• The Covenants With The Jews

• The Covenants With The Christians

• The Actual Position Of Jesus

Al-Ma’idah Verses 12 – 19

وَلَقَدْ أَخَذَ اللَّهُ مِيثَاقَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَبَعَثْنَا مِنْهُمُ اثْنَيْ عَشَرَ نَقِيبًا ۖ وَقَالَ اللَّهُ إِنِّي مَعَكُمْ ۖ لَئِنْ أَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ وَآمَنْتُمْ بِرُسُلِي وَعَزَّرْتُمُوهُمْ وَأَقْرَضْتُمُ اللَّهَ قَرْضًا حَسَنًا لَأُكَفِّرَنَّ عَنْكُمْ سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ وَلَأُدْخِلَنَّكُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الْأَنْهَارُ ۚ فَمَنْ كَفَرَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْكُمْ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ سَوَاءَ السَّبِيلِ

“And certainly did take God, a covenant from the children of Israel and We raised up from among them Twelve chieftains1; and said God: “Verily, I am with you; if ye keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate and believe in My Apostles and Support2them (with reverence) and lend unto God a goodly loan, I will certainly wipe out from you your sins, and I will certainly cause you to enter gardens beneath which rivers flow, but whosoever3disbelieveth after this, from among you, he shall certainly have lost the right path.” (5:12)

فَبِمَا نَقْضِهِمْ مِيثَاقَهُمْ لَعَنَّاهُمْ وَجَعَلْنَا قُلُوبَهُمْ قَاسِيَةً يُحَرِّفُونَ الْكَلِمَ عَنْ مَوَاضِعِهِ وَنَسُوا حَظًّا مِمَّا ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ وَلَا تَزَالُ تَطَّلِعُ عَلَىٰ خَائِنَةٍ مِنْهُمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِنْهُمْ فَاعْفُ عَنْهُمْ وَاصْفَحْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

“But for their breaking their covenant; We cursed them and made their hearts hard; they4shift the words (of the Scripture) from their places5, and have forgotten6a part of what they were admonished with, and nor wilt thou cease to be informed of deceit7from among them, except (from) a few of them, so forgive them and pass over them; Verily, God loveth the beneficent.” (5:13)

وَمِنَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّا نَصَارَىٰ أَخَذْنَا مِيثَاقَهُمْ فَنَسُوا حَظًّا مِمَّا ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ فَأَغْرَيْنَا بَيْنَهُمُ الْعَدَاوَةَ وَالْبَغْضَاءَ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ وَسَوْفَ يُنَبِّئُهُمُ اللَّهُ بِمَا كَانُوا يَصْنَعُونَ

“And of those (also) who say “Verily, We are Nazerenes8“, We did take their covenant, but they have forgotten9a portion of what they were admonished with, therefore we stirred up among them enmity and hatred (to last) till the day of Resurrection; And soon will God inform them of what they have been doing.” (5:14)

يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ قَدْ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولُنَا يُبَيِّنُ لَكُمْ كَثِيرًا مِمَّا كُنْتُمْ تُخْفُونَ مِنَ الْكِتَابِ وَيَعْفُو عَنْ كَثِيرٍ قَدْ جَاءَكُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ نُورٌ وَكِتَابٌ مُبِينٌ

“O’ People of the Book! Indeed, Our Apostle, (Muhammad) had come unto you, manifesting unto you much of what ye had been concealing of the Book, and passing over much; Indeed hath come unto you from God, Light10and a Manifesting11Book (Qur’an).” (5:15)

يَهْدِي بِهِ اللَّهُ مَنِ اتَّبَعَ رِضْوَانَهُ سُبُلَ السَّلَامِ وَيُخْرِجُهُمْ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ بِإِذْنِهِ وَيَهْدِيهِمْ إِلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيمٍ

“Whereby God guideth him who followeth His pleasure, into the ways of peace and taketh12them out from darkness towards the Light by His will and guideth13them to the path (that is) straight.” (5:16)

لَقَدْ كَفَرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْمَسِيحُ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ قُلْ فَمَنْ يَمْلِكُ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيْئًا إِنْ أَرَادَ أَنْ يُهْلِكَ الْمَسِيحَ ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ وَأُمَّهُ وَمَنْ فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا وَلِلَّهِ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ وَاللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

