound.

• Second Point: What is narrated regarding the invalidation of that opinion is that when Marwan uttered these words concerning 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr, 'A'ishah heard it, became angry, and said, "By Allah, it is not him! Rather, Allah cursed your father while you were in his loins."

• Third Point (The Strongest): It can be argued that the Almighty described the dutiful son to his parents in the preceding verse, and described the disobedient son to his parents in this verse. He mentioned that the description of this son reached the point where, when his parents called him to the true religion—the affirmation of the Resurrection and the Hereafter—he insisted on denial, refused, and acted arrogantly, relying on base sophistries and weak statements for his denial. Since this is the case, the intended meaning is every son characterized by these descriptions, and there is absolutely no need to restrict the absolute term to a specific person.

Al-Sahib of Al-Kashshaf said: "Uff" was recited with fath (a) and kasr (i) without tanwin, and with the three vowel signs along with tanwin. It is a sound indicating annoyance, just as saying Hass indicates pain. The lam (for emphasis) means: This "Uff" is specifically directed to you both, and because of you both, and no one else.

It was also recited as "A-ta'idani" (أتعدانني) with two nuns, and "A-ta'idani" (أتعداني) with one nun, and "A-ta'idani" (أتعدانني) with idgham (merging). Some recited it as "A-ta'idānani" (أتعدانني) with fath on the nun, as if they found the combination of two nuns, two kasrs, and the ya' burdensome, so they vocalized the first fath seeking alleviation, just as those who performed idgham or dropped one of them sought alleviation.

Then He said: {that I should be brought forth} (أن أخرج), meaning, that I should be resurrected and brought forth from the earth. It was also recited as {I should be brought forth, when generations have already passed before me}, meaning, none of them were resurrected.

Then He said: {And they both sought help from Allah} (وهما يستغيثان الله), meaning, the two parents sought help from Allah. If they ask: Should it not have been said, yastaghīthāni bi-llāh (seeking help with Allah)? We reply: There are two answers:

1. The meaning is that they sought help from Allah concerning his disbelief and denial, so the preposition was omitted when the verb was connected.
2. It is permissible to say that the preposition bi (with/by) was omitted because istighāthah (seeking help) here means du'ā' (supplication), as the exegetes stated. When istighāthah means du'ā', the preposition is omitted because supplication does not inherently require it.

And His statement: {Woe to you!} (ويلك), meaning, they said to him, "Woe to you!" {Believe!} (من), and he confirmed the Resurrection, which is a curse upon him for ruin, but the intent is to urge and incite him toward faith, not the reality of destruction.

Then He said: {Indeed, the promise of Allah} (إن وعد الله) regarding the Resurrection is true. So he said to them: What is this you are telling me about the Resurrection and inviting me to? {but mere legends of the ancients} (إلا أساطير الاولين).

Then the Almighty said: {Those are the ones against whom the Word has been fulfilled} (أولئك الذين حق عليهم القول), meaning, the decree of punishment has been justly decreed against them. Here there are two opinions:

• Those who say the verse was revealed concerning 'Abd al-Rahman ibn Abi Bakr say that those against whom the decree of punishment has been fulfilled are the generations that passed before him.
• Those who say it does not refer to 'Abd al-Rahman, but to every son characterized by the mentioned description, say that this warning is specific to them. His statement {among the nations} (فى أمم) is analogous to His statement {among the inhabitants of Paradise} (فى أصحاب الجنة). We have mentioned that it is analogous to saying: "The prince honored me among a group of his companions," meaning, he honored me as part of those he honored.

Then He said: {Indeed, they were the losers} (إنهم كانوا خاسرين). It was also recited with fath (a) on inna (أن) meaning, "He believed that the promise of Allah is true."

Then He said: {And for all are degrees according to what they did} (ولكل درجات مما عملوا). There are two opinions regarding this:

1. The Almighty mentioned the dutiful son, then followed it with the disobedient son. Therefore, His statement {And for all are degrees according to what they did} is specific to the believers. This is because the believer who is dutiful to his parents has varying degrees and different ranks in this matter.
2. The statement {And for all are degrees according to what they did} refers to both groups. The meaning is that each of the two groups has degrees in belief and disbelief, obedience and disobedience. If they ask: How can the word darajāt (degrees/levels) be used for the people of the Fire, when the tradition states that Paradise has darajāt (levels ascending) and Hell has darakāt (levels descending)? We reply: There are several answers:
   • It is permissible to say this as a matter of predominance (taghlib).
   • Ibn Zayd said: The degrees of the people of Paradise ascend upwards, and the degrees of the people of the Fire descend downwards.
   • The meaning of darajāt is increasing ranks, except that the increase for the people of Paradise is in good deeds and obedience, while the increase for the people of the Fire is in sins and misdeeds.

