Surah Hud (11) — Ayah 49

(Ayah 49) ➊ { تِلْكَ مِنْ اَنْۢبَآءِ الْغَيْبِ … :} From this verse, it is understood that the Noble Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not know everything from the beginning, nor was he a knower of the unseen, otherwise there would have been no need for revelation. Some people interpret all those verses in which it is said: O Prophet! These are news of the unseen, We are narrating them to you, you were not there at that time nor did you know these things, We have informed you of them through revelation. Those who call the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also the knower of the unseen, distort such verses as “these are news of the unseen, you did not know them before,” saying that this address is actually to the people of the Ummah, that O people of Muhammad’s Ummah! You did not know these things. But our verse under discussion has clearly proven the falsehood of this distortion, because Allah Almighty said: “These are from the news of the unseen which We reveal to you, neither you nor your people knew them before.” It is clear that from all such verses, the meaning is that not only the people, but also the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) himself was not a knower of the unseen. If he were considered a knower of the unseen, there would be no need for repeated revelation. Similarly, the entire story of Nuh (peace be upon him) negates his being a knower of the unseen, otherwise, if he already knew everything, then his nine hundred and fifty years of effort, patience over the misbehavior of his people during that period, then building the ark according to revelation, then praying for his son, Allah’s displeasure, and Nuh (peace be upon him) seeking forgiveness—all would become a fable. Likewise, if Ibrahim (peace be upon him) knew that the fire would not burn him, Ismail (peace be upon him) would not be slaughtered, or nothing would happen to Sarah (peace be upon her), then the matter of sacrificing life, wealth, children, and honor in the way of Allah would become meaningless. The lamentation of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) on the night of Badr and the distress at the time of the slander against Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) would have no meaning. The reality is that no one knows the unseen except Allah. The messengers only know as much as is informed to them through revelation.

➋ { فَاصْبِرْاِنَّ الْعَاقِبَةَ لِلْمُتَّقِيْنَ: ’’ عَاقِبَةٌ ‘‘} The state that comes after another state, when preceded by “al” (the definite article), generally refers to a good outcome, meaning just as the end of Nuh (peace be upon him) and his companions was good and all their opponents were destroyed, similarly, your (O Prophet) outcome will also be better in both this world and the Hereafter, and your opponents will be humiliated and ruined in this world and in the Hereafter they will have the fire of Hell. The small number of Muslims and the lack of apparent success of the call to Islam for a long time is not proof that this call is unsuccessful; rather, as a result of continuous patience and invitation, the final success will be for the people of Islam, even if it comes after several generations. There are countless armies of Allah Almighty in the universe, such as fire, wind, water, mountains, and innumerable creatures. If Allah commands any of them, not a trace of the disbelievers can remain. Disbelievers should not think that Muslims will always remain subdued and oppressed; rather, if Muslims act with patience and steadfastness and present every hardship and helplessness only before Allah the Most Generous, as Nuh (peace be upon him) said: «{اَنِّيْ مَغْلُوْبٌ فَانْتَصِرْ}» [ القمر : ۱۰ ] “Indeed, I am overpowered, so grant me victory.” Then, no matter how few their numbers, as the result of Nuh (peace be upon him)’s nine hundred and fifty years of invitation was very few people—twelve (12), or forty (40), or eighty (80) people—but the effort of Nuh (peace be upon him) and the believers was not unsuccessful; rather, Allah Almighty, with His unseen power, overturned the world and granted such success to those few people that not a trace of their enemies remained and they became the owners of the whole earth. Read the story of Bani Israel, Musa (peace be upon him), and Pharaoh. By sending angels from the unseen to help the three hundred and thirteen poorly equipped companions of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) against a thousand armed disbelievers, such help was given that that day became a decisive day as to who would remain dominant in the future. In short, Allah’s decision is that the good outcome is only for the righteous. (Al-Wasit)

➌ In this verse, from {’’ تِلْكَ مِنْ اَنْۢبَآءِ الْغَيْبِ ‘‘} to { ’’ وَ لَا قَوْمُكَ مِنْ قَبْلِ هٰذَا ‘‘}, the favor upon the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his Ummah is mentioned, in {’’ فَاصْبِرْ ‘‘} there is advice, and in { ’’ اِنَّ الْعَاقِبَةَ لِلْمُتَّقِيْنَ ‘‘ } there is consolation and glad tidings.