“Certainly, infidels are they who say; “Verily, God, He is Messiah14, son of Mary;” Say (O’ Our Apostle Muhammad!) “Who could hold anything against God, if He intendeth to destroy the Messiah son of Mary and his mother and (all) that is in the earth together? for unto God belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth and what is between them two; He createth what He willeth; Verily, God over all things hath power15.” (5:17)

وَقَالَتِ الْيَهُودُ وَالنَّصَارَىٰ نَحْنُ أَبْنَاءُ اللَّهِ وَأَحِبَّاؤُهُ قُلْ فَلِمَ يُعَذِّبُكُمْ بِذُنُوبِكُمْ بَلْ أَنْتُمْ بَشَرٌ مِمَّنْ خَلَقَ يَغْفِرُ لِمَنْ يَشَاءُ وَيُعَذِّبُ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَلِلَّهِ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا وَإِلَيْهِ الْمَصِيرُ

“And the Jews and the Christians say: “We are the sons of God and His beloved ones;” Say (O’ Our Apostle Muhammad!) “Why then doth He punish you for your sins? Nay, ye are but men of those He hath created; He pardoneth whom He pleaseth, and He punisheth whom He pleaseth; and unto God belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth; and what is between them (too); and unto Him is the ultimate return (of all)16.” (5:18)

يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ قَدْ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولُنَا يُبَيِّنُ لَكُمْ عَلَىٰ فَتْرَةٍ مِنَ الرُّسُلِ أَنْ تَقُولُوا مَا جَاءَنَا مِنْ بَشِيرٍ وَلَا نَذِيرٍ فَقَدْ جَاءَكُمْ بَشِيرٌ وَنَذِيرٌ وَاللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

“O’ People of the Book! Indeed hath come unto you Our Apostle, (Muhammad) explaining unto you after the break in (the series of) Our apostles, lest ye say; “There came not unto us any bearer of glad tidings nor a warner; but now hath come unto you a Bearer of glad tidings and a Warner (Our Apostle Muhammad)’, And Verily, God, over all things, hath power.” (5:19)

Commentary

Verse 12

For the covenant taken from the children of Israel see Deut. 26/17-19. There is the mention of the goodly loan prescribed from a believer to another believer or spending in the way of God. See 2:245. For the twelve chieftains see Numbers 1/1-15 and numbers 13/3-15.

1. “And the Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the tabernacle of the congregation, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt saying:”

2. “Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, after their families, by the house of their fathers, with the number of their names every male by their polls;”

3. “From twenty years old and upward, all that are able to go forth to war in Israel: thou and Aaron shall number them by their fathers.”

4. “And with you there shall be men of every tribe every one head of the house of his fathers.”

5. “And these are the names of the men that shall stand with you: of the tribe of Reuben: Elizur the son of Sed-e-ur.”

6. “Of Simeon; Shelumiel the son of Zarushaddai”

7. “Of Judah; Nahson the son of Ammino dab.”

8. “Of Issachar; Nethanaeel the son of Suar.”

9. “Of Zebulun; Eliab the son of Helen.”

10. “Of the children of Joseph; of Ephraim; Elishama the son of Amnuhud; of Manasseh; Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.”

11. “Of Benjamin; Abidan the son of Gideoni.”

12. “Of Dan; Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.”

13. “Of Asher; Pagiel the son of Oeran.”

14. “Of Gad; Eliasaph the son of Deuel.”

15. “Of Pahtali; Ahira the son of Enan.”

• Num. 1/1-15.

3. And Moses by the commandment of the LORD sent them from the wilderness of Paran: all those men were heads of the children of Israel.

4. And these were their names: of the tribe of Reuben, Sahmua the son of Zaecur.

5. Of the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat the son of Hori.

6. Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.

7. Of the tribe of Issaschar, Igal the son of Jeseph.

8. Of the tribe of Ephraim, Oshea the son of Num.

9. Of the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu.

10. Of the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi.

11. Of the tribe of Joseph, namely of the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi.

12. Of the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemali.

13. Of the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael.

14. Of the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi.

15. Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.

• Num. 13/3-15.

