Wannan nassi na surah yana sharhi ne a kan labaran da suka gabata game da tarihin al'ummomin da aka aika wa Annabawa Nuhu, Hūd, Şāliĥ, Lūɗu da Shu`ayb. Anan muna da bayanin dokar da Allah ya kafa, wadda ke tabbatar da cika nufinsa idan ya hukunta waɗanda suka musanta saƙonnin sa. Dokar nan ita ce ka’ida guda da ke tsara tarihin ɗan Adam ta wani muhimmin fanni. Allah yana aukar da wahalhalu da tsanani a kan waɗanda suka ƙi manzanninsa, domin zukatansu su yi laushi, su koma gare shi, suna mai yarda da tsarkin Allah ɗaya kuma suna fahimtar cewa hanya ɗaya tilo a gare su ita ce miƙa wuya ga ikonsa mai rinjaye. Idan kuma ba su amsa ba, sai ya jarrabe su da arziƙi da kyakkyawan rabo. Yakan buɗe musu dukkan nau’ikan albarka, ya bar su na ɗan lokaci suna jin daɗin wadatarsu. Amma duk wannan hanya ce ta jarrabawa.

This passage of the sūrah comments on the accounts that have just finished of the histories of the communities to whom the Prophets Noah, Hūd, Şāliĥ, Lot and Shu`ayb were sent. We have here an explanation of the rule God has laid down which ensures that His will is done when He punishes those who deny His messages. It is the same rule and principle which shapes human history in one very important aspect. God inflicts tribulations and hardship on those who reject His messengers so that their hearts may soften and they turn to God, acknowledging His oneness and recognizing that the only course of action open to them is to submit to His overpowering authority. If they do not respond, then He tries them with affluence and good fortune. He opens up for them all types of blessings and leaves them for a while to enjoy their prosperity. All this, however, is a means of trial.

Wadatar arziki ga mutane yana sa su rayuwa cikin rashin kulawa, sakaci da gafala, domin suna tunanin cewa dukiya tana sauyawa da kanta, kuma rayuwar yalwa tabbas za ta biyo bayan lokacin wahala, ba tare da wata manufa ko tsari na musamman ba.

People’s prosperity causes them to lead a life of recklessness, negligence and heedlessness, because they tend to think that fortunes change by themselves, and a life of plenty is simply bound to follow a period of hardship, without any particular purpose or design.

Sa'ad da suka ji cewa abin da suka fuskanta yana kama da abin da kakanninsu suka fuskanta, ba tare da wata manufa ta musamman a cikin wannan tsari gaba ɗaya ba, azabar Allah tabbas za ta same su ba zato ba tsammani. Ba sa fahimtar manufar Allah a lokacin da Yake jarabtar su da masifa da wadata. Ba sa iya gane dalilin da ya sa yanayin mutane ke canzawa lokaci-lokaci. Ba su kiyaye kansu daga jawo fushin Allah ba, sai dai sun fi son rayuwa kamar dabbobi har sai azabar Allah ta same su. Da sun yi imani da Allah suka bi hanya madaidaiciya, da yanayinsu ya canza, albarka kuma ta buɗe musu. Allah zai yi musu falalar alherinSa, za a sa su karɓi albarkunSa daga ko'ina, wanda zai ba su tabbaci da makoma mai daɗi.

When they feel that what they have experienced is the same as was experienced by their forefathers, without any particular purpose in all this design, God’s punishment is certain to take them unawares. They do not understand God’s purpose when He tries them with affliction and prosperity. They cannot comprehend why people’s situations change every now and then. They have not guarded against incurring God’s anger, preferring to live like animals until they are smitten by God’s punishment. Had they believed in God and followed the right course, their situation would have changed and blessings would have opened up to them. God would have bestowed His grace on them and they would have been made to receive His blessings from everywhere, giving them reassurance and a happy future.

Daga nan Allah yana gargadin sabbin tsararraki game da rayuwar rashin kulawa. Yana kira gare su da su kasance a faɗake, kuma su yi godiya saboda darussan tsararrakin da suka gabata da yadda suka fuskanci halakarsu. Su ma suna ƙarƙashin dokokin yanayi na Allah, waɗanda za su ci gaba da aiki, suna nuna tasirinsu a tarihin ɗan Adam a dukkan zamanai da tsararraki.

God then warns the new generations against a life of recklessness. He calls on them to be alert and to appreciate the lessons of past generations and how they met their doom. They themselves are also subject to God’s laws of nature, which will remain in operation, exercising their influence on human history across all periods and generations.

