Surah Al-Masad (111) — Ayah 1

{سورة اللهب}
Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that when (the verse of Surah Ash-Shu'ara) « وَ اَنْذِرْ عَشِيْرَتَكَ الْاَقْرَبِيْنَ » (O Prophet! Warn your closest family members) was revealed, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) climbed up Safa and called out: [ يَا بَنِيْ فِهْرٍ! يَا بَنِيْ عَدِيٍّ ! لِبُطُوْنِ قُرَيْشٍ حَتَّی اجْتَمَعُوْا، فَجَعَلَ الرَّجُلُ إِذَا لَمْ يَسْتَطِعْ أَنْ يَّخْرُجَ أَرْسَلَ رَسُوْلاً لِيَنْظُرَ مَا هُوَ، فَجَاءَ أَبُوْ لَهَبٍ وَقُرَيْشٌ فَقَالَ أَرَأَيْتَكُمْ لَوْ أَخْبَرْتُكُمْ أَنَّ خَيْلاً بِالْوَادِيْ تُرِيْدُ أَنْ تُغِيْرَ عَلَيْكُمْ ، أَكُنْتُمْ مُصَدِّقِيَّ؟ قَالُوْا نَعَمْ، مَا جَرَّبْنَا عَلَيْكَ إِلاَّ صِدْقًا، قَالَ فَإِنِّيْ نَذِيْرٌ لَّكُمْ بَيْنَ يَدَيْ عَذَابٍ شَدِيْدٍ، فَقَالَ أَبُوْ لَهَبٍ تَبًّا لَكَ سَائِرَ الْيَوْمِ، أَلِهٰذَا جَمَعْتَنَا ؟ فَنَزَلَتْ : « تَبَّتْ يَدَاۤ اَبِيْ لَهَبٍ وَّ تَبَّ (1) مَاۤ اَغْنٰى عَنْهُ مَالُهٗ وَ مَا كَسَبَ » ] [ بخاري، التفسیر، باب : «وأنذر عشیرتک الأقربین…» : ۴۷۷۰ ] "O Banu Fihr! O Banu Adi!" and he called out the names of the clans of Quraysh, until they gathered. If someone could not come himself, he sent someone to see what the matter was. Abu Lahab and other people from Quraysh came, so the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Tell me, if I inform you that an army is about to attack you from the valley, would you believe me?" They said: "Yes! We have never experienced anything from you except truth (i.e., we have always found you truthful)." He said: "Then I am a warner to you before a severe punishment." Abu Lahab said: "May you perish for the whole day! Is this why you gathered us?" So this Surah was revealed: « تَبَّتْ يَدَاۤ اَبِيْ لَهَبٍ وَّ تَبَّ (1) مَاۤ اَغْنٰى عَنْهُ مَالُهٗ وَ مَا كَسَبَ » "Perish the two hands of Abu Lahab, and he (himself) perished. His wealth did not avail him, nor what he earned."
(Ayah 1) ➊ {تَبَّتْ يَدَاۤ اَبِيْ لَهَبٍ وَّ تَبَّ:} Abu Lahab was the uncle of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), his name was Abdul-Uzza bin Abdul-Muttalib. {’’ لَهَبٍ ‘‘} means flame, {’’ اَبِيْ لَهَبٍ ‘‘} means father of flame or possessor of flame. He became famous by the name Abu Lahab due to the beauty and redness of his cheeks or due to the intensity and fervor of his temperament, then, because he became a dweller of Hell, he truly became the possessor of flame. This person had intense enmity towards the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). Despite the fact that an uncle is like a father, he would oppose him at every opportunity and try to cause harm. Among his enemies, he is the only person whose bad end was foretold in the Qur'an by name. From this, it is understood that in Islam, the distinction between one's own and others is not based on lineage and family, but on faith and disbelief.
➋ Because of his severe opposition to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his supplication for his destruction, Allah Almighty said {’’ تَبَّتْ يَدَاۤ اَبِيْ لَهَبٍ وَّ تَبَّ ‘‘}. This can have two meanings: the first is that the two hands of Abu Lahab perished and he himself perished. This meaning is apparent. The second is that the two hands of Abu Lahab may perish and he (indeed) perished. This is the meaning given by Faraa, that in response to his supplication, instead of the supplication of the believers, Allah Almighty said these words that the two hands of Abu Lahab may perish, then stated that he has perished.
➌ "The two hands of Abu Lahab perished"—here, the mention of hands specifically is because in causing harm, the hands play a more effective role than all other limbs and can inflict more pain. The second reason is that by hands is meant offspring and companions, who are helpers and become one's strength and support. According to the statement of Allah Almighty, this is what happened: his helpers were destroyed in the Battle of Badr, he himself did not go to the battle, and when the news of defeat came, he died from that shock.