Note how far goodness has been made incumbent upon a believer that in return for the goodness has been promised the covering of the sins, i.e., the evil deeds. It is quite clear that mere verbal declaration of faith in God is not sufficient at all, unless it is fully translated into action and manifests in personal goodness and good deeds.

This asserts the possibility of man deviating from the right path after having been on it for some time. Thus, everyone should be mindful of his successful end and not be overconfident and be boastful of the start of his career.

Verse 13

The reference is to the breaking of the covenant by the Israelites. The Israelites were covenanted to accept the Holy Prophet who was promised in their sacred scriptures (Deut. 18/15, 18). It is to be noted in this Verse that God has cursed the people for breaking the covenant. The same punishment will naturally await those who break the covenant with the Holy Prophet. The covenant demanded the Israelites to accept and follow’ the Prophet, promised to them like unto Moses. They disregarded the covenant and did not honour and follow the Holy Prophet Muhammad who was the Prophet promised to them.

Similarly, the Muslims were covenanted on the 18th Dhu ‘l-Hajja at Ghadir Khumm to follow the Imamat after the conclusion of the ‘Risalat’ i.e., apostleship. The same punishment will be meted out to the Muslims breaking this covenant they made with the Holy Prophet and not accepting the ‘Imamat’ divinely instituted to immediately follow the ‘Risalat’, i.e., the Apostleship.

There is another factor to be considered that the people are said to have been cursed by God for corrupting the words of their scripture. The same treatment will await for misinterpreting the Holy Qur’an for giving to the people the distorted and corrupted interpretation of its Verses against their original sense and the correct meaning. The punishment for the disruption caused in the correct understanding of the Holy Qur’an will naturally be meted out to everyone responsible for the act so definitely condemned by the Holy Qur’an.

The reference here is to the covenant taken from the children of Israel and the breach of it. Its consequence is a preparatory warning to the Muslims regarding the covenant, which was to be taken from them, so that none of them should be over confident of his past achievements, but be mindful of fulfilling the final covenant. (AP)

Verse 14

The covenant with the Christians is implied in the prophecy made about the advent of the Spirit of Truth.

“For Moses truly said unto the father. A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up into you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.” Act 3/22

“And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.” Act 3/23

“Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.” Act 3/24

“Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.” Acts 3/25

“But now I go my way to Him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou?”

“But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart.”

“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that t go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if 1 depart, I will send him unto you.”

“And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.”

“Of sin, because they believe not on me.”

“Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more.”

“Of judgment, because the prince of the world is judged.”

“I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.”

“Howbeit when the Spirit of Truth, is me, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak, and he will shew you things to come.” John 16.

In spite of the clear declaration, the Christians interpret the clear Verses in their own fanciful way though none of their arguments stands reasoning for a while.

In John 14/16 Jesus clearly says that the Comforter shall abide for ever. This prophecy of abiding for ever, can be true in none else but the Holy Prophet for his say continues in his direct descendants, the Twelve Imams, about whom he has declared that he and every one of these Twelve holy ones, is one and the same ‘Muhammad.’

‘Awwalona Muhammad’ i.e. the First of us is Muhammad,

‘Ausatona Muhammad.’ the Middle of us is Muhammad,

‘Akhirona Muhammad.’ the Last of us is Muhammad,

‘Kullona Muhammad.’ All of us are Muhammad.

All of them had been the born fountainheads of knowledge though the? had no tutoring by any mortal on earth. They were, all divinely inspired heavenly guides. The Last Muhammad Al-Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam is still alive and will at God’s will continue to live until he appears before the last day of the life of this world.

The prophecy about the hatred and the enmity gaining hold upon the Christian peoples has been fulfilled and has been proved to be true in all ages since the advent of the Christian Church and never more clearly proved than in the present-day wars in Europe. Up till recently the Christians caused to flow the rivers of their own blood in the name of their own religion and in the modern times the religious hostilities of the Christian world has been transformed into political dissensions. This will be to the end of the world. They will have peace only by accepting the Comforter, i.e., the Spirit of Truth and following him, as prophesied to them by Jesus.

