Tafseer of Sheba · Saba · 34:13
They made for him what he willed of elevated chambers, statues, bowls like reservoirs, and stationary kettles. [We said], "Work, O family of David, in gratitude." And few of My servants are grateful.
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.
The discourse on the explanation of His saying, exalted is He: يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ وَتَمَاثِيلَ وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاوُدَ شُكْرًا وَقَلِيلٌ مِنْ عِبَادِيَ الشَّكُورُ (13) (They made for him what he wished of sanctuaries, statues, basins as large as cisterns, and firmly fixed cauldrons. Work, O house of Dāwūd, in gratitude! But few of My servants are grateful.) (34:13)
He, exalted be His remembrance, says: The jinn made for Sulaymān what he wished of maḥārīb — that is the plural of miḥrāb, and the miḥrāb is the foremost part of every mosque, every house, and every place of worship. Of this is the saying of ʿAdī ibn Zayd:
Like figurines of ivory in the sanctuaries, or like the eggs in the meadow, whose blossom glitters. (7)
And as we have said concerning it, so said the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl).
* Mention of who said that:
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 — both — on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His saying مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ ("what he wished of sanctuaries"), he said: structures less than palaces.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ ("They made for him what he wished of sanctuaries"), and palaces and mosques.
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His saying يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ ("They made for him what he wished of sanctuaries"), he said: The maḥārīb are the dwelling places. And he recited the saying of Allah: فَنَادَتْهُ الْمَلائِكَةُ وَهُوَ قَائِمٌ يُصَلِّي فِي الْمِحْرَابِ ("Then the angels called to him as he stood praying in the sanctuary").
ʿAmr ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd al-Āmulī related to me, saying: Marwān ibn Muʿāwiya related to us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: يَعْمَلُونَ لَهُ مَا يَشَاءُ مِنْ مَحَارِيبَ ("They made for him what he wished of sanctuaries"), he said: The maḥārīb are the mosques.
And His saying وَتَمَاثِيلَ ("and statues") means that they made for him statues of copper and glass.
As 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 — both — on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: وَتَمَاثِيلَ ("and statues"), he said: of copper.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: وَتَمَاثِيلَ ("and statues"), he said: of glass and the like.
ʿAmr ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd related to us, saying: Marwān related to us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk concerning the saying of Allah وَتَمَاثِيلَ ("and statues"), he said: the images.
His saying وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns") means: and they hew out for him what he wishes of basins as large as al-jawābī, which is the plural of jābiya, and the jābiya is the pool in which water is collected, as al-Aʿshā Maymūn ibn Qays said:
At the gathering of al-Muḥallaq a basin comes in the evening, like the cistern of the Iraqi old man, overflowing. (8)
And as another has said:
In the morning I came to a plaster-coated water-tank, as though it were the skin of the sky, turned inside out. (9)
And as we have said concerning it, so said the people of interpretation.
* Mention of 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 saying وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"), he says: like the hollow (jawba) in the earth.
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: My father related to me, saying: My uncle related to me, saying: My father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His saying وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"): he means by al-jawābī: the pools.
Yaʿqūb related to me, saying: Ibn ʿUlayya related to us, on the authority of Abū Rajāʾ, on the authority of al-Ḥasan: وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"), he said: like the pools.
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 — both — on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His saying وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"), he said: the watering troughs of the camels.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"), he said: basins like the hollow in the earth, on account of their size; and the hollow in the earth is where the water collects.
It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Faraj, he said: I heard Abū Muʿādh saying: ʿUbayd informed us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk saying concerning His saying وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"): like the pools.
ʿAmr related to us, saying: Marwān ibn Muʿāwiya related to us, saying: Juwaybir related to us, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"), he said: like the watering troughs of the camels, on account of their size.
And His saying وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ ("and firmly fixed cauldrons") means: and cauldrons that stand firm, which are not moved from their place and are not transported, on account of their size.
And as we have said concerning it, so said the people of interpretation.
* Mention of who said that:
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 — both — on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His saying وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ ("and firmly fixed cauldrons"), he said: enormous.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ ("and firmly fixed cauldrons"), he said: enormous, standing fixed on the earth, not departing from their place.
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His saying وَقُدُورٍ رَاسِيَاتٍ ("and firmly fixed cauldrons"), he said: like mountains, on account of their size; food is prepared in them, on account of their hugeness and size; they are not moved and not transported, as He said concerning the mountains: rāsiyāt (firmly anchored).
And His saying اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاودَ شُكْرًا ("Work, O house of Dāwūd, in gratitude"): He, exalted be His remembrance, says: And we said to them: Work in obedience to Allah, O house of Dāwūd, in gratitude to Him for the blessings He has bestowed upon you and by which He has favored you above the rest of His creatures, in addition to the gratitude to Him for the rest of His blessings by which He has encompassed you together with the rest of His creatures. The mention of "and we said to them" has been omitted, because the wording of the saying makes sufficiently clear what has been omitted from it. And He let the saying شُكْرًا ("in gratitude") issue as a verbal noun from His saying اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاودَ ("Work, O house of Dāwūd"), because the meaning of His saying اعْمَلُوا ("Work") is: be grateful to your Lord through your obedience to Him; and working according to what pleases Allah, for the sake of Allah, is gratitude.
And as we have said concerning it, so said the people of interpretation.
