Surah Furqan ayat 20 Tafsir Quran 25:20

﴿وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلَّا إِنَّهُمْ لَيَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ وَيَمْشُونَ فِي الْأَسْوَاقِ ۗ وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ ۗ وَكَانَ رَبُّكَ بَصِيرًا﴾
[ الفرقان: 20]

25:20 And We did not send before you, [O Muhammad], any of the messengers except that they ate food and walked in the markets. And We have made some of you [people] as trial for others - will you have patience? And ever is your Lord, Seeing.

And We did not send before you any messengers but that they ate food and walked in the marketplaces and so you are like them in this respect and truly what was said to them is being said to you. And We have made some of you a trial for others a test trying the rich with the poor the healthy with the sick the honourable with the vulgar in each case the latter would say ‘Why can I not be like the other person?’ Will you be steadfast? and endure what you hear from those with whom you are tried? the interrogative is meant as an imperative in other words ‘Be steadfast!’. And your Lord is ever Watchful of those who remain steadfast and those who become miserable.

We never sent Messengers before you O Muhammad but were human who ate food and could not survive without alimentation and they moved about from place to place on foot. We also tested the people by exposing opposites -contrary in nature, character, tendency, status, wealth- to each other and those with thoughts of sedition in one toward another. Therefore, will you people -who have conformed to Islam- be persistent, constant and unwearied in the face of difficulties and hindrances and exercise patience! Your Creator is Bassirun (Omnipresent Whose constant vigilance has always been extended to all His creatures)

فَمَا تَسْتَطِيعُونَ صَرْفاً وَلاَ نَصْراً ( then you can neither avert nor find help. ) means: they will not be able to avert the punishment from themselves, nor will they be able to help themselves. وَمَن يَظْلِم مِّنكُمْ ( And whoever among you does wrong, ) means by associating others in worship with Allah, نُذِقْهُ عَذَاباً كَبِيراً ( We shall make him taste a great torment. ) وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلاَّ إِنَّهُمْ لَيَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ وَيَمْشُونَ فِى الاٌّسْوَاقِ وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ وَكَانَ رَبُّكَ بَصِيراً ( 20.
And We never sent before you any of the Messengers but verily, they ate food and walked in the markets.
And We have made some of you as a trial for others; will you have patience And your Lord is Ever All-Seer. ) All of the Previous Messengers were Human Allah tells us about the previous Messengers He sent: they all used to eat food needing the nourishment in it.
They used to go around in the marketplaces seeking to engage in trade and earn a livelihood.
This should not, however, affect their status as Messengers, for Allah gave them good characteristics and caused them to speak fine words and do noble deeds, and gave them miracles and clear proofs, from which any person with sound insight may see the confirmation that what they brought from Allah was true.
This Ayah is similar to the Ayat; وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ إِلاَّ رِجَالاً نُّوحِى إِلَيْهِمْ مِّنْ أَهْلِ الْقُرَى ( And We sent not before you any but men unto whom We revealed, from among the people of townships ) ( 12:109 ). وَمَا جَعَلْنَـهُمْ جَسَداً لاَّ يَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ ( And We did not create them bodies that ate not food ) ( 21:8 ). وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ ( And We have made some of you as a trial for others; will you have patience ) means, `We test some of you by means of others, so that We may see who will be obedient and who will be disobedient.' Allah says: أَتَصْبِرُونَ وَكَانَ رَبُّكَ بَصِيراً ( will you have patience And your Lord is Ever All-Seer. ) meaning, He knows who deserves to receive revelation, as Allah says elsewhere: اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهُ ( Allah knows best with whom to place His Message ) ( 6:124 ).
And He knows who deserves to be guided to the Message with which He sent them, and who does not deserve to be guided. وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ ( And We have made some of you as a trial for others.
Will you have patience ) Muhammad bin Ishaq said: Allah is saying, "If I had willed that the world be such that no one would oppose My Messengers, I could have made it so, but I wanted to test My servants by means of them." In Sahih Muslim it is narrated from `Iyad bin Himar that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
«يَقُولُ اللهُ تَعَالى: إِنِّي مُبْتَلِيكَ وَمُبْتَلٍ بِك»
( Allah says: "I will test you and test others by means of you." ) In the Sahih it is recorded that he was given the choice between being a Prophet and king, or being a servant and Messenger, and he chose to be a servant and Messenger.

(25:20) O Muhammad, , all the Messengers whom We sent before you also ate food and moved about in the streets. *29 In fact, We have made you all a means of test for one another. *30 Will you show patience? *31 for your Lord sees everything. *32

And We did not send before you, meaning

*29) This is an answer to the objection of the disbelievers of Makkah that Muhammad ( Allah's peace be upon him ) could not be a Messenger of Allah because he ate food and moved about in the streets.
They have been told that all the Messengers of Allah who came before Muhammad ( Allah's peace be upon him )like Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Moses and many others whom they knew and acknowledged as Prophets and Messengers of Allah also ate food and walked about in the streets.
Nay, even Prophet Jesus, son of Mary, himself, whom the Christians had made the son of God ( and whose image had also been placed in the Ka`bah by the disbelievers of Makkah ) ate food and walked about in the streets like a common man even according to the Gospels themselves.

