Ayahs 43:1–31 The object of taking an oath by the Qur'an is to impress this fact: "We are the Author of this Book and not Muhammad (upon whom be Allah's peace)," and the attribute of the Qur'an chosen for the oath is that it is a "lucid Book". To swear by the Qur'an itself with its this attribute in order to impress that the Qur'an is Divine Word by itself implies this: "O people, this is an open Book before you. Read it intelligently. Its clear and un-ambiguous themes, its language and literary style, its teaching which distinguishes the truth from falsehood, all arc testifying to the fact that none but the Lord of the Universe could be its Author. " Then the sentence: '"We have made it an Arabic Qur'an so that you may understand it." has two meanings:(1) "It is not in any foreign tongue but in your own language; therefore, you can have no difficulty in assessing its value and worth. Had it been in a non-Arabic language, you could have offered the excuse that you could not determine its being Divine, or otherwise, for you did not understand it. But you cannot offer this excuse about this Arabic Qur'an. Its each word is clear to you: its each passage and discourse, both in language and in theme, is plain for you. Now you may see it for yourself whether this could be the word of Muhammad (upon whom be Allah's peace) or of some other Arab." (2) "We have sent this Book in Arabic because We are addressing the Arabs, who can only understand an Arabic Qur'an. The person who disregards this expressly rational ground for sending down the Qur'an in Arabic and regards it as the word of Muhammad (upon whom be Allah's peace) instead of Divine Word only because Muhammad's mother tongue is also Arabic, commits a grave injustice. " (To understand this second meaning, please see Surah Ha-Mim As-Sajdah: 44 and its E.N.'s).
Ayah 43:42 "Umm al-Kitab": the "Original Book": the Book from which alI the Books sent down to the Prophets have been derived. In Surah AI-Waqi`ah the same thing has been described as Kitab-um-Maknun (the hidden and preserved Book) and in Surah AI-Buruj 22 as Lauh-i Mahfuz (the Preserved Tablet), that is, the Tablet whose writing cannot be effaced, which is secure from every kind of interference. By saying that the Qur'an is inscribed in Umm al-Kitab, attention has been drawn to an important truth. Different Books had been revealed by Allah in different ages to different Prophets for the guidance of different nations in different languages, but aII these Books invited mankind to one and the same Faith: they regarded one and the same thing as the Truth; they presented one and the same criterion of good and evil; they propounded the same principles of morality and civilization; in short, they brought one and the same Din (Religion). The reason was that their source and origin was the same, only words were different; they had the same meaning and theme which is inscribed in a Source Book with Allah, and whenever there was a need, He raised a Prophet and sent down the same meaning and subject-matter clothed in a particular diction according to the environment and occasion. Had Allah willed to raise the Prophet Muhammad (upon whom be His peace) in another nation instead of the Arabs, He would have sent down the same Qur'an in the language of that nation. In it the meaning and content would have been expressed according to the environments and conditions of the people and land; the words would have been different and the language also different but the teaching and guidance the same basically, and it would be the same Qur'an though not the Arabic Qur'an. This same thing has been expressed in Surah Ash-Shu`ara, thus: "This (Book) has been revealed by the Lord of the worlds. The trustworthy Spirit has come down with it upon your heart so that you may become one of those who are (appointed by God) to warn (the people) in plain Arabic language; and this is also contained in the scriptures of the former peoples." (vv. 192-196). (For explanation, see Ash-Shu`ara: 192196 and the E.N.'s on it).
3 This sentence is related both to Kitab-i mubin and to Umm al-Kitab. Thus, it is in praise of boththe Qur'an and the Original Book from which the Qur'an has been derived. This praise is meant to impress the fact that if a person dces not recognize the true worth of this Book and dces not benefit from its wise teachings because of his own folly, it would be his own misfortune. If someone tried to degrade it and found fault with it, it would be his own meanness. It cannot become worthless on account of someone's lack of appreciation of it, and its wisdom cannot be eclipsed by anyone's throwing dust at it. This is by itself a glorious Book, which stands exalted by its matchless teaching, miraculous eloquence, faultless wisdom and the sublime personality of its great Author. Therefore, none can succeed in minimizing its value and worth. In verse 44 below the Quraish in particular and the Arabs in general have been told that the revelation of the Book for which they are showing such lack of appreciation had provided them a unique opportunity of honour, which if they lost, would subject them to a severe accountability before God. (Please see E.N. 39 below).
