Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   The explanation of the words of Allah, exalted be His praise: وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ (And when it is said to them: "Believe as the people have believed")

   Abū Jaʿfar said: The explanation of His words (And when it is said to them: "Believe as the people have believed") means: And when it is said to these — whom Allah has described and characterized with the trait that they say: "We believe in Allah and in the Last Day," while they are not believers — when it is said to them: "Give credence to Muḥammad and to that with which he has come from Allah, as the people have given credence to it." And by "the people" are meant: the believers who have believed in Muḥammad, in his prophethood, and in that with which he has come from Allah. As in:

   343 — Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: ʿUthmān ibn Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Bishr ibn ʿUmāra, on the authority of Abū Rawq, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His words (And when it is said to them: "Believe as the people have believed"): he says: And when it is said to them: "Give credence as the companions of Muḥammad have given credence; say: 'He is a prophet and a messenger, and that which has been sent down to him is truth'; and give credence to the Hereafter and to the fact that you will be resurrected after death."

   The alif and the lām (the definite article) have only been inserted in "al-nās" (the people) — though they are only a portion of the people and not all of them — because they were personally known to those to whom this āyah was directed. For the meaning is: Believe as the people whom you know have believed, those who belong to the people of certainty and of the affirmation of Allah and of Muḥammad ﷺ and of that with which he has come from Allah, and of the Last Day. That is why the alif and the lām were inserted therein, just as they were inserted in His words: الَّذِينَ قَالَ لَهُمُ النَّاسُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُوا لَكُمْ فَاخْشَوْهُمْ [Surah Āl ʿImrān: 173] ("To whom the people said: 'The people have gathered against you, so fear them'"), for by inserting them a reference was made to particular people who were known to the one to whom that was directed.

   The explanation of His words, exalted be His praise: قَالُوا أَنُؤْمِنُ كَمَا آمَنَ السُّفَهَاءُ (They said: "Shall we believe as the fools have believed?")

   Abū Jaʿfar said: "al-sufahāʾ" (the fools) is the plural of "safīh" (fool), just as "al-ʿulamāʾ" (the scholars) is the plural of "ʿalīm" (knower), and "al-ḥukamāʾ" (the wise) the plural of "ḥakīm" (wise one). And the "safīh" is: the ignorant one, the weak of judgment, the one with little knowledge of the places where benefits and harms lie. That is why Allah, mighty and exalted, named the women and the children "sufahāʾ," and He said, exalted: وَلا تُؤْتُوا السُّفَهَاءَ أَمْوَالَكُمُ الَّتِي جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ قِيَامًا [Surah al-Nisāʾ: 5] ("And do not give to the fools your wealth which Allah has made a means of support for you"). The majority of the people of exegesis said: these are the women and the children, on account of the weakness of their judgment and the paucity of their knowledge of the places of the interests and harms on which wealth is spent.

   By their saying "Shall we believe as the fools have believed?" the hypocrites meant — when they were invited to the affirmation of Muḥammad ﷺ and of that with which he has come from Allah, and to the acknowledgment of the resurrection, and it was said to them: "Believe as [the people] have believed" — the companions of Muḥammad and his followers among the believers who affirmed him, belonging to the people of faith and certainty and of the affirmation of Allah and of that which He has imposed upon them through the tongue of His messenger Muḥammad ﷺ and in His Book, and of the Last Day. So they said, in answer to the one who said that to them: "Shall we believe as the people of ignorance have believed, and shall we affirm Muḥammad ﷺ as these have affirmed him who have no intellect and no understanding?" As in:

   344 — Mūsā ibn Hārūn related to me, saying: ʿAmr ibn Ḥammād related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī, in a report that he mentioned, on the authority of Abū Mālik, and on the authority of Abū Ṣāliḥ, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās — and on the authority of Murra al-Hamdānī, on the authority of Ibn Masʿūd, and on the authority of a number of people of the companions of the Prophet ﷺ: (They said: "Shall we believe as the fools have believed?"), by which they meant the companions of the Prophet ﷺ.

