3:81 Aal-i-Imraan (The Family of Imraan)

واذكر -أيها الرسول- إذ أخذ الله سبحانه العهد المؤكد على جميع الأنبياء: لَئِنْ آتيتكم من كتاب وحكمة، ثم جاءكم رسول من عندي، مصدق لما معكم لتؤمنن به ولتنصرنَّه. فهل أقررتم واعترفتم بذلك وأخذتم على ذلك عهدي الموثق؟ قالوا: أقررنا بذلك، قال: فليشهدْ بعضكم على بعض، واشهدوا على أممكم بذلك، وأنا معكم من الشاهدين عليكم وعليهم. وفي هذا أن الله أخذ الميثاق على كل نبي أن يؤمن بمحمد صلى الله عليه وسلم، وأخذ الميثاق على أمم الأنبياء بذلك.

يخبر تعالى أنه أخذ ميثاق النبيين وعهدهم المؤكد بسبب ما أعطاهم من كتاب الله المنزل، والحكمة الفاصلة بين الحق والباطل والهدى والضلال، إنه إن بعث الله رسولا مصدقا لما معهم أن يؤمنوا به ويصدقوه ويأخذوا ذلك على أممهم، فالأنبياء عليهم الصلاة والسلام قد أوجب الله عليهم أن يؤمن بعضهم ببعض، ويصدق بعضهم بعضا لأن جميع ما عندهم هو من عند الله، وكل ما من عند الله يجب التصديق به والإيمان، فهم كالشيء الواحد، فعلى هذا قد علم أن محمدا صلى الله عليه وسلم هو خاتمهم، فكل الأنبياء عليهم الصلاة والسلام لو أدركوه لوجب عليهم الإيمان به واتباعه ونصرته، وكان هو إمامهم ومقدمهم ومتبوعهم، فهذه الآية الكريمة من أعظم الدلائل على علو مرتبته وجلالة قدره، وأنه أفضل الأنبياء وسيدهم صلى الله عليه وسلم لما قررهم تعالى { قالوا أقررنا } أي: قبلنا ما أمرتنا به على الرأس والعين { قال } الله لهم: { فاشهدوا } على أنفسكم وعلى أممكم بذلك، قال { وأنا معكم من الشاهدين فمن تولى بعد ذلك } العهد والميثاق المؤكد بالشهادة من الله ومن رسله

يخبر تعالى أنه أخذ ميثاق كل نبي بعثه من لدن آدم عليه السلام إلى عيسى عليه السلام لمهما آتى الله أحدهم من كتاب وحكمة وبلغ أي مبلغ ثم جاء رسول من بعده ليؤمنن به ولينصرنه ولا يمنعه ما هو فيه من العلم والنبوة من اتباع من بعث بعده ونصرته ولهذا قال تعالى وتقدس "وإذ أخذ الله ميثاق النبيين لما آتيتكم من كتاب وحكمة" أي لمهما أعطيتكم من كتاب وحكمة" ثم جاءكم رسول مصدق لما معكم لتؤمنن به ولتنصرنه قال أأقررتم وأخذتم على ذلكم إصري " وقال ابن عباس ومجاهد والربيع بن أنس وقتادة والسدي: يعني عهدي وقال محمد بن إسحق "إصري" أي ثقل ما حملتم من عهدي أي ميثاقى الشديد المؤكد "قالوا أقررنا قال فاشهدوا وأنا معكم من الشاهدين".

And mention when God made a covenant with the prophets ‘What if read lamā it would be introducing a subject clause and emphasising the aspect of the oath in this ‘making of the covenant’; if it is read limā it would then be connected to the verb akhadha ‘He took’; the mā ‘what’ is a relative particle in both cases meaning la’lladhī or li’lladhī respectively I have given you ātaytukum or in a variant reading ātaynākum ‘We have given you’ of the Book and wisdom; then there shall come to you a messenger confirming what is with you of the Book and wisdom and that is Muhammad (s) — you shall believe in him and you shall help him’ this constitutes the response to the oath if you reach his time and perceive him and their communities of descendants follow them in what is incumbent upon them. He God exalted be He said to them ‘Do you affirm this? And do you take do you accept My load My covenant on you on that condition?’ They said ‘We affirm’. He said ‘Then bear witness to this before your own souls and those of your followers and I shall be with you among the witnesses’ before you and them.

