40. Ghafir (Forgiving)/al mumin
Mecca 60 [85 verses]
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
يَوْمَ
تُوَلُّونَ
مُدْبِرِينَ
مَا
لَكُم
مِّنَ
اللَّهِ
مِنْ
عَاصِمٍ...
40: 32. "And, O my People!
I fear for you a Day when there will be mutual calling (and wailing).
... وَمَن يُضْلِلِ اللَّهُ فَمَا لَهُ مِنْ هَادٍ ﴿٣٣﴾
any whom Allah leaves to stray, there is none to guide...
وَلَقَدْ
جَاءكُمْ
يُوسُفُ
مِن
قَبْلُ
بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ...
40: 34. "And to you there came Joseph in times gone by, with Clear Signs,
C4405. So far he has been speaking of general religious tradition. Now, as an Egyptian, addressing Egyptians, he refers to the mission of Joseph in Egypt, for which see the whole of Surah 12.
Joseph was not born in Egypt, nor was he an Egyptian. With what wonderful incidents he came into Egypt! What difficulties did he not surmount among his own brothers first, and in the Egyptian family which afterwards adopted him! How injustice, spite, and forgetfulness on the part of others, yet wove a spell round him and made him a ruler and saviour of Egypt in times of famine!
How he preached to prisoners in prison, the wife of 'Aziz in her household, to the Egyptian ladies in their banquet, and to the Court of Pharaoh generally. The Egyptians profited by the material gains which came to them through him, but as a nation remained skeptical of his spiritual truths for many generations after him.
... فَمَا زِلْتُمْ فِي شَكٍّ مِّمَّا جَاءكُم بِهِ...
but ye ceased not to doubt of the (mission) for which he had come:
... حَتَّى إِذَا هَلَكَ قُلْتُمْ لَن يَبْعَثَ اللَّهُ مِن بَعْدِهِ رَسُولًا...
at length, when he died, ye said: 'No messenger will Allah send after him.'
C4406. See Appendix IV for a discussion of the interval between Joseph and Moses. Perhaps the interval was about one to three centuries, a very short period for the memory of a learned nation like the Egyptians.
And yet they as a nation ignored his spiritual work, and afterwards even persecuted Israel in Egypt until Moses delivered them. They actually saw the benefits conferred by Joseph, but did not realise that Allah's Kingdom works continuously even though men ignore it.
See Appendix V; for a sketch of Religion in Egypt.
For such men how could the Grace and Guidance of Allah be effective in their hearts?
... كَذَلِكَ يُضِلُّ اللَّهُ مَنْ هُوَ مُسْرِفٌ مُّرْتَابٌ ﴿٣٤﴾
Thus doth Allah leave to stray such as transgress and live in doubt
الَّذِينَ
يُجَادِلُونَ
فِي
آيَاتِ
اللَّهِ
بِغَيْرِ
سُلْطَانٍ
أَتَاهُمْ...
40: 35. "(Such) as dispute about the Signs of Allah, without any authority that hath reached them.
... كَبُرَ مَقْتًا عِندَ اللَّهِ وَعِندَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا...
Grievous and odious (is such conduct) in the sight of Allah and of the Believers.
... كَذَلِكَ يَطْبَعُ اللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ قَلْبِ مُتَكَبِّرٍ جَبَّارٍ ﴿٣٥﴾
Thus doth Allah seal up every heart -- of arrogant and obstinate transgressors."
C4407. See the last note.
The arrogant transgressors having closed their hearts to the Message of Allah and to every appeal made to them, it followed by Allah's Law that their hearts were sealed up to any fresh influences for good.
Cf. 7:100; also 2:7, and n. 31.
وَقَالَ
فِرْعَوْنُ
يَا
هَامَانُ
ابْنِ
لِي
صَرْحًا
لَّعَلِّي
أَبْلُغُ
الْأَسْبَابَ
﴿٣٦﴾
40: 36. Pharaoh said:
"O Haman! Build me a lofty palace, that I may attain the ways and means --
C4408. Cf. 28:38, and n. 3371.
There arc two points to be noted here.
