Tafseer Ibn Kathir of AL AN'AAM [133]

133. And your Lord is Al-Ghani, full of mercy; if He wills, He can destroy you; and in your place make whom He wills as your successors, as He raised you from the seed of other people. 134. Surely, that which you are promised, will verily come to pass, and you cannot escape. 135. Say: ”O my people! Work according to your way, surely, I too am working, and you will come to know for which of us will be the (happy) end in the Hereafter. Certainly the wrongdoers will not be successful.”

(And your Lord...), O Muhammad,

(is Al-Ghani) Rich, free from needing His creatures in any way or form, while they stand in need of Him in all situations,

(full of mercy;) towards creation. Allah said in another Ayah,

(Truly, Allah is full of kindness, the Most Merciful towards mankind.) ï´¿2:143ï´¾

(if He wills, He can destroy you.) if you defy His commandments,

(And in your place make whom He wills as your successors,) who behave obediently,

(As He raised you from the seed of other people.) and surely, He is able to do this, and it is easy for Him. And just as Allah has destroyed the earlier nations and brought their successors, He is able to do away with these generations and bring other people in their place. Allah has also said;

(If He wills, He can take you away, O people, and bring others. And Allah is Ever Capable over that.) ï´¿4:133ï´¾,

(O mankind! It is you who stand in need of Allah. But Allah is Rich (free of all needs), Worthy of all praise. If He willed, He could destroy you and bring about a new creation. And that is not hard for Allah.) ï´¿35:15-17ï´¾, and,

(But Allah is Rich (free of all needs), and you are poor. And if you turn away, He will exchange you for some other people and they will not be your likes.) ï´¿47:38ï´¾. Muhammad bin Ishaq said that Ya`qub bin `Utbah said that he heard Aban bin `Uthman saying about this Ayah,

(As He raised you from the seed of other people. ) ”`The seed' means the offspring and the children.'' Allah's statement,

(Surely, that which you are promised, will verily, come to pass and you cannot escape.) means, tell them, O Muhammad, that what they have been promised of Resurrection will surely occur,

(and you cannot escape.) from Allah. Rather, He is able to resurrect you even after you become dust and bones. Certainly, Allah is able to do all things and nothing ever escapes His power. Allah said;

(Say: ”O my people! Work according to your way, surely, I too am working and you will come to know.'') This contains a stern warning and a sure promise, saying; remain on your way, if you think that you are rightly guided, for I will remain on mine. Allah said in another Ayah,

(And say to those who do not believe: ”Act according to Makanatikum, We are acting (in our way). And you wait! We (too) are waiting.'') ﴿11:121-122﴾. `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas said that,

(according to Makanatikum...) means, your way.

(And you will come to know for which of us will be the (happy) end in the Hereafter. Certainly the wrongdoers will not be successful) ï´¿6:135ï´¾, You will come to know if the happy end will be mine (Muhammad's) or yours (the disbelievers). Allah has indeed kept His promise and allowed Muhammad to prevail in the land and rise above those who defied him. He conquered Makkah for him and made him triumphant over his people who rejected and showed enmity towards him. The Prophet's rule soon spread over the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen and Bahrain, and all this occurred during his lifetime. After his death, the various lands and provinces were conquered during the time of his successors, may Allah be pleased with them all. Allah also said,

(Allah has decreed: ”Verily, it is I and My Messengers who shall be the victorious.” Verily, Allah is All-Powerful, Almighty.) ﴿58:21﴾

(Verily, We will indeed make victorious Our Messengers and those who believe in this world's life and on the Day when the witnesses will stand forth. The Day when their excuses will be of no profit to the wrongdoers. Theirs will be the curse, and theirs will be the evil abode.) ï´¿40:51-52ï´¾ and,

(And indeed We have written in the Zabur after the Dhikr that My righteous servants shall inherit the land.) ï´¿21:105ï´¾