Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   Explanation of the saying of Him, mighty is His remembrance: لَقَدْ كَفَرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْمَسِيحُ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ (Indeed, those who say: "Truly, Allah is the Messiah, the son of Maryam" have become unbelievers).

   Abū Jaʿfar said: This is a rebuke from Allah — mighty is His remembrance — to the Christians and to Christianity, who have strayed from the ways of peace — and an argument from Him on behalf of His Prophet Muḥammad, the blessing and peace of Allah be upon him, against their fabrication concerning Him in that they ascribed a child to Him.

   He — exalted be His praise — says: I swear, indeed, those who said: "Truly, Allah is the Messiah, the son of Maryam" have become unbelievers. And their "unbelief (kufr)" in this consists of their covering over the truth in that they failed to deny the child of Allah — mighty and exalted is He — and in that they claimed that the Messiah is Allah, which is fabrication and falsehood concerning Him. (24)

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   We have already set forth the meaning of "the Messiah (al-Masīḥ)" in what preceded, in a manner that absolves us of repeating it in this place. (25)

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   Explanation of the saying of Him, mighty is His remembrance: قُلْ فَمَنْ يَمْلِكُ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيْئًا إِنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يُهْلِكَ الْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ وَأُمَّهُ وَمَنْ فِي الأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا (Say: "Who then has any power against Allah, if He willed to destroy the Messiah, the son of Maryam, and his mother and all who are on the earth?").

   Abū Jaʿfar said: He — exalted be His praise — says to His Prophet Muḥammad, the blessing and peace of Allah be upon him: Say, O Muḥammad, to the Christians who uttered fabrications concerning Me and strayed from the straight path by their words "Truly, Allah is the Messiah, the son of Maryam": "Who then has any power against Allah," that is to say: who is able to avert anything of the command of Allah — mighty and exalted is He — and to turn it back when He decrees it?

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   — This is derived from the saying of one who says: "I gained control over so-and-so's affair (malaktu)," when he is no longer able to carry out any matter except through him. (26)

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   And His words "if He willed to destroy the Messiah, the son of Maryam, and his mother and all who are on the earth," He says: who is the one able to avert anything of the command of Allah, if He chose to destroy the Messiah, the son of Maryam, by removing him from the earth, and to remove his mother Maryam, and to remove all the created beings who are on the earth together? (27)

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   He — exalted be His praise — says to His Prophet Muḥammad, the blessing and peace of Allah be upon him: Say to these ignorant ones among the Christians: if the Messiah were as you claim — namely that he is Allah, and it is not so — then he would be able to avert the command of Allah when it came to him with his destruction and the destruction of his mother. Yet He destroyed his mother, and he was unable to avert His command concerning her when it descended. Therein lies for you a lesson to reflect upon, if you reflect, and a proof against you, if you are of understanding: namely that the Messiah is a human being like all other children of Adam, and that Allah — mighty and exalted is He — is the One who is not overcome or overpowered and whose command cannot be turned back; rather He is the Living, the Everlasting, the Sustainer who gives life and causes death, who brings into being and causes to perish, and He is living and does not die.

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   Explanation of the saying of Him, mighty is His remembrance: وَلِلَّهِ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ (And to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and what is between them; He creates what He wills).

   Abū Jaʿfar said: He — blessed and exalted is He — means thereby: and to Allah belongs the disposal over what is in the heavens and the earth and what is between them (28) — that is to say: and what is between the heaven and the earth — He destroys of it whom He wills and causes to endure of it what He wills, and He brings into existence what He wills and causes to perish what pleases Him; no hinderer holds Him back from anything that He wills of it, and no warder-off wards Him away from it. He carries out His judgment among them and makes His disposal pass among them — not the Messiah, who, if his Lord willed his destruction and the destruction of his mother, had no power to avert what his Lord willed thereby.

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   He — mighty and exalted is He — says: How can one who is unable to avert what another wishes upon him of harm, and who is not capable of repelling what befalls him of destruction, be a god who is worshipped? Rather the worshipped God is the One to whom belongs the dominion over all things, and in whose hand lies the disposal over all who are in the heaven and the earth and what is between them.

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   He — exalted be His praise — said "and what is between them (wa-mā baynahumā)," while He had mentioned "the heavens (al-samāwāt)" in the plural form, and He did not say "and what is between them (baynahunna)," because the meaning is: and what is between these two kinds of things, as al-Rāʿī said:

   Both came by night; and those are my cares, I entertain them both

   with young she-camels, pregnant, like bows, and barren.

   So he said "both came" (ṭaraqā), reporting about two things, and then said "and those are my cares" (fa-tilka hamāhimī), thereby returning to the meaning of the utterance.

