Tafsir of Al-Qalam 68:48

{فَاصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ} Meaning: [Wait patiently] for His decree, which is granting them respite and delaying your victory over them.

{وَلَا تَكُن كَصَاحِبِ الْحُوتِ} Meaning: Jonah (peace be upon him).

{إِذْ نَادَىٰ وَهُوَ مَكْظُومٌ} Meaning: In the belly of the whale, while he was makẓūm—filled with distress and anger. It is derived from kaẓm al-siqā’ (filling a water skin). The meaning is: Do not let there be found in you the impatience and anger that were found in him, lest you be afflicted with his affliction.

{لَّوْلَا أَن تَدَارَكَهُ نِعْمَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِ لَنُبِذَ بِالْعَرَاءِ وَهُوَ مَذْمُومٌ} The verb is masculine because the pronoun is separated from it. Ibn Abbas and Ibn Mas‘ud read: tadārakathu (feminine). Al-Hasan read: tadārakahu (masculine), meaning "it would have overtaken him," narrating the past state. It is as if one were to say, "It was expected of him to rise," similar to saying, "Zayd was going to stand, but so-and-so stopped him."

"The blessing of his Lord" refers to Him bestowing upon him the success to repent and accepting his repentance. The answer to lawlā (if not) relies on the state—namely, the phrase "while he was blameworthy." This means his state was the opposite of being blameworthy when he was cast onto the barren land; had it not been for his repentance, he would have been in a state of blame.

It is narrated that this was revealed at [the battle of] Uhud when what happened to the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) happened, and he wanted to pray against those who fled. It is also said it was when he wanted to pray against [the tribe of] Thaqif.

{فَاجْتَبَاهُ رَبُّهُ} Meaning: He gathered him to Himself and drew him near by accepting his repentance, as He said: “Then his Lord chose him and turned to him in forgiveness and guided him” (Ta-Ha: 122).

{فَجَعَلَهُ مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ} Meaning: From the prophets. Ibn Abbas said: Allah returned the revelation to him and allowed him to intercede for himself and his people.

{وَإِن يَكَادُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَيُزْلِقُونَكَ بِأَبْصَارِهِمْ لَمَّا سَمِعُوا الذِّكْرَ وَيَقُولُونَ إِنَّهُ لَمَجْنُونٌ * وَمَا هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِّلْعَالَمِينَ}