Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   By that is meant: with the tongue, in poetry and in speech.

   The explanation of the saying of the Exalted: ﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ لا يَهْدِيهِمُ اللَّهُ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ (١٠٤) إِنَّمَا يَفْتَرِي الْكَذِبَ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْكَاذِبُونَ (١٠٥)﴾ (Indeed, those who do not believe in the signs of Allah, Allah does not guide them, and for them there is a painful punishment (104). Indeed, only those who do not believe in the signs of Allah invent the lie, and it is they who are the liars (105)).

   The Exalted says: indeed, those who do not believe in the proofs of Allah and His indications, so as to hold true that which they point to — lā yahdīhimu-llāh (Allah does not guide them) — He says: Allah does not grant them the capacity to attain the truth, and He does not guide them to the path of right guidance in this worldly life; and for them in the Hereafter, with Allah, when they come before Him on the Day of Resurrection, there is a grievous, tormenting punishment.

   Then the Exalted, whose mention is exalted, informed the polytheists (mushrikīn) — who said to the Prophet ﷺ, "You are merely an inventor" — that it is they who are the people of invention and falsehood, and not the Prophet of Allah ﷺ nor those who believe in him; and He declared His Prophet ﷺ and his companions free of that. He said: indeed, only they invent the lie at random and utter the false: those who do not hold true the proofs of Allah and His announcements, because they expect no reward for truthfulness and fear no punishment for the lie. They are therefore the people of slander and the invention of falsehood; not he who from Allah hopes to receive the rich reward for truthfulness and who fears the painful punishment for the lie. And His saying wa-ulāʾika humu l-kādhibūn (and it is they who are the liars) — He says: and those who do not believe in the signs of Allah, they are the people of falsehood, not the believers.

   The explanation of the saying of the Exalted: ﴿مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ إِلا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ وَقَلْبُهُ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِالإيمَانِ وَلَكِنْ مَنْ شَرَحَ بِالْكُفْرِ صَدْرًا فَعَلَيْهِمْ غَضَبٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ (١٠٦)﴾ (Whoever disbelieves in Allah after his belief — except him who is compelled while his heart is at rest in faith — but whoever opens his breast to disbelief, upon them is wrath from Allah, and for them there is a tremendous punishment (106)).

   The linguists of the Arabs differed concerning what is grammatically operative upon "man" (whoever) in His saying man kafara bi-llāh (whoever disbelieves in Allah) and in His saying wa-lākin man sharaḥa bi-l-kufri ṣadran (but whoever opens his breast to disbelief). Some grammarians of Basra said: His saying fa-ʿalayhim (upon them) has become the predicate of His saying wa-lākin man sharaḥa bi-l-kufri ṣadran (but whoever opens his breast to disbelief) and of His saying man kafara bi-llāhi min baʿdi īmānihi (whoever disbelieves in Allah after his belief); He reported about them with a single report, and that points to the intended meaning.

   And some grammarians of Kufa said: these are merely two parts that have been joined together, one of which is connected to the other, so that their answer is one, like the saying of someone: "Whoever comes to us, then: whoever does good, him we honor" — with the meaning: whoever does good among those who come to us, him we honor. He said: and likewise with every pair of conditional clauses that have been joined together, the second of which is connected to the first: the answer for both is one.

