Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   The explanation of His word, exalted is His praise: وَلَئِنْ قُتِلْتُمْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَوْ مُتُّمْ لَمَغْفِرَةٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرَحْمَةٌ خَيْرٌ مِمَّا يَجْمَعُونَ (157) ("And if you are killed in the way of Allah or die, then forgiveness from Allah and mercy are surely better than what they amass.") (3:157)

   Abū Jaʿfar said: He, exalted is His praise, addresses His believing servants and says to them: Be not, O believers, in doubt about the fact that all matters lie in the hand of Allah, and that to Him belong the granting of life and the causing of death, as the hypocrites (al-munāfiqūn) doubted concerning that; rather strive in the way of Allah and fight against the enemies of Allah, having certainty within you that in a war no one is killed and on a journey no one dies except him who has reached his appointed term and whose death has arrived. Then He promised them, for their jihād in His way, forgiveness and mercy, and informed them that a death in the way of Allah and a being killed in the cause of Allah is better for them than what they amass in the worldly life of its perishable goods and its pleasant enjoyment, for the sake of which they show themselves too sluggish for the jihād in the way of Allah and hang back from the encounter with the enemy. As:

   8117 — Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Salama related to us, on the authority of Ibn Isḥāq: "And if you are killed in the way of Allah or die, then forgiveness from Allah and mercy are surely better than what they amass," that is: death is inevitable, and a death in the way of Allah or a being killed is better — if only they knew it and perceived it with certainty — than what they amass in the worldly life, for the sake of which they hang back from the jihād, out of fear of death and of being killed, on account of what they have amassed of the bloom of the worldly life, and out of lack of longing for the Hereafter.

   * * *

   Abū Jaʿfar said: Allah, mighty and exalted, said only "then forgiveness from Allah and mercy are better than what they amass," and began the statement: وَلَئِنْ مُتُّمْ أَوْ قُتِلْتُمْ ("And if you die or are killed") with omission of the answer to "la-in" (if), because in His word "then forgiveness from Allah and mercy are better than what they amass" lies the meaning of an answer to the condition; and that is because it is a promise that has taken on the form of a piece of information.

   * * *

   The explanation of the statement is therefore: And if you are killed in the way of Allah or die, then Allah will surely forgive you and surely have mercy upon you — and to that He pointed with His word "then forgiveness from Allah and mercy are better than what they amass," and He added, together with the indication of that, the information about its superiority over that which they prefer of the worldly life and what they amass therein.

   * * *

   Some of the grammarians of Baṣra claimed that, if it is asked: how can "forgiveness from Allah and mercy" be an answer to His word "and if you are killed in the way of Allah or die"? — the correct approach therein is to say that it is as if He said: And if you die or are killed, then that is for you a mercy and forgiveness from Allah, since that came to pass in My way; so He said "then forgiveness from Allah and mercy," He says: that is better than what you amass, that is: that forgiveness and mercy are better than what you amass.

   * * *

   The lām was inserted in His word "la-maghfiratun min Allāh" (surely forgiveness from Allah) because of its insertion in His word "wa-la-in" (and if), as it is said: وَلَئِنْ نَصَرُوهُمْ لَيُوَلُّنَّ الأَدْبَارَ ("And if they help them, they will surely turn their backs") [Sūrat al-Ḥashr: 12].

   * * *

   --------------- Footnotes: (52) In the printed edition it reads "fa-khāṭaba," but I have established the correct reading from the manuscript. (53) In the printed edition it reads "wa-qatlan," but I have established what is in the manuscript, and that is better. (54) The narration 8117 — Sīrat Ibn Hishām 3: 123, and it is a completion of the narrations the last of which is 8116. In the manuscript and the printed edition it read: "on account of what they have amassed of the trifling of the worldly life," which is a corruption, and the correct reading is according to Sīrat Ibn Hishām. "Zahrat al-dunyā" (the bloom of the worldly life): its beauty, its allure, its luxuriance, the abundance of its goods and its pleasant enjoyment. In Sīrat Ibn Hishām it reads "zahādatan fī al-ākhira," without wāw. (55) In the printed edition and the manuscript it reads "bi-ḥadhfi jazāʾi la-in," which is a clear error and corruption by the copyist: the bāʾ of "jawāb" slipped from him so that he wrote "jazāʾ." (56) In the printed edition and the manuscript it reads "maʿnā jawāzin li-l-jazāʾ," which is a meaningless corruption, and the correct reading is what has been established. (57) In the printed edition and the manuscript it reads: "fa-in [al-qawl] fīhi an yuqāla fīhi: ka-annahu qāla: wa-la-in muttum aw qutiltum [fa-dhakara lahum] raḥmatun min Allāh wa-maghfira, idhā kāna dhālika fī [al-sabīl]," and I have placed the words that I have replaced with others between brackets. This sentence which is in the printed edition and the manuscript has hardly any meaning. The first word "al-qawl" is undoubtedly incorrect, and the correct reading is what has been established. As for "fa-dhakara lahum," I suspect that the copyist misread the reading of the old manuscript from which he was copying and read "fa-dhālika lakum" as "fa-dhakara lahum." And as for "al-sabīl," in the manuscript there is a light stroke over the alif of "al-sabīl," so I gave preference to the reading as established. And that is the correct meaning, so that this sentence together with what follows it has been set right, and all praise belongs to Allah.

