Ornaments of Gold (Al-Zukhruf)
Verses 31-35 GROUP_1297 43.31-35
31
وَقَالُوا لَوْلَا نُزِّلَ هَذَا الْقُرْآنُ عَلَى رَجُلٍ مِّنَ الْقَرْيَتَيْنِ عَظِيمٍ
They said, ‘Why was this Quran not sent down to one of the great men of the two cities?’
32
أَهُمْ يَقْسِمُونَ رَحْمَةَ رَبِّكَ نَحْنُ قَسَمْنَا بَيْنَهُم مَّعِيشَتَهُمْ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَرَفَعْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجَاتٍ لِيَتَّخِذَ بَعْضُهُم بَعْضًا سُخْرِيًّا وَرَحْمَتُ رَبِّكَ خَيْرٌ مِّمَّا يَجْمَعُونَ
Is it they who apportion the mercy of your Lord? It is We who distribute among them their livelihood in the life of this world, and raise some of them above others in rank, so that they may take one another into service; and the mercy of your Lord is better than [the wealth] which they amass.
33
وَلَوْلَا أَن يَكُونَ النَّاسُ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً لَجَعَلْنَا لِمَن يَكْفُرُ بِالرَّحْمَنِ لِبُيُوتِهِمْ سُقُفًا مِّن فَضَّةٍ وَمَعَارِجَ عَلَيْهَا يَظْهَرُونَ
If it were not that all mankind might have become one community [of disbelievers], We could have given all those who deny the Lord of Mercy, houses with roofs of silver, silver staircases to ascend,
34
وَلِبُيُوتِهِمْ أَبْوَابًا وَسُرُرًا عَلَيْهَا يَتَّكِؤُونَ
and silver doors to their houses and silver couches on which to recline,
35
وَزُخْرُفًا وَإِن كُلُّ ذَلِكَ لَمَّا مَتَاعُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةُ عِندَ رَبِّكَ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ
and ornaments of gold. But all of these are but the provision of this present life; it is the life to come that the Lord reserves for those who fear Him.
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Commentary
(a) When the Prophet Muhammad appeared in Makkah, he seemed to the people to be an ordinary man. They opined that had God wanted to send His representative to them for their guidance, He would have selected some great renowned personality from the central townships of Arabia such as Makkah or Taif. But, this showed a narrowness in their outlook. Man is able to look simply at the present, while far-sightedness was required to understand the greatness of the Prophet Muhammad. Since the people did not possess such an outlook, they failed to understand the greatness of the Prophet Muhammad. The reason for the Prophet Muhammad being thought of as a small man was that people did not see any material pomp and show surrounding him. But these material things have no importance in the eyes of God. The fact is, these things are so unimportant in the eyes of God that, if He wishes, He may bless people with heaps of gold and silver. But God did not do this, as people’s attention would have been diverted to riches and they would not have been able to proceed to find the truth.