Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   Allah the Exalted addresses His Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. The polytheists (mushrikīn) of his people had — as is reported — proposed to him that they would worship Allah for one year, on condition that the Prophet of Allah ﷺ would worship their gods for one year. Thereupon Allah revealed the knowledge of the answer that befitted him toward them:

   قُلْ — "Say," O Muhammad, to these polytheists who asked you to worship their gods for one year while they would worship your God for one year: يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ — "O you who disbelieve (kāfir) in Allah," لَا أَعْبُدُ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ — "I do not worship what you worship," namely the gods and idols, now at this moment, وَلَا أَنْتُمْ عَابِدُونَ مَا أَعْبُدُ — "and you do not now at this moment worship what I worship."

   وَلَا أَنَا عَابِدٌ — "And I will not in the future be a worshipper" مَا عَبَدْتُمْ — "of what you have worshipped in the past," وَلَا أَنْتُمْ عَابِدُونَ — "and you will never in the future be worshippers" مَا أَعْبُدُ — "of what I now worship and will worship in the future."

   This is stated thus because Allah's address was directed to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ concerning certain specifically named persons among the polytheists, of whom Allah knew that they would never believe — a knowledge that had already been fixed beforehand in His eternal knowledge. Thus Allah commanded His Prophet ﷺ to deprive them of all hope of that upon which they had counted and with which they had flattered themselves — namely that this would take place from him or from them at any time. Allah also caused the Prophet of Allah ﷺ to cherish no hope whatsoever of their belief, nor that they would ever succeed. And so it came to pass: they did not succeed and they had no success, until some of them were killed by the sword on the day of Badr, and others had died before that as disbelievers (kāfir).

   In accordance with what we have said about this, the exegetes (ahl al-taʾwīl) also spoke, and the transmitted reports (āthār) likewise agree with it.

   * Mention of who said this:

   Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Ḥarashī related to me, saying: Abū Khalaf related to us, saying: Dāwūd related to us, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: that Quraysh promised the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to give him wealth so that he would become the richest man of Mecca, to marry him to whatever women he wished, and to follow him — and they said to him: "This we have for you, O Muhammad, if you cease insulting our gods and no longer call them evil. But if you do not do so, then we propose to you one thing, which is also advantageous for us." He said: "What is that?" They said: "You worship our gods for one year — al-Lāt and al-ʿUzzā — and we worship your God for one year." He said: "Let me wait for what comes from my Lord." Then came the revelation from the Preserved Tablet: قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ — the entire surah — and Allah revealed: قُلْ أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَأْمُرُونِّي أَعْبُدُ أَيُّهَا الْجَاهِلُونَ ... up to His word: فَاعْبُدْ وَكُنْ مِنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ .

   Yaʿqūb related to me, saying: Ibn ʿUlayya related to us, on the authority of Muhammad ibn Isḥāq, saying: Saʿīd ibn Mīnā, freedman of al-Bakhtarī, related to me, saying: Al-Walīd ibn al-Mughīra, al-ʿĀṣ ibn Wāʾil, al-Aswad ibn al-Muṭṭalib, and Umayya ibn Khalaf met the Messenger of Allah and said: "O Muhammad, come, let us worship what you worship, and you worship what we worship, and you take part in all our affairs. For if that which you have brought is better than what we have, then we have shared in it with you and taken our portion of it; and if that which we have is better than what you have, then you have had a part in our affair and taken your portion of it." Then Allah revealed: قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ until the surah was completed.

   Show original Arabic

   يقول تعالى ذكره لنبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم, وكان المشركون من قومه فيما ذكر عرضوا عليه أن يعبدوا الله سنة, على أن يعبد نبيّ الله صلى الله عليه وسلم آلهتهم سنة, فأنـزل الله معرفه جوابهم في ذلك: ( قُلْ ) يا محمد لهؤلاء المشركين الذين سألوك عبادة آلهتهم سنة, على أن يعبدوا إلهك سنة ( يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ ) بالله ( لا أَعْبُدُ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ ) من الآلهة والأوثان الآن ( وَلا أَنْتُمْ عَابِدُونَ مَا أَعْبُدُ ) الآن ( وَلا أَنَا عَابِدٌ ) فيما أستقبل ( مَا عَبَدْتُمْ ) فيما مضى ( وَلا أَنْتُمْ عَابِدُونَ ) فيما تستقبلون أبدا( مَا أَعْبُدُ ) أنا الآن, وفيما أستقبل. وإنما قيل ذلك كذلك, لأن الخطاب من الله كان لرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم في أشخاص بأعيانهم من المشركين, قد علم أنهم لا يؤمنون أبدا , وسبق لهم ذلك في السابق من علمه, فأمر نبيه صلى الله عليه وسلم أن يؤيسهم من الذي طمعوا فيه, وحدّثوا به أنفسهم, وأن ذلك غير كائن منه ولا منهم, في وقت من الأوقات, وآيس نبي الله صلى الله عليه وسلم من الطمع في إيمانهم, ومن أن يفلحوا أبدا, فكانوا كذلك لم يفلحوا ولم ينجحوا, إلى أن قتل بعضهم يوم بدر بالسيف, وهلك بعض قبل ذلك كافرا. وبنحو الذي قلنا في ذلك قال أهل التأويل, وجاءت به الآثار. * ذكر من قال ذلك: حدثني محمد بن موسى الحَرشي, قال: ثنا أبو خلف, قال: ثنا داود, عن عكرِمة, عن ابن عباس: أن قريشا وعدوا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أن يعطوه مالا فيكون أغنى رجل بمكة, ويزّوجوه ما أراد من النساء, ويطئوا عقبه, فقالوا له: هذا لك عندنا يا محمد, وكفّ عن شتم آلهتنا, فلا تذكرها بسوء, فإن لم تفعل, فإنا نعرض عليك خصلة واحدة, فهي لك ولنا فيها صلاح. قال: " ما هي؟" قالوا: تعبد آلهتنا سنة: اللات والعزى, ونعبد إلهك سنة, قال: " حتى أنْظُرَ ما يأْتي مِنْ عِنْدِ رَبّي", فجاء الوحي من اللوح المحفوظ: ( قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ ) السورة, وأنـزل الله: قُلْ أَفَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ تَأْمُرُونِّي أَعْبُدُ أَيُّهَا الْجَاهِلُونَ ... إلى قوله: فَاعْبُدْ وَكُنْ مِنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ . حدثني يعقوب, قال: ثنا ابن عُلَية, عن محمد بن إسحاق, قال: ثني سعيد بن مينا مولى البَختري (1) قال: لقي الوليد بن المُغيرة والعاص بن وائل, والأسود بن المطلب, وأميَّة بن خلف, رسول الله, فقالوا: يا محمد, هلمّ فلنعبد ما تعبد, وتعبدْ ما نعبد, ونُشركك في أمرنا كله, فإن كان الذي جئت به خيرا مما بأيدينا، كنا قد شَرِكناك فيه, وأخذنا بحظنا منه; وإن كان الذي بأيدينا خيرا مما في يديك, كنت قد شَرِكتنا في أمرنا, وأخذت منه بحظك, فأنـزل الله: ( قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ ) حتى انقضت السورة .