   And another of the people of Basra said: no, His saying man kafara bi-llāh (whoever disbelieves in Allah) stands in the nominative by referring back to "alladhīna" (those) in His saying innamā yaftarī l-kadhiba lladhīna lā yuʾminūna bi-āyāti-llāh (indeed, only those who do not believe in the signs of Allah invent the lie). The meaning of the saying according to him is: only he invents the lie who disbelieves in Allah after his belief — except him who, among these, is compelled while his heart is at rest in faith. But this is a saying for which there is no basis. That is because, were the meaning of the saying to be as the proponent of this saying claims, then Allah, whose mention is exalted, would in this verse have excepted those who invent the lie from those who were born upon disbelief and persisted in it and never believed, and would have applied it specifically to those who at some point had believed and then, after belief, returned to disbelief. But the revelation (al-tanzīl) indicates that He did not apply it specifically to these to the exclusion of the rest of the polytheists (mushrikīn) who remained persisting in shirk (the ascribing of partners to Allah). That is because the Exalted gave a report about a group among them who attributed to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ the inventing of the lie, and He said: wa-idhā baddalnā āyatan makāna āyatin wa-llāhu aʿlamu bimā yunazzilu qālū innamā anta muftarin bal aktharuhum lā yaʿlamūn (And when We exchange one verse for another verse — and Allah knows best what He sends down — they say, "You are merely an inventor"; nay, most of them do not know). And He declared all the polytheists (mushrikīn) mendacious in their invention against Allah, and informed that they are more deserving of that description than the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He said: innamā yaftarī l-kadhiba lladhīna lā yuʾminūna bi-āyāti-llāhi wa-ulāʾika humu l-kādhibūn (indeed, only those who do not believe in the signs of Allah invent the lie, and it is they who are the liars). And if those intended by this verse were precisely those who disbelieved in Allah after their belief, then it would be necessary that those who said to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ "You are merely an inventor" when Allah exchanged one verse for another verse, were precisely those who disbelieved in Allah after belief — they exclusively and none other of the rest of the polytheists (mushrikīn) — because this verse stands in the course of the report about them. Now, that is a saying which, if anyone utters it, becomes clear in its untenability, besides the fact that it departs from the interpretation of all the people of knowledge concerning the interpretation.

   And the correct view concerning this, according to me, is that what places "man" (whoever) — both the first and the second — in the nominative is His saying fa-ʿalayhim ghaḍabun mina-llāh (upon them is wrath from Allah). The Arabs are accustomed to doing this with the conditional particles when they make one follow upon the other in a fresh beginning.

   And it has been mentioned that this verse came down concerning ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir and a group who had accepted Islam, whereupon the polytheists (mushrikīn) subjected them to trial in order to turn them away from their religion; some of them remained steadfast in Islam, and some succumbed under the trial.

   * The mention of who said that:

   Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His saying man kafara bi-llāhi min baʿdi īmānihi illā man ukriha wa-qalbuhu muṭmaʾinnun bi-l-īmān (whoever disbelieves in Allah after his belief, except him who is compelled while his heart is at rest in faith) ... to the end of the verse: and that was because the polytheists (mushrikīn) seized ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir and tortured him, and then let him go, whereupon he returned to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and told him about what he had undergone from the Quraysh and what he had said. Thereupon Allah, whose mention is exalted, sent down his excuse: man kafara bi-llāhi min baʿdi īmānihi (whoever disbelieves in Allah after his belief) ... up to His saying wa-lahum ʿadhābun ʿaẓīm (and for them there is a tremendous punishment).

   Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning man kafara bi-llāhi min baʿdi īmānihi illā man ukriha wa-qalbuhu muṭmaʾinnun bi-l-īmān (whoever disbelieves in Allah after his belief, except him who is compelled while his heart is at rest in faith). He said: it has been reported to us that it came down concerning ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir; the Banū l-Mughīra seized him and submerged him in the well of Maymūn and said: "Disbelieve in Muḥammad!", whereupon he followed them in that while his heart was averse. Thereupon Allah, whose mention is exalted, sent down: illā man ukriha wa-qalbuhu muṭmaʾinnun bi-l-īmāni wa-lākin man sharaḥa bi-l-kufri ṣadran (except him who is compelled while his heart is at rest in faith — but whoever opens his breast to disbelief), that is to say: whoever comes to disbelief out of his own choice and pleasure, fa-ʿalayhim ghaḍabun mina-llāhi wa-lahum ʿadhābun ʿaẓīm (upon them is wrath from Allah, and for them there is a tremendous punishment).

   Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of ʿAbd al-Karīm al-Jazarī, on the authority of Abū ʿUbayda ibn Muḥammad ibn ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir, saying: the polytheists (mushrikīn) seized ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir and tortured him until he met them in a part of what they wanted. He complained about that to the Prophet ﷺ, whereupon the Prophet ﷺ said: "How do you find your heart?" He said: "At rest in faith." The Prophet ﷺ said: "If they repeat it, then you repeat it too."

   Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Hushaym related to us, on the authority of Ḥuṣayn, on the authority of Abū Mālik, concerning His saying illā man ukriha wa-qalbuhu muṭmaʾinnun bi-l-īmān (except him who is compelled while his heart is at rest in faith). He said: it came down concerning ʿAmmār ibn Yāsir.

   Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Mughīra, on the authority of al-Shaʿbī, saying: when [here the source text breaks off]

   Show original Arabic

   يعني باللسان القصيدة والكلمة (١) . القول في تأويل قوله تعالى: ﴿إِنَّ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ لا يَهْدِيهِمُ اللَّهُ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ (١٠٤) إِنَّمَا يَفْتَرِي الْكَذِبَ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْكَاذِبُونَ (١٠٥)﴾ يقول تعالى إن الذين لا يؤمنون بحجج الله وأدلته، فيصدّقون بما دلَّت عليه (لا يَهْدِيهِمُ اللَّهُ) يقول: لا يوفقهم الله لإصابة الحقّ، ولا يهديهم لسبيل الرشد في الدنيا، ولهم في الآخرة وعند الله إذا وردوا عليه يوم القيامة عذاب مؤلم موجع. ثم أخبر تعالى ذكره المشركين الذين قالوا للنبيّ ﷺ: إنما أنت مفتر، أنهم هم أهل الفرية والكذب، لا نبيّ الله ﷺ، والمؤمنون به، وبرأ من ذلك نبيه ﷺ وأصحابه، فقال: إنما يتخرّص الكذب، ويتقوّل الباطل، الذين لا يصدّقون بحجج الله وإعلامه، لأنهم لا يرجون على الصدق ثوابا، ولا يخافون على الكذب عقابا، فهم أهل الإفك وافتراء الكذب، لا من كان راجيا من الله على الصدق الثواب الجزيل، وخائفا على الكذب العقاب الأليم. وقوله (وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْكَاذِبُونَ) يقول: والذين لا يؤمنون بآيات الله هم أهل الكذب لا المؤمنون. القول في تأويل قوله تعالى: ﴿مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ إِلا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ وَقَلْبُهُ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِالإيمَانِ وَلَكِنْ مَنْ شَرَحَ بِالْكُفْرِ صَدْرًا فَعَلَيْهِمْ غَضَبٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ (١٠٦)﴾ اختلف أهل العربية في العامل في "مَنْ" من قوله (مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ) ومن قوله (وَلَكِنْ مَنْ شَرَحَ بِالْكُفْرِ صَدْرًا)، فقال بعض نحويي البصرة: صار قوله (فَعَلَيْهِمْ) خبرًا لقوله (وَلَكِنْ مَنْ شَرَحَ بِالْكُفْرِ صَدْرًا)، وقوله (مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ) فأخبر لهم بخبر واحد، وكان ذلك يدلّ على المعنى. وقال بعض نحويي الكوفة: إنما هذان جزءان اجتمعا، أحدهما منعقد بالآخر، فجوابهما واحد كقول القائل: من يأتنا فمن يحسن نكرمه، بمعنى: من يحسن ممن يأتنا نكرمه. قال: وكذلك كلّ جزاءين اجتمعا الثاني منعقد بالأوّل، فالجواب لهما واحد. وقال آخر من أهل البصرة: بل قوله (مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ) مرفوع بالردّ على الذين في قوله (إِنَّمَا يَفْتَرِي الْكَذِبَ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ) ومعنى الكلام عنده: إنما يفتري الكذب من كفر بالله من بعد إيمانه، إلا من أكره من هؤلاء وقلبه مطمئنّ بالإيمان، وهذا قول لا وجه له. وذلك أن معنى الكلام لو كان كما قال قائل هذا القول، لكان الله تعالى ذكره قد أخرج ممن افترى الكذب في هذه الآية الذين وُلدوا على الكفر وأقاموا عليه، ولم يؤمنوا قطّ، وخصّ به الذين قد كانوا