Tafseer of The Women · An-Nisaa · 4:46
Among the Jews are those who distort words from their [proper] usages and say, "We hear and disobey" and "Hear but be not heard" and "Ra'ina," twisting their tongues and defaming the religion. And if they had said [instead], "We hear and obey" and "Wait for us [to understand]," it would have been better for them and more suitable. But Allah has cursed them for their disbelief, so they believe not, except for a few.
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 on the explanation of His word: مِنَ الَّذِينَ هَادُوا يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَوَاضِعِهِ ("Among those who are Jews are some who distort the words from their places").
Abū Jaʿfar said: For His word — exalted is His praise — "among those who are Jews are some who distort the words" there are two ways of explanation.
The first of them: that the meaning is: أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا نَصِيبًا مِنَ الْكِتَابِ ("Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Book") = "among those who are Jews are some who distort the words," so that His word "among those who are Jews" is connected to "those who" (الذين). It is towards this view that the generality of the philologists of Kūfa inclined in explaining His word "among those who are Jews they distort."
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The other of them: that the meaning is: among those who are Jews are some who distort the words from their places, so that "who" (مَن) is omitted from the sentence, since the indication of His word "among those who are Jews" (من الذين هادوا) sufficed. That is so because "min" (مِن), if it had been mentioned in the sentence, would be a part of "man" (مَن), so that mentioning "min" sufficed as an indication of it. The Arabs say: "among us are some who say that, and among us are some who do not say it" (منا من يقول ذلك، ومنا لا يقوله), with the meaning: among us are some who say that, and among us are some who do not say it — thus "man" is omitted and the mention of "min" suffices as an indication of it, as Dhū al-Rumma said:
"Thus they remained, and among them is one whose tear outruns him, and another who pushes back the tear of the eye while it flows."
He means: and among them is one whose tear; and as Allah — blessed and exalted is He — said: وَمَا مِنَّا إِلا لَهُ مَقَامٌ مَعْلُومٌ ("And there is none among us but he has a known station") [Surah al-Ṣāffāt: 164]. It is towards this meaning that the generality of the philologists of Baṣra inclined in explaining His word "among those who are Jews they distort the words," except that they said: the thing implied in it is "the people" (al-qawm), as if the meaning to them is: among those who are Jews is a people who distort the words. And they said: it is equivalent to the saying of al-Nābigha:
"It is as though you are of the camels of the Banū Uqaysh, behind which, at its two hind legs, a worn-out waterskin is rattled."
He means: it is as though you are a camel of the camels of Uqaysh.
As for the grammarians of Kūfa, they deny that the thing implied with "min" can be anything other than "man" or what resembles it.
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Abū Jaʿfar said: And the view that in my eyes comes closest to correctness is: the view of him who says that His word "among those who are Jews" is connected to (الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا نَصِيبًا مِنَ الْكِتَابِ) ("those who were given a portion of the Book"), because both reports together and both attributes belong to the description of one and the same kind of people, namely the Jews whose attribute Allah described in His word (أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا نَصِيبًا مِنَ الْكِتَابِ) ("Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Book"). And thus also came the explanation of the people of explanation. There is therefore — when the matter is so — no need to assume anything omitted in the sentence.
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As for the explanation of His word: "they distort the words from their places," that means: they change their meaning and alter it away from its interpretation.
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And "al-kalim" is the plural of "kalima" (word).
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Mujāhid used to say: by "al-kalim" the Torah was meant.
9691 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word: "they distort the words from their places": the corrupting by the Jews of the Torah.
9692 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.
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As for His word: "from their places," that means: from their positions and their correct meanings which are the true ones.
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The statement on the explanation of His word: وَيَقُولُونَ سَمِعْنَا وَعَصَيْنَا ("And they say: we heard and we disobeyed").
He — exalted is His praise — means thereby: among those who are Jews are some who say: we heard, O Muḥammad, your word, and we disobeyed your command, as:-
9693 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Ḥakkām related to us, on the authority of ʿAnbasa, on the authority of Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, on the authority of al-Qāsim ibn Abī Bazza, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word: "we heard and we disobeyed," he said: the Jews said: we heard what we say and we do not obey you.
9694 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.
9695 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.
9696 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: "we heard and we disobeyed": they said: we have heard, but we do not obey you.
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The statement on the explanation of His word: وَاسْمَعْ غَيْرَ مُسْمَعٍ ("And listen, may you not be made to hear").
Abū Jaʿfar said: This is a report from Allah — exalted is His praise — about the Jews who lived in the vicinity of the place of emigration of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, in his time: that they used to slander the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and harass him with foul words, and say to him: listen to us, may you not be made to hear (اسمع منا غير مسمع), as one says to a man whom he reviles: "listen — may Allah not make you hear," as:-
9697 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: "and listen, may you not be made to hear," he said: this is the saying of the People of the Book, the Jews, equivalent to the way a man says: "listen, may you not hear," as a wounding of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and as a reviling of him and mockery.
9698 - It was related to me on the authority of al-Minjāb, saying: Bishr ibn ʿUmāra related to us, on the authority of Abū Rawq, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: "and listen, may you not be made to hear," he said: they say to you: "and listen, may you not hear."
And it has been related from Mujāhid and al-Ḥasan: that the two of them explained this with the meaning: and listen, while nothing is accepted from you.
= And if that were the meaning, then it would have been said: "and listen, not heard" (واسمع غير مسموع), but the meaning is: and listen, may you not hear. But Allah, exalted is His mention, said: لَيًّا بِأَلْسِنَتِهِمْ وَطَعْنًا فِي الدِّينِ ("twisting with their tongues and slandering the religion"), thus He described them with the twisting of the words with their tongues and the slandering of the religion through slandering the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace.
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As for the view that I mentioned from Mujāhid: "and listen, may you not be made to hear," he says: not accepted is what you say, that is as:-
9699 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid: "and listen, may you not be made to hear," he said: not listening — Ibn Jurayj said, on the authority of al-Qāsim ibn Abī Bazza, on the authority of Mujāhid: "and listen, may you not be made to hear": not accepted is what you say.
9700 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.
9701 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, concerning His word: "and listen, may you not be made to hear," he said: as you say: listen, while nothing is heard from you.
9702 - And Mūsā ibn Hārūn related to us, saying: ʿAmr related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī, he said: there were people among them who said: "and listen, may you not be made to hear," like your saying: listen, not debased.
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The statement on the explanation of His word: وَرَاعِنَا لَيًّا بِأَلْسِنَتِهِمْ وَطَعْنًا فِي الدِّينِ ("And 'rāʿinā', twisting with their tongues and slandering the religion").
Abū Jaʿfar said: He means by His word "rāʿinā": that is, lend us your hearing, understand from us and make us understand. And we have already set forth its explanation in "Surah al-Baqarah" with its proofs, with enough therein to make repetition unnecessary.
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Then Allah — exalted is His praise — reported about them that they said that to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: "twisting with their tongues," that is: a movement of theirs with their tongues by a distortion of theirs of its meaning towards the objectionable of its two meanings, and out of disdain of theirs for the right of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and out of slander against the religion, as:-
9703 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to me, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, saying: Qatāda said: the Jews used to say to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: "rāʿinā samʿaka" (lend us your hearing)! mocking thereby, for among the Jews it was a foul matter that it be said: "rāʿinā samʿaka" = "twisting with their tongues," and the "twisting" (al-layy) is their moving of their tongues with it = "and slandering the religion."
9704 - It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Faraj, saying: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd ibn Sulaymān related to us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say concerning His word: "rāʿinā, twisting with their tongues": the man of the polytheists (mushrikīn) used to say: "arʿinī samʿaka" (lend me your hearing)! twisting his tongue therewith, that is: he distorts its meaning.
9705 - Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to us, 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: مِنَ الَّذِينَ هَادُوا يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَوَاضِعِهِ ("Among those who are Jews are some who distort the words from their places"), up to "and slandering the religion," for they used to mock, and they twisted their tongues towards the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and they slandered the religion.