Ayah 43:54 In this one sentence the whole history that had taken place since the time the Holy Prophet Muhammad (upon whom be Allah's peace) had proclaimed to be a Prophet till the revelation of these verses during the past few years has been compressed. This sentence depicts the following picture: A nation has been involved in ignorance, backwardness and depravity for centuries. Suddenly, Allah looks at it with favour. He raises in it an illustrious guide and sends down His own Word to take it out of the darkness of ignorance so that it is aroused from slumber, it gives up superstitions of ignorance and it becomes aware of the truth and adopts the right way of life. But the ignorant people of the nation and the tribal chiefs turn hostile to the guide, and try their utmost to defeat him and his mission. With the passage of time their hostility and mischief go on increasing; so much so that they make up their mind to kill him. At this, it is being said: "Should We stop making any efforts to reform you because you are proving to be un-worthy people? Should We withhold sending down this Admonition, and leave you lying in the same wretched state in which you have been lying since centuries ? Do you really think that should be the demand of Our Mercy ? Have you ever considered what doom you would meet when you have turned down the bounty of Allah and persisted in falsehood after the truth has come before you?"
Ayahs 43:6–75 That is, if such absurdity and senselessness had barred the sending of a Prophet or a Book, no Prophet would ever have come to any nation nor a Book sent to it.
Ayah 43:86 That is, the result of the senselessness of some particular people could not be that the entire mankind should be deprived of the guidance of the Prophethood and the Book, but its result always has been that the worshippers of falsehood who, being drunk with the pride of power, did not desist from mocking the Prophets, were ultimately destroyed. When Allah's wrath descended even the people, who possessed thousands of times greater power than that possessed by the puny chiefs of the Quraish, were crushed to annihilation like mosquitoes and fleas.
Ayahs 43:9–107 At other places the earth has been described as a bed, but here as a cradle. That is, just as a child lies resting in its cradle, so is this great globe meant to be a place of rest for you, which is suspended in space, which is spinning on its axis at a speed of 1,000 miles an hour, which is revolving around the sun at a speed of 66,000 miles an hour. Its interior is so intensely hot that it can melt the stones and it manifests its power sometimes in the form of volcano eruptions. But, in spite of that, the Creator has made it so tranquil that one sleeps on it. in fill peace and there is no jerk whatever. One lives on it and does not at all feel that this globe is suspended and one is hanging from it with one's head pointing downward. One moves about on it with satisfaction and never thinks that one is riding on a vehicle moving faster than a bullet. You dig it at will and turn it inside out and beat it as you like to obtain your sustenance, whereas a little shaking of it in an earthquake makes you feel what a terrible giant it is, which Allah has subdued for you. (For further explanation, sec AI-Naml: 61 and E.N. 74 on it).
8 The passes in the mountains and the rivers in the hill and plain regions are the natural paths, which Allah has provided on the surface of the earth. Man has spread on, the earth by means of these. If the mountainous ranges had been created erect, without a crevice, and there had been no rivers and streams, man would have been confined to the same areas where he was born. Then, Allah through another grace has not made the whole surface of the earth uniform in nature, but has created different marks of distinction by means of which man recognizes different lands and feels the difference between one land and another. This is the second important means by which man became able to move about on the earth. This blessing can be appreciated by the one who has had a chance of going on a vast desert, where for thousands of milts the earth is without any landmarks and one does not know where one has reached and where one has to go.
9 This sentence gives two meanings simultaneously: (1) "That by means of these natural paths and land-marks you may fmd your way and reach the place you want to reach: " and (2) "that you may obtain guidance from the observation of this craftsmanship of Allah Almighty: may reach the underlying reality and understand that this sysum of the earth is not functioning haphazardly, nor has been devised by many gods jointly, but there is one All-Wise Creator, Who has made these paths in the hills and on the plains in view of the needs and requirements of His creatures, and has given each region of the earth a different form in countless different ways by means of which man can distinguish one region from the other.