1. Pharaoh, in the arrogance of his materialism, thinks of the Kingdom of Heaven like a kingdom on earth; he thinks of spiritual things in terms of palaces and ladders: notice that the word asbab (ways and means) is emphasised by repetition
2. His sarcasm turns Moses and Allah to ridicule, and he frankly states that 'for his part he thinks Moses is a liar', though other men less lofty than he (Pharaoh) may he deceived by the Clear Signs of Moses.
أَسْبَابَ
السَّمَاوَاتِ
فَأَطَّلِعَ
إِلَى
إِلَهِ
مُوسَى...
40: 37. "The ways and means of (reaching) the heavens, and that I may mount up to the Allah of Moses;
... وَإِنِّي لَأَظُنُّهُ كَاذِبًا...
but as far as I am concerned, I think (Moses) is a liar!"
... وَكَذَلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِفِرْعَوْنَ سُوءُ عَمَلِهِ وَصُدَّ عَنِ السَّبِيلِ...
Thus was made alluring, in Pharaoh's eyes, the evil of his deeds, and he was hindered from the Path;
C4409. Pharaoh's speech shows how his own egotism and haughty arrogance brought him to this pass, that even the evil which he did seemed alluring in his own eyes!
His heart was indeed sealed, and his arrogance prevented him from seeing the right path.
(With the Kufi Qiraat I read sudda in the passive voice).
... وَمَا كَيْدُ فِرْعَوْنَ إِلَّا فِي تَبَابٍ ﴿٣٧﴾
and the plot of Pharaoh led to nothing but perdition (for him).
C4410. Pharaoh had plotted to slay Moses (40:26) and to kill the Children of Israel (40:25).
The plot recoiled on his own head and on the head of his people who joined in the plot; for they were all drowned in the Red Sea.
Asad’s Version:
40:32 "And, O my people, I fear for you [the coming of] that Day of [Judgment - the Day when you will be] calling unto one another [in distress] –
(40:33) the Day when you will [wish to] turn your backs and flee, having none to defend you against God: for he whom God lets go astray can never find any guide. 23
40:34 "And [remember:] it was to you that Joseph came aforetime with all evidence of the truth; but you never ceased to throw doubt on all [the messages] that he brought you - so much so that when he died, you said, 'Never will God send any apostle [even) after him!' 24 "In this way God lets go astray such as waste their own selves by throwing suspicion [on His revelations] –
(40:35) such as would call God's messages in question without having any evidence therefor: 25 [a sin] exceedingly loathsome in the sight of God and of those who have
attained to faith. It is in this way that God sets a seal on every arrogant, self-exalting heart." 26
40:36 But Pharaoh said: "O Hainan! Build me a lofty tower, that haply I may attain to the [right] means –
(40:37) the means of approach to the heavens - and that [thus] I may have a look at the god of Moses: 27 for, behold, I am indeed certain that he is a liar!" And thus, goodly seemed unto Pharaoh the evil of his own doings, and so he was barred from the path [of truth): and Pharaoh's guile did not lead to aught but ruin.
[[Asad’s note - 23 See note 152 on 7:186 and note 4 on 14:4.
] 24 Thus not only refusing to acknowledge Joseph's prophethood, but also denying the possibility of any prophet being sent by God (Zamakhshari). It would seem that Joseph had been accepted in Egypt as a prophet only by the ruling class, the Hyksos, who were of Arab origin; spoke a language closely related to Hebrew (cf surah 12, note 44), and were, therefore, emotionally and culturally predisposed towards the spirit of Joseph's mission, while the rest of the population was and remained hostile to the faith preached by him.
25 Lit., "without any authority [or "evidence"] having come to them": i.e., without having any cogent evidence that would support their "denial" of the fact of revelation. - The verb jadala primarily denotes "he argued"; followed by the particle fi ("with regard to" or "about") it has the meaning of contesting the truth of something, or "calling it in question".
26 Lit., "on the heart of every arrogant, self-exalting [person]". For an explanation of God's "sealing" an inveterate sinner's heart, see note 7 on 2:7. ]]