Tafseer of The Jinn · Al-Jinn · 72:27
Except whom He has approved of messengers, and indeed, He sends before each messenger and behind him observers
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.
Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda: (إِلا مَنِ ارْتَضَى مِنْ رَسُولٍ ) — verily, He lets him see of the unseen whatever He wills, when He takes pleasure in him.
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: (فَلا يُظْهِرُ عَلَى غَيْبِهِ أَحَدًا إِلا مَنِ ارْتَضَى مِنْ رَسُولٍ ) — he said: He sends down of His unseen whatever He wills to the prophets; He sent down to the Messenger of Allah (the Prophet ﷺ) the unseen, the Qurʾān. He said: and through it He has informed us of the unseen, concerning what will come to pass on the Day of Resurrection.
And His word: (فَإِنَّهُ يَسْلُكُ مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — He says: verily, He sends before him and behind him watchers and guardians who protect him.
* Mention of those who said that:
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Mihrān related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of ʿAlqama ibn Marthad, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: (إِلا مَنِ ارْتَضَى مِنْ رَسُولٍ فَإِنَّهُ يَسْلُكُ مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — he said: when the angel was sent with the revelation to the Prophet ﷺ, there were sent with him angels who guarded him, before him and behind him, so that the devil would not present himself in the form of the angel.
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Mihrān related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ibrāhīm: (مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — he said: angels who protect them, before them and behind them.
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Wakīʿ related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ibrāhīm: (مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — he said: the angels protect him, before him and behind him, against the jinn.
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ṭalḥa — that is, Ibn Muṣarrif — on the authority of Ibrāhīm, concerning His word: (مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — he said: the angels are a guard, before him and behind him, who protect him against the jinn.
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, 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, concerning His word: (إِلا مَنِ ارْتَضَى مِنْ رَسُولٍ فَإِنَّهُ يَسْلُكُ مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — he said: these are angels following one another in succession who protect the Prophet ﷺ against the devil, until that with which he was sent is clearly conveyed to them, and that is when He says: (لِيَعْلَمَ أَنْ قَدْ أَبْلَغُوا رِسَالاتِ رَبِّهِمْ ) (that He may know that they have indeed conveyed the messages of their Lord).
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His word: (فَإِنَّهُ يَسْلُكُ مِنْ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ رَصَدًا ) — he said: the angels.