Ayah 43:1110 That is, "For each region He has ordained an average measure of the rain, which falls year after year for long ages regularly. It does not happen that an area may have two inches of the rainfall one year and 200 inches of it the next year. Then He spreads the rainfall over different places in different times in such a way that it becomes beneficial on the whole for the products of the earth. And this is also His wisdom that He has deprived some parts of the earth of the rainfall almost wholly and turned them into dry, barren deserts, and in some other parts, He sometimes causes famines w occur and sometimes sends torrential rains so that man may know what a great blessing the rain and its general regularity is for the populated areas, and he may also remember that this sysum is under the control of another power, whose decrees cannot be changed by anyone. No one has the power that he may change the general average of the rainfall of a country, or effect a variation in its distribution over vast areas of the earth, or avert an impending storm, or attract the displeased clouds towards one's own land and compel them to rain." (For further explanation, see AI Hijr: 21-22, Al-Mu'minun: 18-20).
11 Here, the birth of vegetation in the earth by means of water has been presented as an argument for two things simultaneously: (1) That these things are happening by the power and wisdom of One God; no one else is His associate in these works; and (2) that there can be life after death, and it will be. (For further explanation. see An-Nahl: 65-67, Al-Hajj: 5-7, An-Naml: 60, Ar-Rum: 19, 24; Fatir: E.N. 19 and Ya Sin: E.N. 29).
Ayah 43:1212 Pairs here does not imply only pairs of men and women among human beings and of males and females among animals and vegetation, but there are countless other things which the Creator has made as matching partners of each other and by whose coming together and combination new and ever new things come into being in the world. For example, among the elements, some can be combined with others and some cannot be. The combination of these which can combine is resulting into various compositions, e.g. the negative and positive charges in electricity are the matching partners of each other and their mutual attraction is causing wonderful things to happen in the world. If man considers the structure and the mutual relationships and the different forms of cooperation and the results of the combination of this and other countless pairs which Allah has created among countless of His creations. He cannot help testifying to the truth that this great workshop of the world is the creation of one and only one Almighty, AlI-Wise Designer, and is functioning only under His care and control, Only a man of mean intelligence could suppose that all this happened, and is happening, without a Wise Being, or there is the possibility in it of the agency and interference of more gods than one.
Ayah 43:1313 That is, "Only man from among all the creatures of the earth was not given this power by Allah to use boats and ships and animals as conveyance so that he may be loaded on them like bags of grain and should never think as to who it is who created possibilities for him to run boats in the mighty oceans, and who created some animals of the countless kinds of animals, with a nature that they become his servants in spite of being far stronger than him in power, and he rides on them and drives them wherever he likes. To benefit by these blessings and to forget the Benefactor is a sign of the heart's becoming dead and the conscience's being insensitive. For when a man endowed with a living heart and a sensitive conscience will sit on these conveyances, he will be filled with the feelings of the blessings and with the gratitude for it, and will cry out: "Glorified is the Being Who subjected these things to me: Glorified is He from that another should be His associate in His Being and attributes and powers: Glorified is He and free from the weakness that He should become helpless of performing the functions of His Godhead by Himself and should stand in need of other associate gods: Glorified is He that I should make another an associate with Him in rendering thanks for these blessings."
The best practical commentary of the intention and meaning of this verse are the words that the Holy Prophet (upon whom be Allah's peace) used to pronounce at the time he sat on the conveyance. Hadrat 'Abdullah bin 'Umar says that whenever the Holy Prophet sat on a conveyance for a journey, he would pronounce Allah-u Akbar thrice, then would recite this verse, and then pray: "O God, I implore You to grant me in this journey the grace of goodness and piety and such acts as may please You. O God, make the journey easy and roll up the long distance for us; O God, You alone are the Companion during the journey and Guardian of the family in ow absence. O God, take care of us during, the journey and our household in ow absence. " (Musnad Ahmed, Muslim, Abu Da'ud, Nasa'i, Darimi, Tirmidhi).