Wannan ɗan gajeren sharhi ya ƙare da magana zuwa ga Annabi Muhammadu ﷺ, yana gaya masa cewa an bada waɗannan labarai ne domin ya san yadda dokar Allah ta samu tasiri. Yana gaya masa halin gaskiya na waɗannan al'ummomi: "Mun samu yawancinsu ba su cika alkawari ba; hakika, mun samu yawancinsu fasiqai ne." (Aya ta 102) Shi ne Manzo na ƙarshe ﷺ, kuma al'ummarsa ita ce al'ummar da ta gaji saƙon Allah gaba ɗaya. Su ne za su amfana da darussan da suka gabata.

This short commentary concludes with an address to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), telling him that these histories are being related so that he learns how God’s law has been given effect. It tells him of the true position of those communities: “We found that most of them were untrue to their commitments; indeed We found most of them to be transgressors.” (Verse 102) He is the last Messenger, and his followers are the nation which inherits the divine message in its totality. They are the ones to benefit by past lessons.

Ba mu taɓa aika wani annabi zuwa wata alƙarya ba sai mun jarrabi mutanenta da wahala da tsanani domin su roƙi (Allah) da tawali'u. Sa'an nan muka musanya wahalar da yalwa har suka bunƙasa suka ce: "Wahala da yalwa sun samu iyayenmu ma." Sa'an nan muka kama su kwatsam alhali su ba sa sani. Da mutanen waɗancan alƙaryu sun yi imani kuma suka kasance masu taƙawa, lalle da mun buɗe musu albarkoki daga sama da ƙasa. Amma sun ƙaryata, saboda haka muka kama su saboda abin da suke aikatawa. (Ayoyi 94-96)

Never have We sent a prophet to any city without trying its people with tribulations and hardship that they may supplicate with humility. We then replaced the affliction with good fortune till they throve and said, `Hardship and good fortune befell our forefathers as well.’” We then smote them, all of a sudden, while they were totally unaware. Yet had the people of those cities believed and been God-fearing, We would indeed have opened up for them blessings out of heaven and earth. But they disbelieved, so We smote them on account of what they had been doing. (Verses 94-96)

Ba a ba mu labarin wani takamaiman lamari ba, amma an nuna wani muhimmin bangare na dokar halitta da Allah ya kafa. Ana gaya mana yadda ake tsara kaddara. Don haka muna koyo cewa akwai wata doka da ke tsara al'amura zuwa wani tsari na musamman, da ke ƙayyade abubuwan da ke faruwa, da kuma siffanta tarihin ɗan Adam a duniya. Muna koyo cewa saƙon Allah da kansa, duk da muhimmancinsa, ana iya ɗaukarsa a matsayin ɗaya daga cikin hanyoyin aiwatar da tsarin mulkin Allah, wanda ya fi saƙon girma da fadin iyaka.

We are not told here of any particular incident, but an important aspect of the natural law God has set in operation is highlighted. We are told how fate is determined. We thus learn that there is a law which sets matters into a particular pattern, dictating events, and shaping human history on earth. We learn that the divine message itself, important as it is, can be regarded as one of the means of implementing the divine constitution, which is far greater in scope than the message.

Abubuwa ba sa faruwa da kansu kawai. Mutum ba ya tsaye shi kaɗai, kamar yadda masu kafircewa da Allah na zamani suke zargi. Duk abin da ke faruwa a cikin duniya wani sashe ne na tsari mai zurfi, kuma yana da manufa ta musamman, yana kai ga wani buri na ƙarshe. Dokar halitta an shirya ta ne ta hannun wani nufi mai cikakken 'yanci, wanda ya tsara yanayin halittar duniya. Kuma bisa ga wannan doka, wadda nufin Allah mai 'yanci yake aiwatarwa, ne waɗannan al'ummomi, waɗanda labarinsu ya zo a cikin wannan sūrah, suka fuskanci ƙarshensu.

Matters do not simply happen by themselves. Man does not stand alone, as alleged by later day atheists. Whatever takes place in the universe is part of an elaborate scheme, and has a definite purpose, serving an ultimate aim. The law of nature is devised by an absolutely free will which has shaped the constitution. It was in accordance with that law, operated by God’s free will, that those communities, whose history was related in this sūrah, met their fate.

“Kuma da mutanen waɗannan garuruwa sun yi imani, suka kuma kasance masu tsoron Allah, lalle da Mun buɗe musu albarkatu daga sama da ƙasa. Amma sun ƙaryata, saboda haka Muka kama su saboda abin da suke aikatawa.” (Aya ta 96) Wannan ɗayan ɓangaren doka ta halitta ce wadda God ya sanya ta aiki. Da mutanen waɗannan garuruwa sun yi imani maimakon ƙaryata saƙonnin God, kuma da sun kasance masu tsoron God maimakon yin sakaci, God zai buɗe musu albarkatu daga sama da ƙasa. Da an ba su irin waɗannan albarkatu cikin yalwa, ba tare da takurawa ba. Albarkatun God da sun zo musu daga sama da kuma daga ƙasa. Kalmar Alƙur'ani tana da faɗi sosai har tana isar da ma'anar yalwa mai girma, wadda ba ta takaituwa ga abin da mutane suka saba da shi na arziƙi da abinci kawai ba.

