38. Surah Sad [88 verses]
Mecca Period 38
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
اصْبِرْ
عَلَى
مَا
يَقُولُونَ
وَاذْكُرْ
عَبْدَنَا
دَاوُودَ
ذَا
الْأَيْدِ...
38:17. Have patience at what they say, and remember Our Servant David, the man of strength:
C4167. David was a man of exceptional strength, for even as a raw youth, he slew the Philistine giant Goliath. See 2:249-252, and notes 286-287.
Before that fight, he was mocked by his enemies and chidden even by his own elder brother. But he relied upon Allah, and won through, and afterwards became king.
... إِنَّهُ أَوَّابٌ ﴿١٧﴾
for he ever turned (to Allah).
إِنَّا
سَخَّرْنَا
الْجِبَالَ...
38: 18. It was We that made the hills declare,
C4168. See n. 2733 to 21:79.
All nature sings in unison and celebrates the praises of Allah.
David was given the gift of music and psalmody, and therefore the hills and birds are expressed as singing Allah's praises in unison with him.
The special hours when the hills and groves echo the songs of birds are in the evening and at dawn, when also the birds gather together, for those are respectively their roosting hours and the hours of their concerted flight for the day.
... مَعَهُ يُسَبِّحْنَ بِالْعَشِيِّ وَالْإِشْرَاقِ ﴿١٨﴾
in unison with him, Our Praises, at eventide and at break of day.
وَالطَّيْرَ
مَحْشُورَةً...
38: 19. And the birds gathered (in assemblies):
... كُلٌّ لَّهُ أَوَّابٌ ﴿١٩﴾
all with him did turn (to Allah).
C4169. Note the mutual echo between this verse and verse 17 above.
The Arabic awwab is common to both, and it furnishes the rhyme or rhythm of the greater part of the Surah, thus echoing the main theme: 'Turn to Allah in Prayer and Praise, for that is more than any worldly power or wisdom.'
وَشَدَدْنَا
مُلْكَهُ
وَآتَيْنَاهُ
الْحِكْمَةَ
وَفَصْلَ
الْخِطَابِ
﴿٢٠﴾
38: 20. We strengthened his kingdom, and gave him wisdom and sound judgment in speech and decision.
C4170. Cf. n. 2732 to 21:79 for David's sound judgment in decisions; he could also express himself aptly, as his Psalms bear witness.
وَهَلْ
أَتَاكَ
نَبَأُ
الْخَصْمِ
...
38: 21. Has the Story of the Disputants reached thee?
C4171. This story or Parable is not found in the Bible, unless the vision here described be considered as equivalent to Nathan's parable in 11 Samuel, 11, and 12. Baydawi would seem to favour that view, but other Commentators reject it.
David was a pious man, and he had a well-guarded private chamber (mihrab) for Prayer and Praise.
... إِذْ تَسَوَّرُوا الْمِحْرَابَ ﴿٢١﴾
Behold, they climbed over the wall of the private chamber;
إِذْ
دَخَلُوا
عَلَى
دَاوُودَ
فَفَزِعَ
مِنْهُمْ...
38: 22. When they entered the presence of David, and he was terrified of them,
C4172. David used to retire to his private chamber at stated times for his devotions. One day, suddenly, his privacy was invaded by two men, who had obtained access by climbing over a wall. David was frightened at the apparition. But they said: "We have come to seek thy justice as king: we are brothers, and we have a quarrel, which we wish thee to decide."
... قَالُوا لَا تَخَفْ...
they said: "Fear not:
... خَصْمَانِ بَغَى بَعْضُنَا عَلَى بَعْضٍ...
We are two disputants, one of whom has wronged the other:
... فَاحْكُم بَيْنَنَا بِالْحَقِّ...
decide now between us with truth,
... وَلَا تُشْطِطْ وَاهْدِنَا إِلَى سَوَاء الصِّرَاطِ ﴿٢٢﴾
and treat us not with injustice, but guide us to the even Path.
