Al-Kashshaf on Al-Hadeed 57:29

Surah Al-Hadeed 57:29

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ﲴ ﲵ ﲶ ﲷ ﲸ ﲹ ﲺ ﲻ ﲼ ﲽ ﲾ ﲿ ﳀ ﳁ ﳂ ﳃ ﳄ ﳅ ﳆ ﳇ ﳈ ﳉ ﳊ

[This is] so that the People of the Scripture may know that they are not able [to obtain] anything from the bounty of Allah and that [all] bounty is in the hand of Allah; He gives it to whom He wills. And Allah is the possessor of great bounty.

{لئلا يعلم أهل الكتاب} {لئلا يعلم}: Meaning "so that [they] may know." The "la" (no) is an addition (za'idah).

{ألا يقدرون}: The "anna" (that) is a lightened form of the heavy "anna." Its origin is "annahu la yaqdirun" (that it is the case that they have no power). It means: they have no power {على شيء من فضل الله} (over anything of the bounty of Allah). That is, they shall not attain any of the mentioned bounty—the two portions, the light, and the forgiveness—because they did not believe in the Messenger of Allah. Thus, their belief in those who came before him did not benefit them, nor did it earn them any bounty at all.

If the address is directed at others (the believers), the meaning is: "Fear Allah and remain steadfast in your belief in the Messenger of Allah, and He will grant you what He promised those who believed from the People of the Book—the two portions mentioned in His saying: 'Those will be given their reward twice' (Al-Qasas: 54). He will not diminish your reward compared to theirs, for you are like them in faith, making no distinction between any of His messengers."

Historical Context (Asbab al-Nuzul) It is narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) sent Ja'far (may Allah be pleased with him) with seventy riders to the Negus to invite him to Islam. Ja'far arrived, invited him, and the Negus responded. Forty men from the believers of his kingdom asked permission to travel to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), which was granted. They arrived with Ja'far just as the preparations for the Battle of Uhud were underway. Seeing the poverty of the Muslims, they asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) for permission to return; they returned, brought their wealth, and supported the Muslims with it. Allah then revealed: 'Those to whom We have given the Book...' (Al-Baqarah: 121) up to: '...and from what We have provided them, they spend' (Al-Baqarah: 3).

When the disbelievers among the People of the Book heard the verse: 'They will be given their reward twice' (Al-Qasas: 54), they boasted against the Muslims, saying: "Whoever believes in your Book and our Book has a double reward, and whoever does not believe in your Book has a reward equal to yours. So what superiority do you have over us?" Thus, this verse was revealed.

It is also narrated that the believers among the People of the Book boasted to other believers that they would be given their reward twice, claiming superiority over them, so this verse was revealed.

Linguistic Variations * Readings: It has been read as: li-kay ya'lam, li-kay-la ya'lam, li-ya'lam, and li-an ya'lam (assimilating the nun into the ya). Also li-yan ya'lam (changing the hamza to ya and assimilating the nun). * Al-Hasan's reading: li-la ya'lam, with a fatha on the lam and a sukun on the ya. Qutrub narrated it with a kasra on the lam. * Explanation of the form: It is said the hamza of an was dropped, and its nun was assimilated into the lam of la, becoming lalla. Then, one of the assimilated lams was changed into a ya, similar to the words diwan and qirat. Those who read it with a fatha on the lam do so because the prepositional lam originally takes a fatha, as in the verse: "Uridu li-ansa dhikraha" (I wish to forget her memory). * Other readings: It has been read as an la yaqdiru.

{بيد الله} {بيد الله}: In His dominion and disposal. The "hand" (yad) is a metaphor, similar to the verse: 'He gives it to whom He wills' (Al-Hadid: 29), and He only wills to give it to those who deserve it.

Tafsir of Al-Hadeed 57:29

Al-Kashshaf

{لئلا يعلم أهل الكتاب} {لئلا يعلم}: Meaning "so that [they] may know." The "la" (no) is an addition (za'idah).

{بيد الله} {بيد الله}: In His dominion and disposal. The "hand" (yad) is a metaphor, similar to the verse: 'He gives it to whom He wills' (Al-Hadid: 29), and He only wills to give it to those who deserve it.

Hadith The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Whoever recites Surah al-Hadid is recorded among those who believed in Allah and His messengers."

Tafsir of Al-Hadeed 57:29

Al-Kashshaf

{لئلا يعلم أهل الكتاب} **{لئلا يعلم}**: Meaning "so that [they] may know." The "la" (no) is an addition (za'idah).

{بيد الله} **{بيد الله}**: In His dominion and disposal. The "hand" (yad) is a metaphor, similar to the verse: *'He gives it to whom He wills'* (Al-Hadid: 29), and He only wills to give it to those who deserve it.

Hadith The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Whoever recites Surah al-Hadid is recorded among those who believed in Allah and His messengers."

{لئلا يعلم أهل الكتاب} {لئلا يعلم}: Meaning "so that [they] may know." The "la" (no) is an addition (za'idah).

{بيد الله} {بيد الله}: In His dominion and disposal. The "hand" (yad) is a metaphor, similar to the verse: 'He gives it to whom He wills' (Al-Hadid: 29), and He only wills to give it to those who deserve it.