WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.200 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 00:00:05.139 --> 00:00:08.039 A summary of the Tafsir of al-Tabari. 00:00:08.580 --> 00:00:12.740 Abridged by Dr. Aqil ibn Salim al-Shammari. 00:00:14.000 --> 00:00:16.519 Surah al-Ankabut. 00:00:18.739 --> 00:00:22.820 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 00:00:23.739 --> 00:00:31.739 “And argue not with the People of the Scripture unless it be in (a way) that is better, save with such of them as do wrong; and say: We believe in that which hath been revealed unto us and revealed unto you; our Allah and your Allah is One, and unto Him we surrender.” (29:46) 00:00:31.899 --> 00:00:49.340 “And argue not with the People of the Scripture unless it be in (a way) that is better, save with such of them as do wrong; and say: We believe in that which hath been revealed unto us and revealed unto you; our Allah and your Allah is One, and unto Him we surrender.” (29:46) 00:00:51.030 --> 00:00:56.549 Do not argue, O you who believe in Allah and His Messenger, with the Jews and the Christians, 00:00:56.789 --> 00:00:59.030 except in the best manner of speech. 00:00:59.390 --> 00:01:04.269 This means calling them to Allah through His signs and drawing their attention to His proofs. 00:01:04.709 --> 00:01:08.790 Except for those who refuse to acknowledge your authority by paying the jizya, 00:01:09.109 --> 00:01:11.909 and who, instead of that, declare war upon you. 00:01:12.310 --> 00:01:17.590 As for them, fight them with the sword until they submit or pay the jizya. 00:01:18.109 --> 00:01:21.269 If the People of the Scripture speak to you about their books, 00:01:21.750 --> 00:01:27.950 and inform you of matters in which they could be truthful or could be lying, 00:01:28.549 --> 00:01:35.750 then say: "We believe in what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to you, from what is in the Torah and the Gospel." 00:01:36.390 --> 00:01:38.790 Our God and your God is one. 00:01:39.430 --> 00:01:45.069 And we are submissive and humble to Him in obedience to what He has commanded us and forbidden us. 00:01:47.049 --> 00:01:52.090 “In like manner We have revealed unto thee the Scripture, and those unto whom We gave the Scripture aforetime will believe therein; and of these (also) there are some who believe therein. And none deny Our revelations save the disbelievers.” (29:47) 00:01:52.569 --> 00:02:02.290 “In like manner We have revealed unto thee the Scripture, and those unto whom We gave the Scripture aforetime will believe therein; and of these (also) there are some who believe therein. And none deny Our revelations save the disbelievers.” (29:47) 00:02:02.730 --> 00:02:07.730 “In like manner We have revealed unto thee the Scripture, and those unto whom We gave the Scripture aforetime will believe therein; and of these (also) there are some who believe therein. And none deny Our revelations save the disbelievers.” (29:47) 00:02:09.250 --> 00:02:13.330 Just as We revealed the scriptures to the messengers before you, O Muhammad, 00:02:14.009 --> 00:02:16.849 so too have We revealed this Book to you. 00:02:17.610 --> 00:02:23.050 Those to whom We gave the Book before you, from the Children of Israel, believe in it. 00:02:23.610 --> 00:02:28.210 And among those who are in your midst today are some who believe in it, 00:02:28.689 --> 00:02:34.050 such as Abdullah ibn Salam and those from the Children of Israel who believed in His Messenger. 00:02:34.889 --> 00:02:42.930 None reject Our signs except those who deny Our oneness and Our Lordship, despite knowing the truth, out of stubbornness toward Us. 00:02:45.069 --> 00:02:53.509 “And thou (O Muhammad) wast not a reader of any scripture before it, nor didst thou write it with thy right hand, for then might those have doubted, who follow falsehood.” (29:48) 00:02:53.509 --> 00:02:57.430 Otherwise, those who follow falsehood would have been in doubt. 00:03:24.409 --> 00:03:40.560 “But it is clear revelations in the hearts of those who have been given knowledge, and none deny Our revelations save wrong-doers.” (29:49) 00:03:56.229 --> 00:04:19.000 “And they say: Why are not portents sent down upon him from his Lord? Say: Portents are with Allah only, and I am but a plain warner.” (29:50) 00:04:28.610 --> 00:04:40.740 Just as the she-camel was made a sign for Salih and the table for Isa, say, O Muhammad: "The signs are only with Allah; no one else is capable of bringing them." 00:04:40.740 --> 00:04:47.740 I am only a warner to you, warning you of the punishment of Allah, and He has made His warning clear to you. 00:04:58.660 --> 00:05:04.660 “Is it not enough for them that We have sent down unto thee the Scripture which is read unto them? Lo! herein verily is mercy, and a reminder for folk who believe.” (29:51) 00:05:06.620 --> 00:05:17.620 Is it not enough for these polytheists, O Muhammad, that We have revealed to you this Book which is recited to them? Indeed, in this Book that We have revealed to them, 00:05:17.620 --> 00:05:25.329 there is mercy for those who believe in it and a reminder for those who take heed of the lessons and admonitions within it. 00:05:25.329 --> 00:05:43.329 “Say (unto them, O Muhammad): Allah sufficeth for witness between me and you. He knoweth whatsoever is in the heavens and the earth. And those who believe in vanity and disbelieve in Allah, they it is who are the losers.” (29:52) 00:05:43.329 --> 00:06:05.319 Say, O Muhammad, to those who reject Our signs: "Allah is sufficient as a witness between me and you, for He knows what is in the heavens and on the earth." Those who have committed themselves to polytheism and acknowledged it are the ones who are losers in their transaction. 