إِنَّ
هَذَا
أَخِي
لَهُ
تِسْعٌ
وَتِسْعُونَ
نَعْجَةً
وَلِيَ
نَعْجَةٌ
وَاحِدَةٌ...
38: 23. "This man is my brother;
he has nine and ninety ewes, and I have (but) one:
C4173. The brother who was most aggrieved said: "This my brother has a flock of ninety-nine sheep, and I have but one; yet he wants me to give up my one sheep to his keeping; and moreover he is not even fair-spoken. He talks like one meditating mischief, and he has not even the grace to ask as an equal, or one sharing in a business or an inheritance. What shall I do?"
... فَقَالَ أَكْفِلْنِيهَا وَعَزَّنِي فِي الْخِطَابِ ﴿٢٣﴾
Yet he says, 'Commit her to my care,' and is (moreover) harsh to me in speech."
قَالَ
لَقَدْ
ظَلَمَكَ
بِسُؤَالِ
نَعْجَتِكَ
إِلَى
نِعَاجِهِ...
38: 24. (David) said:
"He has undoubtedly wronged thee in demanding thy (single) ewe to be added to his (flock of) ewes:
C4174. The circumstances were mysterious; the accusation was novel; it was not clear why the unjust brother should also have come with the complainant, risking his life in climbing the wall to evade the guard, and he certainly said nothing.
David took them literally, and began to preach about the falsehood and the fraud of men, who should be content with what they have, but who always covet more. (R).
... وَإِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِّنْ الْخُلَطَاء لَيَبْغِي بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَى بَعْضٍ...
truly many are the Partners (in business) who wrong each other:
C4175. Especially, said David, is it wrong for brothers or men in partnership to take advantage of each other; but how few are the men who are righteous?
He had in his mind his own devotion and justice. But lo and behold! the men disappeared as mysteriously as they had come.
It was then that David realized that the incident had been a trial or temptation-a test of his moral or spiritual fibre! Great though he was as a king, and just though he was as a judge, the moment that he thought of these things in self-pride, his merit vanished.
In himself he was as other men: it was Allah's grace that gave him wisdom and justice, and he should have been humble in the sight of Allah.
... إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ وَقَلِيلٌ مَّا هُمْ...
not so do those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, and how few are they?"...
... وَظَنَّ دَاوُودُ أَنَّمَا فَتَنَّاهُ...
And David gathered that We had tried him:
... فَاسْتَغْفَرَ رَبَّهُ ...
he asked forgiveness of his Lord,
C4176. Judged by ordinary standards, David had done no wrong; he was a good and just king.
Judged by the highest standard of those nearest to Allah (Muqarraban, 56:11), the thought of self-pride and self-righteousness had to be washed off from him by his own act of self-realisation and repentance.
This was freely accepted by Allah, as the next verse shows.
... وَخَرَّ رَاكِعًا وَأَنَابَ ﴿٢٤﴾
fell down, bowing (in prostration), and turned (to Allah in repentance).
C4176a. Some commentators say that David's fault here was his hastiness in judging before hearing the case of the other party. When he realized his lapse, he fell down in repentance. [Eds.].
فَغَفَرْنَا
لَهُ
ذَلِكَ...
38: 25. So We forgave him this (lapse):
... وَإِنَّ لَهُ عِندَنَا لَزُلْفَى وَحُسْنَ مَآبٍ ﴿٢٥﴾
he enjoyed, indeed, a Near Approach to Us, and a beautiful place of (final) Return.
يَا
دَاوُودُ
إِنَّا
جَعَلْنَاكَ
خَلِيفَةً
فِي
الْأَرْضِ...
38: 26. O David!
We did indeed make thee a vicegerent on earth:
David's kingly power, and the gifts of wisdom, justice, psalmody, and prophethood were bestowed on him as a trust. These great gifts were not to be a matter of self-glory.
