Al-An'am (The Cattle): Verse 50

"Say: I do not say to you, 'With me are the treasuries of Allah,' nor do I know the unseen, nor do I say to you, 'Indeed, I am an angel.' I only follow what is revealed to me."

Issues Discussed in the Verse:

This verse is a continuation of the response to the disbelievers' demand for a sign from their Lord (as mentioned in verse 37). Allah commanded the Prophet (PBUH) to tell them that he was sent only as a bearer of good tidings and a warner. He must deny three specific claims:

1. "I do not say to you, 'With me are the treasuries of Allah'": The people were demanding that if he were truly a messenger from God, he should ask God to expand their worldly provisions, wealth, and sources of happiness. The Prophet (PBUH) replies that the treasuries belong to Allah alone, Who grants dominion to whom He wills and humiliates whom He wills. Goodness is in His hand, not the Prophet's. (Khazā'in is the plural of khizānah, the place where something is stored and secured).

2. "Nor do I know the unseen": They demanded that if he were a messenger, he must inform them of future events—both beneficial and harmful—so they could prepare accordingly. The Prophet (PBUH) states that he does not know the unseen, questioning why they demand such things from him.

Summary: In the first demand, they sought abundant wealth and worldly goods. In the second, they sought knowledge of the unseen to attain benefits and avoid harms.

3. "Nor do I say to you, 'Indeed, I am an angel'": They criticized him because he ate food, walked in the marketplace, married, and interacted with people (as stated in Surah Al-Furqan: 7). Allah commanded him to say he is not an angel.

There are differing scholarly opinions on the wisdom behind mentioning these three denials:

• Opinion 1: The purpose is for the Prophet (PBUH) to demonstrate humility, submission, and servitude to Allah, preventing people from holding beliefs about him similar to those the Christians held about Jesus (peace be upon him).
• Opinion 2: The people were demanding overwhelming miracles, such as their request in Surah Al-Isra' (17:90): "We will not believe you until you cause a spring to gush forth from the earth for us." In response to such demands, the Prophet (PBUH) stated, "Say: Exalted is my Lord! I am only a human messenger" (17:93). Thus, the purpose here is to show his inability and weakness to perform actions that only God's power can achieve.
• Opinion 3 (Synthesis):
  • Denying possession of God's treasuries means he does not claim attributes befitting the Divine (Godhead).
  • Denying knowledge of the unseen means he does not claim knowledge befitting God.
  • Together, these two denials establish that he does not claim Divinity (Ilāhiyyah).
  • Then, by saying, "Nor do I say to you, 'Indeed, I am an angel'," he denies the rank immediately below divinity. Since the message of prophethood is possible for a human, why do they reject his claim when he only claims what is possible for mankind?

Al-Jubba'i argued that this verse implies that angels are superior to prophets because the Prophet (PBUH) denied claiming a status higher than that of an angel.

Al-Qadi (Al-Baqillani) responded: If the intent of the denial was merely humility, then perhaps it suggests angels are superior. However, if the intent was to deny the power to perform actions only angels can perform, it does not necessarily prove the superiority of angels.

This statement indicates two rulings:

1. Ruling 1: The Prophet (PBUH) did not rule based on his own opinion in any matter; all his judgments originated from revelation. This is reinforced by the verse: "Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed" (An-Najm 53:3-4).

2. Ruling 2: Those who reject Qiyās (analogical reasoning) argue that since the Prophet (PBUH) only acted upon direct revelation, his Ummah must also only act upon direct revelation revealed to them. This, they claim, invalidates the permissibility of Qiyās. They support this by the subsequent verse: "Say, 'Are those who know equal to those who do not know?'" This comparison suggests that acting without revelation is like the action of the blind, while acting according to revealed revelation is like the action of the seeing.

"Say, 'Do you not then reflect?'" This is an admonition that the intelligent person must recognize the difference between these two paths (following revelation versus demanding the impossible) and not be heedless of this knowledge.

Verse 51

"Indeed, those who fear their Lord, for them is a garden beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide eternally. That is the great attainment." (Note: The provided excerpt ends before verse 51, but the structure implies the continuation of the discourse.)

(The provided text ends after the commentary on verse 50, leading into the next verse structure.)