“Yet had the people of those cities believed and been God fearing, We would indeed have opened up for them blessings out of heaven and earth. But they disbelieved, so We smote them on account of what they had been doing.” (Verse 96) This is the other part of the natural law God has set in operation. Had the people of those cities believed instead of denying God’s messages, and had they been God-fearing instead of being careless, God would have opened up for them blessings from heaven and earth. They would have been given such blessings in abundance, without restriction. God’s blessings would have come to them from above and beneath. The Qur’ānic expression is so general that it imparts a sense of great abundance that is not limited to what is familiar to human beings of provisions and sustenance.

Wannan magana da wadda ta gabace ta suna bayyana mana wasu gaskiyoyi da suka shafi imani a gefe guda, da rayuwar mutum a duniya a daya gefen. Haka kuma suna taba wani abu mai girman tasiri a tarihin ɗan Adam, duk da cewa sau da yawa ana watsi da shi, har ma akasin haka, ra'ayoyi da falsafofin mutane suna musanta shi. Wannan gaskiya tana gaya mana cewa batun imani da Allah da tsoronsa ba ya keɓe daga gaskiyar rayuwa da hanyar tarihin ɗan Adam. Yin imani da Allah da tsoronsa yana sa mutane su cancanci karɓar albarkoki daga sama da ƙasa. Wannan alkawari ne daga Allah, kuma Allah koyaushe yana cika alkawuransa.

This statement and the one preceding it put in front of our eyes certain facts that relate to faith on the one hand and to human life in this world on the other. They also touch on a factor that has a great influence on human history, even though it is often overlooked and indeed denied by man-made theories and philosophies. That fact tells us that the question of having faith in God and fearing Him is not isolated from the reality of life and the course of human history. To believe in God and to fear Him qualify people to receive blessings from heaven and earth. This is a promise given by God, and God is always true to His promises.

Mu da muke yin imani da Allah, mun karɓi wannan alkawari a matsayin gaskiya ba tare da mun tambayi dalilansa ko musabbabansa ba. Ba mu da shakka a cikin tsammanin cewa zai cika.

Sūrah ta kafa hujja a kan cewa dokar Allah tana aiki kuma ba za ta taɓa kasawa ba, kamar yadda tarihin al'ummomin da suka gabata ya tabbatar. Yanzu da zukata sun cika da damuwa game da halakar da ta auka wa waɗanda suka ƙi imani kuma suka yi watsi da manufar jarrabawarsu, sūrah ta yi magana da waɗanda har yanzu suka yi watsi da waɗannan gaskiyoyin rayuwa. Tana ƙoƙarin farkar da su zuwa ga tsammani, tana faɗakar da su cewa ikon Allah na iya same su a kowane lokaci na rana ko dare, a lokacin da suke barci, a wurin aiki ko kuma suna nishaɗi: "Shin mutanen waɗannan garuruwa sun tabbata cewa ikonMu ba zai auka musu da dare ba, alhali suna barci? Ko kuma mutanen waɗannan garuruwa sun tabbata cewa ikonMu ba zai auka musu da rana tsaka ba, alhali suna wasa? Shin sun ɗauka cewa sun tsira daga shirin Allah? Ba wanda yake jin cewa ya tsira daga shirin Allah sai waɗanda suke asara. Shin ba a bayyane yake ga waɗanda suka gaji ƙasa bayan al'ummomin da suka gabata ba cewa, idan Mun so, za Mu iya hukunta su saboda zunubansu, mu kuma rufe zukatansu, har suka rasa jin ji?" (Ayoyi 97-100)

The sūrah has thus established the fact that God’s law is set in operation and will never fail, as confirmed by the history of former communities. Now that feelings are high about the doom that befell those who rejected the faith and overlooked the purpose of their test, the sūrah addresses those who have so far overlooked these facts of life. It tries to awaken in them a sense of expectation, alerting them to the fact that God’s might may strike them at any time of day or night, when they are asleep, at work or having fun: “Do the people of these cities feel secure that Our might would not strike them at dead of night when they are asleep? Or do the people of these cities feel secure that Our might would not strike them in broad daylight when they are playing around? Do they feel themselves secure from God’s designs? None feels secure from God’s designs except those who are losers. Is it not plain to those who have inherited the earth in succession of former generations that, if We so willed, We can punish them for their sins and seal their hearts, leaving them bereft of hearing.” (Verses 97-100)