Hadrat 'Ali says: Once the Holy Prophet put his foot in the stirrup with bismillah, and then, after riding, said: Al-,hamd-u lillah, subhan-alladhi sakhkhara lana hadha . . . . , then pronounced al-,hamd-u-lillah thrice, and Allah-u Akbar thrice; then said: Subhana-ka, la-ilaha ills anta, qad zalamtu nafsi fagh fir-li. Then he laughed. I asked: What made you laugh. O Messenger of Allah? He replied: When a servant says: Rabb-ighfir-li, Allah Almighty is very pleased with this. He says: My servant knows that there is none beside Me who can forgive sins." (Ahmed, Abu Da'ud, Tirmidhi, Nasa'i, and others)
Abu Mijlaz says: "Once I rode on my animal and recited this verse: Subhan-alladhi sakhkhara lane hadha . . . ; Hadrat Hasan (may Allah be pleased with him) said: Have you been commanded to say so ? I said: What should I say then? He replied: Say, thank God, Who guided us to Islam: Thanks to Him, Whodid us a favour by sending Muhammad (upon whom be Allah's peace): Thanks to Him, Who admitted us into the best community that has been raised for the people; then recite this verse." (Ibn Jarir, Ahkam al-Qur'an by Jassas)
Ayah 43:1414 That is, "While embarking on every journey one should remember that there is ahead a longer and final journey also. Besides there is the possibility in the use of every conveyance that an accident may turn that very journey into one's last journey; therefore, every time one should remember one's return to one's Lord so that if something untoward happens, one does not die unawares. Let us pause here for a while and consider the moral results of this teaching. Can one imagine that a person who while sitting on a conveyance starts his journey consciously with Rill remembrance of Allah and his return and accountability before Him, would commit sins and injustices and tyrannies on the way? Can a person think or utter these words from his mouth when he intends to go to meet a prostitute, or to visit a club for the purpose of drinking and gambling? Can a ruler, or a government official, or a merchant who has stepped out of his house with such thoughts and such words at his lips, usurp the rights of others when he reaches his destination? Can a soldier utter these words while boarding his aircraft or tank when he goes out to shed blood of the innocent and deprive the weak of their freedom? If not, then this one thing alone is enough to bar every movement undertaken for the commission of a sin.
Ayah 43:1515 "To make part of Allah" implies declaring a servant of Allah His offspring, for an offspring inevitably is homogeneous with and a part of the father's body, and regarding somebody as Allah's son or daughter means that he or she is being made a partner in Allah's Being. Besides, another form of making a creature a part of Allah is that it should be regarded as possessor of the attributes and powers as are specifically Allah's own, and it should be invoked under the same concept, or rites of worship performed before it, or its sanctities observed and regarded as imperative and binding, for in that case man divides divinity and providence between Allah and His servants and hands over a part of it to the servants.
Ayahs 43:16–1716 Here, the folly of the polytheists of Arabia has been fully exposed. They said that the angels were the daughters of Allah. They had carved out their images as females, and these were their goddesses whom they worshipped. About this Allah says: In the first place, in spite of knowing and recognizing that the Creator of the earth and heavens is Allah and it is He Who has made this earth a cradle for you and it is He Who sends down the rain from the sky. and it is He Who has created these animals for your service, yet you have taken others as gods beside Him, whereas those whom you serve as deities are not God but creatures of God. Then, further more, you have made some of the servants associates of Allah not only in His attributes but in His Being as well, and invented the creed that they were Allah's offspring. Then, not resting content with this, you assigned to Allah that kind of the offspring which you regard as disgraceful for your own selves: When a daughter is born in your house, your face grows dark, you feel distressed, and sometimes you bury her alive. This offspring you assign to Allah and reserve for yourselves the sons, whom you regard as a source of joy and pride. Even then you claim that you believe in Allah.
