Tafsir of Maryam 19:77

Since observing and seeing things is a path to encompassing them with knowledge and reporting them accurately, they used "Have you seen" (ara'ayta) in the sense of "Tell me" (akhbir). The fa (in afara'ayta) is used to convey its meaning of sequence; it is as if He said: "Tell me also about the story of this disbeliever, and mention his account following the account of those others."

"Has he looked upon the Unseen?" (aṭṭala‘a al-ghayb): Derived from their saying "he climbed the mountain" (aṭṭala‘a al-jabal), meaning he ascended to its peak or climbed the mountain pass. Jarir said: "I encountered the climbing of mountains and rugged paths." They also say, "He passed by, having climbed (muṭṭali‘an) that matter," meaning he was superior to it and in control of it. The choice of this word is significant; it means: Has he reached such a level of greatness that he has ascended to the knowledge of the Unseen, which the One, the Subduer, has reserved for Himself? The meaning is: What he claimed he would be given—and swore upon—cannot be reached except by one of these two paths: either knowledge of the Unseen or a covenant from the Knower of the Unseen. So, by which of these did he reach that?

• "Children" (waladan): Hamza and al-Kisa'i read it as waladan, which is the plural of walad (like asad for usud), or it is used in the sense of the singular (like ‘arab for ‘arab). From Yahya ibn Ya‘mur: wuldan (with a kasra).
• "Covenant" (‘ahd): It is said to mean the word of testimony (shahada).
• Qatada: Does he have a righteous deed he has sent forth, for which he hopes for what he says?
• Al-Kalbi: Did Allah make a covenant with him that He would give him that?

Context: Al-Hasan (may Allah have mercy on him) said it was revealed regarding al-Walid ibn al-Mughira, though it is famous that it concerns al-‘Asi ibn Wa’il. Khabbab ibn al-Aratt said: "I had a debt owed to me by him, so I demanded payment. He said: 'No, by Allah, not until you disbelieve in Muhammad.' I said: 'No, by Allah, I will not disbelieve in Muhammad, neither alive, nor dead, nor when I am resurrected.' He said: 'So if I die, I will be resurrected?' I said: 'Yes.' He said: 'When I am resurrected, come to me; I will have wealth and children there, and I will pay you.'"

It is also said: Khabbab fashioned jewelry for him and demanded payment. He said: "You claim that you will be resurrected, and that in Paradise there is gold, silver, and silk. I will pay you then, for I will be given wealth and children at that time."

"No!" (kalla): A rebuke and an alert to his error. He is mistaken in what he imagines for himself and wishes for; let him desist from it.

"We will write down" (sanaktubu): If you ask, "Why is the future tense particle sin used, when it is written without delay, as Allah says: 'He does not utter a word except that there is an observer by him ready'?" I say: There are two interpretations:

1. We will manifest to him and let him know that we have written his words, similar to the saying: "When we trace our lineage, no base woman bore me," meaning it became clear and known through the lineage that I am not the son of a base woman.
2. The one issuing a threat says to the offender, "I will take revenge on you," meaning he will not fail to exact retribution, even if time passes and it is delayed. Thus, it is used here to signify the threat.

"And We will extend for him the punishment" (wa namuddu lahu min al-‘adhabi maddan): We will prolong for him the punishment he deserves, and we will punish him with the type of punishment reserved for mocking disbelievers. Or, we will increase his punishment and multiply his suffering. It is said madda and amadda mean the same thing, as evidenced by the reading of ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib: wa numiddu lahu (with a damma). He emphasized this with the verbal noun (maddan), which is from the intensity of Allah’s wrath—we seek refuge in Him from exposing ourselves to what would necessitate His wrath.

"And We will inherit from him what he says" (wa narithuhu ma yaqulu): We will strip away from him what he claimed he would attain in the Hereafter and give it to those who deserve it. The meaning is the "named" things he speaks of—wealth and children. A man says, "I possess such and such," and you say to him, "I have more than what you say." It is possible he wished and hoped that Allah would give him wealth and children in this world, and his arrogance reached the point where he swore upon it in his saying, "I will surely be given," because it is the answer to an implied oath. Whoever swears upon Allah, Allah will prove him a liar. Allah says: Suppose We gave him what he desired; We will inherit it from him in the end, and he will come to Us tomorrow alone, without wealth or children, as He says: "And you have come to Us alone..." (al-An‘am: 94). So what will his wishing and swearing avail him?

It is also possible that he only says this as long as he is alive; when We seize him, We will come between him and his saying it, and he will come to Us having rejected it, separated from it, and no longer saying it. Or, We will not forget this saying of his, nor will We disregard it; rather, We will record it in his scroll to strike his face with it at the Standing and reproach him for it.

"And he will come to Us" in his poverty and wretchedness, "alone" (fardan)—without wealth or children. We did not grant him his request, nor did We give him what he wished for. Thus, two calamities gather upon him: the burden and consequence of his words, and the loss of what he coveted. "Alone" in the first interpretation is a state that is destined to occur, like "Enter it, abiding eternally," because he and others are the same in coming alone when they arrive, and then they differ thereafter.

"And they have taken besides Allah deities that they might be for them a source of honor. No! They will deny their worship and will be against them opponents."