... فَاحْكُم بَيْنَ النَّاسِ بِالْحَقِّ...
so judge thou between men in truth (and justice):
... وَلَا تَتَّبِعِ الْهَوَى فَيُضِلَّكَ عَن سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ...
nor follow thou the lusts (of thy heart), for they will mislead thee from the Path of Allah:
C4178. As stated in n. 4171 above, this vision and its moral are nowhere to be found in the Bible. Those who think they see a resemblance to the Parable of the prophet Nathan (2 Samuel, 12:1-12) have nothing to go upon but the mention of the "one ewe" here and the "one little ewe-lamb" in Nathan's Parable.
The whole story is here different, and the whole atmosphere is different. The Biblical title given to David, "a man after God's own heart" is refuted by the Bible itself in the scandalous tale of heinous crimes attributed to David in chapters 11 and 12 of 2 Samuel, viz., adultery, fraudulent dealing with one of his own servants, and the contriving of his murder. Further, in chapter 13, we have the story of rapes, incest, and fratricide in David's own household! The fact is that passages like those are mere chroniques scandaleuses, i.e., narratives of scandalous crimes of the grossest character.
The Muslim idea of David is that of a man just and upright, endowed with all the virtues, in whom even the least thought of self-elation has to be washed off by repentance and forgiveness. (R).
...إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَضِلُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ شَدِيدٌ...
for those who wander astray from the Path of Allah, is a Penalty Grievous,
... بِمَا نَسُوا يَوْمَ الْحِسَابِ ﴿٢٦﴾
for that they forget the Day of Account.
وَمَا
خَلَقْنَا
السَّمَاء
وَالْأَرْضَ
وَمَا
بَيْنَهُمَا
بَاطِلًا...
38: 27. Not without purpose did We create heaven and earth and all between!
C4179. Cf. 3:191.
Unbelief is the subjective negation of a belief in Order, Beauty, Purpose, and Eternal Life. Unbelief is to Faith as Chaos is to Cosmos, as the Fire of Misery is to the Garden of Bliss.
... ذَلِكَ ظَنُّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا...
That were the thought of Unbelievers!
... فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنَ النَّارِ ﴿٢٧﴾
But woe to the Unbelievers because of the Fire (of Hell)!
أَمْ
نَجْعَلُ
الَّذِينَ
آمَنُوا
وَعَمِلُوا
الصَّالِحَاتِ
كَالْمُفْسِدِينَ
فِي
الْأَرْضِ...
38: 28. Shall We treat those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, the same as those who do mischief on earth?
C4180. The reference to the Hereafter at the end of verse 26 above is of a piece with the whole tenor of this Surah, which deals with the superiority of the spiritual kingdom and the Hereafter.
If there were no Hereafter, how could you reconcile the inequalities of this world?
Would not the Unbelievers be right in acting as if all Creation and all life were futile?
But there is a Hereafter and Allah will not treat the Good and Evil alike. He is just and will fully restore the balance disturbed in this life.
... أَمْ نَجْعَلُ الْمُتَّقِينَ كَالْفُجَّارِ ﴿٢٨﴾
Shall We treat those who guard against evil, the same as those who turn aside from the right?
كِتَابٌ
أَنزَلْنَاهُ
إِلَيْكَ
مُبَارَكٌ...
38: 29. (Here is) a Book which We have sent down unto thee, full of blessings,
C4181. Revelation is not a mere chance or haphazard thing. It is a real blessing-among the greatest that Allah has bestowed on man.
... لِّيَدَّبَّرُوا آيَاتِهِ ...
that they may meditate on its Signs,
By meditation on it in an earnest spirit man may learn of himself, and his relation to nature around him and to Allah the Author of all.
... وَلِيَتَذَكَّرَ أُوْلُوا الْأَلْبَابِ ﴿٢٩﴾
and that men of understanding may receive admonition.