Regarding the Jews, Qur’an accuses them in Verse 5:13 of corrupting the scripture and forgetting a portion of what was preached to them but about the Christians in this Verse, they have been accused only of forgetting a portion of the scripture given to them. The reason is that the Jewish scripture was in a written form capable of verbal tamper, but the Evangel given to the Christians through Jesus was only verbal through his sermons liable to be forgotten. There was nothing concrete in the shape of a book added, altered or omitted. (A.P.)

Verse 15

‘Ye hide’ implies both what is suppressed or concealed and also what is distorted or misrepresented. ‘You’ stands for themselves and their forefathers. The reference is to the prophecies about the advent of the Holy Prophet. There were many truths lost by the corruption of the scriptures by the Jews and Christians. Those of permanent value were again revealed in the Holy Qur’an but the others of only a timely value, suiting the particular age, which were not needed for humanity any more were by-passed.

The Light stands for the Holy Prophet who leads mankind unto light out of darkness. The Book is the Holy Qur’an. Nothing can ever be studied without the necessary light. The Holy Qur’an cannot be understood without the Holy Prophet.

The Holy Prophet declared: “That which God created first was my light, I and Ali are of one and the same light.” (M.S.)

Verse 16

‘Iznihi’, i.e., By His will. Not freed or compelled by anything but at His own independent

will. (M.S.).

Shows that both sides of the right path - ‘Ghulo’ (exaggeration or overstepping the limits) ‘Taqseer’ i.e., falling short of the limits - both are abyss of darkness. (A.P.)

Verse 17

This Verse is an open challenge to the belief of the Church established in the name of Christ.

If Jesus was God, could he have resisted if God had willed to destroy Jesus, son of Mary, his mother and all those on earth? The Christian belief in Jesus being God Himself is proved here to be totally hollow. Belief in Jesus as one of three components of a mixed godhead or a composite of an organism, does not at all help Jesus to be an independent being to act as he desired to satisfy the fanciful sentiments of his devotees. If Jesus as a second member of the composite godhead, wishes to do away with the other two members, can he do so or not? If he could do it, why did he remain as one of the three and not become the One and the sole owner of godhead. When he could not do so, he is a finite dependent body at the mercy of the other two components, majority in number and greater in strength, which he could not overcome. Therefore he can never he God the Omnipotent.

Besides, Jesus himself declares that he by himself cannot do anything: John 8/49, 50.

“For I have not spoken of myself, but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.”

“And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever 1 speak, therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.” John 12/49:5017.

A modern commentator wants to interpret the ‘In which actually means ‘if’ to mean as ‘when’ and the tense of ‘Muzare’ (i.e., aorist) used in the Verse, as past tense to somehow make some room to say that Jesus was destroyed, i.e., suffered death and he is not alive, as it is belief of the Muslims. But the argument fails when the tense is applied to ‘all those on earth’ for all those on earth were never destroyed altogether at any time. Hence the Verse indicates to the fulfilment of the will of the Lord at the end of the world. For the time being, it is a question for the Christian world to answer as to how can reason, logic or commonsense accept the godhead of the one who is raised on the cross to be put to death, while he does not want to die and wants someone else to remove the cup of death from him for he could not himself do it and he laments at his being not heard by God and thus being forsaken?

And he went a little further and fell on his face, and prayed, saying:

“O’ my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me nevertheless not as I will, but as thou will.” (Math. 26/39).

“And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying ‘Eli, Eli lama Sabachthani? that is to say, ‘My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Math. 27/46).

The absolute Unity of God preached by Jesus is still manifest from a few uncorrupted or less corrupted fragments of the pages of the Gospel. See what is said in Ephesians:

“There is one body, and one spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling:

“One Lord, One faith, One baptism,

“One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” (Ephesians 4/4, 5 and 6)

The exaggeration of the Christians about Jesus is manifold, holding him as son of God, not in a figurative sense but as an actually begotten son (?) emanated from God into the womb of Mary or into the body of Jesus after his birth or after he was baptised and in its figurative sense as an adopted son in preference to all other beings, similar to what the Jews claimed for all the children of Israel or as some Jews claimed for Ozair - or - the deifying him and his mother in particular, and all the saints of the order of the Christian church in general, as the object of their worship and the adoption of their images in the churches18.

Taking Christ as a third person in their trinity in the godhead.

Taking him as the word ‘Loga’ with God.

