Tafsir of Surah Al-A'raf - Verse 21

Shaytan's Deceit with Adam and Hawwa' and Their eating from the Forbidden Tree

Allah states that He allowed Adam and his wife to dwell in Paradise and to eat from all of its fruits, except one tree. We have already discussed this in Surat Al-Baqarah. Thus, Shaytan envied them and plotted deceitfully, whispering and suggesting treachery. He wished to rid them of the various favors and nice clothes that they were enjoying.

وَقَالَ

(He (Shaytan) said) uttering lies and falsehood,

مَا نَهَـكُمَا رَبُّكُمَا عَنْ هَـذِهِ الشَّجَرَةِ إِلاَ أَن تَكُونَا مَلَكَيْنِ

("Your Lord did not forbid you this tree save you should become angels...") meaning, so that you do not become angels or dwell here for eternity. Surely, if you eat from this tree, you will attain both, he said. In another Ayah,

قَالَ يـَادَمُ هَلْ أَدُلُّكَ عَلَى شَجَرَةِ الْخُلْدِ وَمُلْكٍ لاَّ يَبْلَى

(Shaytan whispered to him, saying: "O Adam! Shall I lead you to the Tree of Eternity and to a kingdom that will never waste away") 20:120. Here, the wording is similar, so it means, `so that you do not become angels' as in;

يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ أَن تَضِلُّواْ

((Thus) does Allah make clear to you (His Law) lest you go astray. ) 4:176 meaning, so that you do not go astray, and,

وَأَلْقَى فِى الاٌّرْضِ رَوَاسِىَ أَن تَمِيدَ بِكُمْ

(And He has affixed into the earth mountains standing firm, lest it should shake with you;) 16:15 that is, so that the earth does not shake with you.

وَقَاسَمَهُمَآ

(And he Qasamahuma), swore to them both by Allah, saying,

إِنِّي لَكُمَا لَمِنَ النَّـصِحِينَ

("Verily, I am one of the sincere well-wishers for you both.") for I was here before you and thus have better knowledge of this place. It is a fact that the believer in Allah might sometimes become the victim of deceit. Qatadah commented on this Ayah, "Shaytan swore by Allah, saying, `I was created before you, and I have better knowledge than you. Therefore, follow me and I will direct you."'

Commentary

The story of Sayyidna 'Adam (علیہ السلام) and Iblis mentioned in the present verses has appeared in the fourth section of Surah Al-Baqarah.

Detailed comments have been given in the Tafsir of that Surah. If needed, please see Ma‘ariful-Quran, English Translation, Volume I, Pages 170-187.

Paradise with all its vast expanses was open to Adam and his spouse. There were innumerable types of good things in it. And they had all the freedom to use them in whatever manner they liked. In the midst of countless permitted things, they were prohibited the use of only one thing. Satan used this prohibition as a vantage point from which to attack them. He incited them to wrongdoing by saying that the thing from which they were kept away was the most important thing in Paradise, the whole secret of holiness and eternity was hidden therein. Adam and his spouse were influenced by Satan’s continuous urging and finally ate the fruit of the forbidden tree. But, when they did this, the result was entirely the opposite of what they had expected. This disobedience of theirs removed the cloak of safety from their bodies. They became absolutely helpless in a world where they had had every convenience and total safety. This indicates the special weapon used by Satan to deceive man into distancing himself from God’s grace and succour. His strategy was to belittle in the eyes of man the extensive world of legitimate gifts from God and to inflate the importance of the few prohibited things, by presenting them in an attractive light, all the while reassuring man of the immense advantages concealed within them. In performing this task, Satan treats everybody according to his tastes and circumstances. He will misguide some by making them hate health-giving food and teaching them that, if they want to have wonderful health, they should take to drinking wines; a man may feel that he should consolidate his own position in order to defeat his opponent, but Satan will poison his mind by suggesting that the most effective method of defeating his opponent is to start destructive activities against him; for another there will be ample opportunities to adopt the policy of self-improvement, but Satan will teach him that indulging in protests and demands is the shortest way to achieve success; yet another might have countless religious tasks before him which he may perform without there being any clash with the Government of the day, but Satan will create the misunderstanding that only if un-Islamic rulers are unseated can Islam’s perfect system prevail there and then throughout the whole country; and so on.