Tafseer of The Originator · Faatir · 35:2
Whatever Allah grants to people of mercy - none can withhold it; and whatever He withholds - none can release it thereafter. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.
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 explanation of the saying of the Exalted: مَا يَفْتَحِ اللَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِنْ رَحْمَةٍ فَلا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا وَمَا يُمْسِكْ فَلا مُرْسِلَ لَهُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ (2) (Whatever mercy Allah unlocks for mankind, none can withhold it, and whatever He withholds, none can release it after Him; and He is the Almighty, the All-Wise. (2))
The Exalted, whose mention is exalted, says: the keys of good and its locks are all in His hand. So whatever good Allah unlocks for mankind, none can lock it shut against them, and none can withhold it from them, for that is His decree, and none has power over His decree. And likewise: whatever good He locks shut against them, none unfolds it over them and none unlocks it for them; there is no opener of it apart from Him, for all matters belong to Him and are His.
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: مَا يَفْتَحِ اللَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِنْ رَحْمَةٍ (Whatever mercy Allah unlocks for mankind), that is to say: of good, فَلا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا (none can withhold it), so none has power to withhold it, وَمَا يُمْسِكْ فَلا مُرْسِلَ لَهُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ (and whatever He withholds, none can release it after Him). And the Exalted, whose mention is exalted, said: فَلا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا (none can withhold it) — here He used the feminine form on account of the mention of the word raḥma (mercy, feminine) which precedes it. And He said: وَمَا يُمْسِكْ فَلا مُرْسِلَ لَهُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ (and whatever He withholds, none can release it after Him) — He used the masculine form for the word "mā" (whatever), because the word "mā" is masculine in form. And even if one were to use the feminine form in place of the masculine on account of the meaning, and the masculine form in place of the feminine on account of the word-form, that would be permissible; but the most eloquent usage in the language is the feminine form when that which indicates femininity visibly follows, and the masculine form when it does not visibly do so.
And His saying وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ (and He is the Almighty, the All-Wise) means: He is the Almighty in His retribution against those of His creatures upon whom He takes vengeance by withholding His mercy and His benefactions from him, the All-Wise in the governance of His creation and in unlocking mercy for them when unlocking it is beneficial, and in withholding it from them when withholding it is wisdom.
