English Translation and Commentary of the Holy Quran (2010)
by Maulana Muhammad Ali
Chapter 6: Al-Anam — The Cattle (Revealed at Makkah: 20 sections, 165 verses)
Section 10 (Verses 6:83–6:90): Prophets among Abraham’s Descendants
Translation:
وَ تِلۡکَ حُجَّتُنَاۤ اٰتَیۡنٰہَاۤ اِبۡرٰہِیۡمَ عَلٰی قَوۡمِہٖ ؕ نَرۡفَعُ دَرَجٰتٍ مَّنۡ نَّشَآءُ ؕ اِنَّ رَبَّکَ حَکِیۡمٌ عَلِیۡمٌ ﴿۸۳﴾
6:83 And this was Our argument which We gave to Abraham against his people. We exalt in degrees whom We please. Surely your Lord is Wise, Knowing.
وَ وَہَبۡنَا لَہٗۤ اِسۡحٰقَ وَ یَعۡقُوۡبَ ؕ کُلًّا ہَدَیۡنَا ۚ وَ نُوۡحًا ہَدَیۡنَا مِنۡ قَبۡلُ وَ مِنۡ ذُرِّیَّتِہٖ دَاوٗدَ وَ سُلَیۡمٰنَ وَ اَیُّوۡبَ وَ یُوۡسُفَ وَ مُوۡسٰی وَ ہٰرُوۡنَ ؕ وَ کَذٰلِکَ نَجۡزِی الۡمُحۡسِنِیۡنَ ﴿ۙ۸۴﴾
6:84 And We gave him Isaac and Jacob. Each did We guide; and Noah did We guide before, and of his descendants, David and Solomon and Job and Joseph and Moses and Aaron. And thus do We reward those who do good (to others),
وَ زَکَرِیَّا وَ یَحۡیٰی وَ عِیۡسٰی وَ اِلۡیَاسَ ؕ کُلٌّ مِّنَ الصّٰلِحِیۡنَ ﴿ۙ۸۵﴾
6:85 and Zacharias and John and Jesus and Elias; each one (of them) was of the righteous,
وَ اِسۡمٰعِیۡلَ وَ الۡیَسَعَ وَ یُوۡنُسَ وَ لُوۡطًا ؕ وَ کُلًّا فَضَّلۡنَا عَلَی الۡعٰلَمِیۡنَ ﴿ۙ۸۶﴾
6:86 and Ishmael and Elisha and Jonah and Lot; and each one (of them) We made to excel the people;
وَ مِنۡ اٰبَآئِہِمۡ وَ ذُرِّیّٰتِہِمۡ وَ اِخۡوَانِہِمۡ ۚ وَ اجۡتَبَیۡنٰہُمۡ وَ ہَدَیۡنٰہُمۡ اِلٰی صِرَاطٍ مُّسۡتَقِیۡمٍ ﴿۸۷﴾
6:87 and some of their fathers and their descendants and their brethren. And We chose them and guided them to the right way.
ذٰلِکَ ہُدَی اللّٰہِ یَہۡدِیۡ بِہٖ مَنۡ یَّشَآءُ مِنۡ عِبَادِہٖ ؕ وَ لَوۡ اَشۡرَکُوۡا لَحَبِطَ عَنۡہُمۡ مَّا کَانُوۡا یَعۡمَلُوۡنَ ﴿۸۸﴾
6:88 This is Allah’s guidance with which He guides whom He pleases of His servants. And if they had set up partners (with Him), all that they did would have been fruitless.
اُولٰٓئِکَ الَّذِیۡنَ اٰتَیۡنٰہُمُ الۡکِتٰبَ وَ الۡحُکۡمَ وَ النُّبُوَّۃَ ۚ فَاِنۡ یَّکۡفُرۡ بِہَا ہٰۤؤُلَآءِ فَقَدۡ وَکَّلۡنَا بِہَا قَوۡمًا لَّیۡسُوۡا بِہَا بِکٰفِرِیۡنَ ﴿۸۹﴾
6:89 These are they to whom We gave the Book and authority and prophecy.1 Therefore if these disbelieve in it, We have indeed entrusted it to a people who are not disbelievers in it.
اُولٰٓئِکَ الَّذِیۡنَ ہَدَی اللّٰہُ فَبِہُدٰىہُمُ اقۡتَدِہۡ ؕ قُلۡ لَّاۤ اَسۡـَٔلُکُمۡ عَلَیۡہِ اَجۡرًا ؕ اِنۡ ہُوَ اِلَّا ذِکۡرٰی لِلۡعٰلَمِیۡنَ ﴿٪۹۰﴾
6:90 These are they whom Allah guided, so follow their guidance. Say: I do not ask you for any reward for it. It is nothing but a Reminder for the nations.2
Commentary:
- Each one of the prophets was given three things. The first was the Kitāb, the Book, or the Divine revelation which the prophet was granted to guide people aright. The second is called ḥukm, which means authority to judge. This shows that every prophet received authority directly from God, and it was by Divine authority that he judged his people. The third is nubuwwat, which means prophethood or the gift of prophecy. The Book contains directions for guidance of the people and nubuwwat is the prophetical part which is meant to strengthen faith. Thus the Holy Prophet Muhammad was granted the gift of prophecy long before he was granted the Book which began with the words, Read in the name of your Lord (96:1). Further there is a vast number of his prophecies which are contained in the Hadith and which do not form a part of the Book, the Quran. ↩︎
- The Prophet is told to follow the guidance of all the earlier prophets because his message was for all the nations to whom previous prophets had separately come. Hence the Quran is called a Reminder, showing that it was meant for all the nations, to whom it was a reminder of what they had received before. The Prophet is, in fact, here told that he was now the representative of all the prophets that had gone before him, and therefore possessed all the excellences which were granted to those prophets separately. ↩︎