6:28 Al-An'aam (The Cattle)

تفسير الآيتين 27 و 28 : يقول تعالى -مخبرا عن حال المشركين يوم القيامة، وإحضارهم النار:. { وَلَوْ تَرَى إِذْ وُقِفُوا عَلَى النَّارِ } ليوبخوا ويقرعوا، لرأيت أمرا هائلا، وحالا مفظعة. ولرأيتهم كيف أقروا على أنفسهم بالكفر والفسوق، وتمنوا أن لو يردون إلى الدنيا. { فَقَالُوا يَا لَيْتَنَا نُرَدُّ وَلَا نُكَذِّبَ بِآيَاتِ رَبِّنَا وَنَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ بَلْ بَدَا لَهُمْ مَا كَانُوا يُخْفُونَ مِنْ قَبْلُ } فإنهم كانوا يخفون في أنفسهم، أنهم كانوا كاذبين، ويَبدو في قلوبهم في كثير من الأوقات. ولكن الأغراض الفاسدة، صدتهم عن ذلك، وصرفت قلوبهم عن الخير، وهم كذبة في هذه الأمنية، وإنما قصدهم، أن يدفعوا بها عن أنفسهم العذاب. { وَلَوْ رُدُّوا لَعَادُوا لِمَا نُهُوا عَنْهُ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَكَاذِبُونَ }

قال الله تعالى "بل بدا لهم ما كانوا يخفون من قبل" أي بل ظهر لهم حينئذ ما كانوا يخفون في أنفسهم من الكفر والتكذيب والمعاندة وإن أنكروها في الدنيا أو في الآخرة كما قال قبله بيسير "ثم لم تكن فتنتهم إلا أن قالوا والله ربنا ما كنا مشركين انظر كيف كذبوا على أنفسهم" ويحتمل أنهم ظهر لهم ما كانوا يعلمونه من أنفسهم من صدق ما جاءتهم به الرسل في الدنيا وإن كانوا يظهرون لأتباعهم خلافه كقوله مخبرا عن موسى أنه قال لفرعون "لقد علمت ما أنزل هؤلاء إلا رب السموات والأرض بصائر" الآية وقوله تعالى مخبرا عن فرعون وقومه "وجحدوا بها واستيقنتها أنفسهم ظلما وعلوا" ويحتمل أن يكون المراد بهؤلاء المنافقين الذين كانوا يظهرون الإيمان للناس ويبطنون الكفر ويكون هذا إخبارا عما يكون يوم القيامة من كلام طائفة من الكفار ولا ينافي هذا كون هذه السورة مكية والنفاق إنما كان من بعض أهل المدينة ومن حولها من الأعراب فقد ذكر الله وقوع النفاق في سورة مكية وهي العنكبوت فقال "وليعلمن الله الذين آمنوا وليعلمن المنافقين" وعلى هذا فيكون إخبارا عن قول المنافقين في الدار الآخرة حين يعاينون العذاب فظهر لهم حينئذ غب ما كانوا يبطنون من الكفر والنفاق والشقاق والله أعلم وأما معنى الإضراب في قوله "بل بدا لهم ما كانوا يخفون من قبل" فإنهم ما طلبوا العود إلى الدنيا رغبة ومحبة في الإيمان بل خوفا من العذاب الذي عاينوه جزاء ما كانوا عليه من الكفر فسألوا الرجعة إلى الدنيا ليتخلصوا مما شاهدوا من النار ولهذا قال "ولو ردوا لعادوا لما نهوا عنه وإنهم لكاذبون" أي في طلبهم الرجعة رغبة ومحبة في الإيمان ثم قال مخبرا عنهم أنهم لو ردوا إلى الدار الدنيا لعادوا لما نهوا عنه من الكفر والمخالفة "وإنهم لكاذبون" إي في قولهم يا ليتنا نرد ولا نكذب بآيات ربنا ونكون من المؤمنين.

