Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   The explanation of the words of Allah: En zij die geloven en goede werken verrichten, Wij zullen hen tuinen binnenvoeren waar de rivieren onder door stromen, daarin eeuwig verblijvend voor altijd. Dit is de belofte van Allah, waarachtig. En wie is waarachtiger van woord dan Allah? (4:122)

   Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted means by His words "and those who believe and perform righteous deeds" those who believed in Allah and His Messenger, and who acknowledged His oneness (tawḥīd) and who acknowledged the prophethood of His Messenger, the Prophet ﷺ — "and perform righteous deeds," that is to say: they fulfilled the obligations (farāʾiḍ) that Allah has imposed upon them — "We shall admit them into gardens beneath which the rivers flow," that is to say: We shall admit them on the Day of Resurrection when they have returned to Allah, as a reward for the righteous deeds they performed in this world — "gardens," meaning: orchards — "beneath which the rivers flow, abiding therein eternally forever," that is to say: remaining in these gardens which He has described — "forever," that is to say: perpetually.

   And His words "the promise of Allah, true" mean: a promise from Allah to them concerning that in this world — "true," that is to say: with certainty and sincerity, not like the lying promise of Satan, which is a deception for the one to whom he made that promise among his allies, but it is a promise from Him who does not lie and from whom no lie proceeds, and who does not break His promise.

   The Exalted has described His promise here as sincere and true only because of what had preceded in His report — the Exalted — about the saying of Satan which He has narrated in His words: And he said: I shall surely take from Your servants an appointed portion * And I shall surely lead them astray and I shall surely arouse vain hopes in them and I shall surely command them, so that they will cut off the ears of the cattle, and then the Exalted said: He makes them promises and arouses vain hopes in them, but Satan promises them nothing but deception. But Allah promises those who believe and perform righteous deeds that He will admit them into gardens beneath which the rivers flow, abiding therein eternally forever — a promise from Him, true, not like the promise of Satan whose characteristic He has described.

   Thus the Exalted described the two promises and the two promisers, and informed about the fate of the people of each of the two promises, as a warning from Him — the Exalted — to His creatures concerning that in which their welfare lies and their salvation from ruin and corruption, so that they might restrain themselves from disobedience to Him and act according to obedience to Him, and thus triumph with what He has prepared for them in His gardens as a reward.

   Then the Exalted said to them: "And who is more truthful in word than Allah?", that is to say: And who, O people, is more truthful in word than Allah? That is to say: none is more truthful in word than He! How then can you neglect acting according to that for which your Lord has promised you gardens beneath which the rivers flow, abiding therein eternally forever, and instead be disbelieving in Him and contradict His command, while you know that none is more truthful in word than He, and act according to that which Satan commands you, in the hope of attaining that which he promises you with his lying promises and his false vain hopes, while you already know that his promises are deception which possess no validity and no reality, and you take him as an ally besides Allah, and neglect to obey Allah in what He commands you and forbids you, so that you become allies of his?

   The meaning of "al-qīl" and "al-qawl" (the word, the saying) is one and the same.

   Show original Arabic

   القول في تأويل قوله : وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ سَنُدْخِلُهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقًّا وَمَنْ أَصْدَقُ مِنَ اللَّهِ قِيلا (122) قال أبو جعفر: يعني جل ثناؤه بقوله: " والذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات "، والذين صدّقوا الله ورسوله، وأقرُّوا له بالوحدانية، ولرسوله صلى الله عليه وسلم بالنبوة=" وعملوا الصالحات "، يقول: وأدَّوا فرائض الله التي فرضها عليهم (1) =" سندخلهم جنات تجري من تحتها الأنهار "، يقول: سوف ندخلهم يوم القيامة إذا صاروا إلى الله، جزاءً بما عملوا في الدنيا من الصالحات=" جنات "، يعني: بساتين (2) =" تجري من تحتها الأنهار خالدين فيها أبدًا " ، يقول: باقين في هذه الجنات التي وصفها (3) =" أبدًا "، دائمًا. = وقوله: " وعد الله حقًّا "، يعني: عِدَةٌ من الله لهم ذلك في الدنيا=" حقًّا "، يعني: يقينًا صادقًا، (4) لا كعدة الشيطان الكاذبة التي هي غرور مَنْ وُعِدها من أوليائه، ولكنها عدة ممن لا يكذب ولا يكون منه الكذب، (5) ولا يخلف وعده. وإنما وصف جل ثناؤه وعده بالصدق والحق في هذه، لما سبق من خبره جل ثناؤه عن قول الشيطان الذي قصه في قوله: وَقَالَ لأَتَّخِذَنَّ مِنْ عِبَادِكَ نَصِيبًا مَفْرُوضًا * وَلأُضِلَّنَّهُمْ وَلأُمَنِّيَنَّهُمْ وَلآمُرَنَّهُمْ فَلَيُبَتِّكُنَّ آذَانَ الأَنْعَامِ ، ثم قال جل ثناؤه: يَعِدُهُمْ وَيُمَنِّيهِمْ وَمَا يَعِدُهُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ إِلا غُرُورًا ، ولكن الله يعد الذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات أنه سيدخلهم جنات تجري من تحتها الأنهار خالدين فيها أبدًا، وعدًا منه حقًّا، لا كوعد الشيطان الذي وَصَف صفته. فوصف جل ثناؤه الوعدَين والوَاعِدَيْن، وأخبر بحكم أهل كل وعد منهما، تنبيهًا منه جل ثناؤه خلقَه على ما فيه مصلحتهم وخلاصهم من الهلكة والمعطبة، (6) لينـزجروا عن معصيته ويعملوا بطاعته، فيفوزوا بما أعدّ لهم في جنانه من ثوابه. ثم قال لهم جل ثناؤه: " ومن أصدق من الله قيلا "، يقول: ومن أصدق، أيها الناس، من الله قيلا أي: لا أحد أصدق منه قيلا! فكيف تتركون العمل بما وعدكم على العمل به ربكم جناتٍ تجري من تحتها الأنهار خالدين فيها أبدًا، وتكفرون به وتخالفون أمره، وأنتم تعلمون أنه لا أحد أصدق منه قيلا وتعملون &; 9-228 &; بما يأمركم به الشيطان رجاءً لإدراك ما يعدُكم من عداته الكاذبة وأمانيه الباطلة، وقد علمتم أن عداته غرورٌ لا صحة لها ولا حقيقة، وتتخذونه وليًّا من دون الله، وتتركون أن تطيعوا الله فيما يأمركم به وينهاكم عنه، فتكونوا له أولياء؟ * * * ومعنى " القيل " و " القول " واحدٌ. -------------- الهوامش : (1) انظر تفسير"عملوا الصالحات" فيما سلف: 8 : 488. (2) انظر تفسير"جنات" في مادة (جنن) فيما سلف من فهارس اللغة. (3) انظر تفسير"الخلود" فيما سلف من فهارس اللغة. (4) انظر تفسير"الحق" فيما سلف 7 : 97. (5) في المطبوعة: "ولكن عدة ..." ، وأثبت ما في المخطوطة. (6) في المطبوعة: "والعطب" ، وهي صواب ، وفي المخطوطة: "والعطبة" ، فآثرت كتابتها كما رجحت قراءتها ، والمعطب والمعطبة ، جمعها معاطب.