   345 — Al-Muthannā ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Isḥāq ibn al-Ḥajjāj related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Abī Jaʿfar related to us, on the authority of his father, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ ibn Anas: (They said: "Shall we believe as the fools have believed?"), by which they meant the companions of Muḥammad ﷺ.

   346 — Yūnus ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Zayd ibn Aslam related to us, concerning His words "They said: 'Shall we believe as the fools have believed?'", he said: This is the saying of the hypocrites, by which they mean the companions of the Prophet ﷺ.

   347 — Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: ʿUthmān ibn Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Bishr ibn ʿUmāra, on the authority of Abū Rawq, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: (They said: "Shall we believe as the fools have believed?"), they say: "Shall we say as the fools say?" — by which they mean the companions of Muḥammad ﷺ, on account of their deviation from their [own] religion.

   The explanation of His words, exalted be His praise: أَلا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ السُّفَهَاءُ وَلَكِنْ لا يَعْلَمُونَ (Indeed, it is they who are the fools, but they do not know) (13)

   Abū Jaʿfar said: This is a report from Allah, exalted is He, about the hypocrites whose characterization has already preceded and whom He has described with that with which He described them of doubt and denial — namely that it is they who are the ignorant ones in their religions, the weak of judgment in their convictions and in the choices that they have made for themselves of doubt and suspicion regarding the matter of Allah, the matter of His messenger, the matter of his prophethood, and regarding that with which he has come from Allah, and the matter of the resurrection — on account of the evil that they did to themselves with that which they brought therein, while they suppose that they are doing good to themselves. And that is precisely the essence of foolishness (safah), for the fool only brings corruption while supposing that he is setting things right, and destroys while supposing that he is preserving. So too is the hypocrite: he is disobedient to his Lord while supposing that he obeys Him, he disbelieves in Him while supposing that he believes in Him, and he does evil to himself while supposing that he does good to himself — just as our Lord, exalted be His remembrance, has described them, and He said: أَلا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ الْمُفْسِدُونَ وَلَكِنْ لا يَشْعُرُونَ ("Indeed, it is they who are the corrupters, but they do not perceive it"), and He said: (Indeed, it is they who are the fools) — not the believers who affirm Allah, His Book, His messenger, His reward and His punishment — (but they do not know). And thus did Ibn ʿAbbās use to explain this āyah.

   348 — Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: ʿUthmān ibn Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Bishr ibn ʿUmāra, on the authority of Abū Rawq, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: Allah, exalted be His praise, says: (Indeed, it is they who are the fools), he says: the ignorant ones, (but they do not know), he says: but they do not understand.

   As for the manner in which the alif and the lām have been inserted in "al-sufahāʾ" (the fools): it is similar to the manner in which they both have been inserted in "al-nās" (the people) in His words: وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ (And when it is said to them: "Believe as the people have believed"). We have already set forth the reason for their insertion there, and the reason for their insertion in "al-sufahāʾ" is entirely the same as the reason for their insertion in "al-nās" there.

   And the indication that this āyah provides concerning the falseness of the statement of him who claims that the punishment of Allah is only deserved by him who obstinately opposes his Lord, after he knows the correctness of that which he opposes — is similar to the indication of the other āyāt whose explanation we have already mentioned earlier at His words وَلَكِنْ لا يَشْعُرُونَ ("but they do not perceive it"), and the like cases thereof.