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   And His words "He creates what He wills," He — exalted be His praise — says: and He brings forth what He wills and causes it to exist, and He draws it out from the state of non-existence to the state of existence, and none will be able to do that except Allah, the One, the Subduer. And He means thereby only that to Him belongs the governance of the heavens and the earth and what is between them, and the disposal over it, and the causing of it to perish and the removing of it, and the bringing into existence of what He wills of that which is neither existent nor brought forth. He says: that belongs to none other than Me. How then did you claim, O liars, that the Messiah is a god, while he has power over nothing of that, indeed is not even able to avert harm from himself nor from his mother, and can provide them no benefit except with My permission?

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   Explanation of the saying of Him, mighty is His remembrance: وَاللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ (And Allah is capable of all things) (17).

   Abū Jaʿfar said: He — mighty is His remembrance — says: Allah, the Worshipped One, is the One who is capable of all things, and the Possessor of all things, who is not rendered incapable by anything He wills, and who is not overcome by anything He pursues; the All-Powerful to destroy the Messiah and his mother and all who are on the earth together — not the incapable one who is unable to protect himself from harm that befalls him from Allah, nor to protect his mother from destruction. (30)

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   Show original Arabic

   القول في تأويل قوله عز ذكره : لَقَدْ كَفَرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْمَسِيحُ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ قال أبو جعفر: هذا ذمٌّ من الله عز ذكره للنصارى والنصرانية، الذين ضلُّوا عن سبل السلام= واحتجاجٌ منه لنبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم في فِرْيتهم عليه بادّعائهم له ولدًا. يقول جل ثناؤه: أقسم، لقد كفر الذين قالوا: إن الله هو المسيح ابن مريم= و " كفرهم " في ذلك، تغطيتهم الحقّ في تركهم نفي الولد عن الله جل وعز، وادِّعائهم أن المسيح هو الله، فرية وكذبًا عليه. (24) * * * وقد بينا معنى: " المسيح " فيما مضى، بما أغنى عن إعادته في هذا الموضع. (25) . * * * القول في تأويل قوله عز ذكره : قُلْ فَمَنْ يَمْلِكُ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيْئًا إِنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يُهْلِكَ الْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ وَأُمَّهُ وَمَنْ فِي الأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا قال أبو جعفر: يقول جل ثناؤه، لنبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم: قل، يا محمد، للنصارى الذين افتروا عليّ، وضلُّوا عن سواء السبيل بقيلهم: إنّ الله هو المسيح ابن مريم: " من يملك من الله شيئًا "، يقول: من الذي يطيق أن يدفع من أمر الله جل وعز شيئا، فيردّه إذا قضاه. * * * = من قول القائل: " ملكت على فلان أمره "، إذا صار لا يقدر أن ينفذ أمرًا إلا به. (26) * * * وقوله: " إن أراد أن يهلك المسيح ابن مريم وأمه ومن في الأرض جميعًا "، يقول: من ذا الذي يقدر أن يرد من أمر الله شيئًا، إن شاء أن يهلك المسيح ابن مريم، بإعدامه من الأرض وإعدام أمه مريم، وإعدام جميع من في الأرض من الخلق جميعا. (27) * * * يقول جل ثناؤه لنبيه محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم: قل لهؤلاء الجهلة من النصارى: لو كان المسيح كما تزعمون= أنّه هو الله، وليس كذلك= لقدر أن يردَّ أمرَ الله إذا جاءه بإهلاكه وإهلاك