*30) It is obvious that the Messenger and the Believers were a test for the disbelievers as to whether they would believe even after hearing the Divine Message and seeing their pure character.
On the other hand, the disbelievers were a test for the Messenger and his followers in the sense that they were a means of proving and trying their true Faith by their persecution.
For it is this test alone which helps to discriminate the true Believers from the hypocrites.
That is why, at tirst, only the poor arid the helpless but sincere people embraced Islam.
Had there been no persecution and hardships but prosperity, wealth and grandeur, the worshippers of the world and the selfish people would have been the first to embrace Islam.

*31) That is, " Now when you have understood the wisdom of the test by persecution, it is hoped that you will endure all kinds of hardships without complaint, and willingly undergo the persecutions that are inevitable. "
*32) It probably means two things: First, the way your Lord is conducting your affairs, is according to His will and nothing that happens is without His knowledge.
Second, He is fully aware of your sincerity and righteousness in serving His cause under all kinds of hardships.
You should therefore rest assured that you will have your full reward.
He also sees the persecution and iniquity of the disbelievers; therefore they will not escape the consequences of their wickedness .

 

فَمَا تَسْتَطِيعُونَ صَرْفاً وَلاَ نَصْراً ( then you can neither avert nor find help. ) means: they will not be able to avert the punishment from themselves, nor will they be able to help themselves. وَمَن يَظْلِم مِّنكُمْ ( And whoever among you does wrong, ) means by associating others in worship with Allah, نُذِقْهُ عَذَاباً كَبِيراً ( We shall make him taste a great torment. ) وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا قَبْلَكَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلاَّ إِنَّهُمْ لَيَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ وَيَمْشُونَ فِى الاٌّسْوَاقِ وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ وَكَانَ رَبُّكَ بَصِيراً ( 20.
And We never sent before you any of the Messengers but verily, they ate food and walked in the markets.
And We have made some of you as a trial for others; will you have patience And your Lord is Ever All-Seer. ) All of the Previous Messengers were Human Allah tells us about the previous Messengers He sent: they all used to eat food needing the nourishment in it.
They used to go around in the marketplaces seeking to engage in trade and earn a livelihood.
This should not, however, affect their status as Messengers, for Allah gave them good characteristics and caused them to speak fine words and do noble deeds, and gave them miracles and clear proofs, from which any person with sound insight may see the confirmation that what they brought from Allah was true.
This Ayah is similar to the Ayat; وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ إِلاَّ رِجَالاً نُّوحِى إِلَيْهِمْ مِّنْ أَهْلِ الْقُرَى ( And We sent not before you any but men unto whom We revealed, from among the people of townships ) ( 12:109 ). وَمَا جَعَلْنَـهُمْ جَسَداً لاَّ يَأْكُلُونَ الطَّعَامَ ( And We did not create them bodies that ate not food ) ( 21:8 ). وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ ( And We have made some of you as a trial for others; will you have patience ) means, `We test some of you by means of others, so that We may see who will be obedient and who will be disobedient.' Allah says: أَتَصْبِرُونَ وَكَانَ رَبُّكَ بَصِيراً ( will you have patience And your Lord is Ever All-Seer. ) meaning, He knows who deserves to receive revelation, as Allah says elsewhere: اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهُ ( Allah knows best with whom to place His Message ) ( 6:124 ).
And He knows who deserves to be guided to the Message with which He sent them, and who does not deserve to be guided. وَجَعَلْنَا بَعْضَكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ فِتْنَةً أَتَصْبِرُونَ ( And We have made some of you as a trial for others.
Will you have patience ) Muhammad bin Ishaq said: Allah is saying, "If I had willed that the world be such that no one would oppose My Messengers, I could have made it so, but I wanted to test My servants by means of them." In Sahih Muslim it is narrated from `Iyad bin Himar that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: «يَقُولُ اللهُ تَعَالى: إِنِّي مُبْتَلِيكَ وَمُبْتَلٍ بِك» ( Allah says: "I will test you and test others by means of you." ) In the Sahih it is recorded that he was given the choice between being a Prophet and king, or being a servant and Messenger, and he chose to be a servant and Messenger.

( We never sent before you ) O Muhammad ( any messengers but lo! they ate food ) as you do; this is in response to the disbelievers of Mecca who said: ( What ails this messenger (of Allah ) that he eats food), ( and walked in the markets ) just as you walk. ( And We have appointed some of you a test ) a trial ( for others ) We test the pure Arab with the client, and the noble by birth with the lowly and the rich with the poor; Allah said to Abu Jahl and his host: ( Will ye be steadfast ) with the Companions of the Prophet ( pbuh ) Salman and his fellow believers, such that you become with them, in relation to Religion and other matters, equal and that you sit together with them? ( And thy Lord is ever Seer ) that they will not be steadfast regarding this. It is also said that this means: will you be steadfast, O Companions of the Prophet ( pbuh ) in the face of their harm until I grant you the reward of the steadfast, and your Lord sees who believes among you and who does not?

And We never sent before you (O Muhammad SAW) any of the Messengers but verily, they ate food and walked in the markets. And We have made some of you as a trial for others: will you have patience? And your Lord is Ever All-Seer (of everything).

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