Bayan an faɗa musu game da dokar Allah da ke jarrabar mutane da al'ummomi ta hanyar wahala da kuma yalwa, kuma bayan sun ga halakar da ta auka wa waɗanda suka ƙi saƙon Allah a zamanin baya, shin mutanen zamani suna jin tsaro har suna zaton ikon Allah ba zai bugi su ba alhali ba su sani ba? Shin suna jin cewa suna da kariya daga ikon Allah wanda zai auka musu a tsakiyar dare, alhali suna barci mai zurfi? Ya kamata su tuna cewa mutum mai barci ba shi da ƙarfi, ba zai iya ɗaukar matakan kariya ko ma korar kwari ƙanana masu rauni ba. Ta yaya zai hana bugun Allah mai ƙarfi, alhali babu wani mutum, komai hankalinsa da ƙarfinsa, da zai iya tsayayya da shi ko ya hana shi?

Having been told of God’s law that exposes people and communities to tests of adversity and affluence, and having seen the doom that befell those who rejected the divine message in former times, do the people of the present generation feel so secure that they assume that God’s might will not strike when they are totally unaware? Do they feel so immune against God’s might striking at dead of night when they are fast asleep? They should remember that a sleeping person is powerless, unable to take precautions or even repel a weak, small insect. How could he prevent a mighty strike from God, when no human being, however alert and strong can resist or prevent it?

Bayan ya zayyana dokokin halitta masu ban sha'awa, sūrar ta yi magana da Manzon Allah (ﷺ), tana sanar da shi sakamakon ƙarshe na jarrabawar waɗannan al'ummomi, tana kuma nuna wasu gaskiya game da yanayin imani da kafirci, da kuma yanayin ɗan Adam, kamar yadda aka gani a cikin waɗannan al'ummomi: "Mun ba ka labarin wasu sassan tarihin waɗannan al'ummomi. Manzanni daga cikinsu sun zo musu da hujjoji bayyanannu na gaskiya; amma ba su so su yi imani da abin da suka ƙi a baya ba. Haka Allah yake rufe zukatan kafirai."

Having outlined, with highly inspiring touches, the operative rules of nature, the sūrah addresses God’s Messenger (peace be upon him) informing him of the net outcome of putting those communities to trial, pointing out certain facts about the nature of faith and disbelief, as well as the nature of human beings, as seen in those communities: “We have related to you parts of the history of those communities. Messengers from among themselves came to them with clear evidence of the truth; but they would not believe in what they had formerly rejected. Thus does God seal the hearts of the unbelievers.

Mun same yawancinsu ba su cika alkawuransu ba; haƙiƙa, Mun tarar da yawancinsu masu fasiƙanci ne.” (Ayoyi 101-102)

We found that most of them were untrue to their commitments; indeed We found most of them to be transgressors.” (Verses 101-102)

Wannan tarihi an bayyana a fili cewa Allah ne ya saukar da shi. Annabi ﷺ ba zai iya koyo daga wata majiya ba face wahayi.

This history is clearly stated to have been revealed by God. The Prophet could not have learnt it from any source other than revelation.

"Manzanni daga cikinsu sun zo musu da hujjoji bayyananu." (Aya ta 101) Amma babu wata hujja da ta amfane su, domin sun ci gaba da ƙin saƙon bayan sun karɓi wannan hujja, kamar yadda suka ƙi shi tun kafin a ba su ita. Kawai ba sa so su yi imani da abin da suka riga suka ƙi. Ko hujjar gaskiya ta bayyana sosai, ba za ta kai irin waɗannan mutane ga karɓar addini ba. Abin da waɗannan mutane ba su da shi ba hujja bayyananniyar gaskiya ba ce, sai dai zukata da hankula a buɗe, da marmarin karɓar shiriya mai ƙarfi. Ba su da yanayi mai aiki wanda yake karɓa kuma yake amsawa. Sa'ad da suka ƙi buɗe hankalinsu ga abubuwan shiriya, Allah ya rufe zukatansu, ba su iya ba da amsa ta dace ba: "Haka Allah yake rufe zukatan kafirai." (Aya ta 101)

“Messengers from among themselves came to them with clear evidence of the truth.” (Verse 101) But no evidence was of benefit to them, because they continued to reject the message after having received that evidence in the same way as they rejected it before such evidence was given them. They simply would not believe in what they had already rejected. No matter how clear the evidence of the truth is, it will not lead such people to adopt the faith. What those people lacked was not plain proof of the truth, but rather open hearts and minds, and a keen desire to receive guidance. They lacked an active nature that receives and responds. When they refused to open their minds to elements of guidance, God sealed their hearts and they could no longer give any proper response: “Thus does God seal the hearts of the unbelievers.” (Verse 101)