37:35 As-Saaffaat (Those drawn up in Ranks)

ثم ذكر أن إجرامهم، قد بلغ الغاية وجاوز النهاية فقال: { إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا إِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ } فدعوا إليها، وأمروا بترك إلهية ما سواه { يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ } عنها وعلى من جاء بها.

"إنا كذلك نفعل بالمجرمين إنهم كانوا" أي في الدار الدنيا "إذا قيل لهم لا إله إلا الله يستكبرون" أي يستكبرون أن يقولوها كما يقولها المؤمنون. قال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا عبيد الله بن أخي بن وهب حدثنا عمي حدثنا الليث عن ابن مسافر يعني عبدالرحمن بن خالد عن ابن شهاب عن سعيد بن المسيب عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم "أمرت أن أقاتل الناس حتى يقولوا لا إله إلا الله فمن قال لا إله إلا الله فقد عصم مني ماله ونفسه إلا بحقه وحسابه على الله عز وجل" وأنزل الله تعالى في كتابه العزيز وذكر قوما استكبروا فقال تعالى "إنهم كانوا إذا قيل لهم لا إله إلا الله يستكبرون". وقال ابن أبي حاتم أيضا حدثنا أبي حدثنا أبو سلمة موسى بن إسماعيل حدثنا حماد عن سعيد الجريري عن أبي العلاء قال: يؤتى باليهود يوم القيامة فيقال لهم ما كنتم تعبدون؟ فيقولون نعبد الله وعزيرا فيقال لهم خذوا ذات الشمال ثم يؤتى بالنصارى فيقال لهم ما كنتم تعبدون؟ فيقولون نعبد الله والمسيح فيقال لهم خذوا ذات الشمال ثم يؤتى بالمشركين فيقال لهم لا إله إلا الله فيستكبرون ثم يقال لهم لا إله إلا الله فيستكبرون ثم يقال لهم لا إله إلا الله فيستكبرون فيقال لهم خذوا ذات الشمال. قال أبو نضرة فينطلقون أسرع من الطير قال أبو العلاء ثم يؤتى بالمسلمين فيقال لهم ما كنتم تعبدون؟ فيقولون كنا نعبد الله تعالى فيقال لهم هل تعرفونه إذا رأيتموه؟ فيقولون نعم فيقال لهم فكيف تعرفونه ولم تروه؟ فيقولون نعلم أنه لا عدل له قال فيتعرف لهم تبارك وتعالى وتقدس وينجي الله المؤمنين.

The arguing of the Idolators on the Day of Resurrection

Allah tells us that the disbeliever will blame one another in the arena of Resurrection, just as they will argue with one another in the levels of Hell:

وَإِذْ يَتَحَآجُّونَ فِى النَّـارِ فَيَقُولُ الضُّعَفَاءُ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَكْـبَرُواْ إِنَّا كُنَّا لَكُمْ تَبَعاً فَهَلْ أَنتُم مُّغْنُونَ عَنَّا نَصِيباً مِّنَ النَّارِ - قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُواْ إِنَّا كُلٌّ فِيهَآ إِنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ حَكَمَ بَيْنَ الْعِبَادِ

(The weak will say to those who were arrogant: "Verily, we followed you, can you then take from us some portion of the Fire" Those who were arrogant will say: "We are all (together) in this (Fire)! Verily, Allah has judged between (His) servants!") (40:47-48)

وَلَوْ تَرَى إِذِ الظَّـلِمُونَ مَوْقُوفُونَ عِندَ رَبّهِمْ يَرْجِعُ بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ الْقَوْلَ يَقُولُ الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُواْ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُواْ لَوْلاَ أَنتُمْ لَكُنَّا مُؤْمِنِينَ قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُواْ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُواْ أَنَحْنُ صَدَدنَـكُمْ عَنِ الْهُدَى بَعْدَ إِذْ جَآءكُمْ بَلْ كُنتُمْ مُّجْرِمِينَ وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُواْ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُواْ بَلْ مَكْرُ الَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ إِذْ تَأْمُرُونَنَآ أَن نَّكْفُرَ بِاللَّهِ وَنَجْعَلَ لَهُ أَندَاداً وَأَسَرُّواْ النَّدَامَةَ لَمَّا رَأَوُاْ اْلَعَذَابَ وَجَعَلْنَا الاْغْلَـلَ فِى أَعْنَاقِ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ هَلْ يُجْزَوْنَ إِلاَّ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ

(But if you could see when the wrongdoers will be made to stand before their Lord, how they will cast the (blaming) word one to another! Those who were deemed weak will say to those who were arrogant: "Had it not been for you, we should certainly have been believers!" And those who were arrogant will say to those who were deemed weak: "Did we keep you back from guidance after it had come to you Nay, but you were criminals." Those who were deemed weak will say to those who were arrogant: "Nay, but it was your plotting by night and day, when you ordered us to disbelieve in Allah and set up rivals to Him!" And each of them (parties) will conceal their own regrets, when they behold the torment. And We shall put iron collars round the necks of those who disbelieved. Are they requited aught except what they used to do) (34:31-33) Similarly, they are described here as saying:

إِنَّكُمْ كُنتُمْ تَأْتُونَنَا عَنِ الْيَمِينِ

(It was you who used to come to us from the right side.) Ad-Dahhak reported that Ibn `Abbas said; "They will say, `You used to force us because of your position of power over us, for we were weak and you were strong."' Qatadah said, "Men will say to the Jinn, `You used to come to us from the right side to block every good deed, and you told us not to do it and you tried to put obstacles in our way."' As-Suddi said, "`You used to come to us to block the truth, and you made falsehood look attractive to us, and you prevented us from seeing the truth." Ibn Zayd said, it means: "`You stood in the way between us and goodness, and you repelled us from Islam and faith and doing the good deeds that we had been commanded to do." Yazid Ar-Rishk said, "from La ilaha illallah."