Ayah 43:1817 In other words, °You have assigned to AIlah the offspring that is by nature delicate, weak and frail, and adopted for yourselves the offspring that is bold, courageous and fearless. "
This verse shows permissibility of the ornaments for the women, for Allah has mentioned the ornaments as a natural thing for them. The same is also confirmed by the Hadith. Imam Ahmad, Abu Da'ud and Nasa'i have related on the authority of Hadrat `Ali that the Holy Prophet took silk in one hand and gold in the other and said that both were forbidden to be used in dress by the men of his Ummah. Tirmidhi and Nasa'i have related from Hadrat Abu Musa Ash`ari a tradition, saying that the Holy Prophet said: "Silk and gold have been forbidden for the men but made lawful for the women of my Ummah." `Allama Abu Bakr al-Jassas has discussed this question in his Ahkam ai-Qur'an and related the following traditions:
Hadrat 'A'ishah says: Once Usamah, son of Zaid bin Harithah, was hurt and started bleeding. The Holy Prophet loved him tike his own children. He sucked his blood and spat it out, and cheered him saying, "Had Usamah been a daughter we would have adorned him with ornaments! Had Usamah been a daughter, we would have dressed him in fine clothes !"
Hadrat Abu Musa Ash'ari has related that the Holy Prophet said: 'Wearing of silken clothes and ornaments of gold is unlawful for the men of my Unmah but lawful for the women. " . Hadrat 'Amr bin `As has related: `Once two women came before the Holy Prophet, and they were wearing bracelets of gold. He said: Would you like that Allah should make you wear bracelets of the fire instead of these? They replied that they would not. Thereupon he said: Pay their dues, i.e. the zakat due on them. "
Hadrat `A'isha has stated that there is no harm in wearing the ornaments if the zakat due on them is paid.
Hadrat 'Umar wrote to Hadrat Abu Musa Ash'ari: Order the Muslim women who live in the areas under your administrative control that they should pay the zakat dues on their ornaments.
Imam Abu Hanifah has related the following traditions on the authority of 'Amr bin Dinar: Hadrat 'A'ishah had arranged ornaments of gold for her sisters and Hadrat 'Abdullah bin 'Umar for his daughters.
After citing all these traditions 'Allama Jassas writes: "The traditions that have been related from the Holy Prophet and the Companions about the permissibility and lawfulness of gold and silk for the women are better known and more common than those that are there about their unlawfulness, and the above . verse also points to their lawfulness. Then the practice of the Muslims also from the time of the Holy Prophet and his Companions till our time (i.e. till the latter part of the 4th century of hijrah) has been the same, and no one ever objected to it. In such matters, no objection can be admitted on the basis of the isolate reports (Akhbar ahab)."
Ayah 43:1918 That is, who are fret from this that they should be males or females.
19 Another translation can be: "were they present at the time of their creation?"
Ayah 43:2020 This was their reasoning from destiny to cover up their deviation and error, and this has been the argument of the wrong-doers in every age. They argued that their worshipping the angels became possible only because Allah allowed them to do so. Had He not willed so they could not have done it; and then it had been a practice with them for centuries and no torment from Allah had descended on them, which meant that Allah did not disapprove of their this practice.
Ayah 43:2121 It means this: "These ignorant people think that whatever is happening in the world has the approval of Allah for it, because it is happening according to His will. This argument, however, is wrong. For it is not only shirk which is being committed in the world, but countless other crimes like stealing, robbery, murder, bribery, etc. also are taking place, which nobody likes. Then, can it be said by the same reasoning that all such acts are lawful and good only because Allah is letting them happen in His world, and when He allows them to happen, He must have approved of them also? The means of knowing what Allah likes and what He hates are not the events that are happening in the world, but the Book of Allah, which comes through His Messenger and in which Allah Himself states as to what beliefs, what deeds and what morals He likes and what He dislikes. If these people have a Book, which came before the Qur'an, and which tells that Allah has appointed the angels also as deities beside himself and that they should worship them also, they should cite it." (For further explanation, see Al-An'am: 107 112, 137, 148-149; AI-A'raf: 28; Yunus: 99; Hud: 118-119; Ar-Ra'd: 31; An-Nahl: 9, 35-36, 93; and E.N. 20 of Az-Zumar and E.N. 11 of Ash-Shura).
Ayah 43:2222 That is, "They have no authority of any divine book; the only authority they have is that it has becn the practice since the time of their forefathers: therefore, they have taken the angels as goddesses in imitation of them."
