29:23 Al-Ankaboot (The Spider)

يخبر تعالى من هم الذين زال عنهم الخير، وحصل لهم الشر، وأنهم الذين كفروا به وبرسله، وبما جاءوهم به، وكذبوا بلقاء اللّه، فليس عندهم إلا الدنيا، فلذلك قدموا على ما أقدموا عليه من الشرك والمعاصي، لأنه ليس في قلوبهم ما يخوفهم من عاقبة ذلك، ولهذا قال تعالى: { أُولَئِكَ يَئِسُوا مِنْ رَحْمَتِي } أي: فلذلك لم يعلموا سببا واحدا يحصلون به الرحمة، وإلا لو طمعوا في رحمته، لعملوا لذلك أعمالا، والإياس من رحمة اللّه من أعظم المحاذير، وهو نوعان: إياس الكفار منها، وتركهم جميع سبب يقربهم منها، وإياس العصاة، بسبب كثرة جناياتهم أوحشتهم، فملكت قلوبهم، فأحدث لها الإياس، { وَأُولَئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ } أي: مؤلم موجع. وكأن هذه الآيات معترضات بين كلام إبراهيم عليه السلام لقومه، وردهم عليه، واللّه أعلم بذلك.

"والذين كفروا بآيات الله ولقائه" أي جحدوها وكفروا بالمعاد "أولئك يئسوا من رحمتي" أي لا نصيب لهم فيها "وأولئك لهم عذاب أليم" أي موجع شديد في الدنيا والآخرة.

The Evidence for Life after Death

Allah tells us that Ibrahim, peace be upon him, showed them the proof of life after death, which they denied, in their souls. For Allah created them after they had been nothing at all, then they came into existence and became people who could hear and see. The One Who originated this is able to repeat it, it is very easy for Him. Then he taught them to contemplate the visible signs on the horizons and the things that Allah has created: the heavens with their stars and planets, moving and stationary, the earth with its plains and mountains, its valleys, deserts and wildernesses, trees and rivers, fruits and oceans. All of that indicates that these are themselves created things, and that there must be a Creator Who does as He chooses, Who merely says to a thing "Be!" and it is. Allah says:

أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْاْ كَيْفَ يُبْدِىءُ اللَّهُ الْخَلْقَ ثُمَّ يُعِيدُهُ إِنَّ ذلِكَ عَلَى اللَّهِ يَسِيرٌ

(See they not how Allah originates the creation, then repeats it. Verily, that is easy for Allah.) This is like the Ayah:

وَهُوَ الَّذِى يَبْدَأُ الْخَلْقَ ثُمَّ يُعِيدُهُ وَهُوَ أَهْوَنُ عَلَيْهِ

(And He it is Who originates the creation, then He will repeat it; and this is easier for Him) (30:27). Then Allah says:

قُلْ سِيرُواْ فِى الاٌّرْضِ فَانظُرُواْ كَيْفَ بَدَأَ الْخَلْقَ ثُمَّ اللَّهُ يُنشِىءُ النَّشْأَةَ الاٌّخِرَةَ

(Say: "Travel in the land and see how He originated the creation, and then Allah will bring forth the creation of the Hereafter.") meaning, the Day of Resurrection.

إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

(Verily, Allah is able to do all things.)

يُعَذِّبُ مَن يَشَآءُ وَيَرْحَمُ مَن يَشَآءُ

(He punishes whom He wills, and shows mercy to whom He wills;) He is the Ruler Who is in control, Who does as He wishes and judges as He wants, and there is none who can put back His judgement. None can question Him about what He does; rather it is they who will be questioned, for His is the power to create and to command, and whatever He decides is fair and just, for He is the sovereign who cannot be unjust in the slightest. According to a Hadith recorded by the Sunan compilers:

«إِنَّ اللهَ لَوْ عَذَّبَ أَهْلَ سَمَاوَاتِهِ وَأَهْلَ أَرْضِهِ لَعَذَّبَهُمْ وَهُوَ غَيْرُ ظَالِم لَهُم»

(If Allah willed to punish the dwellers of His heavens and His earth, He would do so, while He would not be unjust to them.) Allah says:

يُعَذِّبُ مَن يَشَآءُ وَيَرْحَمُ مَن يَشَآءُ وَإِلَيْهِ تُقْلَبُونَ

(He punishes whom He wills, and shows mercy to whom He wills; and to Him you will be returned.) You will return to Him on the Day of Resurrection.