   Show original Arabic

   القول في تأويل قول الله جل ثناؤه: وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ قال أبو جعفر: وتأويل قوله: (وإذا قيل لهم آمنوا كما آمن الناس) يعني: وإذا قيل لهؤلاء الذين وَصَفهم الله ونعتَهم بأنهم يقولون: آمَنَّا بِاللَّهِ وَبِالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ وَمَا هُمْ بِمُؤْمِنِينَ صَدِّقوا بمحمد وبما جاء به من عند الله، كما صدق به الناس. ويعني بـِ " الناس ": المؤمنين الذين آمنوا بمحمد ونبوته وما جاء به من عند الله. كما-: 343- حدثنا أبو كُريب, قال: حدثنا عثمان بن سعيد, عن بشر بن عُمارة, عن أبي رَوْق, عن الضحاك، عن ابن عباس في قوله: ( وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ )، يقول: وإذا قيل لهم صدِّقوا كما صدَّق أصحاب محمد, قولوا: إنَّه نبيٌّ ورسول, وإنّ ما أنـزل عليه حقّ, وصدِّقوا بالآخرة, وأنَّكم مبعوثون من بعد الموت (81) . وإنما أدخِلت الألف واللام في" الناس "، وهم بعضُ الناس لا جميعُهم، لأنهم كانوا معروفين عند الذين خُوطبوا بهذه الآية بأعيانهم، وإنما معناه: آمِنُوا كما آمَن الناس الذين تعرفونهم من أهل اليقين والتصديق بالله وبمحمد صلى الله عليه وسلم وما جاء به من عند الله وباليوم الآخر. فلذلك أدخِلت الألف واللام فيه، كما أدخِلَتا في قوله: الَّذِينَ قَالَ لَهُمُ النَّاسُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُوا لَكُمْ فَاخْشَوْهُمْ [سورة آل عمران: 173]، لأنه أشِير بدخولها إلى ناس معروفين عند مَن خُوطب بذلك. القول في تأويل قوله جل ثناؤه: قَالُوا أَنُؤْمِنُ كَمَا آمَنَ السُّفَهَاءُ قال أبو جعفر: والسفهاء جمع سَفِيه, كما العلماء جمع عليم (82) ، والحكماء جمعُ حكيم. والسفيه: الجاهل، الضعيفُ الرأي, القليلُ المعرفة بمواضع المنافع والمضارّ. ولذلك سمى الله عز وجل النِّساء والصبيانَ سفهاء, فقال تعالى: وَلا تُؤْتُوا السُّفَهَاءَ أَمْوَالَكُمُ الَّتِي جَعَلَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ قِيَامًا [سورة النساء: 5]، فقال عامة أهل التأويل: هم النساء والصبيان، لضعف آرائهم, وقلة معرفتهم بمواضع المصالح والمضارِّ التي تصرف إليها الأموال. وإنما عَنَى المنافقون بقيلهم: أنؤمن كما آمَن السُّفهاء - إذْ دُعوا إلى التصديق بمحمد صلى الله عليه وسلم, وبما جاء به من عند الله, والإقرار بالبعث فقيل لهم: آمنوا كما آمن [الناس] (83) - أصحابَ محمدٍ وأتباعَه من المؤمنين المصدِّقين به، من أهل الإيمان واليقين، والتصديقِ بالله، وبما افترض عليهم على لسان رسوله محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم وفي كتابه، وباليوم الآخر. فقالوا إجابة لقائل ذلك لهم: أنؤمن كما آمَن أهل الجهل، ونصدِّق بمحمد صلى الله عليه وسلم كما صدّق به هؤلاء الذين لا عقولَ لهم ولا أفهام؟ كالذي-: 344- حدثني موسى بن هارون, قال: حدثنا عمرو بن حماد, قال: حدثنا أسباط، عن السُّدِّيّ في خبر ذكره، عن أبي مالك, وعن أبي صالح, عن ابن عباس - وعن مُرَّة الهَمْداني, عن ابن مسعود, وعن ناس من أصحاب النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: ( قَالُوا أَنُؤْمِنُ كَمَا آمَنَ السُّفَهَاءُ )، يعنون أصحابَ النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم. 345- حدثني المثنّى بن إبراهيم, قال: حدثنا إسحاق بن الحجاج, قال: حدثنا عبد الله بن أبي جعفر, عن أبيه، عن الربيع بن أنس: ( قَالُوا أَنُؤْمِنُ كَمَا آمَنَ السُّفَهَاءُ ) يعنون أصحاب محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم. 346- حدثني يونس بن عبد الأعلى, قال: أنبأنا ابن وهب, قال: حدثنا عبد الرحمن بن زيد بن أسلم في قوله: " قالوا أنؤمن كما آمن السفهاء "، قال: هذا قول المنافقين, يريدون أصحابَ النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم. 347- حدثنا أبو كُريب, قال: حدثنا عثمان بن سعيد, عن بشر بن عُمارة, عن أبي رَوْق, عن الضحاك, عن ابن عباس: ( قَالُوا أَنُؤْمِنُ كَمَا آمَنَ السُّفَهَاءُ ) يقولون: أنقول كما تقولُ السفهاء؟ يعنون أصحابَ محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم, لخِلافهم لدينهم (84) . القول في تأويل قوله جل ثناؤه: أَلا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ السُّفَهَاءُ وَلَكِنْ لا يَعْلَمُونَ (13) قال أبو جعفر: وهذا خبرٌ من الله تعالى عن المنافقين الذين تقدم نعتُه لهم، ووصفُه إياهم بما وصفهم به من الشك والتكذيب - أنَّهم هُم الجُهَّال في أديانهم, &; 1-295 &; الضعفاء الآراء في اعتقاداتهم واختياراتهم التي اختاروها لأنفسهم، من الشكّ والريْب في أمر الله وأمر رسوله وأمر نبوته, وفيما جاء به من عند الله, وأمر البعث, لإساءَتهم إلى أنفسهم بما أتَوْا من ذلك وهم يحسبون أنَّهم إليها يُحْسِنون. وذلك هو عَيْنُ السَّفه, لأن السفيه إنما يُفسد من حيث يرى أنه يُصلحُ، ويُضيع من حيث يَرى أنه يحفظ، فكذلك المنافق: يَعصي رَبَّه من حيث يرى أنه يطيعُه, ويكفرُ به من حيث يرى أنه يُؤمن به, ويسيء إلى نفسه من حيث يحسب أنه يُحسن إليها, كما وصفهم به ربنا جلّ ذكره، فقال: أَلا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ الْمُفْسِدُونَ وَلَكِنْ لا يَشْعُرُونَ ، وقال: (ألا إنهم هم السفهاء) - دون المؤمنين المصدّقين بالله وبكتابه، وبرسوله وثوابه وعقابه -(ولكن لا يعلمون). وكذلك كان ابن عباس يتأول هذه الآية. 348- حدثنا أبو كُريب, قال: حدثنا عثمان بن سعيد, عن بشر بن عُمارة, عن أبي رَوْق, عن الضحاك, عن ابن عباس يقول الله جل ثناؤه: ( أَلا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ السُّفَهَاءُ )، يقول: الجهال,(ولكن لا يعلمون)، يقول: ولكن لا يعقلون (85) . وأما وَجْهُ دخول الألف واللام في" السُّفهاء "، فشبيه بوجه دخولهما في النَّاسُ في قوله: وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمْ آمِنُوا كَمَا آمَنَ النَّاسُ ، وقد بيَّنا العلة في دخولهما هنالك, والعلةُ في دخولهما في" السفهاء " نظيرتها في دخولهما في النَّاسُ هنالك، سواء. والدلالةُ التي تدل عليه هذه الآية من خطأ قول من زعم أن العقوبةَ من الله لا يستحقّها إلا المعاند ربَّه، بعد علمه بصحة ما عانده فيه - نظيرُ دلالة الآيات الأخَر التي قد تقدم ذكرنا تأويلَها في قوله وَلَكِنْ لا يَشْعُرُونَ ، ونظائر ذلك (86) . ------------------- الهوامش : (81) الخبر 343- نقله السيوطي 1 : 30 ، والشوكاني 1 : 31 ، ويأتي تمامه في تفسير بقية الآية ، برقمي : 347 ، 348 . (82) في المطبوعة : "كالعلماء . . . " . (83) في المطبوعة والمخطوطة : "فقال لهم آمنوا كما آمن أصحاب محمد . . . " ، وهو كلام مضطرب والصواب ما أثبتناه . وقوله : "أصحاب محمد" مفعول قوله : "وإنما عنى المنافقون بقيلهم . . " . (84) الأخبار 344 - 347 : أشار إليها ابن كثير 1 : 92 والسيوطي 1 : 30 والشوكاني 1 : 31 والأخير منها من تتمة الخبر : 343 . (85) الخبر 348- هو تتمة الخبرين : 343 ، 347 . (86) في المطبوعة : "مع علمه بصحة ما عاند فيه" ، وفيها أيضًا : " . . . ونظير ذلك" .