5:46 Al-Maaida (The Table)

أي: وأتبعنا هؤلاء الأنبياءَ والمرسلين، الذين يحكمون بالتوراة، بعبدنا ورسولنا عيسى ابن مريم، روحِ الله وكلمتِه التي ألقاها إلى مريم. بعثه الله مصدقا لما بين يديه من التوراة، فهو شاهد لموسى ولما جاء به من التوراة بالحق والصدق، ومؤيد لدعوته، وحاكم بشريعته، وموافق له في أكثر الأمور الشرعية. وقد يكون عيسى عليه السلام أخف في بعض الأحكام، كما قال تعالى عنه أنه قال لبني إسرائيل: { وَلِأُحِلَّ لَكُم بَعْضَ الَّذِي حُرِّمَ عَلَيْكُمْ ْ} { وَآتَيْنَاهُ الْإِنْجِيلَ ْ} الكتاب العظيم المتمم للتوراة. { فِيهِ هُدًى وَنُورٌ ْ} يهدي إلى الصراط المستقيم، ويبين الحق من الباطل. { وَمُصَدِّقًا لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ التَّوْرَاةِ ْ} بتثبيتها والشهادة لها والموافقة. { وَهُدًى وَمَوْعِظَة لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ ْ} فإنهم الذين ينتفعون بالهدى، ويتعظون بالمواعظ، ويرتدعون عما لا يليق.

يقول تعالى "وقفينا" أي اتبعنا على آثارهم يعني أنبياء بني إسرائيل "بعيسى ابن مريم مصدقا لما بين يديه من التوراة" أي مؤمنا بها حاكما بما فيها "وآتيناه الإنجيل فيه هدى ونور" أي هدى إلى الحق ونور يستضاء به في إزالة الشبهات وحل المشكلات ومصدقا لما بين يديه من التوراة أي متبعا لها غير مخالف لما فيها إلا في القليل مما بين لبني إسرائيل بعض ما كانوا يختلفون فيه كما قال تعالى إخبارا عن المسيح أنه قال: لبني إسرائيل "ولأحل لكم بعض الذي حرم عليكم" ولهذا كان المشهور من قول العلماء أن النجيل نسخ بعض أحكام التوراة وقوله تعالى "وهدى وموعظة للمتقين" أي وجعلنا الإنجيل هدى يهدى به وموعظة أي زاجرا عن ارتكاب المحارم والمآثم للمتقين أي لمن اتقى الله وخاف وعيده وعقابه.

Allah Mentions `Isa and Praises the Injil

Allah said,

وَقَفَّيْنَا

(and We sent...) meaning, We sent

عَلَى ءَاثَـرِهِمْ

(in their footsteps) meaning the Prophets of the Children of Israel,

بِعَيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ مُصَدِّقاً لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ التَوْرَاةِ

(`Isa, son of Maryam, confirming the Tawrah that had come before him,) meaning, he believed in it and ruled by it.

وَءَاتَيْنَـهُ الإِنجِيلَ فِيهِ هُدًى وَنُورٌ

(and We gave him the Injil, in which was guidance and light) a guidance that directs to the truth and a light that removes the doubts and solves disputes,

وَمُصَدِّقاً لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ مِنَ التَّوْرَاةِ

(and confirmation of the Tawrah that had come before it,) meaning, he adhered to the Tawrah, except for the few instances that clarified the truth where the Children of Israel differed. Allah states in another Ayah that `Isa said to the Children of Israel,

وَلاٌّحِلَّ لَكُم بَعْضَ الَّذِي حُرِّمَ عَلَيْكُمْ

(. ..and to make lawful to you part of what was forbidden to you.) So the scholars say that the Injil abrogated some of the rulings of the Tawrah. Allah's statement,

وَهُدًى وَمَوْعِظَةٌ لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ

(a guidance and an admonition for those who have Taqwa.) means, We made the Injil guidance and an admonition that prohibits committing sins and errors, for those who have Taqwa of Allah and fear His warning and torment. Allah said next,

وَلْيَحْكُمْ أَهْلُ الإِنجِيلِ بِمَآ أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ فِيهِ

(Let the people of the Injil judge by what Allah has revealed therein.) meaning, so that He judges the people of the Injil by it in their time. Or, the Ayah means, so that they believe in all that is in it and adhere to all its commands, including the good news about the coming of Muhammad and the command to believe in and follow him when he is sent. Allah said in other Ayat,

قُلْ يَـأَهْلَ الْكِتَـبِ لَسْتُمْ عَلَى شَىْءٍ حَتَّى تُقِيمُواْ التَّوْرَاةَ وَالإِنجِيلَ وَمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُمْ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ

(Say "O People of the Scripture! You have nothing (guidance) until you act according to the Tawrah, the Injil, and what has been sent down to you from your Lord.") and,

الَّذِينَ يَتَّبِعُونَ الرَّسُولَ النَّبِىَّ الأُمِّىَّ الَّذِى يَجِدُونَهُ مَكْتُوبًا عِندَهُمْ فِى التَّوْرَاةِ

(Those who follow the Messenger, the Prophet who can neither read nor write whom they find written with them in the Tawrah...) until,

الْمُفْلِحُونَ

(...successful.) Here, Allah said,

وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَآ أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْفَـسِقُونَ

(And whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed, such are the rebellious.) meaning, the rebellious and disobedient of Allah who prefer falsehood and abandon truth. We mentioned before that this Ayah was revealed about the Christians, and this is evident from the context of the Ayah.

