Tafseer of The Ant · An-Naml · 27:36
So when they came to Solomon, he said, "Do you provide me with wealth? But what Allah has given me is better than what He has given you. Rather, it is you who rejoice in your gift.
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.
And His word فَلَمَّا جَاءَ سُلَيْمَانَ قَالَ أَتُمِدُّونَنِ بِمَالٍ.
If someone asks: how was it said فَلَمَّا جَاءَ سُلَيْمَانَ, where the report about the coming is as that of a single individual, whereas previously it had been said فَنَاظِرَةٌ بِمَ يَرْجِعُ الْمُرْسَلُونَ — if the messenger was one, how then was it said الْمُرْسَلُونَ (in the plural)? And if it was a group, how then was it said فَلَمَّا جَاءَ سُلَيْمَانَ (in the singular)? To this it is said: this accords with what we have explained earlier concerning the Arabs' expressing a report about a matter done by a single individual in the form of a report about a group, when one does not intend the report about a particular person designated by name. It has also been said that the messenger whom the Queen of Sabaʾ sent to Sulaymān was a single person; hence it was said فَلَمَّا جَاءَ سُلَيْمَانَ — the meaning being: when the messenger came to Sulaymān. The proponents of this view cite, in support of their position, Sulaymān's word to the messenger: ارْجِعْ إِلَيْهِمْ. It has also been mentioned that in the recitation of ʿAbdullāh it reads: "fa-lammā jāʾū Sulaymāna" — in the plural, in accordance with the letter of His word بِمَ يَرْجِعُ الْمُرْسَلُونَ — so that the plural matches the letter and the singular matches the meaning.
And His word أَتُمِدُّونَنِ بِمَالٍ: he says: Sulaymān said, when the woman's messenger arrived with her gifts: "Do you wish to help me with wealth?"
The reciters differed concerning the reading of this: some of the reciters of Medina read "atumiddūnanī" with two nūns and with retention of the yāʾ. Some of the reciters of Kufa read it thus, but dropped the yāʾ at the end and gave the final nūn a kasra. Some of the reciters of Basra read it with two nūns and retention of the yāʾ in connected speech (waṣl) and its omission at pausing (waqf). Some of the reciters of Kufa read it with doubling (gemination) of the nūn and retention of the yāʾ. All of these readings are close to one another and are all correct, because they are well known in the dialects of the Arabs and current in their usage.
And His word فَمَا آتَانِيَ اللَّهُ خَيْرٌ مِّمَّا آتَاكُم: he says: what Allah has given me of wealth and worldly goods is more and better than what He has given you. بَلْ أَنتُم بِهَدِيَّتِكُمْ تَفْرَحُونَ: he says: I do not rejoice over your gift which you have presented to me; rather, it is you who rejoice over the gift that is presented to you, for you are people for whom the world is a source of glory and in which you wish to outdo one another in abundance. The world and its goods are no need of mine, for Allah — exalted be His praise — has given me power therein and made me rule over it in a manner that He has given to no one else.
