Tafsir of Surah Al-Qasas - Verse 54

The Believers among the People of the Book

Allah tells us that the pious scholars among the People of the Book believe in the Qur'an, as He says:

الَّذِينَ آتَيْنَـهُمُ الْكِتَـبَ يَتْلُونَهُ حَقَّ تِلاَوَتِهِ أُوْلَـئِكَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِ

(Those to whom We gave the Book recite it as it should be recited, they are the ones who believe therein) (2:121).

وَإِنَّ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَـبِ لَمَن يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُمْ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ خَـشِعِينَ للَّهِ

(And there are, certainly, among the People of the Scripture, those who believe in Allah and in that which has been revealed to you, and in that which has been revealed to them, humbling themselves before Allah) (3:199).

قُلْ ءَامِنُواْ بِهِ أَوْ لاَ تُؤْمِنُواْ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ أُوتُواْ الْعِلْمَ مِن قَبْلِهِ إِذَا يُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ يَخِرُّونَ لِلاٌّذْقَانِ سُجَّدًا - وَيَقُولُونَ سُبْحَانَ رَبِّنَآ إِن كَانَ وَعْدُ رَبِّنَا لَمَفْعُولاً

(Verily, those who were given knowledge before it, when it is recited to them, fall down on their faces in humble prostration. And they say: "Glory be to our Lord! Truly, the promise of our Lord must be fulfilled.") (17:107-108)

وَلَتَجِدَنَّ أَقْرَبَهُمْ مَّوَدَّةً لِّلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ الَّذِينَ قَالُواْ إِنَّا نَصَارَى

(And you will find the nearest in love to the believers those who say: "We are Christians. ") until:

فَاكْتُبْنَا مَعَ الشَّـهِدِينَ

(so write us down among the witnesses) (5:82-83). Sa`id bin Jubayr said, "This was revealed concerning seventy priests who were sent by An-Najashi (ruler of Ethiopia). When they came to the Prophet , he recited to them:

يس - وَالْقُرْءَانِ الْحَكِيمِ

(Ya Sin. By the Qur'an, full of wisdom.) (36:1-2) until he completed the Surah. They began to weep, and they embraced Islam. These other Ayat were revealed concerning them:

الَّذِينَ ءَاتَيْنَـهُمُ الْكِتَـبَ مِن قَبْلِهِ هُم بِهِ يُؤْمِنُونَ - وَإِذَا يُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ قَالُواْ ءَامَنَّا بِهِ إِنَّهُ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّنَآ إنَّا كُنَّا مِن قَبْلِهِ مُسْلِمِينَ

(Those to whom We gave the Scripture before it, they believe in it. And when it is recited to them, they say: "We believe in it. Verily, it is the truth from our Lord. Indeed even before it we have been from Muslims.") meaning, `even befor e the Qur'an came we were Muslims, i.e., we believed in One God and were sincerely responding to Allah's commands.'

أُوْلَـئِكَ يُؤْتُونَ أَجْرَهُم مَّرَّتَيْنِ بِمَا صَبَرُواْ

(These will be given their reward twice over, because they are patient,) means, those who have this characteristic -- that they believed in the first Book and then in the second. Allah says:

بِمَا صَبَرُواْ

(because they are patient,) meaning, in their adherence to the truth, for taking such thing upon oneself is not easy for people. It was reported in the Sahih from the Hadith of `Amir Ash-Sha`bi from Abu Burdah that Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

«ثَلَاثَةٌ يُؤْتَوْنَ أَجْرَهُمْ مَرَّتَيْنِ: رَجُلٌ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ آمَنَ بِنَبِيِّهِ ثُمَّ آمَنَ بِي، وَعَبْدٌ مَمْلُوكٌ أَدَّى حَقَّ اللهِ وَحَقَّ مَوَالِيهِ،وَرَجُلٌ كَانَتْ لَهُ أَمَةٌ، فَأَدَّبَهَا فَأَحْسَنَ تَأْدِيبَهَا، ثُمَّ أَعْتَقَهَا فَتَزَوَّجَهَا»

(There are three who will be given their reward twice: a man among the People of the Book who believed in his Prophet then believed in me; a slave who fulfills his duty towards Allah and towards his master; and a man who has a slave woman and educates her and teaches her good manners, then he frees her and marries her.) Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Umamah said: "On the day of the Conquest of Makkah I was walking alongside the Messenger of Allah ﷺ as he was riding, and he said some very beautiful words, including the following:

«مَنْ أَسْلَمَ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابَيْنِ فَلَهُ أَجْرُهُ مَرَّتَيْنِ وَلَهُ مَا لَنَا وَعَلَيْهِ مَا عَلَيْنَا وَمَنْ أَسْلَمَ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ فَلَهُ أَجْرُهُ وَلَهُ مَا لَنَا وَعَلَيْهِ مَا عَلَيْنَا»

(Whoever among the people of the two Books becomes Muslim, he will have his reward twice, and he has the same rights and duties as we do. Whoever among the idolators becomes Muslim will have one reward, and he has the same rights and duties as we do.)" Allah's saying:

وَيَدْرَءُونَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ السَّيِّئَةَ

(and repel evil with good,) means, they do not respond to evil in kind, rather they forgive and overlook.

وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَـهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ

(and spend out of what We have provided for them.) meaning, `from the lawful provision that We have given them, they spend on their families and relatives as they are required to do, and they pay Zakah and give voluntary charity.'

وَإِذَا سَمِعُواْ اللَّغْوَ أَعْرَضُواْ عَنْهُ

(And when they hear evil vain talk, they withdraw from it) meaning, they do not mix with the people who indulge in such talk, rather they do as Allah says:

وَإِذَا مَرُّواْ بِاللَّغْوِ مَرُّواْ كِراماً

(and if they pass by some evil vain talk, they pass by it with dignity) (25:72).

وَقَالُواْ لَنَآ أَعْمَـلُنَا وَلَكُمْ أَعْمَـلُكُمْ سَلَـمٌ عَلَيْكُمْ لاَ نَبْتَغِى الْجَـهِلِينَ

(and they say: "To us our deeds, and to you your deeds. Peace be to you. We seek not (the way of) the ignorant.") means, if some foolish person speaks to them in a foolish manner and says something to which it does not befit them to respond, they turn away from him and do not respond in kind with ugly speech. They never say anything but good words. Allah says of them that they say:

لَنَآ أَعْمَـلُنَا وَلَكُمْ أَعْمَـلُكُمْ سَلَـمٌ عَلَيْكُمْ لاَ نَبْتَغِى الْجَـهِلِينَ

(To us our deeds, and to you your deeds. Peace be to you. We seek not (the way of) the ignorant.) meaning, `we do not seek the way of the ignorant and we do not like it.'

أُولَـٰئِكَ يُؤْتَوْنَ أَجْرَ‌هُم مَّرَّ‌تَيْنِ (Such people will be given their reward twice - 28:54). That is, the believers who are also people of the book will be rewarded twice. A similar promise is made for the wives of the Holy Prophet ، ﷺ وَمَن يَقْنُتْ مِنكُنَّ لِلَّـهِ وَرَ‌سُولِهِ وَتَعْمَلْ صَالِحًا نُّؤْتِهَا أَجْرَ‌هَا مَرَّ‌تَيْنِ (And whoever from among you stands in obedience to Allah and His messenger and does righteous deeds, We will give her, her reward twice. - 33:31). In a hadith of Sahih a1 Bukhari three types of persons are mentioned for double reward One, those people of the book who had faith in their prophets initially, and then developed faith in the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Two, the slave who is submissive and obedient to Allah Ta` ala and His Messenger ﷺ ، and also to his master. Three, the one who owned a slave girl, with whom he was allowed intercourse but he freed her and made her his formal wife by performing nikah.

The point worth consideration in this verse is the cause for which these categories of Muslims are given their reward twice. One cause could be that they have done two good deeds for which they are entitled to double reward. In all these three cases there are two good deeds involved. In the case of believers two good deeds are faith in their own prophet first, and then in the Holy Prophet and the Qur'an. In the case of the wives of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، two good deeds are that they loved and obeyed the Holy Prophet ﷺ both as a prophet and as husband. As for the owner of the slave girl, his first good deed is to free her, and the second to marry her. But this explanation may be subjected to the objection that two rewards for two good deeds are applicable to all, according to norms of justice; so where is the distinction for the people of the book or believers, and the wives of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، or the master of the slave girl? Keeping this objection in view, I have answered the original question in another way which is fully described in my book Ahkam ul-Qur'an under Surah Al-Qasas. According to that explanation, it is apparent by the wording of Qur'an that in all these examples, the relevant persons will not get two rewards for two deeds, but they will get double reward for each single deed, because the principle of 'two rewards for two deeds' is applicable to all, according to the express declaration of the Qur'an: لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ مِّنكُم (I do not let go to waste the labour of a worker from you - 3:195), that is Allah Ta` ala does not waste deeds of any one of you. In fact one will get reward for every single good deed he performs. Therefore the double reward contemplated for all these types, is that for every single good deed they will be awarded double the reward. For instance, they will be given two rewards for a single prayer, two rewards for a single charity, and two rewards for each one good deed like fasting, performing Hajj etc.. If one contemplates on the wordings of Qur'an he will note that for giving two rewards the appropriate word was اَجرَین ، (two rewards) but instead of that Qur'an has used the word اَجرَھُم مرّتَین (their reward twice - 28:54), in which there is a clear hint that all their good deeds will be written twice and they will get double the reward for each one of them.