Wishes and Hopes Do Not Help One When He Sees the Torment

Allah mentions the condition of the disbelievers when they are made to stand before the Fire on the Day of Resurrection and witness its chains and restraints, along with seeing the horrible, momentous conditions in the Fire with their own eyes. This is when the disbelievers will say,

يلَيْتَنَا نُرَدُّ وَلاَ نُكَذِّبَ بِـَايَـتِ رَبِّنَا وَنَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ

("Would that we were but sent back (to the world)! Then we would not deny the Ayat of our Lord, and we would be of the believers!") They wish that they would be sent back to the life of the world so that they could perform righteous deeds, refrain from disbelieving in the Ayat of their Lord and be among the believers. Allah said,

بَلْ بَدَا لَهُمْ مَّا كَانُواْ يُخْفُونَ مِن قَبْلُ

(Nay, what they had been concealing before has become manifest to them.) meaning, the disbelief, denial and rebellion that they used to hide in their hearts will then be uncovered, even though they will try to hide this fact in this life and the Hereafter. Earlier, Allah said,

ثُمَّ لَمْ تَكُنْ فِتْنَتُهُمْ إِلاَّ أَن قَالُواْ وَاللَّهِ رَبِّنَا مَا كُنَّا مُشْرِكِينَ - انظُرْ كَيْفَ كَذَبُواْ عَلَى أَنفُسِهِمْ وَضَلَّ عَنْهُمْ مَّا كَانُواْ يَفْتَرُونَ

(There will then be (left) no trial for them but to say: "By Allah, our Lord, we were not those who joined others in worship with Allah." Look! How they lie against themselves! But the (lie) which they invented will disappear from them. ) It is also possible that the meaning here is that the disbelievers will realize the truth that they knew all along in their hearts, that is, that what the Messengers brought them in this life is true, although they used to deny his Message before their followers. Allah said that Musa said to Fir`awn,

لَقَدْ عَلِمْتَ مَآ أَنزَلَ هَـؤُلاءِ إِلاَّ رَبُّ السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ بَصَآئِرَ

("Verily, you know that these signs have clearly been sent down by none but the Lord of the heavens and the earth as eye-opening evidence.") 17:102 Allah said about Fir`awn and his people,

وَجَحَدُواْ بِهَا وَاسْتَيْقَنَتْهَآ أَنفُسُهُمْ ظُلْماً وَعُلُوّاً

(And they belied them (those Ayat) wrongfully and arrogantly, though they were themselves convinced thereof.) 27:14

بَلْ بَدَا لَهُمْ مَّا كَانُواْ يُخْفُونَ مِن قَبْلُ

(Nay, it has become manifest to them what they had been concealing before.) 6:28 When this occurs, and the disbelievers ask to be returned to this life, they will not do so because they truly wish to embrace the faith. Rather, they ask to be returned to this life for fear of the torment that they are witnessing before them, as punishment for the disbelief they committed, and to try and avoid the Fire that they see before their eyes.

وَلَوْ رُدُّواْ لَعَـدُواْ لِمَا نُهُواْ عَنْهُ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَكَـذِبُونَ

(But if they were returned, they would certainly revert to that which they were forbidden. And indeed they are liars.) meaning, they lie when they say they wish to go back to this life so that they can embrace the faith. Allah states that even if they were sent back to the life of this world, they will again commit the disbelief and defiance that they were prohibited.

وَإِنَّهُمْ لَكَـذِبُونَ

(And indeed they are liars.) in their statement that,

وَلَوْ تَرَى إِذْ وُقِفُواْ عَلَى النَّارِ فَقَالُواْ يلَيْتَنَا نُرَدُّ وَلاَ نُكَذِّبَ بِـَايَـتِ رَبِّنَا وَنَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ - بَلْ بَدَا لَهُمْ مَّا كَانُواْ يُخْفُونَ مِن قَبْلُ وَلَوْ رُدُّواْ لَعَـدُواْ لِمَا نُهُواْ عَنْهُ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَكَـذِبُونَ - وَقَالُواْ إِنْ هِىَ إِلاَّ حَيَاتُنَا الدُّنْيَا وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمَبْعُوثِينَ

("Would that we were but sent back! Then we would not deny the Ayat of our Lord, and we would be of the believers!" Nay, what they had been concealing before has become manifest to them. But if they were returned, they would certainly revert to that which they were forbidden. And indeed they are liars. And they said: "There is no (other life) but our (present) life of this world, and never shall we be resurrected.") Therefore, they will revert to their old behavior and say,