* Mention of who said that:
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Wāḍiḥ related to us, saying: Mūsā ibn ʿUbāda related to us, on the authority of Muḥammad ibn Kaʿb, concerning His saying اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاودَ شُكْرًا ("Work, O house of Dāwūd, in gratitude"), he said: Gratitude is the fear of Allah and working in obedience to Him.
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said: Ḥaywa informed me, on the authority of Zuhra ibn Maʿbad, that he heard Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Ḥubulī saying: اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاودَ شُكْرًا ("Work, O house of Dāwūd, in gratitude"), and the most excellent gratitude is praise.
He said: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His saying اعْمَلُوا آلَ دَاودَ شُكْرًا ("Work, O house of Dāwūd, in gratitude"), he said: He has given you and taught you and subjected to you what He has subjected to no one else, and He has taught you the language of the birds — be grateful to Him, O house of Dāwūd. He said: Praise is a part of gratitude.
And His saying وَقَلِيلٌ مِنْ عِبَادِي الشَّكُورُ ("But few of My servants are grateful"): He, exalted be His remembrance, says: And few of My servants are sincere in professing My oneness and devote themselves exclusively to obedience to Me and to gratitude to Me for My blessing upon them.
And as we have said concerning it, so said the people of interpretation.
* Mention of 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 saying وَقَلِيلٌ مِنْ عِبَادِي الشَّكُورُ ("But few of My servants are grateful"), he says: few of My servants are those who practice the affirmation of My oneness.
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Footnotes:
(7) The verse is by ʿAdī ibn Zayd al-ʿIbādī, as the author has said, and as in Shuʿarāʾ al-Naṣrāniyya, fourth part, 455. The author has already cited it in (3/2464) of this tafsīr, as proof that al-maḥārīb is the plural of miḥrāb, and that is the foremost part of the place of worship. Consult it there.
(8) The verse is by al-Aʿshā of the Banū Qays ibn Thaʿlaba (his dīwān, Cairo edition 225), and its transmission reads:
He drove away the slander of the house of al-Muḥallaq, a basin like the cistern of the Iraqi stream (al-sīḥ), overflowing.
This is a well-known transmission, as is the transmission which the author cites. He praises al-Muḥallaq for his generosity, and that his basin comes in the evening to his gathering, filled with meat and fat; and it is one of the greatest basins, like the cistern in which the Iraqi old man collects [the water] in the days when the river floods, so as to distribute from it in the days of water scarcity; so it is a great cistern. As for those who transmit it as al-sīḥ, with sīn and ḥāʾ without diacritical dots, that is what overflows and streams out of the water on account of the river's increase. al-Mubarrad mentioned both of these transmissions in al-Kitāb al-Kāmil (see the edition of Muṣṭafā al-Bābī al-Ḥalabī and sons 1:7). He said, in clarifying the transmission "al-shaykh" (the old man): thus the people of Basra recite it. And its explanation according to them is that the Iraqi, when he has water at his disposal, fills his cistern, because he is a town-dweller and does not know the sources and places of water. Abū al-ʿAbbās said: And I heard a bedouin woman recite (she was Umm al-Haytham al-Kilābiyya, of the descendants of al-Muḥallaq, and it is the transmission of the people of Kufa): "like the cistern of al-masīḥ," by which she means: the river that flows along both its banks, so that its water does not run out, because the river replenishes it. End. And Abū ʿUbayda said in Majāz al-Qurʾān (folio 198): وَجِفَانٍ كَالْجَوَابِ ("and basins as large as cisterns"): its singular is jābiya, and that is the pool in which water is collected. And al-Farrāʾ said in Maʿānī al-Qurʾān (folio 261): وَجِفَانٍ ("and basins"): these are the large bowls. كَالْجَوَابِ ("as large as cisterns"): the watering troughs for the camels. And in al-Lisān (jabā): the jābiya is the pool in which the water for the camels is collected; and the jābiya is the huge pool. He cites the verse as in the transmission of the author, and then said: He specifically named the Iraqi because of his unfamiliarity with the water sources, since he is a town-dweller; so when he finds them, he fills a cistern and keeps it in store, and he does not know when he will find the water.
(9) These are two verses in the mashṭūr form of the rajaz. The first of them is transmitted by the author of al-Lisān (ṣahraja) on the authority of al-Azharī. He said: a ṣahārij-pool is a pool coated with ṣārūj (lime plaster, al-nūra); and al-ṣahārij with ḍamma is the same as al-ṣahrij. And al-Azharī recited: "In the morning I came to a plaster-coated water-tank, and they had coated a water-well with plaster." The subject of "I came in the morning" is a personal pronoun referring back to what precedes it, and perhaps he had mentioned the camels. The rajaz is not attributed to an author. And his saying "as though it were the skin...," the verse: he compares the color of the cistern or of its water with the color of the sky in its blueness. This verse, like the preceding one, is a proof that the meaning of the jābiya is the large pool in which the water is collected, and that is also al-ṣahārij and al-ṣahrij. He compared the basin of al-Muḥallaq with the large pool, on account of his generosity.
(10) al-Ḥubulī: with sukūn or ḍamma on the bāʾ: ascribed to the Banū al-Ḥubulā, a subdivision of the Anṣār; trustworthy (thiqa), died in the year one hundred. (On the authority of al-Tāj.)
