The Verses of Jihad in The Quran - Meaning, Denotation, Reason of Revelation and Background - Part 5
By Badruddoja Razvi
Misbahi, New Age Islam
26 April
2021
(Translated by New Age Islam)
The Verse of Jihad (4:56) Out of 26 Verses
Presented by Wasim Rizvi in Supreme Court- Meaning and Context
Main Points Discussed in Part 5
1. Shane Nuzul of the Verse 4:51The Verse 56 of
Surah Al-Nisa relates to the Divine Warning.
2. Two possible interpretations of the Kuffar
mentioned in the Quranic verse 4:56.
3. The promise of divine punishment is in
accord with Nature.
4. The Divine punishment is promised not only
for the disbelievers but also for the believers who are neglectful of their
prayers.
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Allah
Almighty says, “Those who disbelieve in Our signs (Ayaat), We will soon drive
them into the Fire. Whenever their skins are ripe, We will replace them with
skins to enjoy the torment. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.” (4:56)
The
afore-mentioned verse of Surah Al-Nisa is one of the verses related to the
divine warning (Wa’eed) in which Allah Almighty has promised that He will drive
the deniers of the verses of Allah into Hell.
Before
explaining this verse, we should take a brief look at the previous verses as
they contextually relate to this verse (4:56).
This verse
is preceded by verse 4:51, the reason of revelation (Shane Nuzul) of which is
reported to have mentioned that a delegation of seventy Jews, under the
leadership of the prominent scholars of Jews such as Hayy b. Akhtab and Ka’ab
b. Ashraf, came from Madinah to Makkah to meet the people of Quraysh. The
purpose of this delegation was to make the Quraysh of Makkah their ally in the
war against the Holy Prophet and to violate the treaty agreed between the Holy
Prophet and the Jews which we have highlighted in the fourth part of this
article. When the conversation between them began, the Quraysh of Makkah said
to them, “You are the People of the Book (Ahle Kitab) whereby you are closer to
Muhammad (peace be upon him). Therefore, we cannot easily trust your words.
However, if you convince us by prostrating before our gods, we can then trust
you and make you our ally in the war against Muhammad (peace be upon him).
This led to
a surprising event that the Jews prostrated before the idols to achieve their
ambition. Cunning and tricky were parts of their characters, therefore they did
not hesitate to obey the devil. Then, Abu Sufyan, who had not embraced Islam by
the time, addressed them and said to Ka'ab b. Ashraf, “you are the People of
the Book and knowledge. As compared to you, we are illiterate. Tell us; are we
or Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his companions on the Right Path?” Ka'ab b.
Ashraf said, “What does Muhammad (peace be upon him) command you to do?” Abu
Sufyan replied saying, “He commands us to worship only one God and forbids us
to worship hundreds of gods.” Ka'ab b. Ashraf asked Abu Sufyan, “What is your
religion?” In response to that, Abu Sufyan informed him of his religion and
practices.
Ka'ab b.
Ashraf said extemporarily, “Antum Ahda Sabeela” which means “You are on the
right path” (Tafsir Abi Saud, vol. 2, p. 189]
In the
Quranic verse 4:52, Allah Almighty rebuked the Jews for this act and then said,
“Do they have some share in the kingship?- If it were, they would not give to
mankind even a single sesame” (4:53). The severe persecution inflicted on the
Palestinians by the Jews today is not hidden from the eyes of the world.
The next
verse (4:54) sheds light on the filthy nature of the Jews and states that “they
envy the people due to what Allah has given them from His grace.” In
particular, they envy the Prophet and other believers, because Allah has
endowed him with Prophethood, assistance, dominion and honour.
Then Allah
Almighty said in the next verse 4:55, “So some of them (Jews) believed in it
(Islam)” i.e. some of the Jews, such as Abdullah Ibn Salam and his colleagues,
believed in the faith of oneness of God and the Prophethood of Muhammad (peace
be upon him) and “Some of them turned away from it” i.e. some of the Jews, such
as Ka’ab b. Ashraf and Hayy b. Akhtab turned away from Islam, “and Sufficient
is hell, a blazing Fire!”.
Now let us
ponder over verse 56 of Surah al-Nisa, which Wasim Rizvi has objected to and
included in his PIL, and whose translation he has presented in the viral
video.
There are
two possible interpretations of this verse, “Those who disbelieve in Our Signs
(Ayaat)”:
(1) The
Kuffar mentioned in the verse 4:55 refer to the disbelievers (Kuffar) of the
Prophet's era, including Jews, Christians and other disbelievers and
polytheists of Arabia.
(2) Or they
refer to the Kuffar before, during and after the Prophet’s era.
On the
assumption of the former interpretation, the ‘signs’ mentioned in the verse
4:55 denote the verses of the Quran, all the miracles of the Holy Prophet, all
his commands, rules and laws. However, if we assume the second meaning to be
true, the ‘signs’ denote the four famous divine books such as the Torah, the
Gospel, the Bible, the Qur'an and one hundred unknown scriptures, out of which
the ten scriptures were revealed on Adam (peace be upon him), fifty on Hazrat
Sheeth (peace be upon him), thirty on Hazrat Idris (peace be upon him) and ten
on Hazrat Ibrahim (peace be upon him), as mentioned in Mirqat al-Mafatih
authored by Allama Mulla Ali Qari, vol. 1, p.117.
