3:54 Aal-i-Imraan (The Family of Imraan)

{ فلما أحس عيسى منهم الكفر } أي: رأى منهم عدم الانقياد له، وقالوا هذا سحر مبين، وهموا بقتله وسعوا في ذلك { قال من أنصاري إلى الله } من يعاونني ويقوم معي بنصرة دين الله { قال الحواريون } وهم الأنصار { نحن أنصار الله } أي: انتدبوا معه وقاموا بذلك. وقالوا: { آمنا بالله } { فاكتبنا مع الشاهدين } أي: الشهادة النافعة، وهي الشهادة بتوحيد الله وتصديق رسوله مع القيام بذلك، فلما قاموا مع عيسى بنصر دين الله وإقامة شرعه آمنت طائفة من بني إسرائيل وكفرت طائفة، فاقتتلت الطائفتان فأيد الله الذين آمنوا بنصره على عدوهم فأصبحوا ظاهرين، فلهذا قال تعالى هنا { ومكروا } أي: الكفار بإرادة قتل نبي الله وإطفاء نوره { ومكر الله } بهم جزاء لهم على مكرهم { والله خير الماكرين } رد الله كيدهم في نحورهم، فانقلبوا خاسرين.

ثم قال تعالى مخبرا عن ملإ بني إسرائيل فيما هموا به من الفتك بعيسى عليه السلام وإرادته بالسوء والصلب حين تمالئوا عليه ووشوا به إلى ملك ذلك الزمان وكان كافرا أن هنا رجلا يضل الناس ويصدهم عن طاعة الملك ويفسد الرعايا ويفرق بين الأب وابنه إلى غير ذلك مما تقلدوه في رقابهم ورموه به من الكذب وأنه ولد زنية حتى استثاروا غضب الملك فبعث في طلبه من يأخذه ويصلبه وينكل به فلما أحاطوا بمنزله وظنوا أنهم قد ظفروا به نجاه الله تعالى من بينهم ورفعه من روزنة ذلك البيت إلى السماء وألقى الله شبهه على رجل ممن كان عنده في المنزل فلما دخل أولئك اعتقدوه في ظلمة الليل عيسى فأخذوه وأهانوه وصلبوه ووضعوا على رأسه الشوك. وكان هذا من مكر الله بهم فإنه نجى نبيه ورفعه من بين أظهرهم وتركهم في ضلالهم يعمهون يعتقدون أنهم قد ظفروا بطلبتهم وأسكن الله في قلوبهم قسوة وعنادا للحق ملازما لهم وأورثهم ذلة لا تفارقهم إلى يوم التناد ولهذا قال تعالى "ومكروا ومكر الله والله خير الماكرين".

The Disciples Give Their Support to `Isa

Allah said,

فَلَمَّآ أَحَسَّ عِيسَى

(Then when `Isa came to know), meaning, `Isa felt that they were adamant in disbelief and continuing in misguidance. He said to them,

مَنْ أَنصَارِى إِلَى اللَّهِ

(Who will be my helper in Allah's cause) Mujahid commented, "Meaning, who would follow me to Allah" However, it appears that `Isa was asking, "Who would help me convey the Message of Allah ﷺ"

The Prophet said during the Hajj season, before the Hijrah,

«مَنْ رَجُلٌ يُؤْوِينِي حَتَّى أُبَلِّغَ كَلَامَ رَبِّي؟، فَإِنَّ قُرَيْشًا قَدْ مَنَعُونِي أَنْ أُبَلِّغَ كَلَامَ رَبِّي»

(Who will give me asylum so that I can convey the Speech of my Lord, for the Quraysh have prevented me from conveying the Speech of my Lord.) until he found the Ansar. The Ansar helped the Prophet and gave him refuge. He later migrated to them, they comforted the Prophet and protected him from all his enemies, may Allah be pleased with them all. This is similar to what happened with `Isa, for some of the Children of Israel believed in him, gave him their aid and support and followed the light that was sent with him. This is why Allah said about them;

فَلَمَّآ أَحَسَّ عِيسَى مِنْهُمُ الْكُفْرَ قَالَ مَنْ أَنصَارِى إِلَى اللَّهِ قَالَ الْحَوَارِيُّونَ نَحْنُ أَنْصَارُ اللَّهِ ءَامَنَّا بِاللَّهِ وَاشْهَدْ بِأَنَّا مُسْلِمُونَ - رَبَّنَآ ءَامَنَّا بِمَآ أَنزَلَتْ وَاتَّبَعْنَا الرَّسُولَ فَاكْتُبْنَا مَعَ الشَّـهِدِينَ

(Al-Hawariyyun said: "We are the helpers of Allah; we believe in Allah, and bear witness that we are Muslims. Our Lord! We believe in what You have sent down, and we follow the Messenger; so write us down among those who bear witness.") Hawari in Arabic - means `support'. The Two Sahihs recorded that when the Prophet encouraged the people to fight during the battle of Al-Ahzab, Az-Zubayr came forward, and again, when the Prophet asked for fighters a second time. The Prophet said,

«إِنَّ لِكُلِّ نَبِيَ حَوَارِيًّا، وَحَوَارِيِّي الزُّبَيْر»

(Every Prophet has a Hawari, and Az-Zubayr is my Hawari)

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded that Ibn `Abbas said about,

فَاكْتُبْنَا مَعَ الشَّـهِدِينَ

(so write us down among those who bear witness) "Meaning among the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ." This Hadith has a good chain of narration.

