Tafsir of Ta-Ha 20:51

"What then is the state of the former generations?" He asked him about the condition of those who preceded and passed away from the generations, and about the misery of those among them who were miserable and the happiness of those who were happy.

He answered him that this is a question regarding the Unseen, which God has reserved for Himself; none knows it except Him. "I am but a servant like you; I know nothing of it except what the Knower of the Unseen has informed me." The knowledge of the states of the generations is written with God in the Preserved Tablet. It is not possible for God to err in anything or forget it.

It is said: ḍalaltu (I lost) a thing if you missed it in its place and could not find it, like saying: "I lost the road or the house." It is also recited as yuḍillu (He does not cause to err/lose), from aḍallahu (he caused it to be lost).

Ibn Abbas said: "He does not leave anyone who disbelieved in Him without taking vengeance upon him, nor does He leave anyone who professed His Oneness without rewarding him."

It is possible that Pharaoh disputed with him regarding God’s encompassing of all things and His clarity regarding every known thing. He acted obstinately and said: "What do you say about the generations of the past, the length of their multitude, and the distance of their numbers? How does He encompass them, their parts, and their essences?"

He answered that every existing thing is encompassed by His knowledge, and it is recorded with Him in a Book. It is not possible for Him to err or forget, as these are possible for you, O lowly servant and insignificant human. Meaning: He does not lose [knowledge] as you lose it, nor does He forget as you forget, O claimant of divinity through ignorance and insolence.

{Who made} It is in the nominative case as an adjective for "my Lord," or as the predicate of an omitted subject, or in the accusative case as a praise. This is one of its contexts and metaphorical usages.

{A cradle (mihādan)} According to the recitation of the people of Kufa, meaning: He spread it out as a cradle. Or, they use it as a cradle, for it is to them like a cradle, which is what is prepared for an infant.

{And He has traced (salaka)} From His saying: {What has traced you into Saqar} (74:42), {We have traced it} (26:200), {We trace it into the hearts of the criminals} (15:12). Meaning: He has created for you paths within it, placing it between the mountains, valleys, and wildernesses.

{Then We brought forth} He shifts here from the third-person pronoun to the first-person pronoun of the One who is obeyed. This is because of what I have mentioned regarding the manifestation and signaling that He is the One obeyed, to whose command different things submit, and to whose will disparate species yield; nothing is impossible for His will.

Similar to this is His saying: {And it is He who sent down rain from the sky, and We brought forth thereby the growth of all things} (6:99), {Do you not see that God sent down rain from the sky, and We brought forth thereby fruits of varying colors} (35:27), {Or who created the heavens and the earth and sent down for you rain from the sky, and We caused to grow thereby gardens of joyful beauty} (27:60).

It also contains a specification that we alone are capable of such a thing, and it does not fall under the power of anyone else.

{Pairs (azwājan)} Species. They are named as such because they are paired and coupled with one another.

{Diverse (shattā)} An adjective for "pairs," the plural of shatīt, like marīḍ (sick) and marḍā (sick ones). It is also possible that it is an adjective for "growth" (nabāt). Nabāt is a verbal noun used to name that which grows, just as it is named nabt; thus, the singular and plural are the same in it. It means they are diverse, differing in benefit, taste, color, scent, and form; some are suitable for humans and some for livestock.

They said: It is from His grace—Exalted and High is He—that the provisions of the servants are only obtained through the work of livestock. God has made their fodder from that which exceeds their [human] needs and which they cannot eat.

{Saying: "Eat and pasture"} A state (ḥāl) from the pronoun in {Then We brought forth}. The meaning: We brought forth the species of plants, permitting their use, allowing you to eat some and feed some to your livestock.

{From it We created you, and into it We will return you, and from it We will bring you out another time.}