Then the Almighty said: {And that He may give them their recompense in full} (وليوفيهم). It was also recited with nun (we may give them). This is a consequence for an implied preceding statement, indicated by the context, as if it were: "And that He may give them their recompense in full for their deeds and not wrong them regarding their rights, giving them reward according to the measure of their deeds, making reward degrees and punishment descents."

When Allah clarified that He will deliver everyone's due, He first mentioned the state of the punished people, saying: {And on the Day when those who disbelieved are exposed to the Fire} (ويوم يعرض الذين كفروا على النار). It is said they will be thrown into the Fire, or the Fire will be shown to them so they may see its horrors. {You exhausted your good things in your worldly life} (أذهبتم طيباتكم فى حياتكم الدنيا).

Ibn Kathir recited "Adh-habtum" (أذهبتم) as an interrogative with hamza and madd. Ibn 'Amir recited it as an interrogative with two hamzahs without madd. The rest recited it as a statement ("Adh-habtum"). The meaning is that all the good things and comforts allotted to you have been fully consumed in this world, and you have taken them, so nothing remains for you after exhausting your share.

'Umar said: "If I wished, I could have the best food and the finest clothing, but I save my good things for later." The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) entered upon the People of the Bench (Ahl al-Suffah) while they were patching their clothes with leather scraps because they had nothing else for patching. He said: "Are you better off today, or the day when one of you goes out in one garment and returns in another, is served a dish in the morning and another in the evening, and his house is covered as the Ka'bah is covered?" They said: "We are better off then." He said: "No, rather, you are better off today?" (Narrated by the author of Al-Kashshaf).

Al-Wahidi said: The righteous prefer austerity and asceticism in this world, hoping that their reward in the Hereafter will be more complete. However, this verse does not prohibit enjoying comforts, because this verse was revealed concerning the disbeliever. Allah only rebukes the disbeliever because he enjoys the world without fulfilling the gratitude due to the Bestower of blessings through obedience and faith in Him. As for the believer, he fulfills the gratitude due to the Bestower of blessings through his faith, so he is not rebuked for enjoying comfort. The evidence for this is His statement: {Say, "Who has forbidden the adornment of Allah which He has produced for His servants and the good things from provision?"} (Al-A'raf: 32). Yes, it is not denied that abstaining from luxury is preferable, because once the soul becomes accustomed to luxury, it becomes difficult for it to abstain and contract. At that point, the inclination toward those good things might lead it to do what is improper, which in turn drags it along, causing it to fall far from Allah.

Then the Almighty said: {So today you will be recompensed with the punishment of humiliation} (فاليوم تجزون عذاب الهون), meaning, disgrace. It was also recited as "the punishment of hawān" (عذاب الهوان) {because you were arrogant upon the earth without right and because you were defiantly disobedient} (بما كنتم تستكبرون فى الارض بغير الحق وبما كنتم تفسقون).

The Almighty attributes this punishment to two things:

1. Arrogance and haughtiness (istikbār), which is the sin of the heart.
2. Defiant disobedience (fisq), which is the sin of the limbs.

The first is mentioned before the second because the state of the hearts carries greater weight than the actions of the limbs. It is possible that istikbār means they were too proud to accept the true religion and disdained believing in the Prophet (peace be upon him). As for fisq, it refers to sins.

Our scholars used this verse as evidence that disbelievers are addressed by the secondary injunctions of the Law (furū' al-sharā'i'). They argue that the Almighty attributed their punishment to two things: first, disbelief, and second, fisq. This fisq must be different from that disbelief because conjunction ('aṭf) necessitates difference. Thus, it is established that the fisq of the disbelievers necessitates punishment for them, and fisq means nothing other than abandoning what is commanded and committing what is forbidden. And Allah knows best.

[7] {And remember the brother of 'Ad when he warned his people in Al-Ahqaf, while there had already passed away warners before him and after him, [saying], "Do not worship except Allah. Indeed, I fear for you the punishment of a great day."}

{They said, "Have you come to turn us away from our gods? Then bring us what you promise, if you should be of the truthful."}

{He said, "The knowledge is only with Allah, and I deliver to you what I was sent with. But I see that you are a people who are ignorant."}

{But when they saw it as a cloud advancing toward their valleys, they said, "This is a cloud bringing us rain." Rather, it is that for which you were impatient: a wind within it is a painful punishment.}

{Destroying everything by the command of its Lord, and they became such that nothing was seen except their dwellings. Thus do We recompense the criminals.}

{And We had certainly established them in what We have established you, and We had given them hearing and vision and hearts. But their hearing and their vision and their hearts availed them nothing, because they were [consistently] denying the verses of Allah, and that which they used to ridicule encompassed them.}