أمه. وقد أهلك أمَّه فلم يقدر على دفع أمره فيها إذْ نـزل ذلك. ففي ذلك لكم معتَبرٌ إن اعتبرتم، وحجة عليكم إن عقلتم: في أن المسيح، بَشَر كسائر بني آدم، وأن الله عز وجل هو الذي لا يغلب ولا يقهر ولا يردُّ له &; 10-148 &; أمر، بل هو الحيُّ الدائم القيُّوم الذي يحيي ويميت، وينشئ ويفني، وهو حي لا يموت. * * * القول في تأويل قوله عز ذكره : وَلِلَّهِ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا يخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ قال أبو جعفر: يعني تبارك وتعالى بذلك: والله له تصريف ما في السماوات والأرض وما بينهما (28) = يعني: وما بين السماء والأرض= يهلك من يشاء من ذلك ويبقي ما يشاء منه، ويوجد ما أراد ويعدم ما أحبّ، لا يمنعه من شيء أراد من ذلك مانع، ولا يدفعه عنه دافع، يُنْفِذ فيهم حكمه، ويُمضي فيهم قضاءه= لا المسيح الذي إن أراد إهلاكه ربُّه وإهلاكَ أمّه، لم يملك دفع ما أراد به ربُّه من ذلك. * * * يقول جل وعز: كيف يكون إلهًا يُعبد من كان عاجزًا عن دفع ما أراد به غيره من السوء، وغير قادرٍ على صرف ما نـزل به من الهلاك؟ بل الإله المعبود، الذي له ملك كل شيء، وبيده تصريف كل من في السماءِ والأرض وما بينهما. * * * فقال جل ثناؤه: " وما بينهما "، وقد ذكر " السموات " بلفظ الجمع، ولم يقل: " وما بينهن "، لأن المعنى: وما بين هذين النوعين من الأشياء، كما قال الراعي: طَرَقَــا, فَتِلْـكَ هَمَـاهِمِي, أَقْرِيهِمَـا قُلُصًــا لَــوَاقِحَ كَالقِسِـيِّ وَحُـولا (29) فقال: " طرقا "، مخبًرا عن شيئين، ثم قال: " فتلك هَمَاهمي"، فرجع إلى معنى الكلام. * * * وقوله: " يخلق ما يشاء "، يقول جل ثناؤه: وينشئ ما يشاء ويوجده، ويخرجُه من حال العدم إلى حال الوجود، ولن يقدر على ذلك غير الله الواحد القهَّار. وإنما يعني بذلك، أنّ له تدبير السموات والأرض وما بينهما وتصريفه، وإفناءه وإعدامه، وإيجادَ ما يشاء مما هو غير موجود ولا مُنْشأ. يقول: فليس ذلك لأحد سواي، فكيف زعمتم، أيها الكذبة، أنّ المسيح إله، وهو لا يطيق شيئا من ذلك، بل لا يقدر على دفع الضرَر عن نفسه ولا عن أمه، ولا اجتلابِ نفعٍ إليها إلا بإذني؟ * * * القول في تأويل قوله عز ذكره : وَاللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ (17) قال أبو جعفر: يقول عز ذكره: الله المعبودُ، هو القادر على كل شيء، والمالك كلَّ شيء، الذي لا يعجزُه شيء أراده، ولا يغلبه شيء طلبه، المقتدرُ على هلاك المسيح وأمه ومن في الأرض جميعًا = لا العاجز الذي لا يقدر على منع نفسه من ضُرّ نـزل به من الله، ولا منْعِ أمّه من الهلاك. (30) * * * ----------------------- الهوامش : (24) انظر تفسير"الكفر" فيما سلف من فهارس اللغة. (25) انظر تفسير"المسيح" فيما سلف 9: 417 ، تعليق: 1 ، والمراجع هناك. (26) هذا بيان قلما تصيبه في كتب اللغة. (27) انظر تفسير"الإهلاك" فيما سلف 4: 239 ، 240/9: 430. (28) انظر تفسير"الملك" فيما سلف 8: 48 ، تعليق: 3 ، والمراجع هناك. (29) من قصيدته في جمهرة أشعار العرب: 173 ، ومجاز القرآن لأبي عبيدة 1: 118 ، 160 ، يقول لابنته خليدة: لَمَّــا رَأَتْ أَرَقِــي وَطُـولَ تَلَـدُّدِي ذَاتَ الْعِشَــاء وَلَيْــلَيِ الْمَوْصُــولا قَـالَتْ خُـلَيْدَةُ: مَـا عَـرَاكَ، وَلَمْ تَكُنْ أَبَــدًا إِذَا عَــرَتِ الشُّـئُونُ سَـؤُولا أَخُــلَيْدَ، إِنَّ أَبَــاكِ ضَـافَ وِسَـادَهُ هَمَّــان باتَـــا جَنْبَــةً وَدَخِــيلا طَرَقَــا، فَتِلْــكَ هَمَــا هِــي.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . "الهماهم": الهموم. و"قلص" جمع"قلوص": الفتية من الإبل."لواقح": حوامل ، جمع"لاقح". و"الحول" ، جمع"حائل" ، وهي الناقة التي لم تحمل سنة أو سنتين أو سنوات ، وكذلك كل حامل ينقطع عنها الحمل. يقول: أجعل قرى هذه الهموم ، نوقًا هذه صفاتها ، كأنها قسى موترة من طول أسفارها ، فأضرب بها الفيافي. والشاهد الذي أراده الطبري أنه قال: "فتلك هماهمي" ، وقد ذكر قبل"همان" ، ثم عاد بعد يقول: "أقريهما" ، وقد قال: "فتلك هماهمي" جمعًا. وانظر مجاز القرآن لأبي عبيدة 1: 118 ، 160. (30) انظر تفسير"قدير" فيما سلف من فهارس اللغة.