Tafseer of Verses 101

“Those whose eyes were veiled from My remembrance, they could not hear the truth.”

The verse before this mentions that we will bring Hell before the disbelievers. Then in this verse, Allah further describes the disbelievers as those whose eyes were veiled from My remembrance. They were blind to divine signs, the Qur’an, guidance, and the clear proofs of Allah’s power and faith. They couldn’t see anything because of this blindness. Due to their misfortune and enmity towards the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), they were unable to listen to the truth.

Tafseer of Verses 102

“And those who disbelieved think that they can take My servants as allies besides Me. Indeed, We have prepared Hell as a welcome for the disbelievers.”

The summary of this verse is that disbelievers think they can take some of My servants, such as ‘Isa (عليه السلام), Uzair (عليه السلام), or the angels, as protectors besides Me and gain some benefit from them. Their assumption is corrupt because these servants of Mine consider the disbelievers their enemies and disassociate themselves from them. The falsity of the disbelievers’ belief is evident, as these servants (prophets, angels, and believers) will be supporters of the faithful, not the disbelievers. For the disbelievers, punishment has been prepared.

“Nuzul” refers to that which is prepared for a guest. Hell has been prepared as their “hospitality” to mock them and rebuke them for their actions.

Tafseer of Verses 103

Say, “Shall we inform you of the greatest losers in regard to their deeds?”

The summary of this verse is: “Shall We tell you about those whose efforts in deeds were wasted, thinking they were doing good?” They toiled hard in their actions, hoping for rewards, but instead, they fell into destruction and ruin.

Abdullah ibn Abbas (رضي الله عنه) said this refers to the Jews and Christians. Some commentators said it refers to monks who lived in seclusion in churches. Hazrat Ali (رضي الله عنه) said it refers to the Khwarij, the people of Harura.

In reality, these are different interpretations of the same concept. It includes everyone who puts effort into worship and external actions but simultaneously commits acts that nullify their deeds, such as disbelief (kufr).

It’s understood by gesture that someone having apparent deeds does not necessarily mean they are on the right path. And in Sahih Bukhari, it is narrated regarding the Khawarij that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to his companions (may Allah be pleased with them), ‘You will consider your prayers insignificant compared to their prayers, and your fasting insignificant compared to their fasting. They will recite the Quran, but it will not go beyond their throats. They will pass through the religion as an arrow passes through its target.

it is clear that long and seemingly humble prayers, emotional and tearful recitations of the Qur’an, warnings of God’s punishment, and other outwardly pious actions are not acceptable until one’s beliefs are correct. Therefore, everyone should be wary of worship, piety, and purity that appear outwardly virtuous but are rooted in false beliefs and misguided sects. One should neither be influenced by them nor inclined towards them, but rather should always keep away from them, as this is where one’s true well-being lies in this world and the Hereafter.”

Every verse revealed specifically about the disbelievers can generally also be applied to the heedless. If a person confines themselves to worship without engaging in reflection and witnessing, it will be true inwardly that their efforts were wasted, even while they believe they are performing good deeds. Consequently, on the Day of Judgment, they will not be granted a high status. Thus, this verse applies to various groups.

Among them are also those who become preoccupied with intellectual debates, neglecting the knowledge of the heart. According to the people of gnosis, this is idleness. Likewise, there are those who confine themselves to the worship of the heart, such as reflection and meditation, yet remain heedless of the worship of the soul, such as witnessing and contemplation.

In summary, whoever is deprived of witnessing and contemplation is considered idle, even if they are unaware of this themselves. This reality will only become evident to them at the time of death or after it. And in explaining Allah’s words, “And there will appear to them from Allah that which they had not taken into account,” we will provide further details, if Allah wills.

It is also possible that an action may be considered worship by one group and idleness by another. The good deeds of the righteous may appear as faults to those closer to Allah. Only those who have risen above physical acts of worship to the worship of the heart and soul can truly understand this. And Allah alone grants success.

Tafseer of Verses 104

Those whose effort is lost in this worldly life while they think that they are doing good. 

The preceding verse informs about the people who are the greatest losers in terms of their deeds. In this verse, it is stated… They are those whose efforts in this worldly life were wasted, while they thought they were doing good deeds that would benefit them in the Hereafter.

This verse primarily pertains to disbelievers, but it implicitly reveals that even more unfortunate than a sinner is a doer of good who, despite striving and enduring hardships to perform good deeds, finds his efforts rendered worthless. Such a person remains deluded, thinking he is righteous. We seek Allah’s protection from this fate.