9706 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said: "and 'rāʿinā', twisting with their tongues and slandering the religion," he said: "rāʿinā" was their slander against the religion, and their twisting with their tongues to nullify it and deny it. He said: and "al-rāʿin" is the error in speech.
9707 - It was related to me on the authority of al-Minjāb, saying: Bishr related to us, saying: Abū Rawq related to us, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: "twisting with their tongues," he said: distorting with the lie.
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The statement on the explanation of His word: وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ قَالُوا سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا وَاسْمَعْ وَانْظُرْنَا لَكَانَ خَيْرًا لَهُمْ وَأَقْوَمَ ("And if they had said: we heard and we obeyed, and listen and look upon us / wait for us, it would have been better for them and more upright").
Abū Jaʿfar said: He — exalted is His praise — means thereby: and if these Jews, whose attribute Allah described, had said to the Prophet of Allah: "we heard, O Muḥammad, your word, and we obeyed your command, and we accepted what you have brought us from Allah, and listen to us, and wait for us in what we say, and grant us respite so that we may understand from you what you say to us" = "it would have been better for them and more upright," he says: then that would have been better for them with Allah = "and more upright," he says: and more just and more correct in the saying.
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And it comes from "al-istiqāma" (uprightness), from the word of Allah: وَأَقْوَمُ قِيلا ("and more upright of speech") [Surah al-Muzzammil: 6], with the meaning: and more correct of speech, as:-
9708 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: "and if they had said: we heard and we obeyed, and listen and wait for us, it would have been better for them," he said: they say: listen to us, for we have heard and obeyed, and wait for us and do not hasten towards us.
9709 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Abū Tumayla related to us, on the authority of Abū Ḥamza, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of ʿIkrima and Mujāhid, concerning His word: "and wait for us (wa-anẓurnā)," he said: listen to us.
9710 - Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid: "and wait for us," he said: make us understand.
9711 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, "and wait for us," he said: make us understand.
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Abū Jaʿfar said: And this which Mujāhid and ʿIkrima said, in their explaining the meaning of "and wait for us" as "listen to us" = and the explaining of Mujāhid of it as "make us understand" = that is something that we do not know in the speech of the Arabs, unless he meant thereby, in his explanation of it as "make us understand": wait for us so that we may understand what you say = or: wait for us so that we may speak until you hear from us = so that that is an understandable meaning, even though it is not an explanation of the word, nor a clarification of it. And we do not know "anẓurnā" in the speech of the Arabs except in the meaning of: wait for us and look upon us. As for "anẓurnā" in the meaning of: wait for us, of that is the saying of al-Ḥuṭayʾa:
"And indeed I have waited for you — alas, if only your milk-gift would one day come through my stroking and my coaxing."
And as for "anẓurnā" in the meaning of: look upon us, of that is the saying of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Qays al-Ruqayyāt:
"Radiant with beauty and grace they look, as the gazelles look towards the arāk-tree."
With the meaning: as the gazelles look towards the arāk-tree.
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The statement on the explanation of His word: وَلَكِنْ لَعَنَهُمُ اللَّهُ بِكُفْرِهِمْ فَلا يُؤْمِنُونَ إِلا قَلِيلا ("But Allah has cursed them for their disbelief, and they believe only a little") (46).
Abū Jaʿfar said: He means thereby: but Allah, blessed and exalted is He, has disgraced these Jews, whose attribute He described in this verse, thus He removed them and drove them far away from right guidance and the following of the truth = "for their disbelief," that is: for their denial of the prophethood of His prophet Muḥammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and of what he brought them from their Lord of guidance and clear proofs = "and they believe only a little," he says: they do not believe in Muḥammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and in what he brought them from their Lord, and they do not acknowledge his prophethood = "only a little," he says: they do not believe in the truth that you have brought them, O Muḥammad, except with a slight belief, as:-
9712 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word: "and they believe only a little," he said: they believe only a little.
Abū Jaʿfar said: And we have already set forth the manner of that with its reasons in "Surah al-Baqarah."
