Tafseer of The Poets · Ash-Shu'araa · 26:184
And fear He who created you and the former creation."
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 praise, says: وَاتَّقُوا fear, O people, the punishment of your Lord الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَالْجِبِلَّةَ الأوَّلِينَ — by al-jibilla He means: the first creation, the earliest generations. The word al-jibilla has two pronunciations in Arabic: with kasra on the jīm and the bāʾ and tashdīd on the lām, and with ḍamma on the jīm and the bāʾ and tashdīd on the lām. When the hāʾ at the end is dropped, the ḍamma on the jīm and the bāʾ predominates, as Allah, exalted be His praise, says: وَلَقَدْ أَضَلَّ مِنْكُمْ جُبُلاً كَثِيرًا ("And he has indeed led astray many of you"). Sometimes the Arabs give a sukūn to the bāʾ of al-jubl, as Abū Dhuʾayb said:
"The dead draw near to perdition for her people openly, and they enjoy the people, the multitude."
And with a meaning similar to what we have said concerning the meaning of al-jibilla the exegetes spoke.
Mention of those who said that:
ʿAlī related to me, saying: Abū Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: وَاتَّقُوا الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَالْجِبِلَّةَ الأوَّلِينَ — he said: "those who were created first."
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us; and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us — all on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word: وَالْجِبِلَّةَ الأوَّلِينَ — he said: "the creation."
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said, concerning His word: وَالْجِبِلَّةَ الأوَّلِينَ — he said: "the first creation; al-jibilla means: the creation."