Tafsir of Surah Muhammad - Verse 19

The Description of the Situation of the Hypocrites and the Command to maintain Tawhid and seek Forgiveness

Allah describes the hypocrites' stupidity and limited understanding. They used to sit before Allah's Messenger ﷺ and listen to his words without understanding anything. Then when they left from his presence,

قَالُواْ لِلَّذِينَ أُوتُواْ الْعِلْمَ

(they say to those who have received knowledge) from the Companions

مَاذَا قَالَ ءَانِفاً

("What is it that he has said just now") meaning, at this moment. They did not understand what he said, nor did they care about it. Allah says,

أُوْلَـئِكَ الَّذِينَ طَبَعَ اللَّهُ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ وَاتَّبَعُواْ أَهْوَآءَهُمْ

(Such are the men whose hearts Allah has sealed because they followed their lusts.) which means that they had neither sound understanding nor correct intentions. Allah then says,

وَالَّذِينَ اهْتَدَوْاْ زَادَهُمْ هُدًى

(And as for those who accept guidance, He increases them in guidance) which means that those who seek guidance, Allah facilitates it for them; He guides them to it, makes them firm on it, and gives them more of it.

وَءَاتَـهُمْ تَقُوَاهُمْ

(and bestows on them their Taqwa. ) meaning, He inspires them to their righteous guidance. Allah then says,

فَهَلْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلاَّ السَّاعَةَ أَن تَأْتِيَهُمْ بَغْتَةً

(Do they then await except that the Hour should come upon them suddenly) meaning, while they are unaware of it.

فَقَدْ جَآءَ أَشْرَاطُهَا

(But already there have come (some of) its portents;) meaning, the signs of its approach. This is similar to Allah's saying,

هَـذَا نَذِيرٌ مِّنَ النُّذُرِ الاٍّوْلَى - أَزِفَتِ الاٌّزِفَةُ

(This is a warner of the warners of old. The approaching Day has drawn near.) (53:56-57) And His saying,

اقْتَرَبَتِ السَّاعَةُ وَانشَقَّ الْقَمَرُ

(The Hour has drawn near, and the moon has split.) (54:1) And His saying,

أَتَى أَمْرُ اللَّهِ فَلاَ تَسْتَعْجِلُوهُ

(The command of Allah is coming, so do not be impatient for it.) (16:1) And His saying,

اقْتَرَبَ لِلنَّاسِ حِسَـبُهُمْ وَهُمْ فِى غَفْلَةٍ مُّعْرِضُونَ

(The people's Day of Reckoning has approached while they turn away in heedlessness.) (21:1) Thus, the Messenger's ﷺ advent is one of the signs of the Hour, because he is the Finality of the Messengers. With him, Allah has completed the religion and established the evidence against all people in a way that was never done by a previous Prophet. Allah's Messenger ﷺ has most clearly informed about the signs and indications of the Hour, as we have discussed elsewhere. Al-Bukhari recorded from Sahl bin Sa`d, may Allah be pleased with him, that he saw Allah's Messenger ﷺ bring his index and middle fingers together while he said,

«بُعِثْتُ أَنَا وَالسَّاعَةَ كَهَاتَيْن»

(I have been sent before the Hour as these two (fingers).) Allah continues,

فَأَنَّى لَهُمْ إِذَا جَآءَتْهُمْ ذِكْرَاهُمْ

(and when it (actually) is on them, how can they benefit then by their reminder) meaning, how would remembering benefit the disbelievers when the Hour comes upon them This is similar to Allah's saying,

يَوْمَئِذٍ يَتَذَكَّرُ الإِنسَـنُ وَأَنَّى لَهُ الذِّكْرَى

(On that Day will the human being remember, but what would that remembrance avail him then) (89:23) And His saying,

وَقَالُواْ ءَامَنَّا بِهِ وَأَنَّى لَهُمُ التَّنَاوُشُ مِن مَّكَانِ بَعِيدٍ

(They will say (in the Hereafter): "Now we believe in it!" But how could they claim belief from such a far place) (34:52) Allah then says,

فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلأاللَّهِ

(So know that La ilaha illallah) This is a declaration that there is no true God except Allah. It is not something that is easy for him to command the people to have knowledge of. That is why Allah connected it with,

وَاسْتَغْفِرْ لِذَنبِكَ وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَـتِ

(and ask forgiveness for your sin and for the believing men and women.) In the Sahih, it is recorded that Allah's Messenger ﷺ used to say,

«اللْهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِي خَطِيئَتِي وَجَهْلِي وَإِسْرَافِي فِي أَمْرِي وَمَا أَنْتَ أَعْلَمُ بِهِ مِنِّي، اللْهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِي هَزْلِي وَجِدِّي، وَخَطَئِي وَعَمْدِي، وَكُلُّ ذلِكَ عِنْدِي»

(O Allah, forgive my sin, my ignorance, my immoderation in my affairs, and all that You know better about my (faults) than myself. O Allah, forgive for me my joking, my seriousness, my unintended error, and my deliberate (mistakes) -- and I have done of all that.) It is also reported in the Sahih that he used to say at the end of the prayer,

«اللْهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِي مَا قَدَّمْتُ وَمَا أَخَّرْتُ، وَمَا أَسْرَرْتُ وَمَا أَعْلَنْتُ، وَمَا أَسْرَفْتُ، وَمَا أَنْتَ أَعْلَمُ بِهِ مِنِّي، أَنْتَ إِلهِي لَا إِلهَ إِلَّا أَنْت»

(O Allah, forgive for me what I have previously done, what I may commit in future, what I have committed secretly, what I have committed openly, what I have done excessively, and all sins that You know better than me. You are my God. There is no (true) God except You.) It is also recorded in the Sahih that he used to say,

«يَاأَيُّهَا النَّاسُ تُوبُوا إِلَى رَبِّكُمْ، فَإِنِّي أَسْتَغْفِرُ اللهَ وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْهِ فِي الْيَوْمِ أَكْثَرَ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ مَرَّة»

(O people! Repent to your Lord! Verily, I ask Allah for forgiveness and repent to Him more than seventy times every day.) Allah then says,

وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مُتَقَلَّبَكُمْ وَمَثْوَاكُمْ

(And Allah knows well your moving about, and your place of rest.) means, He knows how you behave during the day, and where you settle at night. This is similar to His saying,

وَهُوَ الَّذِى يَتَوَفَّـكُم بِالَّيْلِ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا جَرَحْتُم بِالنَّهَارِ

(It is He Who takes your souls by night and knows all that you do by day.)(6:60) And He says,

وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٍ فِي الاٌّرْضِ إِلاَّ عَلَى اللَّهِ رِزْقُهَا وَيَعْلَمُ مُسْتَقَرَّهَا وَمُسْتَوْدَعَهَا كُلٌّ فِى كِتَابٍ مُّبِينٍ

(And there is no moving creature on earth but its provision is up to Allah, and He knows its dwelling place and its deposit (before birth and after death) -- all is in a clear register.) (11:6)

Commentary

In this verse the address is to the Holy Prophet ﷺ and he is, through an imperative verb, commanded to know that there is no object of worship besides Allah. It is quite obvious that every Muslim has the knowledge of this - let alone the leader of the Holy Prophets ﷺ who should have its knowledge more profoundly. Then why is he enjoined to acquire this knowledge? There can be two responses to this question: it can either mean that the Holy Prophet ﷺ is enjoined to be steadfast in his worship of Allah or it could mean that he must fulfill the demands of his knowledge. Qurtubi cites the incident of Sufyan Ibn ` Uyaynah (رح) who was asked about the significance of knowledge, he replied: Did you not read verse 19 of Surah Muhammad: فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّـهُ وَاسْتَغْفِرْ‌ لِذَنبِكَ " So know for sure (0 Holy Prophet ﷺ) that there is no god but Allah, and seek forgiveness for your fault. It is required in this verse that knowledge should be acquired before action. Similarly, on other occasions in the Qur'an, first it is enjoined to acquire knowledge and then to fulfill its corresponding demands. For example, in [ 57:20] the Holy Qur'an has said, اعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا لَعِبٌ وَلَهْوٌ “ Know that the present life is but a sport and a diversion ... " Then it was said, سَابِقُوا إِلَىٰ مَغْفِرَ‌ةٍ مِّن رَّ‌بِّكُمْ "Race to forgiveness from your Lord (57:21) ". In Surah Anfal, (verse) the Qur'an says: وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلَادُكُمْ فِتْنَةٌ "Know that your wealth and children are a trial..." The demand of this knowledge is mentioned in Surah At-Taghabun (Verse 14): فَاحْذَرُ‌وهُمْ "...so be fearful of Him.". Thus on these occasions first the knowledge of different things are imparted, and then it is enjoined to fulfill the demands of that knowledge.