قَالُواْ بَلْ لَّمْ تَكُونُواْ مُؤْمِنِينَ

(They will reply: "Nay, you yourselves were not believers.") The leaders of the Jinn and mankind will say to their followers, "It is not as you say; your hearts denied faith and were open to disbelief and sin."

وَمَا كَانَ لَنَا عَلَيْكُمْ مِّن سُلْطَـنٍ

(And we had no authority over you.) means, `we had no proof of the truth of that to which we called you.'

بَلْ كُنتُمْ قَوْماً طَـغِينَ

(Nay! But you were a transgressing people.) `You yourselves were evildoers and transgressors against the truth, so you responded to us and neglected the truth which the Prophets brought with proof, and you went against them.'

فَحَقَّ عَلَيْنَا قَوْلُ رَبِّنَآ إِنَّا لَذَآئِقُونَ - فَأَغْوَيْنَـكُمْ إِنَّا كُنَّا غَـوِينَ

(So now the Word of our Lord has been justified against us, that we shall certainly (have to) taste (the torment). So we led you astray because we were ourselves astray.) Those who were arrogant will say to those who were deemed weak, `the Word of Allah has been justified against us, that we are among the doomed who will taste the punishment of the Day of Resurrection.'

فَأَغْوَيْنَـكُمْ

(So we led you astray) means, `so we called you to misguidance,'

إِنَّا كُنَّا غَـوِينَ

(because we were ourselves astray. ) means, `we called you to follow the path which we were on, and you responded.' Allah says:

فَإِنَّهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ فِى الْعَذَابِ مُشْتَرِكُونَ

(Then verily, that Day, they will (all) share in the torment.) means, all of them will be in Hell, each according to what he deserves.

إِنَّا كَذَلِكَ نَفْعَلُ بِالْمُجْرِمِينَ - إِنَّهُمْ كَانُواْ إِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ

(Certainly, that is how We deal with criminals. Truly, when it was said to them: "La ilaha illallah," they puffed themselves up with pride.) means, in this world they were too arrogant to say these words as the believers said them. Ibn Abi Hatim narrated that Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

«أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أُقَاتِلَ النَّاسَ حَتْى يَقُولُوا: لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، فَمَنْ قَالَ: لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، فَقَدْ عَصَمَ مِنِّي مَالَهُ وَنَفْسَهُ إِلَّا بِحَقِّهِ، وَحِسَابُهُ عَلَى اللهِ عَزَّ وَجَل»

(I have been commanded to fight the people until they say La ilaha ill-Allah. Whoever says La ilaha illallah, he and his property are safe from me except for his obligation, and his reckoning will be with Allah, may He be glorified.) Allah revealed in His Book the story of people who were arrogant, as He says:

إِنَّهُمْ كَانُواْ إِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ - وَيَقُولُونَ أَءِنَّا لَتَارِكُو ءَالِهَتِنَا لِشَاعِرٍ مَّجْنُونٍ

(Truly, when it was said to them: "La ilaha illallah," they puffed themselves up with pride. And (they) said: "Are we going to abandon our gods for the sake of a mad poet") meaning, `Shall we stop worshipping our gods and the gods of our forefathers just because of the words of this mad poet' -- meaning the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Allah said in refutation of their attitude:

بَلْ جَآءَ بِالْحَقِّ

(Nay! he has come with the truth) meaning, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ has brought the truth with all that Allah has revealed to him of stories and commandments.

وَصَدَّقَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ

(and he confirms the Messengers.) means, he fulfills their prophecies of his praiseworthy characteristics and his perfect way, and he tells people of the Laws and commands of Allah, as they said he would.

مَّا يُقَالُ لَكَ إِلاَّ مَا قَدْ قِيلَ لِلرُّسُلِ مِن قَبْلِكَ

(Nothing is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you) (41:43).

For truly it was they who in other words it was these sinners who — given the context that follows — when it was said to them ‘There is no god except God’ used to be scornful

2. From verse 33: فَإِنَّهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ فِي الْعَذَابِ مُشْتَرِ‌كُونَ (So, this day, they will be sharers in the punishment.), we learn that should a certain person invite someone else to participate in what is impermissible and use his clout to coax him into sin, then, he will certainly incur the punishment of so inviting that person to sin. But, a person who accepts his invitation of his volition and choice, he too cannot be absolved from the sin of his deed. He cannot appear in the Hereafter and get away by saying that he was made to go astray by this or that person. Yes, if he has not committed sin by his volition and choice, instead, has done so under coercion, just to save his life, then, insha'Allah, it is hoped that he will be forgiven.