Tafseer of The letter Saad · Saad · 38:6
And the eminent among them went forth, [saying], "Continue, and be patient over [the defense of] your gods. Indeed, this is a thing intended.
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 statement concerning the interpretation of His word, the Exalted: وَانْطَلَقَ الْمَلأُ مِنْهُمْ أَنِ امْشُوا وَاصْبِرُوا عَلَى آلِهَتِكُمْ إِنَّ هَذَا لَشَيْءٌ يُرَادُ (6) ("And the chiefs among them went forth, saying: Go on and hold fast to your gods; truly, this is a thing that is intended")
He, exalted be His mention, says: and the nobles among these unbelievers (kuffār) of Quraysh, those who said: أَجَعَلَ الآلِهَةَ إِلَهًا وَاحِدًا ("Has he made the gods into one god?"), went forth, saying: go on and hold fast to your religion and the worship of your gods. The word "an" in His word أَنِ امْشُوا ("that: go on") stands in the accusative position and is connected to "they went forth" (inṭalaqū), as though it were said: they went forth, going and proceeding upon your religion. It has been mentioned that in the reading of ʿAbdullāh this reads: "And the chiefs among them went forth, going: that hold fast to your gods." And it has been mentioned that the one who said this was ʿUqba ibn Abī Muʿayṭ.
* Mention of who said that:
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Ibrāhīm ibn Muhājir, on the authority of Mujāhid: وَانْطَلَقَ الْمَلأ مِنْهُمْ ("and the chiefs among them went forth"), he said: ʿUqba ibn Abī Muʿayṭ.
And His word إِنَّ هَذَا لَشَيْءٌ يُرَادُ : that is to say: truly, this statement which Muḥammad makes and to which he calls us — the statement "there is no god but Allah" — is a thing that Muḥammad desires from us, by which he seeks elevation over us, and that we should become his followers in it; and we will not obey him in that.