   Show original Arabic

   القول في تأويل قوله جل ثناؤه : وَلَئِنْ قُتِلْتُمْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَوْ مُتُّمْ لَمَغْفِرَةٌ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرَحْمَةٌ خَيْرٌ مِمَّا يَجْمَعُونَ (157) قال أبو جعفر: يخاطب جل ثناؤه عباده المؤمنين، يقول لهم: (52) لا تكونوا، أيها المؤمنون، في شك من أن الأمور كلها بيد الله، وأن إليه الإحياء والإماتة، كما شك المنافقون في ذلك، ولكن جاهدوا في سبيل الله وقاتِلوا أعداء الله، على يقين منكم بأنه لا يقتل في حرب ولا يموت في سفر إلا من بلغ أجله وحانت وفاته. ثم وعدهم على جهادهم في سبيله المغفرة والرحمةَ، وأخبرهم أن موتًا في سبيل الله وقتلا في الله، (53) خير لهم مما يجمعون في الدنيا من حُطامها ورغيد عيشها الذي من أجله يتثاقلون عن الجهاد في سبيل الله، ويتأخرون عن لقاء العدو، كما:- 8117- حدثنا ابن حميد قال، حدثنا سلمة، عن ابن إسحاق: " ولئن قتلتم في سبيل الله أو متم لمغفرة من الله ورحمة خير مما يجمعون "، أي: إن الموت كائن لا بد منه، فموت في سبيل الله أو قتل، خير = لو علموا فأيقنوا = مما يجمعون في الدنيا التي لها يتأخرون عن الجهاد، تخوفًا من الموت والقتل لما جمعوا من زَهرة الدنيا، وزهادةً في الآخرة. (54) . * * * قال أبو جعفر: وإنما قال الله عز وجل: " لمغفرة من الله ورحمة خير مما يجمعون "، وابتدأ الكلام: وَلَئِنْ مُتُّمْ أَوْ قُتِلْتُمْ بحذف جواب " لئن "، (55) لأن في قوله: &; 7-338 &; " لمغفرة من الله ورحمة خير مما يجمعون " معنى جواب للجزاء، (56) وذلك أنه وَعدٌ خرج مخرج الخبر. * * * فتأويل الكلام: ولئن قتلتم في سبيل الله أو متم، ليغفرن الله لكم وليرحمنّكم = فدلّ على ذلك بقوله: " لمغفرة من الله ورحمة خير مما يجمعون "، وجمع مع الدلالة به عليه، الخبَرَ عن فضل ذلك على ما يؤثرونه من الدنيا وما يجمعون فيها. * * * وقد زعم بعض أهل العربية من أهل البصرة، أنه إن قيل: كيف يكون: " لمغفرة من الله ورحمة " جوابًا لقوله: " ولئن قتلتم في سبيل الله أو متم "؟ فإن الوجه فيه أن يقال فيه كأنه قال: ولئن متم أو قتلتم فذلك لكم رحمة من الله ومغفرة، إذ كان ذلك في سبيلي، (57) فقال: " لمغفرة من الله ورحمة " يقول: لذلك خير مما تجمعون، يعني: لتلك المغفرة والرحمة خير مما تجمعون. * * * ودخلت اللام في قوله: " لمغفرة من الله "، لدخولها في قوله: و " لئن "، كما قيل: وَلَئِنْ نَصَرُوهُمْ لَيُوَلُّنَّ الأَدْبَارَ [سورة الحشر: 12] * * * --------------- الهوامش: (52) في المطبوعة: "فخاطب" ، وأثبت صوابها من المخطوطة. (53) في المطبوعة: "وقتلا" وأثبت ما في المخطوطة ، وهو أجود. (54) الأثر: 8117- سيرة ابن هشام 3: 123 ، وهو تتمة الآثار التي آخرها: 8116. وكان في المخطوطة والمطبوعة: "لما جمعوا من زهيد الدنيا" وهو تحريف ، والصواب من سيرة ابن هشام. وزهرة الدنيا: حسنها وبهجتها وغضارتها ، وكثرة خيرها ، ورغيد عيشها. وفي سيرة ابن هشام: "زهادة في الآخرة" ، بغير واو. (55) في المطبوعة والمخطوطة"بحذف جزاء لئن" ، وهو خطأ بين وتصحيف من الناسخ ، سقطت منه باء"جواب" فكتب"جزاء". (56) في المطبوعة والمخطوطة: "معنى جواز للجزاء" ، وهو تصحيف لا معنى له ، والصواب ما أثبت. (57) في المطبوعة والمخطوطة: "فإن [القول] فيه أن يقال فيه: كأنه قال: ولئن متم أو قتلتم [فذكر لهم] رحمة من الله ومغفرة ، إذا كان ذلك في [السبيل]" ، وقد وضعت الكلمات التي استبدلت بها غيرها بين أقواس. وهذه الجملة التي في المطبوعة والمخطوطة لا يكاد يكون لها معنى. فالكلمة الأولى"القول" لا شك في خطئها ، وصوابها ما أثبت. أما "فذكر لهم" ، فإني أظن أن الناسخ قد أخطأ قراءة المخطوطة القديمة التي نقل عنها فقرأ"فذلك لكم""فذكر لهم" وأما "السبيل" ، ففي المخطوطة ضرب خفيف على ألف"السبيل" ، فرجحت قراءتها كما أثبت. وهو حق المعنى ، فاستقامت هذه الجملة مع ما بعدها ، والحمد لله.