آمنوا في حال، ثم راجعوا الكفر بعد الإيمان، والتنزيل يدلّ على أنه لم يخصص بذلك هؤلاء دون سائر المشركين الذين كانوا على الشرك مقيمين، وذلك أنه تعالى أخبر خبر قوم منهم أضافوا إلى رسول الله ﷺ افتراء الكذب، فقال: (وَإِذَا بَدَّلْنَا آيَةً مَكَانَ آيَةٍ وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يُنزلُ قَالُوا إِنَّمَا أَنْتَ مُفْتَرٍ بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لا يَعْلَمُونَ) وكذّب جميع المشركين بافترائهم على الله وأخبر أنهم أحق بهذه الصفة من رسول الله ﷺ، فقال (إِنَّمَا يَفْتَرِي الْكَذِبَ الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْكَاذِبُونَ)، ولو كان الذين عنوا بهذه الآية هم الذين كفروا بالله من بعد إيمانهم، وجب أن يكون القائلون لرسول الله ﷺ، إنما أنت مفتر حين بدّل الله آية مكان آية، كانوا هم الذين كفروا بالله بعد الإيمان خاصة دون غيرهم من سائر المشركين، لأن هذه في سياق الخبر عنهم، وذلك قول إن قاله قائل، فبين فساده مع خروجه عن تأويل جميع أهل العلم بالتأويل. والصواب من القول في ذلك عندي أن الرافع لمن الأولى والثانية، قوله (فَعَلَيْهِمْ غَضَبٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ) والعرب تفعل ذلك في حروف الجزاء إذا استأنفت أحدهما على آخر. وذكر أن هذه الآية نزلت في عمار بن ياسر وقوم كانوا أسلموا ففتنهم المشركون عن دينهم، فثبت على الإسلام بعضهم، وافتتن بعض. * ذكر من قال ذلك: حدثني محمد بن سعد، قال: ثني أبي، قال: ثني عمى، قال: ثني أبي، عن أبيه، عن ابن عباس، قوله (مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ إِلا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ وَقَلْبُهُ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِالإيمَانِ) ... إلى آخر الآية، وذلك أن المشركين أصابوا عمار بن ياسر فعذّبوه، ثم تركوه، فرجع إلى رسول الله ﷺ فحدّثه بالذي لقي من قريش، والذي قال: فأنزل الله تعالى ذكره عذره (مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ) ... إلى قوله (وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ) . حدثنا بشر، قال: ثنا يزيد، قال: ثنا سعيد، عن قتادة (مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِيمَانِهِ إِلا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ وَقَلْبُهُ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِالإيمَانِ) قال: ذُكِر لنا أنها نزلت في عمار بن ياسر، أخذه بنو المغيرة فغطوه في بئر ميمون وقالوا: اكفر بمحمد، فتابعهم على ذلك وقلبه كاره، فأنزل لله تعالى ذكره (إِلا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ وَقَلْبُهُ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِالإيمَانِ وَلَكِنْ مَنْ شَرَحَ بِالْكُفْرِ صَدْرًا): أي من أتى الكفر على اختيار واستحباب، (فَعَلَيْهِمْ غَضَبٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ) . حدثنا ابن عبد الأعلى، قال: ثنا محمد بن ثور، عن معمر، عن عبد الكريم الجزري، عن أبي عبيدة بن محمد بن عمار بن ياسر، قال: أخذ المشركون عمار بن ياسر، فعذّبوه حتى باراهم في بعض ما أرادوا فشكا ذلك إلى النبيّ ﷺ، فقال النبيّ ﷺ: كَيْفَ تَجدُ قَلْبَكَ؟ قال: مطمئنا بالإيمان. قال النبيّ ﷺ: فإنْ عادُوا فَعُدْ". حدثني يعقوب بن إبراهيم، قال: ثنا هشيم، عن حصين، عن أبي مالك، في قوله (إِلا مَنْ أُكْرِهَ وَقَلْبُهُ مُطْمَئِنٌّ بِالإيمَانِ) قال: نزلت في عمار بن ياسر. حدثنا ابن حميد، قال: ثنا جرير، عن مغيرة، عن الشعبي، قال: لما