Men of understanding may, by its help, resolve all genuine doubts that there may be in their minds, and learn the true lessons of spiritual
Asad’s Version:
38:17 [But] bear thou with patience whatever they may say, and remember Our servant David, him who was endowed with [so much] inner strength! He, verily, would always turn unto Us:
(38:18) [and for this,] behold, We caused 20 the mountains to join him in extolling Our limitless glory at eventide and at sunrise,
(38:19) and [likewise] the birds in their assemblies: 21 [together] they all would turn again and again unto Him [who had created them].
(38:20) And We strengthened his dominidn, and bestowed upon him wisdom and sagacity in judgment.
38:21 AND YET, has the story of the litigants come within thy ken - [the story of the two] who surmounted the walls of the sanctuary [in which David prayed] ? 22
[[Asad’s notes -
16 Lit., "before them", i.e., before the people who opposed or oppose Muhammad's message.
17 In classical Arabic, this ancient bedouin term is used idiomatically as a metonym for "mighty dominion"
or "firmness of power" (Zamakhshari). The number of poles supporting a bedouin tent is
determined by
its size, and the latter has always depended on the status and power of its owner: thus, a mighty
chieftain is often alluded to as "he of many tent-poles".
18 Sc, "beyond the term set for it by God".
1 9 Cf. 8:32. This mocking "demand" of the unbelievers is mentioned in several other places in the
Qur'an.
20 Lit., "We compelled" or "constrained".
21 See surah 21, note 73.
22 The story which, according to the oldest sources at our disposal, is alluded to in verses 21-26 affects the question as to whether God's elect, the prophets - all of whom were endowed, like David, with "wisdom and sagacity in judgment" - could or could not ever commit a sin: in other words, whether they, too, were originally subject to the weaknesses inherent in human nature as such or were a priori endowed with an essential purity of character which rendered each of them "incapable of sinning" (ma'sum).
In the form in which it has been handed down from the earliest authorities (including, according to Tabari and Baghawi, Companions like 'Abd Allah ibn Abbas and Anas ibn Malik, as well as several of the most prominent of their immediate successors), the story contradicts the doctrine - somewhat arbitrarily developed by Muslim theologians in the course of the centuries - that prophets cannot sin by virtue of their very nature, and tends to show that their purity and subsequent sinlessness is a result of inner struggles and trials and, thus, represents in each case a moral achievement rather than an inborn quality. As narrated in some detail by Tabari and other early commentators, David fell in love with a beautiful woman whom he accidentally observed from his roof terrace. On inquiring, he was told that she was the wife of one of his officers, named Uriah. Impelled by his passion, David ordered his field- commander
to place Uriah in a particularly exposed battle position, where he would be certain to be killed; and as soon as his order was fulfilled and Uriab died, David married the widow (who subsequently became the mother of Solomon).
This story agrees more or less with the Old Testament, which gives the woman's name as Bath-Sheba (II Samuel xi), barring the Biblical allegation that David committed adultery with her before Uriah's death (ibid, xi, ~5) - an allegation which has always been rejected by Muslims as highly offensive and slanderous: cf. the saying of the fourth Caliph, Ali ibn Abi Talib (quoted by Zamakhshari on the authority of Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab): "If anyone should narrate the story of David in the manner in which the story-tellers narrate it, I will have him flogged with one hundred and sixty stripes for this is a [suitable] punishment for slandering prophets" (thus indirectly recalling the Qur'anic ordinance, in 24:4, which stipulates flogging with eighty stripes for accusing ordinary persons of adultery without legal proof). According to most of the commentators, the two "litigants" who suddenly appeared before David were angels sent to bring home to him his sin. It is possible, however, to see in their appearance an allegory of David's own realization of having sinned: voices of his own conscience which at last "surmounted the walls" of the passion that had blinded him for a time. ]]
38:22 As they came upon David, and he shrank back in fear from them, they said: "Fear not! [We are but] two litigants. One of us has wronged the other: so judge thou between us with justice, and deviate not from what is right, and show [both of] us the way to rectitude.
