Tafsir of Al-A'raf 7:88-89

Al-A'raf (The Heights): Verses 88-89

[7:88] Said the chiefs who were arrogant among his people: "O Shu'ayb, we will surely expel you and those who believe with you from our town, or else you must return to our religion." He said: "Even if we were to return to it, after Allah has saved us from it, it would be impossible for us to return to it unless Allah, our Lord, wills. Our Lord encompasses all things in His knowledge. In Allah we place our trust."

[7:89] "And to Allah we entrust [the matter]." [He added]: "Our Lord, judge between us and our people with truth, and You are the best of judges."

When Shu'ayb (peace be upon him) established these arguments, the arrogant chiefs responded:

They presented two options:

1. Either we expel you and your followers from this village.
2. Or you must return to our religion (Millah).

The Problematic Implication: The phrase, "or else you must return to our religion," implies that the Prophet (Shu'ayb) was previously upon their religion (which was disbelief). This suggests he was a disbeliever before, which is fundamentally corrupt. The subsequent verse, "We would have fabricated a lie against Allah if we returned to your religion after Allah has saved us from it," also seems to support this implication.

The Answers (Wujuh) to this Implication:

1. Addressing the Followers: Shu'ayb's followers were disbelievers before accepting his message. The chiefs addressed Shu'ayb using the language appropriate for his followers and applied the ruling to him accordingly.
2. Deception (Talbis): The leaders said this as a form of deception towards the common folk, making it seem as if Shu'ayb was one of them, and Shu'ayb responded according to that assumed premise.
3. Concealment of Faith: In the early stages of his mission, Shu'ayb might have concealed his true faith and doctrine, leading them to assume he was still following their religion.
4. Abrogation of Shari'ah: It is not impossible that Shu'ayb was initially upon their established religious law (Shari'ah), which Allah later abrogated with the revelation sent to him.
5. Meaning of 'Return' (Awda): The intended meaning of "or else you must return to our religion" is "or else you must become like our religion." The Arabs sometimes use 'awda (return) to mean beginning (Ibtida'). For example, they say, "A harm has returned to me from so-and-so," meaning the harm originated from him in the first place.

Shu'ayb's Response to Their Statement:

Shu'ayb answered them in two ways:

1. Implicit Denial: "Even if we were to return to it, while we are hating it (ولو كنا كارهين)." The waw here is the waw al-hal (the circumstantial 'waw'). This implies: Would you have us return to your religion while we intensely detest it? This serves as an implicit refusal.
2. Explicit Denial: "It would be impossible for us to return to it after Allah has saved us from it (بعد إذ نجانا الله منها)." This is an explicit statement that he will not do so, because doing so would mean he had fabricated a lie against Allah. The foundation of prophethood and messengership is truthfulness and freedom from falsehood; returning to their religion would invalidate his prophethood and nullify his status as a Messenger.

Interpretations of "After Allah has saved us from it":

1. Knowledge of Corruption: It means Allah made us realize its ugliness, falsehood, and corruption, and established clear proofs against it.
2. Inclusion by Dominance: Allah saved the people (the believers), but Shu'ayb included himself in their group rhetorically, even if he was innocent of that religion, following the rule of taghlib (dominance/generalization).
3. Accepting Their Premise: Since they assumed he was one of them, his statement, "after Allah has saved us from it," is framed according to their belief or assumption.

[7:89] ...And it is not for us to return to it unless Allah, our Lord, wills. Our Lord encompasses all things in His knowledge.

The Theological Dispute over Divine Will (Mashi'ah):

• The Ash'arites (Our Companions): They use this verse to argue that Allah may will disbelief (Kufr).
• The Mu'tazilites: They use it to argue that Allah wills only good and righteousness.

Ash'arite Arguments based on this Verse:

1. The phrase "after Allah has saved us from it" indicates that the Savior from disbelief is Allah alone. If faith were created by the servant's own action, then salvation from disbelief would come from the servant himself, not from Allah, contradicting this verse.
2. The meaning is: We cannot return to your religion unless Allah wills to return us to that religion. Since that religion is disbelief, this implies Shu'ayb affirmed that Allah might will to return a Muslim to disbelief. This seems to contradict their doctrine. (The text notes that prophets often fear the reversal of their state, citing Abraham, Joseph, and the Prophet Muhammad's supplication: "O Turner of hearts, keep our hearts firm upon Your religion.")

Mu'tazilite Responses:

1. The statement "unless Allah wills" is a conditional proposition (qadiyyah shartiyyah); it does not state whether Allah actually willed it or not.
2. It is stated as a means of extreme remoteness/impossibility (tab'eed), similar to saying, "I will not do that unless pitch turns white or the crow turns gray." Shu'ayb linked his return to their religion to Allah's Will, which is understood as a negation of the possibility, not a statement of condition.
3. The phrase "unless Allah wills" does not specify what Allah wills. We interpret it to mean: "Unless Allah wills that this disbelief manifests from our tongues if you force us by killing us." Since expressing disbelief under duress (killing) is permissible (ja'iz), it falls under Allah's will. Permissibility does not negate that the act itself is willed by God, just as wiping over the leather socks is willed by God, even though washing the feet is superior.
4. The preceding verse mentioned expulsion from the village. Thus, "return to it" might refer to returning to the village itself. Allah had forbidden him from returning to the village after being expelled, except by Allah's permission and will.
5. The Will (Mashi'ah) here must be interpreted as Command (Amr). The meaning becomes: "It is not for us to return... unless Allah commands us to return." For the Ash'arites, Divine Will does not necessitate permissibility (as Allah wills disbelief for the disbeliever, yet it is not permissible for the disbeliever to commit it). Permissibility is established by Command (Amr). Therefore, the meaning is: Unless Allah commands us to return to your religion (perhaps a previously abrogated law), we will return. This interpretation negates the Mu'tazilite argument.