Ayah 43:2323 Here, the point worth consideration is why the well-to-do people of every community only have resisted the Prophets and upheld the imitation of their forefathers in every age. Why have they alone been in the forefront to oppose the Truth and to endeavor to maintain the established falsehood and to beguile and incite the common people against them ? Its basic causes were two: (1) The well to-do and affluent people are so absorbed in making and enjoying the world of their own that they are not inclined to bother themselves about the useless debate (as they assume it to be) between the Truth and falsehood. Their love of ease and mental lethargy renders them so heedless of religion and conservative that they want the established order, no matter whether it is based on truth or falsehood, to retrain in force so that they do not have to take the trouble of thinking about the new order at all for themselves. (2) Their interests become so dependent on the established order that when they get the first glimpse of the order presented by the Prophets they start feeling that if it came, it would not only put an end to their leadership but also would deprive them of the freedom to consume the lawful and commit the unlawful. (For further details, sec AI-An`am: 103; Al-A'raf: 66-70. 75, 88 109, 127; Hud: 27-28; Bani Isra`il : 16; AI-Mu'minun: 24-33, 46; Saba: 34 and the corresponding E.N.'s).
Ayahs 43:24–2624 For details, sec AI-Baqarah 124-133, AI-An'am 74-84, Ibrahim: 3541, Maryam: 41-50, Al-Anbiya': 51-73, Ash-Shu'ara: 69-89, AI-'Ankabut: 1627, As-Saaffat: 83-100 and the corresponding E.N `s.
Ayah 43:2725 In these words not only did the Prophet Abraham state his creed but also gave the argument for it. The reason for not having any connection with the other deities is that they neither havc created nor they give right guidance in any matter, nor they can; and the reason for having a connection only with Allah Almighty is that He alone is the Creator and He alone gives, and can give, the right guidance to mankind.
Ayah 43:2826 "The same word" : the word that none but the Creator is worthy of worship in the world.
27 That is, "Whenever they swerve from the right path, this word should be there to guide them so that they return to it again. " This event has been mentioned here in order to expose the foolishness of the disbelieving Quraish and to put them to shame, as if to say: "When you have adopted obedience of your ancestors, ,you have selected the most depraved of them for the purpose instead of the most righteous and illustrious, who were the Prophets Abraham and Ishmael (peace be upon them). " The basis of the leadership of the Quraish in Arabia was that they were the descendants of the Prophets Abraham and Ishmael and were the attendants of the Ka'bah built by them. Therefore, they should have followed them and not their ignorant forefathers who had given up the way of the Prophets and adopted polytheism from the neighboring idol-worshippers. Furthermore, by mentioning this event another error of those people has been pointed out. That is, if the blind imitation of the fore-fathers, without the distinction of good and evil, had been the right thing, the Prophet Abraham should have done so in the first instance. But he had plainly told his father and his people that he could not follow their creed of ignorance in which they had abandoned the Creator and made those imaginary beings their deities, who were not the creator. This shows that the Prophet Abraham did not believe in following the forefathers, but his creed was that before one followed the forefathers one should see whether they were following the right way or not, and if it became known by reason that they were following the wrong way, one should give up their way and adopt the way that was proved right.
Ayah 43:2928 Another meaning of the word "rasulum-mubin can be: "A Messenger whose being a Messenger was obvious and apparent: whose lift before and after the Prophet hood clearly testified that he was certainly Allah's Messenger."
Ayah 43:3029 For explanation, see Surah. Al-Anbiya' : 3 and E.N. 5 on it, and E.N. 5 of Surah Suad.
Ayah 43:3130 "The two cities": Makkah and Ta`if. What the disbelievers meant was: "Had Allah really willed to send a messenger and intended to send down a book to him, He would have selected a great man from our these central, cities for the purpose. For Allah could not have selected for this great mission a person who was born an orphan, who did not inherit much property, who passed his youth by tending goats, who even at present earned his living through business with his wife's money, and who was neither the chief of a tribe nor the head of a family. Were not there well known chiefs like Walid bin Mughirah and 'Utbah bin Rabi'ah in Makkah, and nobles like `Urwah bin Mas'ud, Habib bin 'Amr, Kinanah bin 'Abd-i -'Amr and Ibn 'Abd Yalil in Ta'if? This was their reasoning. in the first instance, they were also not inclined to believe that a man could be a Messenger. But when the Qur'an refuted this misconception by argument and reason and they were told that in the past only men had come as Messengers and a man only could be a Messenger for the guidance of the people, and not another kind of being and the Messenger who came did not descend, suddenly from heavens, but were born in the same ordinary dwellings, walked about in the streets, had children and families and stood in need of food and drink (see AnNahl: 43, Bani Isra'il: 94-95, Yusuf: 109, Al-Furqan: 7, 20; Al-Anbiya: 7-8; Ar-Ra'd: 38), they took this stand, saying: "Well, even if a human being, he should be a big man, who should be wealthy, influential and awe-inspiring and having a large following. How could Muhammad bin `Abdullah (upon whom be Allah's peace) be fit for this appointment?"
