Tabari (1 passage)

1. Full Dutch translation of Tabari's text

   His statement: ثُمَّ مَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا يَوْمُ الدِّينِ ("What would make you know what the Day of Judgment is?") means: and what has made you aware, O Muḥammad, of the Day of recompense and reckoning? — this is to magnify its matter. Then He, exalted be His praise, explained a part of its affair and said: يَوْمَ لا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌ لِنَفْسٍ شَيْئًا ("The Day when no soul shall have power to do anything for another soul"). He means: that Day. يَوْمَ لا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌ means: a day on which no soul shall avail another soul anything at all, so as to ward off from it a calamity that befalls it, nor benefit it with any advantage — whereas in the worldly life it used to protect it and ward off whoever wished to harm it. But on that Day that has become powerless, for the command has passed over to Allah, who is overcome by no victor and subdued by no overpowerer. There the kingdoms have vanished, the dominions have disappeared, and sovereignty is reserved to the King, the Almighty (al-Jabbār). That is His statement: وَالأمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلَّهِ ("And the command on that Day belongs to Allah"). He means: and the command in its entirety belongs on that Day — namely the dominion of judgment — to Allah, to the exclusion of the rest of His creatures; none of His creatures has on that Day any command or prohibition along with Him.

   And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.

   * Mention of those who said that:

   Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda: وَالأمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلَّهِ ("And the command on that Day belongs to Allah"), he said: there is none on that Day who decides anything, nor brings anything about, except the Lord of the worlds.

   Show original Arabic

   وقوله: ( ثُمَّ مَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا يَوْمُ الدِّينِ ) يقول: ثم أيّ شيء أشعرك يوم المجازاة والحساب يا محمد، تعظيما لأمره، ثم فسَّر جلّ ثناؤه بعض شأنه فقال: ( يَوْمَ لا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌ لِنَفْسٍ شَيْئًا ) يقول: ذلك اليوم، ( يَوْمَ لا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌ ) يقول: يوم لا تُغني نفس عن نفس شيئا، فتدفع عنها بليَّة نـزلت بها، ولا تنفعها بنافعة، وقد كانت في الدنيا تحميها، وتدفع عنها من بغاها سوءا، فبطل ذلك يومئذ، لأن الأمر صار لله الذي لا يغلبه غالب، ولا يقهره قاهر، واضمحلت هنالك الممالك، وذهبت الرياسات، وحصل الملك للملك الجبار، وذلك قوله: ( وَالأمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلَّهِ ) يقول: والأمر كله يومئذ، يعني: الدين لله دون سائر خلقه، ليس لأحد من خلقه معه يومئذ أمر ولا نهي. وبنحو الذي قلنا في ذلك قال أهل التأويل. * ذكر من قال ذلك: حدثنا ابن عبد الأعلى، قال: ثنا ابن ثور، عن معمر، عن قتادة ( وَالأمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلَّهِ ) قال: ليس ثم أحد يومئذ يقضي شيئا، ولا يصنع شيئا إلا ربّ العالمين.