Surah Muminun ayat 34 Tafsir Quran 23:34

﴿وَلَئِنْ أَطَعْتُم بَشَرًا مِّثْلَكُمْ إِنَّكُمْ إِذًا لَّخَاسِرُونَ﴾
[ المؤمنون: 34]

23:34 And if you should obey a man like yourselves, indeed, you would then be losers.

And by God if you obey a human being like yourselves this clause contains both an oath and a conditional; the response belongs to the former the oath which at the same time suffices in place of a response for the latter the conditional you will surely then that is should you obey them be losers you will have been duped.

And, they added, should you follow a man like yourselves your hopes shall be doomed to disappointment and you will he great losers

The Story of `Ad or Thamud Allah tells us that after the people of Nuh, He created another nation.
It was said that this was `Ad, because they were the successors of the people of Nuh.
Or it was said that they were Thamud, because Allah says: فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الصَّيْحَةُ بِالْحَقِّ ( So, the Sayhah overtook them in truth. ) Allah sent to them a Messenger from among themselves, and he called them to worship Allah Alone with no partner or associate, but they belied him, opposed him and refused to follow him because he was a human being like them, and they refused to follow a human Messenger.
They did not believe in the meeting with Allah on the Day of Resurrection and they denied the idea of physical resurrection.
They said: أَيَعِدُكُمْ أَنَّكُمْ إِذَا مِتٌّمْ وَكُنتُمْ تُرَاباً وَعِظـماً أَنَّكُمْ مُّخْرَجُونَ - هَيْهَاتَ هَيْهَاتَ لِمَا تُوعَدُونَ ( Does he promise you that when you have died and have become dust and bones, you shall come out alive (resurrected ) Far, very far is that which you are promised!) meaning, very unlikely. إِنْ هُوَ إِلاَّ رَجُلٌ افتَرَى عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِباً ( He is only a man who has invented a lie against Allah, ) meaning, `in the Message he has brought to you, and his warnings and promise of resurrection.' وَمَا نَحْنُ لَهُ بِمُؤْمِنِينَقَالَ رَبِّ انصُرْنِى بِمَا كَذَّبُونِ ( and we are not going to believe in him.
He said: "O my Lord! Help me because they deny me." ) meaning, the Messenger ﷺ prayed against his people and asked his Lord to help him against them.
His Lord answered his prayer: قَالَ عَمَّا قَلِيلٍ لَّيُصْبِحُنَّ نَـدِمِينَ ( (Allah ) said: "In a little while, they are sure to be regretful.") meaning, `for their opposition towards you and their stubborn rejection of the Message you brought to them.' فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الصَّيْحَةُ بِالْحَقِّ ( So, The Sayhah overtook them in truth, ) meaning, they deserved that from Allah because of their disbelief and wrongdoing.
The apparent meaning is that the Sayhah was combined with the furious cold wind, تُدَمِّرُ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ بِأَمْرِ رَبِّهَا فَأْصْبَحُواْ لاَ يُرَى إِلاَّ مَسَـكِنُهُمْ ( Destroying everything by the command of its Lord! So they became such that nothing could be seen except their dwellings! ) 46:25 فَجَعَلْنَـهُمْ غُثَآءً ( and We made them as rubbish of dead plants. ) means, they are dead and destroyed, like the scum and rubbish left by a flood, i.e., something insignificant and useless that is of no benefit to anyone. فَبُعْداً لِّلْقَوْمِ الظَّـلِمِينَ ( So, away with the people who are wrongdoers. ) As Allah's statement: وَمَا ظَلَمْنَـهُمْ وَلَـكِن كَانُواْ هُمُ الظَّـلِمِينَ ( We wronged them not, but they were the wrongdoers. ) 43:76 means, who are wrongdoers because of their disbelief and stubborn opposition to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, so let those who hear this beware of disbelieving in their Messengers.