Ayah 43:3231 This is the answer to their objection, which briefly mentions many important things: First, it asks: "Since when Dave these people become responsible for distributing the mercy of your Lord ? Is it for them to decide whom Allah should favour with His mercy and whom He should not ? (Here, by Allah's mercy is implied His general mercy from which everyone has a share).
Second, Allah says: °Prophethood is a great blessing: We have even kept the distribution of the common means of life in the world in Our own hand, and have not entrusted it to anyone else. We create someone beautiful and another ugly, someone with a sweet voice and another with a harsh voice, someone robust and strong and another weak and frail, someone intelligent and another dull, someone with a strong memory and another forgetful, some with healthy limbs and another a cripple, or blind or deaf and dumb, someone in a rich family and another among the poor, someone in an advanced country and another in a backward community. No one can do anything about this destiny concerning birth. One is compelled to be what We have made him. And it is in no one's power to avert the impact one's circumstances of birth have on one's destiny. Then it is We our self Who arc distributing provisions, power, honor, fame, wealth, government, etc. among men. No one can degrade the one whom We have blessed with good fortune, and no one can save from ruin the one whom We have afflicted with misfortune. All plans and schemes of man become ineffective against Our decrees. In this universal Divine System, therefore, how can these people decide as to whom should the Master of the unive rse make His Prophet and whom He should not?
Thirdly, "An abiding principle that We have kept in view in this Divine System is that everything should not be given to one and the same person, or everything should not be given to everybody. If you look around carefully, you will see that great differences exist between the people in every respect. We have given one thing to one person but deprived him of another, and given the same to another one. This is based on the wisdom that no human being should become independent of others, but everyone should remain dependent on the other in one way or the other. Now if would be foolish on your part to think that We should have given the Prophet hood also to the same person whom We had blessed with wealth and nobility. Likewise, will you also say that wisdom, knowledge, wealth, beauty, power, authority and alI other excellences should be assembled in one and the same person, and the one who has not been given one thing, should not be given anything else?"
32 "Your Lord's mercy": the Prophet hood. It means: "Your leaders and chiefs whom you regard as big people because of their wealth and dignity and chief ship, arc not worthy of this wealth, which has been given to Muhammad bin 'Abdullah (upon whom be Allah's peace). This wealth is far superior to that and for this the criterion is different. If you think that every noble and rich man is worthy of becoming a prophet, it would only show your own thinking. Why do you expect Allah to be so ignorant and simple?"
Ayahs 43:33–3433 That is, "This silver and gold whose possession by somebody is the highest blessing and the very climax of good fortune in your sight, is so base and contemptible a thing in the sight of Allah that had there been no danger of alI human beings being inclined towards unbelief, He would have made every disbeliever's house of gold and silver. Since when has the abundance of this worthless commodity become proof of man's nobility and his piety and his spiritual purity? This kind of wealth is even found in the possession of those foul and wicked people whose filthy characters make the whole society stink. And this you have made the criterion of man's greatness of character. "
Ayahs 43:35–3634 "Dhikr of the Merciful" : His remembrance as well as His admonition and the Qur'an.
Ayahs 43:37–3935 That is, "In this there is no aspect of consolation for you that the one who misguided you is being punished, for you also are receiving the same punishment for accepting and following the deviation. "
Ayah 43:4036 It means to say: "Pay attention to those who are inclined to listen and have not closed their eyes to the realities, and do not consume yourself in showing the way to the blind and making the deaf to hear, nor consume yourself with the grief as to why your near and dear ones are not coming to the right path, and why they are making themselves worthy of Allah's torment."