In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Summary from the Tafsir of al-Tabari.
Abridged by Dr. Aqeel ibn Salim al-Shammari.
Surah al-Furqan.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
“And He it is Who hath given independence to the two seas (though they meet); one palatable, sweet, and the other saltish, bitter; and hath set a bar and a forbidding ban between them.” (25:53)
"And this is salty and bitter."
"And this is salty and bitter."
“And He it is Who hath given independence to the two seas (though they meet); one palatable, sweet, and the other saltish, bitter; and hath set a bar and a forbidding ban between them.” (25:53)
And Allah is the One Who merged the two bodies of water.
So He let one flow into the other and overflow into it.
This one is fresh and extremely sweet,
and this one is salty and bitter.
Then He prevents the salty water from changing the sweet water from its sweetness,
so that its corruption does not harm it,
lest they find no water to drink when they need water.
And He placed a barrier between them that prevents either of them from corrupting the other,
and made each of them strictly forbidden from altering or corrupting the other.
“And He it is Who hath created man from water, and hath appointed for him kindred by blood and kindred by marriage; for thy Lord is ever Powerful.” (25:54)
"And He made him linked by blood lineage and marriage relationships."
"And your Lord has ever been All-Powerful."
And Allah is the One Who created a human being from a drop of fluid,
making him linked by blood lineage—
and those are seven categories,
who are mentioned in His saying:
"Forbidden to you [for marriage] are your mothers..."
—and by marriage relationships,
which are five categories,
mentioned in His saying:
"...and your foster mothers who nursed you."
And your Lord, O Muhammad, has always been All-Powerful over creating whatever He wills.
“Yet they worship instead of Allah that which can neither benefit them nor hurt them. The disbeliever was ever a partisan against his Lord.” (25:55)
“Yet they worship instead of Allah that which can neither benefit them nor hurt them. The disbeliever was ever a partisan against his Lord.” (25:55)
Yet these polytheists worship alongside Allah gods that cannot benefit them if they worship them,
nor harm them if they abandon their worship.
Thus the disbeliever aids Satan against his Lord, backing him in disobeying Him.
"And We have not sent you except as a meesenger of glad tidings and a warner."
“Say: I ask of you no reward for this, save that whoso will may choose a way unto his Lord.” (25:57)
And We have not sent you, O Muhammad, except as a bearer of glad tidings of abundant reward to whoever believes in you,
and as a warner to whoever disbelieves you.
Say to those to whom I have sent you:
"O my people, I do not ask you for any payment for that which I have brought you from my Lord,
such that you would say,
'Muhammad only seeks our wealth through what he calls us to.'
Rather, whoever among you wishes
may take a path to his Lord,
by spending from his wealth in His cause and in what draws him closer to Him—
such as voluntary charity and spending on jihad against His enemy,
and other avenues of good."
“And trust thou in the Living One Who dieth not, and hymn His praise. He sufficeth as the Knower of His bondmen's sins,” (25:58)
“And trust thou in the Living One Who dieth not, and hymn His praise. He sufficeth as the Knower of His bondmen's sins,” (25:58)
And rely, O Muhammad, upon the Ever-Living Who possesses continuous life without death.
Trust Him regarding your Lord's command and commit your affairs to Him;
worship Him out of gratitude for the favors He has bestowed upon you.
Sufficient is the Ever-Living Who does not die as All-Aware of the sins of His creation,
for nothing of them is hidden from Him,
and He will recompense them for them on the Day of Resurrection—
He Who created the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them in six days.
In six days, then He established Himself above the Throne.
“Who created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them in six Days, then He mounted the Throne. The Beneficent! Ask anyone informed concerning Him!” (25:59)
He Who created the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them in six days.
It is said:
The beginning of that creation was on Sunday,
and its completion was on Friday;
then He established Himself above the Throne and rose above it.
So ask, O Muhammad, One who is All-Aware of the Most Compassionate—One Who is fully Aware of His creation;
for He is the Creator of all things,
and nothing He created is hidden from Him.
"And when it is said to them, 'Prostrate to the Most Compassionate,' they say, 'And what is the Most Compassionate?'"
They say, "And what is the Most Compassionate? Shall we prostrate to whatever you order us to?"
"And it only increased them in aversion."
And when it is said to these who worship alongside Allah that which neither benefits nor harms them:
"Make your prostration purely for Allah, apart from false gods and idols,"
they say:
"Shall we prostrate, O Muhammad, to whatever you order us to prostrate to?"
And the call of the speaker telling them "Prostrate to the Most Compassionate" only increased these polytheists
in fleeing further away from what they were called to.
"...and a luminous moon."
Sanctified is the Lord Who placed in the sky constellations guarded by sentries,
and placed therein the sun,
and placed therein a luminous moon.
“And He it is Who hath appointed night and day in succession, for him who desireth to remember, or desireth thankfulness.” (25:62)
“And He it is Who hath appointed night and day in succession, for him who desireth to remember, or desireth thankfulness.” (25:62)
And He is the One Who made the night and the day alternate with one another,
such that whatever deed for Allah was missed in one of them,
its fulfillment could be caught up in the other.
And others said:
He made each of them different from the other,
making this one white and this one black.
And others said:
He made each one succeed the other;
when this one goes, that one comes.
And He made the night and the day a proof for whoever wishes to remember Allah's command,
or wishes to show gratitude for Allah's favor that He bestowed upon him in the alternation of night and day.
