Tafseer of Hud · Hud · 11:59
And that was 'Aad, who rejected the signs of their Lord and disobeyed His messengers and followed the order of every obstinate tyrant.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of the words of Allah the Exalted: وَتِلْكَ عَادٌ جَحَدُوا بِآيَاتِ رَبِّهِمْ وَعَصَوْا رُسُلَهُ وَاتَّبَعُوا أَمْرَ كُلِّ جَبَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ (59) (And those were ʿĀd: they denied the signs of their Lord, resisted His messengers, and followed the command of every arrogant, obstinate tyrant.)
Abū Jaʿfar said: Allah the Exalted here says: And these are the ones upon whom We brought down Our vengeance and chastisement — ʿĀd. They denied the proofs and arguments of Allah. They resisted His messengers, who had been sent to them to invite them to the acknowledgment of His oneness and the following of His command. وَاتَّبَعُوا أَمْرَ كُلِّ جَبَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ — that is to say: the command of everyone who exalts himself above Allah, who deviates from the truth and does not accept it nor submit to it.
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Of this one says: "ʿanada ʿan al-ḥaqq, fa-huwa yaʿnidu ʿunūdan" (he deviated from the truth, and he deviates from it). And "the man is a ʿānid and a ʿanūd". Hence, concerning a vein that breaks open and does not stop, one also says: "ʿirq ʿānid" — that is to say: a vein that cannot be staunched.
And from this is derived the saying of the poet:
"Innī kabīrun lā uṭīqu l-ʿunnadā" (I am old and can no longer master the recalcitrant ones.)
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18282. Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning the word of Allah: وَاتَّبَعُوا أَمْرَ كُلِّ جَبَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ — that is the polytheist (mushrik).