(23:34) Now if you submit to a human being like yourselves, you shall indeed be losers. *36

And if you should obey a man meaning

*36) Some commentators have wrongly opined that the chiefs exchanged these remarks against the Messenger between themselves.
These remarks in fact were addressed to the common people.
When the chiefs felt that the Message was spreading among the common people and there was a real danger that they would be influenced by the pure character of the Messenger and that their superiority then would automatically come to an end, they began to delude them by raising such objections against him.
It is worth while to note that both the chiefs of the people of Noah and the chiefs of the people of `Ad accused their Messengers of the " lust for power " but as regards themselves, they thought that power and prosperity were their inherent rights and they were in every respect entitled to be the chiefs of their people.

 

The Story of `Ad or Thamud Allah tells us that after the people of Nuh, He created another nation.
It was said that this was `Ad, because they were the successors of the people of Nuh.
Or it was said that they were Thamud, because Allah says: فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الصَّيْحَةُ بِالْحَقِّ ( So, the Sayhah overtook them in truth. ) Allah sent to them a Messenger from among themselves, and he called them to worship Allah Alone with no partner or associate, but they belied him, opposed him and refused to follow him because he was a human being like them, and they refused to follow a human Messenger.
They did not believe in the meeting with Allah on the Day of Resurrection and they denied the idea of physical resurrection.
They said: أَيَعِدُكُمْ أَنَّكُمْ إِذَا مِتٌّمْ وَكُنتُمْ تُرَاباً وَعِظـماً أَنَّكُمْ مُّخْرَجُونَ - هَيْهَاتَ هَيْهَاتَ لِمَا تُوعَدُونَ ( Does he promise you that when you have died and have become dust and bones, you shall come out alive (resurrected ) Far, very far is that which you are promised!) meaning, very unlikely. إِنْ هُوَ إِلاَّ رَجُلٌ افتَرَى عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِباً ( He is only a man who has invented a lie against Allah, ) meaning, `in the Message he has brought to you, and his warnings and promise of resurrection.' وَمَا نَحْنُ لَهُ بِمُؤْمِنِينَقَالَ رَبِّ انصُرْنِى بِمَا كَذَّبُونِ ( and we are not going to believe in him.
He said: "O my Lord! Help me because they deny me." ) meaning, the Messenger ﷺ prayed against his people and asked his Lord to help him against them.
His Lord answered his prayer: قَالَ عَمَّا قَلِيلٍ لَّيُصْبِحُنَّ نَـدِمِينَ ( (Allah ) said: "In a little while, they are sure to be regretful.") meaning, `for their opposition towards you and their stubborn rejection of the Message you brought to them.' فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الصَّيْحَةُ بِالْحَقِّ ( So, The Sayhah overtook them in truth, ) meaning, they deserved that from Allah because of their disbelief and wrongdoing.
The apparent meaning is that the Sayhah was combined with the furious cold wind, تُدَمِّرُ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ بِأَمْرِ رَبِّهَا فَأْصْبَحُواْ لاَ يُرَى إِلاَّ مَسَـكِنُهُمْ ( Destroying everything by the command of its Lord! So they became such that nothing could be seen except their dwellings! ) 46:25 فَجَعَلْنَـهُمْ غُثَآءً ( and We made them as rubbish of dead plants. ) means, they are dead and destroyed, like the scum and rubbish left by a flood, i.e., something insignificant and useless that is of no benefit to anyone. فَبُعْداً لِّلْقَوْمِ الظَّـلِمِينَ ( So, away with the people who are wrongdoers. ) As Allah's statement: وَمَا ظَلَمْنَـهُمْ وَلَـكِن كَانُواْ هُمُ الظَّـلِمِينَ ( We wronged them not, but they were the wrongdoers. ) 43:76 means, who are wrongdoers because of their disbelief and stubborn opposition to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, so let those who hear this beware of disbelieving in their Messengers.

( If ye were to obey a mortal ) a human being ( like yourselves, ye surely would be losers ) you would be ignorant and losers.

"If you were to obey a human being like yourselves, then verily! You indeed would be losers.

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