“The (faithful) slaves of the Beneficent are they who walk upon the earth modestly, and when the foolish ones address them answer: Peace;” (25:63)
“The (faithful) slaves of the Beneficent are they who walk upon the earth modestly, and when the foolish ones address them answer: Peace;” (25:63)
“The (faithful) slaves of the Beneficent are they who walk upon the earth modestly, and when the foolish ones address them answer: Peace;” (25:63)
...with forbearance and composure, without acting arrogantly.
And when those ignorant of Allah address them with harsh words they dislike,
they respond to them with decent and peaceful words.
“And who spend the night before their Lord, prostrate and standing,” (25:64)
And those who spend the night before their Lord praying to Allah,
alternating between prostration in their prayer and standing.
And those who say, "Our Lord, avert from us the punishment of Hell..."
“And who say: Our Lord! Avert from us the doom of hell; lo! the doom thereof is anguish;” (25:65)
“Lo! it is wretched as abode and station;” (25:66)
And those who supplicate Allah to avert His punishment and torment from them:
"Indeed, the punishment of Hell is a persistent, continuous, and inescapable torment,
never departing from whichever disbeliever is punished by it;
indeed, Hell is an evil dwelling and abiding place."
“And those who, when they spend, are neither prodigal nor grudging; and there is ever a firm station between the two;” (25:67)
And those who, when they spend their wealth,
do not exceed the limit that Allah has permitted for His servants,
nor do they fall short of what Allah has commanded;
rather, their spending is moderate, balanced between extravagance and stinginess.
“And those who cry not unto any other god along with Allah, nor take the life which Allah hath forbidden save in (course of) justice, nor commit adultery - and whoso doeth this shall pay the penalty;” (25:68)
“And those who cry not unto any other god along with Allah, nor take the life which Allah hath forbidden save in (course of) justice, nor commit adultery - and whoso doeth this shall pay the penalty;” (25:68)
"And whoever does that shall meet a severe penalty."
“The doom will be doubled for him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein disdained for ever;” (25:69)
And those who do not worship another god alongside Allah,
but dedicate their worship purely to Him,
and do not kill the soul that Allah has forbidden to be killed, except by right—
either due to disbelieving in Allah after embracing Islam, or committing adultery after marriage,
or taking a life, for which they are executed in retaliation—
and they do not commit unlawful sexual intercourse by engaging in forbidden private parts.
And whoever commits these acts shall meet punishment and exemplary retribution from Allah's torment;
the punishment will be multiplied for him on the Day of Resurrection, and he will abide therein forever in disgrace—
except for him who returns to obedience to Allah by abandoning that,
and believes in what Muhammad, Allah's Prophet, brought,
and acts upon the deeds that Allah commanded him,
and refrains from what Allah forbade him.
For those, Allah will replace their evil deeds committed during polytheism with good deeds in Islam,
by transferring them from deeds that displease Allah to those that earn His pleasure.
And Allah has ever been All-Forgiving of the sins of whoever repents among His servants,
and All-Merciful toward him, not punishing him for his sins after his repentance.
And whoever repents from among the polytheists, believes in Allah and His Messenger,
and acts upon what Allah commanded him in obedience to Him,
Allah will surely fulfill His promise to him
by replacing his evil deeds committed during polytheism with good ones in Islam—
just as He did with those who repented, believed, and worked righteousness among the Companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).
“And those who will not witness vanity, but when they pass near senseless play, pass by with dignity.” (25:72)
And those who do not bear witness to anything false—
neither polytheism, nor unlawful singing,
nor falsehood, nor anything else,
including everything to which the name of falsehood applies.
And when they pass by falsehood and hear or see it,
they pass by honorably.
Their passing by honorably takes the form in some cases of not listening to it,
such as unlawful singing;
in other cases by turning away and ignoring it;
in other cases by forbidding it;
and in other cases by fighting against it with swords—
all of which constitute passing by honorably.
And those who, when a reminder reminds them of Allah's proofs,
are not deaf so as not to hear,
nor blind so as not to see them;
rather, they awaken their hearts with understanding and intellect,
understanding what Allah reminds them of through His proofs,
and understanding what He alerts them to.
And those who say, "Our Lord..." regarding Allah's proofs,
and they say, "Our Lord..." regarding Allah's proofs.
And those who say, "Our Lord, grant us from our spouses
and our offspring comfort to our eyes..."
"Our Lord, grant us from our spouses
and our offspring comfort to our eyes,
and make us an example for the righteous."
And those who beseech Allah in their supplication
by saying, "Our Lord, grant us from our spouses
and our offspring that which brings comfort to our eyes—
by letting us see them acting in obedience to You;
and make us for the righteous—who beware of disobeying You and fear Your punishment—
an example that they follow in good deeds."
These servants whom I have described
shall be rewarded for these deeds that they performed in the worldly life
with the high chamber—
which is a lofty station among the dwellings of Paradise—
because of their patience in adhering to these actions;
and angels will receive them therein with greetings.
"Those will be awarded the high chamber for what they patiently endured, abiding therein;
excellent is that high chamber as a settlement and abode!"
Say, O Muhammad, to those to whom you were sent:
"What consideration would my Lord give you,
or what would my Lord do with you,
were it not for the worship of those among you who worship Him,
and the obedience of those among you who obey Him?
But you, O people, have denied your Messenger who was sent to you,
so your denial will inevitably become an abiding punishment for you—
execution by swords,
and a ruinous destruction that will overtake you one after another."
And He did that to them, killing them on the Day of Badr.
Summary from the Tafsir of al-Tabari.