وَمَآ أَنتُمْ بِمُعْجِزِينَ فِى الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ فِى السَّمَآءِ

(And you cannot escape on the earth or in the heaven. ) No one in heaven or on earth can flee from Him, for He is the Subduer Who is above His servants, and everything fears Him and is in need of Him, while He is the One Who is Independent of all else.

وَمَا لَكُمْ مِّن دُونِ اللَّهِ مِن وَلِىٍّ وَلاَ نَصِيرٍوَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ بِـَايَـتِ اللَّهِ وَلِقَآئِهِ

(And besides Allah you have neither any protector nor any helper. And those who disbelieve in the Ayat of Allah and the meeting with Him,) Those who disbelieved in the signs of Allah and denied the Resurrection,

أُوْلَـئِكَ يَئِسُواْ مِن رَّحْمَتِى

(such have no hope of My mercy) they will have no share in it,

وَأُوْلَـئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

(and for such there is a painful torment.) meaning, extremely painful, in this world and the next.

And those who disbelieve in God’s signs and the encounter with Him namely the Qur’ān and the Resurrection respectively they have despaired of My mercy that is of attaining My Paradise and for those there shall be a painful chastisement.

Commentary

The infidels of Makkah believed that it is Allah who has created the whole universe, but they deemed it impossible that the people will be resurrected after they once die. The present verses have described the fallacy of their view. It is stated that repeating the process of creation is much easier than its origination. It is strange that these infidels do believe that Allah has originated the creation, but they deny His power to do it again, while the latter is easier than the former. Then verse 20 has induced them to look around them to appreciate the splendors of the creation, so that they may apprehend that the One who has originated this marvelous creation can easily repeat the process. After establishing the Resurrection, the last three verses describe the punishment for those who deny it.

And those who disbelieve in the signs of God and the encounter with Him-they have lost hope in My mercy. In this world the punishment of the unbelievers is completed when they lose hope in God's mercy. To the faithful He says, “No matter how many foolish things you have done and how much you have sinned, despair not of God's mercy [39:53].” Know that the influence of God's mercy for the servants is greater than the influence of His wrath. In the Qur'an, there are more mentions of the attributes of mercy than the attributes of wrath. In the report has come, “My mercy takes precedence over My wrath.” Mercy and wrath are both attributes of the Real, and it is not permissible for you to say that one is before and the other after, or that one is more and the other less. If you say that one is more, then the other must be decreased; if you say one is before, than the other must be newly arrived. Hence, what is meant by this is mercy's influence. In other words: “The influence of My mercy overtakes the influence of My wrath.” It is because of the influence of His wrath that the unbelievers have despaired of His mercy, such that He says, “they have lost hope in My mercy.” It is because of the influence of His mercy that the faithful hope for His forgiveness and place their hearts on His mercy, such that He says, “They hope for God's mercy” [2:218]. The unbeliever who has despaired of God's mercy with his idol before him is like a spider who builds a house, frail and without outcome. It has no foundation to keep it in place, walls for refuge, or roof to cover it. It is of no use in cold or in heat. It is so frail and weak that with the slightest wind it moves up and down and is ruined. This is the likeness of the idol-worshipper. He fancies that he is doing something or that he has a refuge: They were reckoning that they were doing beau- tiful artisanry [18:104]. They reckon that they are on to something [58:18]. “He who hopes that the mirage is water will only remain long enough to know that it was an imagining.”