Identified with God as his soul incarnate.

Considering humanity as a whole as sinners and Jesus as the only singular one, holding him as the sole redeemer of the sins of mankind as a whole.

Assigning a special resurrection to Jesus, he is held to be either a pure spirit appeared in the material form, or the only material being totally transformed into spirit. All these exaggerated aspects of the personality of Jesus referred to here and elsewhere in the Qur’an, are totally rejected by Qur’an asserting his true status as a man born of earthly elements of a virgin mother without a male agent, i.e., a father, connected to the House of Israel and sent as an apostle of God for the guidance of the lost sheep of the House of Israel, sinless and pure as any other apostle of God.

The misconstrued criticism of the Christian church saying that the Holy Trio, is absolutely false and baseless for whenever Qur’an refers to deification of Mary and Jesus, it is with regard to the Christians adopting them as the object of their worship and whenever Qur’an refers to Christ as the Third person in the Trinity, or refutes the Trinity, Mary is not included.

The Qur’an is alive to all kinds of the special significance the Christians attached to the word or term ‘Sonship of Jesus’ and rejects all its respective places and the basis of Qur’anic argument against ail the doctrinal prejudice of the Christians is the Absolute Unity and the unique nature of the Absolute in His essence and attributes and actions and the relation stands firm between Him and the creatures as the Holder and the held, the Master and his slave, the Creator and the created19. In relation to God, be they the highest and the lowest beings all are equal in subservience and the slavish status, to Him, of course differing in the degree of their obedience and submission. The most obedient one the nearest one to Him (A.P.)

Verse 18

The atonement of sins by Christ is of no effect and brings no change in the law of retribution or punishment and the Divine Mercy which is meted out with perfect justice and at the independent will of the laird.

The doctrine of atonement says that Jesus has by his blood purchased the right of atoning the sins of his followers. This doctrine makes bold everyone to do anything which one likes, but just enlist among the believers in Jesus as the son of God, for God having accepted the ransom for the sins of the people in the blood of Jesus, can have no more hold upon the sinners.

Mere common sense is sufficient to suggest as to what an end, such a belief would lead to and whether such a doctrine can ever even for a day, help peace in the least, to be maintained on earth. Whereas Islam says everyone shall have to answer for his own acts and belief, but repentance followed by amendments in conduct, entitles one to the merciful forgiving from God:

فَمَنْ يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيْرًا يَرَهُ

“So he who has done an atom’s weight of good shall see it. (99:7)

وَمَنْ يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ شَرًّا يَرَهُ

“And he who has done an atom’s weight of evil shall see it.” (99:8)

Verse 19

The people had complained for not having a (Comforter or a Warner and when one was sent in the Holy Prophet Muhammad, they disbelieved in him.

The cessation of the series of the apostles with a lapse of time without any apostle being therein, means the interval in the process of preaching, not any breakage in the process of the institution of the vicegerency of God on earth20. (A.P.)

• 1. Rot. Deut 26/17-19. Refer to Verses 2:40; 7:57; 2:245; 57:18; 73:20; 64:17.
• 2. Ar. ‘Azzur’ To honour or to revere - Here reverence in action
• 3. A warning against breaking The Covenant taken at ‘Ghadir Khumm’ under 5:67.
• 4. Consequently.
• 5. Their original positions.
• 6. Neglected – Abandoned.
• 7. The forgeries.
• 8. Christians - believers in Jesus of Nazareth - Jesus was born in Nazareth (near Jerusalem).
• 9. Neglected – Abandoned.
• 10. Refer to Verse 4:174 Said the Holy Prophet: ‘I and Ali are of one and the same light’ ‘Noor’ referable to both of them.
• 11. Explaining things clearly and in all their details.
• 12. Refer to Verses 2:257; 24:35; 65:11.
• 13. Refer to Verse 1:6.
• 14. Refer note of Verse 4:171.
• 15. Refer to Verses 3:37, 3:44, 5:75, 5:76.
• 16. Refer to Verse 19:92, 19:93, 5:40.
• 17. Refer to Verses 53:2; 53:3.
• 18. See note to Verse 4:171.
• 19. Refer to Verses 19:92; 19:95.
• 20. Refer to Verse 2:30.