Tafseer of Verses 105

They are those who disbelieve in the signs of their Lord and His meeting. Their works are destroyed. And We will not assign for them, on the Day of Judgement, any weight.

These are the people who denied the signs of their Lord and the meeting with Him. They did not believe in the Messenger and the Quran, nor in being resurrected after death for accountability and punishment. All their deeds have been rendered void, and they will not receive any reward for them.

The meaning of not establishing any weight is that on the Day of Judgment, their apparent good deeds will hold no value or weight. When their apparent good deeds are weighed against their disbelief and disobedience on the scale of deeds, all their apparent good deeds will prove to be weightless. This is because the worth and weight of good deeds depend on faith (iman) and sincerity (ikhlas). Since these people are devoid of faith and sincerity, how can their deeds carry any weight?

Regarding the deeds of the disbelievers, Allah Almighty states in one place

: “And the deeds they performed, We will turn them into scattered particles of fine dust,” like the tiny specks visible in sunlight streaming through a window.

It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Hurairah that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: On the Day of Judgment, a very large and heavy man will be brought before Allah, but despite his bulk, his weight in the sight of Allah will not be equal to the wing of a mosquito. Then the Prophet said: “Recite this verse,” (referring to the relevant Quranic verse).So, on the Day of Judgment, We will not establish any weight for them.

It should be noted that the apparent good deeds of disbelievers will indeed be weightless on the Day of Judgment. However, some Muslims will also be deprived of the weight of their good deeds. As narrated from Hazrat Thawban (may Allah be pleased with him), the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “I know of certain groups from my ummah who will come on the Day of Judgment with good deeds as large as the mountains of Tihamah. But Allah will render them like scattered particles of dust visible in sunlight.”

Hazrat Thawban asked, “O Messenger of Allah, please explain clearly about these people so that, unknowingly, we do not end up among them.” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, “They will be your brothers, from your own people. They will pray at night just as you do, but when alone, they will indulge in sinful acts.

Tafseer of Verses 106

That is their requital: Hell, because they disbelieved and took My Signs and My Messengers in jest 

It was said, “This Hell is their recompense because they disbelieved and rejected that which they were obligated to believe in and affirm. They mocked the Holy Quran, the other divine scriptures, and Allah’s messengers.”

This makes it clear that the greatest form of disbelief is insulting and mocking the Prophet, for which punishment is given in both this world and the Hereafter.

Hazrat Allama Ismail Haqqi (may Allah have mercy on him) states: “Remember, scholars are the heirs of the Prophets, and their knowledge is derived from the knowledge of the Prophets. Just as the scholars, through their actions, inherit the deeds and knowledge of the Prophets and Messengers, those who mock the scholars become heirs to the mocking of disbelievers like Abu Jahl, Uqbah bin Abi Mu’it, and others like them.

Those who engage in mocking the scholars of truth, whether through the media or in private gatherings, should take this as a serious warning. May Allah grant them sound understanding.”

Tafseer of Verses 107 and 108

Indeed, those who have believed and done good works, for them are the Gardens of Firdaws as a place of lodging, They will abide therein forever. They will not desire from it any transfer.

Before this, the mention was made of the disbelievers’ hospitality in Hell, and now it is describing the encouragement to believe and perform righteous deeds. It is stated: “Indeed, those who believed in this world and did righteous deeds, seeking Allah’s pleasure, for them are the gardens of Paradise as their reward.”

The blessings of Paradise and the highest Paradise.

Remember, the blessings that Allah has prepared for the people of Paradise are beyond human imagination. As Allah says: “No one knows the delight that has been hidden for them as a reward for what they used to do.”

It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Hurairah that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Allah says…”

Allah Almighty says: “I have prepared such blessings for My righteous servants that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and it has never crossed the heart of any human.”

It is narrated from Hazrat Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “When you ask Allah, ask for the highest Paradise, Al-Firdaus, because it is the most central and the highest of all the Gardens, and above it is the Throne of the Most Merciful, and from it the rivers of Paradise flow.”

Hazrat Ka’b (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Al-Firdaus is the most exalted of all the Gardens. In it, those who enjoin good and forbid evil will live in pleasure.”

No matter how good a place a person may be in this world, he always desires a higher and better place. However, this will not be the case in Paradise, as they will know that, by Allah’s grace, they will be granted the highest and most exalted place.

