Tafseer of The Bee · An-Nahl · 16:82
But if they turn away, [O Muhammad] - then only upon you is [responsibility for] clear notification.
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.
Allah, exalted be His remembrance, says to His Prophet Muhammad ﷺ: If these polytheists (mushrikīn), O Muhammad, turn away from the truth that I have sent you to them with and do not respond to you and turn away from it — then no blame and no reproach rests upon you, for you have fulfilled that which rested upon you therein. There rests upon you only the proclamation to them of what you have been sent with. And by His word الْمُبِينُ He means: that which makes clear to whoever hears it so that he understands it.
As for His word يَعْرِفُونَ نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ ثُمَّ يُنْكِرُونَهَا : the people of interpretation differed concerning the meaning of the favor (niʿma) which Allah, exalted be His remembrance, has stated that these polytheists deny despite their knowledge of it. Some said: it is the Prophet ﷺ — they acknowledged his prophethood (nubuwwa) but then denied it afterward and called him a liar.
Those who said this:
[The isnāds of the following narrations follow in the segment 16:83 (cd01c284). This segment (16:82) concludes with the exposition of Ṭabarī's own preference for the interpretation:]
And we have preferred the opinion that we have chosen regarding the first parable because Allah, exalted be His remembrance... [the text continues into the following segment]