إِنْ هِىَ إِلاَّ حَيَاتُنَا الدُّنْيَا

(There is no life but our life of this world) and there is no Hereafter,

وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمَبْعُوثِينَ

(and never shall we be resurrected. ) Allah said,

وَلَوْ تَرَى إِذْ وُقِفُواْ عَلَى رَبِّهِمْ

(If you could but see when they will stand before their Lord!) in front of Him,

أَلَيْسَ هَـذَا بِالْحَقِّ

("Is not this the truth") meaning, is not Resurrection true, contarary to what you thought,

قَالُواْ بَلَى وَرَبِّنَا قَالَ فَذُوقُواْ العَذَابَ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَكْفُرُونَ

(They will say: "Yes, by our Lord!" He will then say: "So taste you the torment because you used not to believe.") and because you today denied Resurrection. Therefore, taste the torment,

أَفَسِحْرٌ هَـذَا أَمْ أَنتُمْ لاَ تُبْصِرُونَ

("Is this magic, or do you not see") 52:15

God exalted be He says Nay — here used in order to reject the desire to believe implied by the optative exclamation — that which they used to conceal to hide before by their saying By God our Lord we were never idolaters! Q. 623 has now become evident to them as their limbs have borne witness against them and so they now wish for that mentioned in the previous verse; and even if hypothetically they were returned to the world they would return to that which they are forbidden of idolatry; they are truly liars when they promise that they would believe if they were to be returned.

In the second verse (28), Almighty Allah, who is All-Knowing and All-Aware, exposes the reality of their wish, which would be nothing but the compulsion of circumstances, by making it clear that these people have always been addicted to lying and that they were liars even in their present wish under trial. The root of the problem with them was that they did not relish the realities brought before them by the prophets of Allah. They knew that the prophets were true, yet they raised dust to keep such realities unmanifested either because of their chronic obstinacy or worldly greed. But, in the Hereafter, every-thing came out in the open. They saw the power of Allah with their own eyes. They realized that the prophets had told the truth. Even, the life after death, something they had denied all along was before them, really and physically. Then, they became direct witnesses to reward and punishment and Hell. After that, they were left with no argument to continue their attitude of denial and opposition. So, when they wished to be returned to the mortal world, that was mere absence of choice.

Then, their All-Knowing, All-Aware Master said that this was what they were saying for now, but if they were to be sent back into the mortal world once again, they would simply forget all about their promises and resolutions and will revert to doing what they have been doing before, and would start getting involved once again with the unlawful from which they were stopped. Therefore, what they were saying now was also a lie and a ploy for deception.

That their present statement has been called a lie could also be based on their ultimate deed, that is, their promising not to lie if returned to the world was not true, for this would never happen because they would still do nothing but keep lying when they go there. This lie could also mean that whatever they were saying at that time was not prompted by true intention. They were doing so simply to buy time and avoid punishment while in the heart of their hearts, they still have no intention of doing it.

No, what they had been concealing beforehand now appears to them, and even if they were sent back, they would return to what had been prohibited to them. This is an allusion to the Day of Resurrection, which is the day of the unveiling of states and the manifestation of secrets, the day secret cores will be tried [86:9] and hidden things will become manifest. There will be many who were counted among the renunciants in this world and who wore the color of the friends and the dress of the familiar but who will see on that day the burning brand of wretchedness on their own foreheads, having been brought down to the dwelling place of the strangers. There will also be many whom you recognized as shameless and knew as bound for the manacles, who had nothing in this world, who were no one and nameless, yet in whose name on that day will be brought the treasuries of the unseen and the robes of generosity. The holy ones of the Higher Plenum and the dwellers in the Gardens of the Shelter will be staring and astonished at His work. It will be as the poet said: Many a prayerful pir will be left behind without steed, many a tavern-going scoundrel will saddle a roaring lion. [DS 110] And even it they were sent back, they would return to what had been prohibited to them. Even if the folk of punishment were sent back to this world of theirs, they would return to their refusal and denial. And even if the folk of limpidness and loyalty were sent back to this world of theirs, they would return to the beauty of their deeds.