As for the reason why these people have been chosen for such an extra ordinary reward, the straight answer is that it is Allah Ta` ala's prerogative to declare any deed preferable or superior to other deeds, and enhance its reward. No one has the right to question as to why He has enhanced the reward for a particular act as compared to the other, or why has He increased the reward of fasting while He has not done so in the case of zakah and charity. It is possible that the pedestal of deeds, mentioned in the verse under reference and the hadith of Bukhari, is higher in the sight of Allah in comparison to other deeds, and hence double the reward. Some prominent scholars have given the reason of this preference that they require excessive effort and hardship. This explanation is also probable, and the word بِمَا صَبَرُوا (because they observed patience) towards the end of this verse can be taken as a proof for the argument that the ground for double reward is their endurance on hardship. (Only Allah knows best).

وَيَدْرَ‌ءُونَ بِالْحَسَنَةِ السَّيِّئَةَ (And they repel evil with good - 28:54). The scholars have made different assertions while explaining 'evil' and 'good deed' as they are contemplated in this verse. Some have explained that 'good deed' stands here for obedience, and 'evil' for sin, and the sense is that every good deed wipes out the sin, as is maintained in a hadith in which the Holy Prophet ﷺ said to Sayyidna Mu` adh Ibn Jabal ؓ ‘ اَتبِعِ الحَسَنَۃَ السَّیِّٔۃَ تَمحُھَا (Perform a good deed after an evil deed, and it will wipe out the evil). According to this interpretation, the verse is praising these people that whenever they commit an evil act by mistake, they wipe it out by doing some good act. Some others are of the opinion that Hasanah (good deed) in this verse is used for knowledge and serenity, and sayyi'ah for ignorance and negligence. Thus it means that these people respond to the ignorant acts of others with serenity and forbearance and not with a similar ignorance. As a matter of fact, there is no contradiction in these explanations, because the words hasanah and sayyi` ah, that is virtue and evil, encompass all these things.

There are two important advices in this verse:

Firstly, if someone commits a sin, its best remedy is that he should look for doing something good. The virtuous deed becomes expiation for the sin, as quoted in the hadi'th of Sayyidna Mu` adh ضی اللہ تعالیٰ عنہ above. Secondly, if a person behaves with someone badly, the wronged one is within his right to take revenge, provided he does not exceed the wrong done to him. However, it is much better for him that, instead of taking revenge, he returns the cruelty with kindness and the evil with virtue. It is an act of high degree of nobility of character. There are innumerable benefits in such an act, both in this world and in the Hereafter. In another Qur'anic verse this advice is given in very clear words ادْفَعْ بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ فَإِذَا الَّذِي بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَهُ عَدَاوَةٌ كَأَنَّهُ وَلِيٌّ حَمِيمٌ (Repel with that which is fairer and behold, he between whom and thee there is enmity shall be as if he were a loyal friend - 41:34). It means that one should act kindly in return of cruelty. In this way his foe will become his sincere friend.

There are two types of acceptance of any proposition. One is by virtue of it being the Truth. The other by reason of it being current in one’s own circle. It is those who accept the Truth for the sake of Truth who are guided by God: it was people of this kind who placed their faith in the Quran and the Prophet in the earlier period of Islam. A number of Christians and Jews embraced the faith as soon as they heard the Quran. These were such as had been steadfast in their acceptance of the true teachings of previous prophets. They had, therefore, quickly recognised the last of the Prophets, just as they had recognised the previous prophets. But, in order to maintain their ability to do so, they had to go through various stages of ‘patience.’ They kept their minds free of those influences which render a man incapable of recognising the Truth, these being historical and social factors which create that frame of mind which causes a man to change the religion of God into the religion of a group. Man reaches the stage when he is able to recognise only the religion which he inherits from his group. He fails to recognise the religion which comes to him from outside. To keep oneself free of these influences, one has to make great psychological sacrifices. That is why this process has been called ‘patience’. Those who exercise patience will be given a double reward: one because of their sacrifice in not allowing their erstwhile faith to become a group faith, and the other because of their capacity to recognise truth on merit, in the sense that when the new prophet came before them, they recognised him and rallied to his support. It is in those who have the ability to recognise the Truth that high moral qualities develop. They are good even to those who harm them. They help others so that God may help them. They pursue a course of turning away from useless discussions, so that they may not become involved in futile debates.