(38:23) "Behold, this is my brother: he has ninety-nine ewes, whereas I have [only] one ewe - and yet he said, 'Make her over to me,' and forcibly prevailed against me in this [our] dispute."
38:24 Said [David]: "He has certainly wronged thee by demanding that thy ewe be added to his ewes! Thus, behold, do many kinsmen wrong one another - [all] save those who believe [in God] and do righteous deeds: but how few are they!" And [suddenly] David understood that We had tried him: 24 and so he asked his Sustainer to forgive him his sin, and fell down in prostration, and turned unto Him in repentance.
38:25 And thereupon We forgave him that [sin] : and, verily, nearness to Us awaits him [in the life to come], and the most beauteous of all goals!
(38:26) [And We said:] "O David! Behold, We have made thee a [prophet and, thus, Our] vicegerent on earth: judge, then, between men with justice, and do not follow vain desire, lest it lead thee astray from the path of God: verily, for those who go astray from the path of God there is suffering severe in store for having forgotten the Day of Reckoning!"
[[23 The term khulata' (sing, khalit) denotes, literally, "people who mix [i.e., are familiar or intimate] with others" or "with one another". In the present instance it evidently alludes to the "brotherhood" between the two mysterious litigants, and is therefore best rendered as "kinsmen".
24 Sc., "and that he had failed" (in the matter of Bath-Sheba).]]
38:27 AND [thus it is:] We have not created heaven and earth and all that is between them without meaning and purpose, as is the surmise of those who are bent on denyin the truth: 25 but then, woe from the fire [of hell] unto all who are bent on denying the truth! 26
(38:28) [For,] would We treat those who have attained to faith and do righteous deeds in the same manner as [We shall treat] those who spread corruption on earth? Would We treat the God-conscious in the same manner as the wicked? 27
38:29 [All this have We expounded in this] blessed divine writ which We have revealed unto thee, [O Muhammad,] so that men may ponder over its messages, and that those who are endowed with insight may take them to heart.
David's Sensitivity Regarding Justice [Yuksel’s version]
38:17 Be patient to what they say, and recall Our servant David, the resourceful. He was obedient.
38:18 We committed the mountains to glorify with him, during dusk and dawn.
38:19 The birds were gathered; all were obedient to him.
38:20 We strengthened his kingship, and We gave him the wisdom and the ability to make sound judgment.
38:21 Did the news come to you of the disputing party who came over into the temple enclosure?
38:22 When they entered upon David, he was startled by them. They said, "Have no fear. We are two who have disputed, and one has wronged the other, so judge between us with truth, and do not wrong us, and guide us to the right path."
38:23 "This is my brother and he owns ninety nine lambs, while I own one lamb; so he said to me: ‘Let me take care of it' and he pressured me."*
38:24 He said, "He has wronged you by asking to combine your lambs with his lambs. Many who mix their properties take advantage of one another, except those who acknowledge and do good works, and these are very few." David guessed that We had tested him, so he sought forgiveness from his Lord, and fell down kneeling, and repented.*
38:25 So We forgave him in this matter. For him with Us is a near position, and a beautiful abode.
38:26 O David, We have made you a successor on earth. Therefore, you shall judge among the people with truth, and do not follow desire, lest it diverts you from the path of God. Indeed, those who stray off the path of God will have a severe retribution for forgetting the day of Reckoning.
38:27 We did not create the heaven and the earth, and everything between them, in vain. Such is the thinking of those who rejected. Therefore, because of the fire woe to those who have rejected.
38:28 Or shall We treat those who acknowledge and do good works as We treat those who make corruption on earth? Or shall We treat the righteous as the wicked?
38:29 A book that We have sent down to you, that is blessed, so that they may reflect upon its signs, and so that those with intelligence will take heed.