A Sixth View (Al-Jubba'i):

The term Millah (religion) refers to the specific religious laws (like prayer or fasting) where variation across time is possible. Shu'ayb said, "It is not for us to return to your religion," but since some of those laws might not have been abrogated, he added, "unless Allah wills," meaning, "unless Allah wills to keep some of those rulings in place, in which case we will return to them." This exception applies only to mutable rulings, not to the core tenets that cannot change.

(The text concludes that while the Ash'arite arguments based on this specific verse might be weak, their overall doctrine is supported by many other verses.)

Mu'tazilite Arguments based on this Verse:

1. The phrase "unless Allah, our Lord, wills" implies that if Allah willed our return, we could return. This means everything Allah wills to exist is permissible and authorized. This aligns perfectly with their doctrine: everything Allah wills to occur is good and authorized; nothing forbidden or prohibited is willed by Allah.
2. They argue that there is no logical distinction between the two options presented by the chiefs: expulsion from the village and returning to the religion. If both outcomes (expulsion and return) occur by Allah's creation (Khalq), then differentiating between them based on divine will is meaningless for the Ash'arites.

(The text notes that since both parties use the verse to support contradictory views, one must refer to other verses in this context.)

Issue 1: Connection to the Preceding Statement

• Al-Qadi's View (citing Al-Jubba'i): Shu'ayb said, "unless Allah wills," meaning, "unless Allah creates a benefit (maslaha) in those acts of worship, in which case He will command us." Since only He who encompasses all things in knowledge knows these benefits, he followed it with this statement.
• Ash'arite View (Preferred): The chiefs gave Shu'ayb two choices: expulsion or returning to their religion. Shu'ayb replied, "Our Lord encompasses all things in knowledge." Perhaps His knowledge includes a third option: that they remain in the village without returning to their religion, but instead being subjugated and humbled under Shu'ayb's authority. This view is preferred because the following statement, "In Allah we place our trust," fits better with this possibility of a third outcome.

Issue 2: Proof of Eternal Knowledge

The phrase "Our Lord encompasses all things in His knowledge" (using the past tense wasi'a) proves that Allah was eternally knowledgeable of all things in pre-eternity. Since Allah's knowledge cannot change, the decrees are fixed, and the pens have dried. The fortunate person is fortunate according to Allah's knowledge, and the wretched is wretched according to Allah's knowledge.

Issue 3: The Vastness of His Knowledge

This verse proves that Allah knows the past, the present, the future, and what would have been if something non-existent had existed. This leads to four categories (Past, Present, Future, Non-existent). Each category can be further divided into four aspects based on whether that thing was past, present, future, or non-existent relative to that category. This results in $4 \times 4 = 16$ divisions. Considering every specific entity, color, taste, and scent within these divisions leads to an ocean of knowledge that the combined intellects of all rational beings cannot reach its first step.

Issue 4: Grammatical Analysis

Al-Wahidi states that "in knowledge" ('ilman) is in the accusative case, functioning as a Tamyiz (specification/elucidation).

Shu'ayb concluded his speech with two matters:

1. Reliance (Tawakkul): "In Allah we place our trust (على الله توكلنا)." This implies exclusivity: we trust only Him, not others. In this context, he effectively set aside secondary causes and ascended to the Cause of Causes.
2. Supplication (Du'a): "Our Lord, judge between us and our people with truth (ربنا افتح بيننا وبين قومنا بالحق)."
   • Ibn Abbas, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and Al-Suddi interpreted Iftah (judge/open) as: "Judge and decree."
   • Al-Farra' states that the people of Oman call the judge Al-Fatih (The Opener) because he opens up the truth.
   • Ibn Abbas reported that he did not understand this phrase until he heard the daughter of Dhi Yazan say to her husband: "Come, I will Aftahik (judge/litigate with you)."
   • Al-Zajjaj suggested: "Make our affair manifest so that the truth between us and our people becomes clear." This means sending down punishment that proves their falsehood and Shu'ayb's truthfulness—it implies clarification and revelation.

Final Praise:

"And You are the best of judges (وأنت خير الفاتحين)." This is praise for Allah.

Our companions (Ash'arites) use this phrase to argue that Allah is the Creator of faith in the servant, because faith is the noblest of created things. If "opening/judging" (Fath) is interpreted as clarification and manifestation, then faith is certainly a manifestation. If the servant were the creator of faith, then the servant would be the "best of judges/openers" in this regard, which negates Allah being the Best of Judges.

[7:90] And the chiefs who disbelieved from his people said: "If you follow Shu'ayb, then indeed you would be losers."

[7:91] So the earthquake seized them, and they became in their dwellings fallen down prostrate (Jathimin).

[7:92] Those who denied Shu'ayb—it was as if they had never lived there. Those who denied Shu'ayb—they were the losers.

[7:93] So he turned away from them and said: "O my people, I have certainly delivered to you the messages of my Lord and advised you sincerely. So how can I grieve for a disbelieving people?"