21:20 Al-Anbiyaa (The Prophets)

{ يُسَبِّحُونَ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ لَا يَفْتُرُونَ ْ} أي: مستغرقين في العبادة والتسبيح في جميع أوقاتهم فليس في أوقاتهم وقت فارغ ولا خال منها وهم على كثرتهم بهذه الصفة، وفي هذا من بيان عظمته وجلالة سلطانه وكمال علمه وحكمته، ما يوجب أن لا يعبد إلا هو، ولا تصرف العبادة لغيره.

" يسبحون الليل والنهار لا يفترون " فهم دائبون في العمل ليلا ونهارا مطيعون قصدا وعملا قادرون عليه كما قال تعالى " لا يعصون الله ما أمرهم ويفعلون ما يؤمرون " وقال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا علي بن أبي دلامة البغدادي أنبأنا عبد الوهاب بن عطاء حدثنا سعيد عن قتادة عن صفوان بن محرز عن حكيم بن حزام قال: بينا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بين أصحابه إذ قال لهم " هل تسمعون ما أسمع " قالوا ما نسمع من شيء. فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ". إني لأسمع أطيط السماء وما تلام أن تئط وما فيها موضع شبر إلا وعليه ملك ساجد أو قائم " غريب ولم يخرجوه ثم رواه أعني ابن أبي حاتم من طريق يزيد بن أبي زريع عن سعيد عن قتادة مرسلا وقال محمد بن إسحاق عن حسان بن مخارق عن عبد الله بن الحارث بن نوفل قال: جلست إلى كعب الأحبار وأنا غلام فقلت له أرأيت قول الله تعالى للملائكة " يسبحون الليل والنهار لا يفترون " أما يشغلهم عن التسبيح الكلام والرسالة والعمل. فقال من هذا الغلام؟ فقالوا من بني عبد المطلب قال فقبل رأسي ثم قال: يا بني إنه جعل لهم التسبيح كما جعل لكم النفس أليس تتكلم وأنت تتنفس وتمشي وأنت تتنفس؟.

Creation was made with Justice and Wisdom

Allah tells us that He created the heavens and the earth in truth, i.e. with justice.

لِيَجْزِىَ الَّذِينَ أَسَاءُواْ بِمَا عَمِلُواْ وَيِجْزِى الَّذِينَ أَحْسَنُواْ بِالْحُسْنَى

(that He may requite those who do evil with that which they have done, and reward those who do good, with what is best.) 53:31. He did not create all that in vain or for (mere) play:

وَمَا خَلَقْنَا السَّمَآءَ وَالاٌّرْضَ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا بَـطِلاً ذَلِكَ ظَنُّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ مِنَ النَّارِ

(And We created not the heaven and the earth and all that is between them without purpose! That is the consideration of those who disbelieve! Then woe to those who disbelieve from the Fire!) 38:27

لَوْ أَرَدْنَآ أَن نَّتَّخِذَ لَهْواً لاَّتَّخَذْنَـهُ مِن لَّدُنَّآ إِن كُنَّا فَـعِلِينَ

(Had We intended to take a pastime, We could surely have taken it from Us, if We were going to do (that).) Ibn Abi Najih said, narrating from Mujahid:

لَوْ أَرَدْنَآ أَن نَّتَّخِذَ لَهْواً لاَّتَّخَذْنَـهُ مِن لَّدُنَّآ

(Had We intended to take a pastime, We could surely have taken it from Us,) "Meaning, `From Ourself,' He is saying, `We would not have created Paradise or Hell or death or the resurrection or the Reckoning."'

إِن كُنَّا فَـعِلِينَ

(if We were going to do (that). ) Qatadah, As-Suddi, Ibrahim An-Nakha`i and Mughirah bin Miqsam said: "This means, `We will not do that."' Mujahid said, every time the word

أَنْ

(if) is used in the Qur'an, it is a negation.

بَلْ نَقْذِفُ بِالْحَقِّ عَلَى الْبَـطِلِ

(Nay, We fling the truth against the falsehood,) means, `We explain the truth and thus defeat falsehood.' Allah says:

فَيَدْمَغُهُ فَإِذَا هُوَ زَاهِقٌ

(so it destroys it, and behold, it disappears.) it is fading and vanishing.

وَلَكُمُ الْوَيْلُ

(And woe to you) O you who say that Allah has offspring.

مِمَّا تَصِفُونَ

(for that which you ascribe.) that which you say and fabricate. Then Allah informs of the servitude of the angels, and how they persevere in worship night and day:

Everything belongs to Allah and serves Him

وَلَهُ مَن فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ وَمَنْ عِنْدَهُ

(To Him belongs whosoever is in the heavens and on earth. And those who are near Him) i.e., the angels,

لاَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِهِ

(are not too proud to worship Him,) they do not feel proud and do not refuse to worship Him. This is like the Ayah:

لَّن يَسْتَنكِفَ الْمَسِيحُ أَن يَكُونَ عَبْداً للَّهِ وَلاَ الْمَلَـئِكَةُ الْمُقَرَّبُونَ وَمَن يَسْتَنْكِفْ عَنْ عِبَادَتِهِ وَيَسْتَكْبِرْ فَسَيَحْشُرُهُمْ إِلَيهِ جَمِيعاً

(Al-Masih will never be proud to reject being a servant of Allah, nor the angels who are the near. And whosoever rejects His worship and is proud, then He will gather them all together unto Himself.) 4:172

وَلاَ يَسْتَحْسِرُونَ

(nor are they weary.) means, they do not get tired or feel bored.

يُسَبِّحُونَ الْلَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ لاَ يَفْتُرُونَ

(They glorify His praises night and day, they never slacken.) They persist in their worship night and day, obeying Allah to the utmost, and they are able to do this, as Allah says:

لاَّ يَعْصُونَ اللَّهَ مَآ أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

(who do not disobey Allah in what He commands them, but do what they are commanded) 66:6

They glorify Him night and day and they do not falter in it for it comes to them as naturally as breathing comes to us something which we can never be distracted from.

This point has been brought to a conclusion in the next verse by saying يُسَبِّحُونَ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ‌ لَا يَفْتُرُ‌ونَ , (They proclaim His purity night and day, never slackening - 21:20).

Sayyidna ` Abdullah Ibn Harith ؓ عنہ said that he asked Ka` b al-Abbar ؓ how it was that angels kept reciting tasbih (proclaiming Allah's purity) all the time. Did they not have anything else to do? And if they did how could they do both things simultaneously, that is reciting tasbih and do other things. To this Ka'b replied "0 my nephew! Does performance of any of your jobs prevent you from breathing?" The truth is that tasbih comes to angels just as breathing comes to human beings which continues without stopping whatever else he may be doing.(Qurtubi, Al-Bahr ul-Muhit)