English Translation and Commentary of the Holy Quran (2010)
by Maulana Muhammad Ali
Chapter 24: An-Nur — The Light (Revealed at Madinah: 9 sections, 64 verses)
Section 7 (Verses 24:51–24:57): Establishment of the Kingdom of Islam
Translation:
اِنَّمَا کَانَ قَوۡلَ الۡمُؤۡمِنِیۡنَ اِذَا دُعُوۡۤا اِلَی اللّٰہِ وَ رَسُوۡلِہٖ لِیَحۡکُمَ بَیۡنَہُمۡ اَنۡ یَّقُوۡلُوۡا سَمِعۡنَا وَ اَطَعۡنَا ؕ وَ اُولٰٓئِکَ ہُمُ الۡمُفۡلِحُوۡنَ ﴿۵۱﴾
24:51 The response of the believers, when they are invited to Allah and His Messenger that he may judge between them, is only that they say: We hear and we obey. And these it is that are successful.
وَ مَنۡ یُّطِعِ اللّٰہَ وَ رَسُوۡلَہٗ وَ یَخۡشَ اللّٰہَ وَ یَتَّقۡہِ فَاُولٰٓئِکَ ہُمُ الۡفَآئِزُوۡنَ ﴿۵۲﴾
24:52 And he who obeys Allah and His Messenger, and fears Allah and keeps duty to Him, these it is that are the achievers.
وَ اَقۡسَمُوۡا بِاللّٰہِ جَہۡدَ اَیۡمَانِہِمۡ لَئِنۡ اَمَرۡتَہُمۡ لَیَخۡرُجُنَّ ؕ قُلۡ لَّا تُقۡسِمُوۡا ۚ طَاعَۃٌ مَّعۡرُوۡفَۃٌ ؕ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ خَبِیۡرٌۢ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُوۡنَ ﴿۵۳﴾
24:53 And they swear by Allah with their strongest oaths that, if you command them, they would certainly go forth. Say: Do not swear (oaths); reasonable obedience (is desired). Surely Allah is Aware of what you do.
قُلۡ اَطِیۡعُوا اللّٰہَ وَ اَطِیۡعُوا الرَّسُوۡلَ ۚ فَاِنۡ تَوَلَّوۡا فَاِنَّمَا عَلَیۡہِ مَا حُمِّلَ وَ عَلَیۡکُمۡ مَّا حُمِّلۡتُمۡ ؕ وَ اِنۡ تُطِیۡعُوۡہُ تَہۡتَدُوۡا ؕ وَ مَا عَلَی الرَّسُوۡلِ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِیۡنُ ﴿۵۴﴾
24:54 Say: Obey Allah and obey the Messenger. But if you turn away, he is responsible for the duty imposed on him, and you are responsible for the duty imposed on you. And if you obey him, you go aright. And the duty of the Messenger is only to deliver the message clearly.
وَعَدَ اللّٰہُ الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا مِنۡکُمۡ وَ عَمِلُوا الصّٰلِحٰتِ لَیَسۡتَخۡلِفَنَّہُمۡ فِی الۡاَرۡضِ کَمَا اسۡتَخۡلَفَ الَّذِیۡنَ مِنۡ قَبۡلِہِمۡ ۪ وَ لَیُمَکِّنَنَّ لَہُمۡ دِیۡنَہُمُ الَّذِی ارۡتَضٰی لَہُمۡ وَ لَیُبَدِّلَنَّہُمۡ مِّنۡۢ بَعۡدِ خَوۡفِہِمۡ اَمۡنًا ؕ یَعۡبُدُوۡنَنِیۡ لَا یُشۡرِکُوۡنَ بِیۡ شَیۡئًا ؕ وَ مَنۡ کَفَرَ بَعۡدَ ذٰلِکَ فَاُولٰٓئِکَ ہُمُ الۡفٰسِقُوۡنَ ﴿۵۵﴾
24:55 Allah has promised to those of you who believe and do good that He will surely make them rulers in the earth as He made those before them rulers, and that He will surely establish for them their religion, which He has chosen for them, and that He will surely give them security in exchange after their fear. They will serve Me, not setting up any partner with Me. And whoever is ungrateful after this, they are the transgressors.1
وَ اَقِیۡمُوا الصَّلٰوۃَ وَ اٰتُوا الزَّکٰوۃَ وَ اَطِیۡعُوا الرَّسُوۡلَ لَعَلَّکُمۡ تُرۡحَمُوۡنَ ﴿۵۶﴾
24:56 And keep up prayer and give the due charity and obey the Messenger, so that mercy may be shown to you.
لَا تَحۡسَبَنَّ الَّذِیۡنَ کَفَرُوۡا مُعۡجِزِیۡنَ فِی الۡاَرۡضِ ۚ وَ مَاۡوٰىہُمُ النَّارُ ؕ وَ لَبِئۡسَ الۡمَصِیۡرُ ﴿٪۵۷﴾
24:57 Do not think that those who disbelieve will weaken (the Truth) in the earth; and their abode is the Fire. And it is indeed an evil destination!
Commentary:
- This verse not only prophesies the establishment of the kingdom of Islam, but also its permanence, so that successors will be raised to the Holy Prophet and the Muslims made a ruling nation on earth. By those before them are meant in particular the followers of Moses. Islam at the time of the revelation of these verses was still surrounded by enemies on all sides; there was still fear for the believers, as the verse clearly shows, and idol-worship still had the upper hand in Arabia. The triumph of Islam, which is prophesied in the parable of the Divine Light first, and the gradual advent of which is referred to afterwards, is here predicted in the clearest and most emphatic terms: the believers will be made rulers in the earth; their religion will be firmly established; security will be given to them in place of fear; Divine Unity will rule supreme. All these favours will be bestowed upon the Muslims, for which they should be thankful; but, if they are ungrateful after that, they shall be dealt with as transgressors. The word kafara, to be “ungrateful”, also means to disbelieve, and would mean here a denial in practice, or disobedience to Divine commandments. There is also a reference here to the Divine promise to raise reformers (sing. mujaddid) among the Muslims, as prophets were raised among the Israelites. Such is the clear promise contained in a saying of the Holy Prophet: “Surely Allah will raise up for this people (i.e., the Muslims) in the beginning of every century one who will revive for it its religion” (Abu Dawud, 36:1). The promise given in the verse may therefore refer not only to the temporal successors of the Holy Prophet, but also to his spiritual successors or reformers. The analogy of the Israelites, to which the verse refers, points to the appearance of a Messiah among the Muslims as a Messiah was raised among the Israelites, and it was on this verse that the claim of the late Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, the founder of the Ahmadiyya movement, was based. He claimed to be a reformer (mujaddid) for the fourteenth century of the Hijra and the Messiah whose advent among the Muslims was foretold. ↩