Tafseer of Verses 109

Say: “If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would be exhausted before the words of my Lord were exhausted, even if we were to bring the like of it as a supplement”

The summary of this verse is that if the words of Allah’s knowledge and wisdom were written down, and all the water in the oceans were used as ink, and all of creation were to write, it would never be finished, and the water would run out, and even more would run out. The point is that there is no limit to His knowledge and wisdom. Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Jews said, “O Muhammad, you claim that we have been given wisdom, and your book says that whoever has been given wisdom has been given the best of good, then how do you say that you have been given only a little knowledge?” This verse was revealed in response to them.

 وَمَا أُوتِيتُم مِّنَ الْعِلْمِ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا

 “And you have not been given of knowledge except a little.”

One interpretation is that when this verse was revealed, the Jews claimed that they had been given the knowledge of the Torah, and it contained knowledge of everything. In response, this verse was revealed. The message is that even the knowledge of everything is insignificant compared to the knowledge of Allah, and it has no comparison to Allah’s knowledge, just as a drop of water has no comparison to the ocean.

Tafseer of Verses 110

Say: “I am only a man like you. It has been revealed to me that your God is One God. So, whoever was hoping to meet his Lord, then let him do good works. And let him not associate, in the worship of his Lord, anyone. 

Hazrat Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: In this verse, Allah Almighty taught His beloved Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) humility and instructed him to say, “I am only a man like you.” This means that just as you are human, I am also human. However, I have the distinction over you that I receive revelation, and due to this revelation, Allah has granted me a high status.

Allama Imam Ahmed Raza Khan (may Allah have mercy on him) said: The disbelievers considered the Prophets to be mere humans, and because of this, they denied their prophethood. and said

ماأَنتُمْ إِلَّا بَشَرٌۭ مِّثْلُنَا ۖ وَمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنُ مِنْ شَىۡءٍۢ ۖ إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلَّا تَكْذِبُونَ

“You are not but humans like us, and the Most Merciful has not revealed anything. You are not but liars.

In reality, when they viewed prophecy and revelation as false, all they saw was the humanity of the Prophet (peace be upon him). But even more blind of heart are those who accept prophecy and revelation and still consider the Prophet to be just like any other human.

Zaid understood the phrase قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَنَا۟ بَشَرٌۭ مِّثْلُكُمْ (Say, I am only a man like you), but the part يُوحَىٰٓ إِلَىَّ (to whom has been revealed) did not come to his mind, which demonstrates an important distinction. Zaid understood the same thing that the disbelievers understood, which is the humanity of the Prophets. The humanity of the Prophets (peace be upon them) is superior to the angelic nature of Jibril (peace be upon him).

They appear in a visible human form, with humanity in their eyes, so that the purpose is to establish a connection with creation and to benefit from them.For this reason, Allah says: ‘If We had sent an angel as a messenger, We would have certainly sent him as a man, and We would have certainly made him appear in the same form as the people are now in.’”

Arabic (Ayah from Surah Al-An’am, 6:9):

وَلَوْ جَعَلْنَاهُ مَلَكًا لَّجَعَلْنَاهُ رَجُلًا وَلَلَبَسْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ مَّا يَلْبِسُونَ

those who look at the outward appearance of the Prophets and think of them as just like others, seeing only their humanity, are following the way of superficial observers and those with blind hearts. They are deceived by Satan. Their eating, drinking, and sleeping—these human actions—are not because they are in need of them, absolutely not. As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, ‘I am not like you. I spend the night with my Lord. He feeds me and gives me drink.’ These actions were also a means to establish the Sunnah and teach the Ummah, to show the right way in every situation, demonstrating through practical examples. For instance, the Hadith of forgetfulness: ‘I do not forget, but I am made to forget’—so that the Ummah could learn the proper way in situations of forgetfulness as part of the Sunnah.”

In the Qur’an, it is repeatedly mentioned that the disbelievers referred to the Prophets as mere humans like themselves, and this led them into misguidance. Therefore, any Muslim who still harbors even the slightest trace of love for the leader of the Messengers (peace and blessings be upon him) must avoid following the way of the disbelievers. They should not attempt to consider the Prophet (peace be upon him) as merely a human like themselves, as doing so would place them among the misguided.

Allah Almighty has granted noble virtues and high ranks, and referring to them with a common description that applies to both the special and the general indicates a disregard for these virtues. Therefore, it is important to mention the distinguished qualities and ranks of a person in terms of the virtues and attributes that make them unique, and this is the practice of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions.