Surah 13. Ar-Ra'd, Ayah 38
| وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلًا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُمْ أَزْوَاجًا وَذُرِّيَّةً ۚ وَمَا كَانَ لِرَسُولٍ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ بِآيَةٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ ۗ لِكُلِّ أَجَلٍ كِتَابٌ |
| Transliteration | : | wa- la- qad arsalnaa rusul(an) min qabli -ka wa- jacalnaa la- -hum azwaaj(an) wa- dhurreyah wa- maa kaana li- rasol 'an ya'tiya bi- 'aayah 'illaa bi- 'idhn 'allaah li- kull 'ajal kitaab |
| Pickthall | : | And verily We sent messengers (to mankind) before thee, and We appointed for them wives and offspring, and it was not (given) to any messenger that he should bring a portent save by Allah's leave. For everything there is a time prescribed. |
| Asad | : | And, truly, We sent forth apostles before thee, and We appointed for them wives and offspring;74 and it was not given to any apostle to produce a miracle save at God's behest.75 Every age has had its revelation:76 |
| Malik | : | We have sent forth other Rasools before you and given them wives and children and it was never in the power of a Rasool to show any miracle without the sanction of Allah. For each period there was a Book: |
| Yusuf Ali | : | We did send apostles before thee and appointed for them wives and children: and it was never the part of an apostle to bring a Sign except as Allah permitted (or commanded). For each period is a Book (revealed). 1861 1862 1863 |
Note - 74I.e., they were mortals like all other men, and were not
endowed with any "supernatural" qualities. This is a
rejoinder to those who refuse to accept a divine message
as true on the grounds of its having been conveyed to
mankind by an "ordinary mortal". (Cf. 25:7, where the
unbelievers are speaking derisively of Muhammad as an
apostle "who eats food [like all other mortals] and goes
about in the market-places", and the many references to
their incredulous wondering that God should have chosen
as His prophet "a man from among themselves".) In
addition to this, the above verse stresses, by
implication, the positive value of man's natural,
physical life-summarized, as it were, in the expression
"wives and offspring" - and the rejection of exaggerated
asceticism and self-mortification as an allegedly
desirable "way to God".
|
Note - 75Lit., "by God's leave". Cf. 6:109 - "Miracles are in
the power of God alone" - and the corresponding note
[94]. In the present context, this is an answer to those
who refuse to believe in Muhammad's message unless "a
miraculous sign" is bestowed upon him.
|
Note - 76Or: "a divine writ" (kitab). See 5:48 - "Unto every one
of you have We appointed a [different] law and way of
life" - and the corresponding note [66], which explains
the succession of divine messages culminating in, and
ending with, the revelation of the Qur'an. This
interpretation of the above phrase - adopted, among
others, by Ibn Kathir - connects it plausibly with the
preceding mention of the apostles who came before
Muhammad, and with the subsequent reference to the
supersession of the earlier divine messages by that of
the Qur'an. Apart from this, the statement that every age
had a revelation suited to the particular needs of the
time and the people concerned (Zamakhshari) constitutes
an answer to the objection, often raised by followers of
other creeds, that the message of the Qur'an differs in
many respects from the earlier divine revelations (Razi).
|
Note - 1861All the Prophets of whom we have any detailed knowledge,
except one, had wives and children. The exception is
Jesus the son of Mary. But his life was incomplete; his
ministry barely lasted three years; his mission was
limited; and he was not called upon to deal with the
many-sided problems that arise in a highly organised
society or State. We pay equal respect to him, because he
was Allah's Messenger; but that is not to say that his
Message covers the same universal ground as that of
Al-Mustafa. There is no reproach for a normal human being
if he lives a normal human life; there is glory if he
beautifies it and sets a nobler example of virtue than
other men, as did Al-Mustafa.
|
Note - 1862No Prophet performed any Miracle or showed forth any
"Signs," except as Allah willed. Allah's Will (Mashiyat)
is an all-wise, universal Plan, which is not formed for
the benefit of one tribe or millat or of one age or
country (see also next verse). The greatest Miracle in
history was and is the Qur-an. We can apprehend its
beauty and grandeur today as much as did the people of
Al-Mustafa's day,-even more, as our collective knowledge
of nature and of Allah's creation has increased.
|
Note - 1863Kitab: means "a Law decreed" or "a Decree established."
|
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I.e., they were mortals like all other men, and were not endowed with any "supernatural" qualities. This is a rejoinder to those who refuse to accept a divine message as true on the grounds of its having been conveyed to mankind by an "ordinary mortal". (Cf. 25:7, where the unbelievers are speaking derisively of Muhammad as an apostle "who eats food [like all other mortals] and goes about in the market-places", and the many references to their incredulous wondering that God should have chosen as His prophet "a man from among themselves".) In addition to this, the above verse stresses, by implication, the positive value of man's natural, physical life-summarized, as it were, in the expression "wives and offspring" - and the rejection of exaggerated asceticism and self-mortification as an allegedly desirable "way to God". |
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Lit., "by God's leave". Cf. 6:109 - "Miracles are in the power of God alone" - and the corresponding note [94]. In the present context, this is an answer to those who refuse to believe in Muhammad's message unless "a miraculous sign" is bestowed upon him. |
| |
Or: "a divine writ" (kitab). See 5:48 - "Unto every one of you have We appointed a [different] law and way of life" - and the corresponding note [66], which explains the succession of divine messages culminating in, and ending with, the revelation of the Qur'an. This interpretation of the above phrase - adopted, among others, by Ibn Kathir - connects it plausibly with the preceding mention of the apostles who came before Muhammad, and with the subsequent reference to the supersession of the earlier divine messages by that of the Qur'an. Apart from this, the statement that every age had a revelation suited to the particular needs of the time and the people concerned (Zamakhshari) constitutes an answer to the objection, often raised by followers of other creeds, that the message of the Qur'an differs in many respects from the earlier divine revelations (Razi). |
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All the Prophets of whom we have any detailed knowledge, except one, had wives and children. The exception is Jesus the son of Mary. But his life was incomplete; his ministry barely lasted three years; his mission was limited; and he was not called upon to deal with the many-sided problems that arise in a highly organised society or State. We pay equal respect to him, because he was Allah's Messenger; but that is not to say that his Message covers the same universal ground as that of Al-Mustafa. There is no reproach for a normal human being if he lives a normal human life; there is glory if he beautifies it and sets a nobler example of virtue than other men, as did Al-Mustafa. |
| |
No Prophet performed any Miracle or showed forth any "Signs," except as Allah willed. Allah's Will (Mashiyat) is an all-wise, universal Plan, which is not formed for the benefit of one tribe or millat or of one age or country (see also next verse). The greatest Miracle in history was and is the Qur-an. We can apprehend its beauty and grandeur today as much as did the people of Al-Mustafa's day,-even more, as our collective knowledge of nature and of Allah's creation has increased. |
