Surah Saba' 34:10
ﱳ ﱴ ﱵ ﱶ ﱷ ﱸ ﱹ ﱺ ﱻ ﱼ ﱽ ﱾ ﱿ ﲀ ﲁ
And We certainly gave David from Us bounty. [We said], "O mountains, repeat [Our] praises with him, and the birds [as well]." And We made pliable for him iron,
Tafsir of Saba' 34:10-13
Tafsir
Al-Kashshaf
Verse range: 34:10-13
{ يا جبال } It is either a substitute for { فضلا } (bounty), or for { ءاتينا } (We gave), with the implied meaning: "We said: O mountains," or "Our saying: O mountains."
It is recited as أوبي (awwibī) and أوّبي (awwibī), derived from ta’wīb (returning). Al-awb means: return the glorification (tasbīḥ) with him, or return it with him whenever he returns it, for when he returns it, he has returned it.
The meaning of the mountains' glorification is that Allah, the Exalted, creates glorification within them just as He created speech in the tree, so that what is heard from the one glorifying is heard from them—a miracle for David. It is said: He used to lament his sin with a trembling, sorrowful voice, and the mountains would assist him in his lament with their echoes, and the birds with their voices.
{ والطير } is read in the nominative and accusative, as a conjunction to the word al-jibāl (mountains) or its grammatical position. Some allow it to be an accusative of accompaniment (maf‘ūl ma‘ahu), or a conjunction to faḍlan, meaning: "And We subjected the birds to him."
If you ask: What is the difference between this structure and saying, "We gave David bounty: the returning of the mountains and birds with him"? I say: The difference is vast. Do you not see the majesty that is not hidden? It indicates the might of Lordship and the pride of Divinity, as the mountains were placed in the position of rational beings who, when commanded, obey and submit, and when called, hear and answer. This signals that there is no animal or inanimate object, speaking or silent, that is not submissive to His will and compliant with His decree.
{ وألنا له الحديد } We made iron soft for him like clay, dough, or wax, which he could shape with his hands as he wished without fire or hammer. It is said: This was because of the immense strength he was given.
{ صابغات } These are the wide, ample coats of mail. He was the first to make them; before that, they were plates. It is said he would sell a coat of mail for four thousand, spending on himself and his family and giving the rest to the poor.
It is said that when he became king of the Children of Israel, he would go out in disguise to ask people about himself. He would ask, "What do you say about David?" They would praise him. Allah then sent an angel in human form, and David asked him. The angel said, "He is a good man, were it not for one trait." David was startled and asked what it was. The angel replied, "Were it not that he feeds his family from the public treasury." David then asked his Lord to provide him with a means to be independent of the treasury, so He taught him the craft of making armor.
{ وقدر } Do not make the nails too thin, lest they become loose, nor too thick, lest they break the rings. *Al-sard* is the weaving of the armor.
{ واعملوا } The pronoun refers to David and his family.
{ و } سخرنا { لسليمان * الريح } In the reading of the accusative, it is "We subjected the wind to Solomon." In the nominative, it is "The wind was subjected to Solomon." The same applies to those who read *al-riyāḥ* (winds) in the nominative.
{ غدوها شهر } Its travel in the morning is a month's journey, and its travel in the evening is the same. It is read as *ghudwatuha wa rawāḥuhā*. Al-Hasan said: He would depart in the morning and take a midday nap in Istakhr, then depart in the evening to spend the night in Kabul. It is narrated that someone saw an inscription in a house near the Tigris written by one of Solomon’s companions: "We descended here and did not build it; we found it built. We departed from Istakhr and napped here, and we are departing from here to spend the night in the Levant, if Allah wills."
{ عين القطر } *Al-qiṭr* is molten copper. If you ask: What is meant by "the spring of copper"? I say: He meant the copper mine, but He made it flow just as He softened iron for David. It gushed forth like water from a spring, so He named it "the spring of copper" after what it became, just as He said: { I see myself pressing wine } (Yusuf: 36). It is said: It flowed for three days every month.
{ بإذن ربه } By His command.
{ ومن يزغ منهم } Whoever deviates from our command, which we ordered regarding obedience to Solomon. It is read as *yazigh* (from *azāgha*).
{ وعذاب السعير } The punishment of the Hereafter, according to Ibn Abbas and al-Suddī. It is said he had an angel with him holding a whip of fire; whenever a jinn disobeyed him, he would strike him from where the jinn could not see him.
{ المحاريب } Dwellings and noble chambers protected from common use. They are called *maḥārīb* because one defends (*yuḥāmī*) and protects them. It is said they are mosques.
{ وتماثيل } Images of angels, prophets, and righteous people. They were made in mosques out of copper, brass, glass, and marble so that people would see them and worship as they worshipped. If you ask: How did Solomon allow the making of images? I say: This is a matter where religious laws may differ, as it is not among the rational evils like injustice or lying. Abu al-Aliyah said: Making images was not forbidden at that time. It is also possible they were not images of animals, but of trees and the like, for a *timthāl* (statue) is anything fashioned in the likeness of another thing, animal or otherwise. Or, they were images with the heads removed. It is narrated that they made two lions at the base of his throne and two eagles above it; when he wanted to ascend, the lions would extend their arms, and when he sat, the eagles would shade him with their wings.
{ الجوابي } Large basins. It is said: "It flows to the family of al-Muḥallaq, a basin like the basin of the Iraqi *Sayḥ*, overflowing." It is called *jābiyah* because water is collected (*yujbā*) in it. The action is attributed to it metaphorically. It is said a thousand men could sit at one basin. It is read with the omission of the *yā’* (i.e., *jawāb*) as in: { The day the Caller calls } (al-Qamar: 6).
{ رسيات } Firmly fixed on the hearth-stones, not moving due to their size.
{ اعملوا ءال * داوود } A narration of what was said to the family of David. { شاكرا } (thankful) is in the accusative as a *maf‘ūl lahu* (reason for the action), meaning: Work for Allah and worship Him by way of gratitude for His blessings. This is evidence that worship must be performed in a spirit of gratitude. Or it is a state (*ḥāl*), meaning: "being thankful." Or it is based on the implication of "give thanks," because "work" contains the meaning of "give thanks," since working for the Benefactor is a form of gratitude to Him. It is also possible it is the object of "work."
The meaning is: We have subjected the jinn to you to work for you as you wish, so you must work in gratitude.
{ الشكور } The one who is abundant in performing gratitude, exerting his utmost effort in it, having occupied his heart, tongue, and limbs with it—through belief, confession, and labor—most of his time. Ibn Abbas said: One who is thankful in all his states. Al-Suddī said: One who is thankful for the ability to be thankful. It is said: One who recognizes his inability to be fully thankful.
It is narrated that David divided the hours of the night and day among his family, so that there was never an hour when someone from the family of David was not standing in prayer.
Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) heard a man say, "O Allah, make me among the few." Umar asked, "What is this prayer?" The man replied, "I heard Allah say: { And few of My servants are the thankful } (Saba': 13), so I am praying that He makes me among that few." Umar said, "All people are more knowledgeable than Umar."