Tafsir of Surah Fussilat - Verse 31

Glad Tidings to Those Who believe in Allah Alone and stand firm

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ قَالُواْ رَبُّنَا اللَّهُ ثُمَّ اسْتَقَـمُواْ

(Verily, those who say: "Our Lord is Allah," and then they stand firm,) means, they do good deeds sincerely for the sake of Allah, and they obey Allah, doing what Allah has prescribed for them. Ibn Jarir recorded that Sa`id bin `Imran said, "I read this Ayah to Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him:

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ قَالُواْ رَبُّنَا اللَّهُ ثُمَّ اسْتَقَـمُواْ

(Verily, those who say: "Our Lord is Allah," and then they stand firm,) He said, `Those are the ones who do not associate anything with Allah."' Then he reported a narration of Al-Aswad bin Hilal, who said, "Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, said, `What do you say about this Ayah:

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ قَالُواْ رَبُّنَا اللَّهُ ثُمَّ اسْتَقَـمُواْ

(Verily, those who say: "Our Lord is Allah," and then they stand firm,)' They said:

رَبُّنَا اللَّهُ ثُمَّ اسْتَقَـمُواْ

("Our Lord is Allah," and then they stand firm,) `They shun sin.' He said, `You have not interpreted it improperly.' They say: `Our Lord is Allah, then they stand firm and do not turn to any other god besides Him. "' This was also the view of Mujahid, `Ikrimah, As-Suddi and others. Ahmad recorded that Sufyan bin `Abdullah Ath-Thaqafi said, "I said, `O Messenger of Allah, tell me something that I can adhere to.' He said:

«قُلْ: رَبِّيَ اللهُ، ثُمَّ اسْتَقِم»

(Say, my Lord is Allah, then stand firm.) I said, `O Messenger of Allah, what do you fear most for me' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ took hold of the edge of his tongue and said,

«هذَا»

(This is.)" This was also recorded by At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah; At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan Sahih." Muslim also recorded it in his Sahih, and An-Nasa'i recorded that Sufyan bin `Abdullah Ath-Thaqafi said, "I said, `O Messenger of Allah, tell me something about Islam that I will not have to ask anyone about it after you.' He said:

«قُلْ: آمَنْتُ بِاللهِ ثُمَّ اسْتَقِم»

(Say: I believe in Allah, then stand firm.)" -- then he mentioned the rest of the Hadith.

تَتَنَزَّلُ عَلَيْهِمُ الْمَلَـئِكَةُ

(on them the angels will descend). Mujahid, As-Suddi, Zayd bin Aslam and his Zayd's son said, "This means, at the time of death, and they will say,

أَلاَّ تَخَافُواْ

(Fear not). " Mujahid, `Ikrimah and Zayd bin Aslam said, "This means not to fear "that which you will face in the Hereafter."

وَلاَ تَحْزَنُواْ

(nor grieve!) `for what you have left behind of worldly things, children, family, wealth and debt, for we will take care of it for you.'

وَأَبْشِرُواْ بِالْجَنَّةِ الَّتِى كُنتُمْ تُوعَدُونَ

(But receive the glad tidings of Paradise which you have been promised!) So they give glad tidings of the end of bad things and the arrival of good things. This is like what is said in the Hadith narrated by Al-Bara', may Allah be pleased with him:

«إِنَّ الْمَلَائِكَةَ تَقُولُ لِرُوحِ الْمُؤْمِنِ: اخْرُجِي أَيَّتُهَا الرُّوحُ الطَّيِّـبَةُ فِي الْجَسَدِ الطَّيِّبِ كُنْتِ تَعْمُرِينَهُ، اخْرُجِي إِلى رَوْحٍ وَرَيْحَانٍ وَرَبَ غَيْرِ غَضْبَان»

(The angels say to the soul of the believer, "Come out, O good soul from the good body in which you used to dwell, come out to rest, and provision and a Lord Who is not angry.") It was said that the angels will come down to them on the Day when they are brought out of their graves. Zayd bin Aslam said, "They will give him glad tidings when he dies, in his grave, and when he is resurrected." This was recorded by Ibn Abi Hatim, and this view reconciles all the opinions; it is a good view and it is true.

نَحْنُ أَوْلِيَآؤُكُمْ فِى الْحَيَوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَفِى الاٌّخِرَةِ

(We have been your friends in the life of this world and are (so) in the Hereafter. ) means, the angels will say to the believers when death approaches: "We have been your friends, i.e., your close companions, in this world, protecting you and helping you by the command of Allah, and we will be with you in the Hereafter, keeping you from feeling lonely in your graves and when the Trumpet is blown; we will reassure you on the Day of Resurrection and will take you across the Sirat and bring you to the Gardens of delight."

وَلَكُمْ فِيهَا مَا تَشْتَهِى أَنفُسُكُمْ

(Therein you shall have (all) that your souls desire,) means, `in Paradise you will have all that you wish for and that will delight you.'

وَلَكُمْ فِيهَا مَا تَدَّعُونَ

(and therein you shall have (all) for which you ask.) means, `whatever you ask for, it will appear before you as you wish it to be.'

نُزُلاً مِّنْ غَفُورٍ رَّحِيمٍ

(An entertainment from the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.) means, `a welcoming gift and a blessing from the One Who has forgiven your sins and Who is Merciful and Kind towards you, Who has forgiven you, concealed your faults and been Kind and Merciful.'

لَكُمْ فِيهَا مَا تَشْتَهِي أَنفُسُكُمْ وَلَكُمْ فِيهَا مَا تَدَّعُونَ نُزُلًا مِّنْ غَفُورٍ‌ رَّ‌حِيمٍ (And for you here is whatever your souls desire, and for you here is whatever you call for. - 41:31-32) In other words, ` all your desires' would be fulfilled whether you request or you don't.' The word used after that is ` nuzulan'1 meaning hospitality indicates that many the delights provided to you there will be such that even desire had not entered your heart, as happens to a guest, specially of a great personage, that many such things also are presented to him that the guest had not even imagined. (Mazhari)

1\. This which originally means ` a thing prepared by a host to be offered to him soon after his arrival'. That is why it is translated by us above as a ` welcome-gift'. But for the sake of brevity and in general usage, it is generally translated as ` hospitality'. Muhammad Taqi Usmani

It is stated in a Hadith that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said that in Paradise, if the desire comes into your heart to eat the flesh of a flying bird you are looking at it, it would immediately fall in front of you completely cooked, ready to eat. Some narrations have it that the bird would not have been touched either by fire or smoke, but would come down already cooked. (Al-Bazzar, Al-Baihaqi - narrated by Ibn Masud - Mazhari)

In another Hadith, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said that if a Mu'min in Paradise wishes to have a child born in his house, the conception, delivery, weaning, growing into being an adult - all this would take place in a moment. (Tirmidhi, Baihaqi, etc. - Mazhari)

There are two types of human beings. One consists of those who take Satan and those who misguide others as their leaders. In the world, these people are each other’s best friends. But, in the Hereafter, the position will be just the opposite. There , when the followers see that their selfish leaders have caused them to be cast into hell, they will develop an extreme hatred for these ‘so-called’ leaders, and will wish to have the satisfaction of degrading and dishonouring them. The second type of human beings comprises those who will fraternize with God’s angels. Such people take angels as their comrades (companions) for the period extending from this world up to the Hereafter. The angels shower godly emotions on their hearts, and in difficult times give them peace of mind. Through fine aesthetic experiences, they convey to them God’s good news. Subsequently, these angels will receive them in the Hereafter and lead them to the gardens of paradise.