In this context, although the Holy Prophet ﷺ had prior knowledge of the Oneness of Allah, the injunction here is for the Holy Prophet ﷺ to fulfill the demand of this fundamental knowledge, that is, " وَاسْتَغْفِرْ‌ لِذَنبِكَ and ask forgiveness for your faults (47:19) ". The Holy Prophet ﷺ is infallible and immune from sin, and therefore the possibility that he would commit sins is unthinkable. Despite this, the possibility of Allah's Holy Prophets ﷺ committing misjudgment in Ijtihad cannot be ruled out. But, according to the sacred law, such mistakes are not regarded as sins. In fact, they are rewarded, though the prophets (علیہم السلام) are told about the correct position, and keeping in view the high status of the prophets, such mistakes too are sometimes referred to as "dhanb" (fault or sin), as for instance in Surah ` Abasa [ 80] the Holy Prophets ] was criticized for his misjudgment. The details will be set out when discussing that Surah. The error of judgment referred to in that Surah was not really a sin. In fact, a reward was promised to him for that, but because it was not in conformity with his high status, Allah Ta` ala expressed His dislike. This type of "dhanb" (fault) is referred to in the current verse.

Note

Sayyidna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ reports that Allah's Messenger ﷺ said: Recite لا إلہ إلا اللہ la ilaha illallah and istighfar frequently because Iblis (Shaitan) says, 'I got people involved in sins and destroyed them, but they destroyed me by reciting إلا اللہ illallah, so I got them involved in false and baseless thoughts and notions which they pursue as true, authentic and righteous, (for instance, the common religious innovations (bid'at), because they treat them as righteous,) hence, they do not feel any need to repent for their practice of innovations.

مُتَقَلَّبَكُمْ وَمَثْوَاكُمْ last line (your moving from place to place and your permanent abode.) The word متَقَلَّب mutaqallab lexically means "turning around or turning over". The word mathwa means "permanent resting place ". It is open to several interpretations. As a result, the commentators have assigned different meanings to the phrase. As a matter of fact, all the meanings attached to the phrase are correct, sound, authentic and true, because human beings are confronted by two types of conditions: in the one case their invovement in something is temporary, and other case it is permanent. Likewise, in some places man’ s stay is “ temporary” and in other places it is permanent. In the concluding phrase of the current verse, the word مُتَقَلَّبَ mutaqallab has been used to describe “ temporary” and مثوٰی is used to describe "permanent". Thus this verse signifies that Allah is fully aware of all conditions of human beings.

One who refuses to be on the alert on receipt of advance information about an earthquake, is in fact courting disaster, because every ensuing moment is bringing the earthquake closer to him. Similarly, man does not take warning from the portents of Doomsday. But when Doomsday breaks upon him, he will resort to pious avowals. But such avowals at that stage will be of no use, because only that testament to the truth has value which is made before the curtain rises. After the rising of the curtain, it has no value. Begging God’s pardon is, in fact, an expression of the feeling of one’s humbleness. Firm belief in the horror of Doomsday, in God’s power and the realisation of His being aware of everything, creates a psychological upheaval in man. This is evinced at every moment in the shape of sublime utterances. These take the shape of remembrance of God, prayer and the seeking of God’s pardon.