The Jews Plot to Kill `Isa

Allah states that the Children of Israel tried to kill `Isa by conspiring to defame him and crucify him. They complained about him to the king who was a disbeliever. They claimed that `Isa was a man who misguided people, discouraged them from obeying the king, caused division, and separated between man and his own son. They also said other lies about `Isa, which they will carry on their necks, including accusing him of being an illegitimate son. The king became furious and sent his men to capture `Isa to torture and crucify him. When they surrounded `Isa's home and he thought that they would surely capture him, Allah saved him from them, raising him up from the house to heaven. Allah put the image of `Isa on a man who was in the house; when the unjust people went in the house while it was still dark, they thought that he was `Isa. They captured that man, humiliated and crucified him. They also placed thorns on his head. However, Allah deceived these people. He saved and raised His Prophet from them, leaving them in disarray in the darkness of their transgression, thinking that they had successfully achieved their goal. Allah made their hearts hard, and defiant of the truth, disgracing them in such disgrace that it will remain with them until the Day of Resurrection. This is why Allah said,

وَمَكَرُواْ وَمَكَرَ اللَّهُ وَاللَّهُ خَيْرُ الْمَـكِرِينَ

(And they plotted, and Allah planned too. And Allah is the Best of those who plot.)

God says And they the disbelievers among the Children of Israel schemed against Jesus by assigning someone to assassinate him; and God schemed by casting the likeness of Jesus onto the person who intended to kill him and so they killed him while Jesus was raised up into heaven; and God is the best of schemers most knowledgeable of him Jesus.

Commentary

In these verses the miraculous event of the Ascension of Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) (Jesus Christ) has been mentioned. "And they made a move" refers to the evil designs of the Jews who planned to arrest him and to get him crucified.

The next sentence i.e. "and Allah made a move" refers to the plan designed by Allah Almighty to save his prophet ` Isa (علیہ السلام) from their ill designs. They sent one of them to Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) to arrest him and Allah changed his face totally and made him resemble Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) and raised Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) to heavens, while that person was crucified under the mistaken identity. How Allah had planned to save ` Isa (علیہ السلام) from their clutches was disclosed to him when his enemies came to arrest him. The details of these disclosures have been mentioned in verse 55.

Explanation of important words in the verse

Some sects which deny, contrary to the belief of the entire Muslim community, the Ascension of Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) (Jesus Christ), his being alive in the heavens and his descension towards the later times, have worked through the words and meanings of these verses to open doors of distortion in the Qur'anic text. Therefore, it seems appropriate that these words be explained in some details.

Let us begin with وَاللَّـهُ خَيْرُ‌ الْمَاكِرِ‌ينَ translated as and Allah is the best of those who make moves'. The word, مکر makr in Arabic denotes a subtle and secret move or plan. If this is for a good purpose, it is good; and if this is for a bad purpose, it is bad. It was why the restriction of saiyy سِّٰی : evil) was placed with مکر makr (: move, plan) in: وَلَا يَحِيقُ الْمَكْرُ‌ السَّيِّئُ إِلَّا (And evil plan besets none but its perpetrator - 35:43).

The Qur'anic word, مکر makr, is used exclusively for conspiracy, evil plan and strategy in the everyday idiom of the Urdu language (in which this commentary was originally written), therefore, it should not be equated with the Arabic usage. This is the reason why Allah has been called: خَيْرُ‌ الْمَاكِرِ‌ينَ 'Khair al-Makirin' here.

The verse means that the Jews started making a series of conspiracies and secret schemes against Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) going to the limit of convincing the ruler of the time that he was a heretic (God forbid) all bent upon changing the Torah and was going to make apostates of everybody. The ruler ordered the arrest of Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) . While this was the scene on one side, the subtle and secret move made by Allah Almighty was countering their evil plans more effectively, which has been mentioned in the verses coming next.

And they deceived, and God deceived, and God is the best of deceivers. Ibn ʿAbbās said, “The deception of God is that when they increased in unbelief and sin, He in- creased their blessings until He pulled them into total recklessness. They brought immense unbe- lief and applied their heads to rebellion and misguidance. Then He took them little by little from whence they did not know.” It has come in the traditions that someone tormented Abū Dardā. Abū Dardā said, “Lord God, bestow upon him a healthy body, long life, and great wealth!” An intelligent man who ponders these words will know that this is the worst of supplications. When anyone is given this, recklessness and heedlessness will make him heedless of the next world so that he will be de- stroyed.