And ‘the
signs’ refer to all the miracles, evidence and rulings that were given to all
the previous Prophets and Messengers, as it is mentioned in the commentary of
Abi Saud under this verse:
“If it is
meant by them those who disbelieved in the Messenger of Allah then by the
‘signs’ are meant either the Qur’an or the matters in whole and part, or what
is common to all his miracles too” (Tafsir Abi Saud, V. 2, p. 191)
After this
explanation, you should know that in this verse, Allah Almighty has rebuked all
those who disbelieve in His Signs (Ayaat) and has made a promise of punishment
for them, as He said, “Those who
disbelieve in Our signs (Ayaat), We will soon drive them into the Fire.
Whenever their skins are ripe, We will replace them with skins to enjoy the
torment. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.” (4:56)
This means
that the burnt skin will be replaced with a new skin which will be different
from the first skin in its form, but in terms of substance, it will be the same
skin, i.e. only the attribute will be changed and the substance will remain the
same. Hazrat Ibn Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him) says, “They would be
changed with white skins, like white papers.” (Tafsir-e-Abi Saud):
Their black
skin will be replaced by white skin like the white sheet of paper, or new skin
will come out of the flesh, just as it takes place in the world that when the
skin is burnt, new skin comes out in a few days after treatment. The process of
change will take place so that the power of feeling in them does not come to an
end because torture and grace are meaningless without feeling. Thus they will
continue to enjoy the Punishment of rejecting the divine signs. (May Allah
safeguard us)
The promise
made by the Lord Almighty in this verse is completely in accord with the
requirements of nature. It is obvious because they are those who deny the divine
verses, raise the flag of rebellion against the rules of God Almighty, do not
follow His path, disbelieve His Prophets and Messengers, conspire against them
by plotting to kill them, and instead of worshipping God Almighty worship the
idols which can neither benefit nor harm their worshippers, nor can they
protect them. Allah says, “They worship
such, besides Allah, which neither harms them nor benefits them; this only is
the extreme error” (22:12)
Allah will
punish such disbelievers and this is also the system of worldly governments.
For example, you see in our country that the process of punishment and
retribution is underway. Those who do not respect the laws of the country have
to confront the process of punishment. In the same way, when a criminal commits
a crime, he is punished, as it is also enshrined in the constitutional
provisions of the country. If a person raises a revolt against the country and
commits treason, our constitution provides life imprisonment or execution for
such persons. Punishment is given as per the crime.
This is not
true that the Quran promises punishment only for the disbelievers and
polytheists, but it also promises the punishment for those believers who commit
sins. Wasim Rizvi saw these verses in the Qur'an, but he ignored those verses,
in which the painful torment has been promised for those Muslims who do not
offer prayers (namaz). For example, see the following verses;
“So ruin is to those
offerers of prayer –Those who are neglectful of their prayer.” (107:4-5)
(The Arabic
word ‘wayl’ mentioned in the Arabic text of the Quran refers to the name of the
Hell-valley
from which even the Hell seeks refuge.)
“And after them came
the unworthy successors who squandered prayer and pursued their desires, so
they will soon encounter the forest of Gai in hell.” (19:59)
Similarly,
the following verse of the Quran promises punishment for those who deny paying
Zakat.
“…and those who hoard
up gold and silver and do not spend it in Allah’s way – give them tidings of a
painful punishment. The day when it will be heated in the fire of hell, and
their foreheads and their sides and their backs will be branded with them;
“Here is what you hoarded for yourselves; so now taste the joy of your
hoarding!”
(9:34-35).
There are
many such verses. We have mentioned only three verses here as examples.
From these
verses, it is clear that the Qur'an contains promises of punishments for both
believers and disbelievers. Therefore, anti-Islamic elements should keep an eye
on these verses which also mention punishments for believers. The Holy Qur'an
presents the formula of divine punishment as per the crime.
(Continuing)
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Maulana Badruddoja Razvi Misbahi, Principal of Madrasa Arabia Ashrafia
Zia-ul-Uloom Khairabad, District Mau, UP (India) is a Sufi-minded,
well-mannered, classical Islamic scholar, an expert teacher, an excellent
writer, a good poet and orator. He has authored numerous books, some of which
are as follows: 1) Fazilat-e-Ramazan, 2) Zad-ul-Haramain, 3) Mukhzin-e-Tib, 4)
Tauzeehat-e-Ahsan, the commentary on the
well-known logical book “Mulla Hasan” 5) Muhazarat fi Halle Qutbi Tasawwurat,
6) Tahzib al-Faraid commentary on “Sharh al-Aqaid”, 7) Atayib al-Tahani fi
Halle Mukhtasar al-Ma’ani, 8) Commentary on Sahih Muslim
Other Parts of the Articles:
The Verses of
Jihad: Meaning, Denotation, Reason of Revelation and Background- Part 1
The Verses of
Jihad: Meaning, Denotation, Reason of Revelation and Background- Part 2
The Verses of
Jihad: Meaning, Denotation, Reason of Revelation and Background- Part 3
The Verses of
Jihad- Meaning, Denotation, Reason of Revelation and Background- Part 4
URL: https://newageislam.com/debating-islam/jihad-quran-meaning-revelation-background-part-5/d/124738
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