And We caused Jesus son of Mary to follow in their that is the prophets’ footsteps confirming the Torah before him; and We gave to him the Gospel wherein is guidance from error and light an exposition of the rulings confirming musaddiqan is a circumstantial qualifier the Torah before it the rulings contained therein and as a guidance and an admonition to the God-fearing.

In the second verse after that (45), there is a description of the injunctions of Qisas (Even Retaliation) with a particular reference stressing that ` We had revealed these injunctions in the Torah.' The words of the text are:

وَكَتَبْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ فِيهَا أَنَّ النَّفْسَ بِالنَّفْسِ وَالْعَيْنَ بِالْعَيْنِ وَالْأَنفَ بِالْأَنفِ وَالْأُذُنَ بِالْأُذُنِ وَالسِّنَّ بِالسِّنِّ وَالْجُرُ‌وحَ قِصَاصٌ

` We had revealed in the Torah this injunction of Qisas for the Jews that there will be life for life, eye for eye, nose for nose, ear for ear, tooth for tooth; and for wounds an equal retaliation.'

It will be recalled that the case of Banu Qurayzah and Banu Nadir was brought before the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Counting on their power, Banu Nadir had compelled the weaker Banu Qurayzah to agree to their oppressive conditions which stipulated that should a man from Banu Qurayzah kill a man from Banu Nadir, they will have to pay two penalties. The Qisas of life for life will be taken as well as the blood money will have to be paid. If the case was the reverse, that is a man from Banu Nadir kills a man from Banu Qurayzah, then, there will be no Qisas; only blood money will be paid but that too will be half of what Banu Nadir were entitled to.

In this verse, Allah Almighty has exposed the lie of these people by pointing out that the injunctions of equality in Qisas (retaliation) and Diyat (blood money) exist in the Torah too. at these people are doing is considered avoidance and that they bring their case to the Holy Prophet ﷺ for a decision as alleged is no more than a ruse to find an excuse.

At the end of the verse it was said: وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللَّـهُ فَأُولَـٰئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ (And whoever does not judge by what Allah has sent down, then, they are the unjust.) It means that people who do not take the injunctions of Allah binding and who do not decide matters in accordance with them, are dissenters to the Divine commandment, its rejectors and rebels. They are unjust. The third verse (46) begins with the mention of the coming of Sayyidna ` Isa (علیہ السلام) who was sent to confirm the previous Scripture, that is, the Torah. Mentioned after that is the Injil because that too, like the Torah, is guidance and light.

(O Messenger! Let not them grieve thee who vie one with another in the race to disbelief�) [5:41-47]. Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn al-Hasan al-Hiri informed us by dictation> Abu Muhammad, the chamberlain of Ibn Ahmad al-Tusi> Muhammad ibn Hammad al-Abiwardi> Abu Mu'awiyah> al-A'mash> 'Abd Allah ibn Murrah> al-Bara' ibn 'Azib who said: �One day, the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, passed by a Jewish man who had just been flogged and had his face darkened with coal. He summoned the Jews and asked them: 'Is this what your Scripture decrees as punishment for the adulterer?' 'Yes!' they replied. He then summoned one of their doctors and asked him: 'I implore you by Allah who has sent the Torah to Moses, is this what your Scripture decrees as punishment for the adulterer'. He said: 'No! And if you had not implored me by Allah, I would not tell you. Our Scripture rules that the punishment of the adulterer is stoning. But it became widespread among our notables. Initially, when one of the notables committed adultery, we left him unpunished while we applied stoning on the communality in cases of adultery. Then we decided to look for a punishment that was applied on both the notables and communality of people. And so we agreed on darkening the face with coal and flogging to replace stoning'. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: 'O Allah! I am the first to reapply your command after they had suspended it'. And he ordered that the Jewish man be stoned. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed (O Messenger! Let not them grieve thee who vie one with another in the race to disbelief) up to His words (If this be given unto you, receive it�), they said: 'Go to Muhammad; if he directs you to flog the adulterer and darken his face with coal and apply flogging, then follow him. But do not follow him if he directs you to apply stoning on him'. Up to His words (Whoso judgeth not by that which Allah hath revealed: such are disbelievers) [5:44]. He said: 'This relates to the Jews'. Up to His words (Whoso judgeth not by that which Allah hath revealed: such are wrong-doers) [5:45]. He said: 'This relates to the Christians'.