00:06:05.319 --> 00:06:26.060 “They bid thee hasten on the doom (of Allah). And if a term had not been appointed, the doom would assuredly have come unto them (ere now). And verily it will come upon them suddenly when they perceive not.” (29:53) 00:06:26.060 --> 00:06:47.819 These people seek to hasten the punishment from you, O Muhammad, saying: "O Allah, if this is the truth from You, then rain down upon us stones from the sky." Were it not for a term already appointed for them, I would not delay their destruction until they reached that term; the punishment would have come to them immediately. 00:06:47.819 --> 00:06:54.819 The punishment will surely come upon them suddenly, while they are unaware of the time of its arrival before it happens. 00:06:54.819 --> 00:07:06.550 “They bid thee hasten on the doom, when lo! hell verily will encompass the disbelievers” (29:54) 00:07:06.550 --> 00:07:20.550 These polytheists seek to hasten the coming of the punishment from you, O Muhammad, while the Fire already encompasses them; nothing remains but for them to enter it. It has also been said that this refers to the sea. 00:07:20.550 --> 00:07:36.800 “On the day when the doom will overwhelm them from above them and from underneath their feet, and He will say: Taste what ye used to do!” (29:55) 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:52.410 On the Day when the punishment will cover the disbelievers from above them and from beneath their feet in Hell, Allah will say to them: "Taste what you used to do in the world of disobedience to Allah and what incurs His wrath." 00:07:52.410 --> 00:08:02.050 “O my bondmen who believe! Lo! My earth is spacious. Therefor serve Me only.” (29:56) 00:08:02.050 --> 00:08:15.050 O My servants who have affirmed My oneness and believed in Me and My Messenger, My earth is vast; it has not become too narrow for you, so do not remain in a place where it is not permissible for you to stay. 00:08:15.050 --> 00:08:27.050 But if acts of disobedience to Allah are committed in a place and you are unable to change them, then flee from it, and devote your worship and obedience to Me alone. 00:08:27.050 --> 00:08:40.419 “Every soul will taste of death. Then unto Us ye will be returned.” (29:57) 00:08:40.419 --> 00:08:52.220 Every living soul shall taste death; so migrate from the land of polytheism to the land of Islam, then to Us you will be returned after death. 00:08:52.220 --> 00:09:10.220 “Those who believe and do good works, them verily We shall house in lofty dwellings of the Garden underneath which rivers flow. There they will dwell secure. How sweet the guerdon of the toilers,” (29:58) 00:09:10.220 --> 00:09:23.059 As for those who believed in Allah and His Messenger regarding what he brought from Allah, and acted upon what Allah commanded them—obeying Him in it and refraining from what He forbade them— 00:09:23.059 --> 00:09:37.059 We shall surely settle them in the Garden, beneath whose trees rivers flow, remaining therein forever. How excellent is the reward for those who work in obedience to Allah—these lofty dwellings. 00:09:37.059 --> 00:09:56.009 Those who were patient in the face of the harm of the polytheists in this world and in performing acts of obedience to Allah, and who rely upon their Lord for their provision and in their struggle against their enemies. 00:09:56.009 --> 00:10:05.009 They do not falter, confident that Allah will exalt His word and weaken the plot of the disbelievers. 00:10:05.009 --> 00:10:23.970 How many a creature does not carry its own provision? Allah provides for it and for you, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing. 00:10:23.970 --> 00:10:43.990 Migrate and strive, O believers, and do not fear poverty or scarcity. How many a creature in need of food, drink, and sustenance does not carry its own provision, storing it today for tomorrow, because it is incapable of doing so? 00:10:43.990 --> 00:10:59.990 Allah provides for it and for you day by day, and He is the All-Hearing of your words—fearing poverty as we leave our homelands—and the All-Knowing of what is in your souls and what will become of your affair and the affair of your enemy. 00:10:59.990 --> 00:11:19.860 And if you ask them, "Who created the heavens and the earth and subjected the sun and the moon?" they will surely say, "Allah." How then are they deluded? 