➍ This incident also proves the truth of the Prophethood of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), that despite being unlettered, he narrated the entire story of Nuh (peace be upon him) correctly, which would not have been possible without divine revelation.

➎ This incident is proof that if, despite all efforts, the son of a righteous man does not become righteous, the father is blameless in this. If even a compassionate and perfect mentor like Nuh (peace be upon him) could not guide his son to the right path, then what is our status? Now, there is no option but patience and acceptance of Allah’s decree and will. (Qurtubi)

➏ When the Qur’an narrates events, it highlights only those parts from which some advice and benefit can be obtained. Those parts which are not particularly related to this purpose are left out. For example, how long did it take to build the ark of Nuh (peace be upon him), what was its length and width, how were the animals to be boarded gathered, how many rooms were in it, how many days did the ark remain on the water, where did Nuh (peace be upon him) reside after disembarking from the ark on “Judi,” and how many days did the flood last on the earth. As for those stories that are commonly famous, most of them are Isra’iliyat, which are not supported by Shariah or reason.

➐ One issue on which many scholars have discussed is whether the flood came upon the whole earth or only a part of it. The author of Tafsir al-Manar has quoted the fatwa of his teacher, Shaykh Muhammad Abduh of Egypt, the summary of which is that from the apparent words of the Noble Qur’an and hadiths, it is understood that this flood came upon the entire people of Nuh (peace be upon him), and besides them, at that time, there was no other population on the whole earth, so it is necessary to hold this belief. However, this does not necessitate that the flood came upon the whole earth, because there is no evidence that the whole earth was filled with the people of Nuh. These historical matters are not among the objectives of the Qur’an, so Allah Almighty has not clarified them in explicit words. Therefore, we say, the apparent meaning of the Qur’an is as stated above; now, if any scholarly research proves something contrary to this, it does not affect any definitive or explicit matter of the Qur’an and hadith. (Al-Wasit)

49. 1 This is an address to the Prophet and a negation of your knowledge of the unseen, that these are the unseen news with which We are informing you, otherwise you and your people were unaware of them.

49. 2 That is, be patient over the denial your people are showing towards you and the harm they are causing you, because We are your helpers and the good end is only for you and your followers who are characterized by piety. "Aqibat" refers to the good end in this world and the Hereafter. In this, there is great glad tidings for the pious that even if they have to face many difficulties in the beginning, ultimately, they alone are deserving of Allah's help, support, and good end, just as it is said in another place (اِنَّا لَنَنْصُرُ رُسُلَنَا وَالَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا فِي الْحَيٰوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَيَوْمَ يَقُوْمُ الْاَشْهَادُ) 40. Al-Mu'min. 51) 'We will surely help Our messengers and those who believe, in the life of this world and on the Day when the witnesses will stand.' (وَلَقَدْ سَبَقَتْ كَلِمَتُنَا لِعِبَادِنَا الْمُرْسَلِيْنَ 171؀ښ اِنَّهُمْ لَهُمُ الْمَنْصُوْرُوْنَ 172؀۠ وَاِنَّ جُنْدَنَا لَهُمُ الْغٰلِبُوْنَ 173؁) 37. As-Saffat:171 to 172) And indeed, Our word has already gone forth to Our servants, the messengers, that they would certainly be helped, and Our army will surely be the victorious and superior ones.

49. (O Prophet) These are tidings of the unseen which We reveal to you [54]. Neither you nor your people knew them before this. So be patient, for indeed the outcome (in the end) is in favor of the righteous [55].

[54] The time of Noah (peace be upon him) was approximately four thousand years before you ﷺ. To give authentic and most accurate information about the conditions of that era is something only Allah can do. The people of Makkah were completely unaware of these circumstances, so narrating the story of Noah (peace be upon him) in such detail is itself a proof of your ﷺ prophethood.
[55] That is, in the end, the good outcome is only for those who fear Allah, as happened with the companions of Noah (peace be upon him). In fact, in every battle between truth and falsehood, whether it concerns the prophets or not, ultimately, truth prevails and those who adhere to it remain better off in the end. Its second meaning is also that, in the Hereafter, in any case, only those who fear Allah will have a good outcome, and both meanings are correct. Thus, in this verse, glad tidings have also been given to you ﷺ and the noble companions ؓ.