The infallibility of the Prophets

The verse implies that a person whom Allah invests with the Book, the Wisdom and the power of making decisions, and places him on the great station of prophethood is always faithful to his mission when he communicates the Divine message to people and calls on them to be-come His faithful servants. That he starts moving people away from the worship of only one God and starts asking them to become his own worshippers or the worshippers of some other creatures is something he can never do. If so, this would mean that the one whom Allah had sent as his messenger did not, in fact, deserve this designation. Any government of this world, when appointing someone to an office of responsibility, always takes two factors into consideration:

1. Does the incumbent have the ability to comprehend and execute government policy?

2. How far can he be expected to execute government directives, and to hold its subjects in a stable stance of loyalty? No king or parliament would ever appoint someone as its representative or ambassador about whom there exists the least doubt of indulging in anti-government activity, or deviation from its policy or directives. However, it is possible that the government may have failed to make a correct assessment of a person's ability or loyalty. But with Allah even that element of doubt does not exist. If He knows about a man that he would not over-step the bounds of loyalty and obedience to Him, even in the slightest degree, then it is impossible that he could, later on, prove to be contrary to that assessment. Otherwise, it would mean that Divine knowledge is defective (we seek refuge with Allah! ) Right from here, the question of the ` ismah1 (infallibility) of the prophets, (علیہم السلام) becomes clear. Now that the blessed prophets are free of minor sins, how can the probability of doing shirk (the major sin of associating others with Allah) or making revolt against Allah remain valid?

1.` Ismah' means a special protection given to someone by Allah which makes him refrain from sins. For the purpose of brevity we may translate it as 'infallibility' – editor

In this, there is the necessary refutation of the Christians who claimed that it was Masih (علیہ السلام) who asked them to have belief in his sonship and godhead. Also chastised were the Muslims who had gone to the Holy Prophet . ﷺ trying to find out if it was all right for them to prostrate before him rather than greet him with the usual سلام salam. Also admonished were the people of the Book who had invested their rabbis and monks with the station of God. Refuge with Allah! (Tafsir ` Usmani)

And when God took the compact of the prophets, “I have given you of the Book and wis- dom. Then a messenger will come to you confirming what is with you. You shall surely have faith in him and you shall surely help him.” In the whole Qur'an, there is no verse more complete in explaining the excellence of MuṣṬafā, to whom this verse is devoted without the association of anyone else. The Lord of the Worlds made two covenants with His creatures and took two compacts from them. One was the compact He took from the creatures concerning His Godhood and Enactorship, as He said: “When your Lord took from the children of Adam, from their loins, their offspring and made them bear witness concern- ing themselves. 'Am I not your Lord?' They said, 'Yes indeed'” [7:172]. The other is the compact He took with the angels and the prophets concerning MuḤammad's prophethood and helping him, as He says, “And when God took the compact of the prophets.” This is an utmost bestowal of eminence and a perfect acknowledgment of excellence, for He made his name great with His own name and lifted up his measure with His measure. Several thousand years before the existence of MuḤammad, a command came, “O Gabriel! I will have a friend whose name is MuḤammad. He will be praised and caressed by Me, his name will be placed next to My name, his measure will be lifted up by My bounty, his being obeyed will be obedience to Me, his words will be My revelation, and following him will be friendship with Me. O Gabriel! You make a covenant with Me to have faith in him and help him.” This was when He said, “You shall surely have faith in him and you shall surely help him.” Gabriel said, “O Lord, I make a covenant that my hand will be one with his hand, I will help, and I will have faith in him.” God said, “O Gabriel! Keep to this covenant and do not oppose it.” He said, “O Lord, who would have the gall to oppose You?!” Then He said, “O Michael! You be a witness to Gabriel's covenant.” Then in the same way He made a covenant with Michael, and He told Gabriel to be witness to Michael's covenant.