00:11:19.860 --> 00:11:36.940 If you ask these polytheists, O Muhammad, who created the heavens and the earth and fashioned them, and subjected the sun and the moon for His servants, moving perpetually for the benefit of Allah's creation, they will say: 00:11:36.940 --> 00:11:46.940 "The One who created that and did it is Allah." How then are they turned away from the One who fashioned that, and thus deviate from sincere worship of Him? 00:11:46.940 --> 00:12:01.679 “Allah maketh the provision wide for whom He will of His bondmen, and straiteneth it for whom (He will). Lo! Allah is Aware of all things.” (29:62) 00:12:03.639 --> 00:12:33.210 Allah extends provision to whom He wills of His creation and restricts it; He determines it for whom He wills among them. Your provisions and their distribution among you, O people, are in My hands, not anyone else's. Allah is All-Knowing of your interests—who is only suited by abundance in provision and who is only suited by restriction—and He is aware of that. 00:12:33.210 --> 00:12:57.210 “And if thou wert to ask them: Who causeth water to come down from the sky, and therewith reviveth the earth after its death? they verily would say: Allah. Say: Praise be to Allah! But most of them have no sense.” (29:63) 00:12:57.210 --> 00:13:23.100 And if you ask these polytheists among your people, O Muhammad, who sends down rain from the sky and thereby gives life to the earth, causing plants to grow after its barrenness and drought, they will surely say: "The One who did that is Allah, to whom belongs the worship of everything." So when they say that, say: "Praise be to Allah." 00:13:23.100 --> 00:13:39.100 Rather, most of these polytheists do not understand what is beneficial for them and what is harmful. Due to their ignorance, they think that by worshipping their idols, they attain nearness and proximity to Allah. 00:13:39.100 --> 00:13:57.029 “This life of the world is but a pastime and a game. Lo! the home of the Hereafter - that is Life, if they but knew.” (29:64) 00:13:57.029 --> 00:14:11.700 This worldly life, which these polytheists enjoy, is nothing but amusement and play for the soul through what it finds pleasurable; it has no permanence or endurance. 00:14:11.700 --> 00:14:31.830 The abode of the Hereafter is where true, everlasting life exists, which has no end, no cessation, and no death. If these polytheists knew that this was the case, they would have refrained from denying Allah, but they do not know that. 00:14:31.830 --> 00:14:46.759 “And when they mount upon the ships they pray to Allah, making their faith pure for Him only, but when He bringeth them safe to land, behold! they ascribe partners (unto Him),” (29:65) 00:14:48.559 --> 00:15:02.559 When these polytheists board a ship at sea and fear drowning, they sincerely dedicate their worship to Allah during the hardship that has befallen them, singling Him out in obedience and not calling upon their idols. 00:15:03.559 --> 00:15:16.559 But when He delivers them to the shore, they immediately associate partners with Allah in their worship, calling upon idols and false deities alongside Him. 00:15:18.330 --> 00:15:27.330 “That they may disbelieve in that which We have given them, and that they may take their ease. But they will come to know.” (29:66) 00:15:29.159 --> 00:15:41.159 They do this to deny the favor Allah has bestowed upon them regarding their own selves and their wealth, and so that they may enjoy themselves for a while. But they will soon come to know what they will encounter of Allah's punishment for their disbelief in Him. 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:57.179 Have they not seen that We have made a sanctuary secure, while people are snatched away from all around them? Do they believe in falsehood and disbelieve in the favor of Allah? 00:16:12.889 --> 00:16:19.889 A sanctuary where those who dwell in it are safe, while people are snatched from around them through killing and captivity. 00:16:20.889 --> 00:16:32.889 Do they acknowledge the divinity of idols by believing in them, while denying the favor of Allah which He specifically granted them by making their land a secure sanctuary? 00:16:32.889 --> 00:16:48.750 “Who doeth greater wrong than he who inventeth a lie concerning Allah, or denieth the truth when it cometh unto him? Is not there a home in hell for disbelievers?” (29:68) 00:16:49.750 --> 00:17:02.389 And who is more unjust, O people, than one who fabricates a lie against Allah, saying when they commit an indecency: "We found our forefathers doing it, and Allah commanded us to do it"? 00:17:03.389 --> 00:17:15.390 Or one who denies what Allah sent His Messenger Muhammad, peace be upon him, with—namely His oneness and disavowal of idols? Is there not in the Fire a dwelling and a home for those who disbelieve in Allah? 00:17:16.390 --> 00:17:31.259 “As for those who strive in Us, We surely guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good.” (29:69) 00:17:31.259 --> 00:17:48.799 As for those who fought these fabricators of lies against Allah, seeking by their fighting to exalt Our word, We will surely guide them to the straight path, and indeed Allah is with those who do good among His creation.