Abu Lahab's both hands were broken and he (himself) was destroyed (1)

1. May the hands of Abu Lahab [1] be ruined, and ruined is he.

[1]
Introduction of Abu Lahab:

The real name of Abu Lahab was ‘Abd al-‘Uzza, and he was the eldest real uncle of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He was extremely handsome and beautiful; his complexion glowed like an apple. For this reason, he was given the nickname Abu Lahab (“Father of Flame”). He was wealthy but naturally miserly. When the news of the birth of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ reached him through his slave-girl Thuwaibah, he freed Thuwaibah out of happiness. [بخاری۔ کتاب النکاح۔ باب امھاتکم الٰتی ارضعنکم]
The Prophet's ﷺ father had passed away before your ﷺ birth. Being the eldest uncle, he considered himself to be the substitute for your father, and so, against his nature, he expressed happiness, or perhaps he was compelled to do so. This was also a result of his miserliness, for when his grandfather ‘Abd al-Muttalib was about to die, he entrusted your ﷺ guardianship (at that time you ﷺ were eight years old) not to Abu Lahab, but to Abu Talib, who was financially much weaker than Abu Lahab. After your ﷺ prophethood, for three years the work of preaching and spreading Islam continued in utmost secrecy. Then, when this command was revealed: ﴿وَاَنْذِرْ عَشِيْرَتَكَ الْاَقْرَبِيْنَ﴾ “Warn your close relatives (of Allah’s punishment),” you ﷺ, in compliance with this command, invited Banu Hashim and Banu ‘Abd al-Muttalib to a meal at your house. A total of 45 people gathered.

The Opposition of Abu Lahab:

He ﷺ presented to them the invitation of ﴿لا الٰه الا اللّٰه﴾, so Abu Lahab immediately spoke up: “Look! All these gentlemen are your uncles or cousins. Give up this foolishness and understand that your family cannot withstand the whole of Arabia. And I am the most entitled to seize you. So, your father’s family is enough for you. And if you persist in your matter and all the tribes of Arabia attack you, then who could be a greater cause of evil and destruction for his family than you?” After hearing these harsh and bitter words of Abu Lahab, you ﷺ remained silent, and the others also got up and went to their homes.

The Support of Abu Talib:

A few days later, you ﷺ again invited your relatives and presented your invitation more openly. As a result, your younger uncle Abu Talib openly announced his support for you ﷺ, but at the same time said that personally, he was not ready to leave the religion of ‘Abd al-Muttalib. In response to Abu Talib’s zeal, Abu Lahab said: “By God! This (i.e., the invitation to monotheism) is an evil thing. Therefore, you yourselves should seize Muhammad ﷺ before others do.” In reply, Abu Talib said: “By Allah! As long as there is life in me, we will continue to protect him.” The benefit of this second invitation was that you ﷺ became certain that among the nobles of Banu Hashim, at least one person (i.e., Abu Talib) was such that his support could be relied upon.

The Enemies’ Admission on Mount Safa:

After this, you ﷺ took a third courageous step. One day, you climbed Mount Safa and, like a petitioner, called out “Wa Sabahah!” and called out the name of each tribe of Quraysh: “O Banu Fihr, O Banu ‘Adi, O Banu Ka‘b,” and so on. Until all the notable persons of the tribes gathered before you ﷺ, and those who could not come sent their representatives. You ﷺ stood on a high place and asked the people: “If I were to tell you that an army is gathering behind this hill to attack you, would you believe me?” All replied in unison: “Yes!” because our experience with you ﷺ has always been of truthfulness. He ﷺ said: “Well then, know that I have been sent to warn you of a severe punishment, so save yourselves from Hell. I have no power to save you from Allah.”

The Anger of Abu Lahab:

You ﷺ had barely said this much when Abu Lahab suddenly flared up and said: ﴿تبا لك سائر اليوم الهٰذا جمعتنا﴾ (“May you perish all day! Is it for this that you gathered us?”) [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]
Although, due to Abu Lahab’s rudeness, this gathering did not prove fruitful, it did have the benefit that you ﷺ, as commanded by Allah, conveyed your invitation to your entire tribe, and your ﷺ call reached every individual in Makkah. In response to Abu Lahab’s ill-nature and insolence, Allah Almighty revealed this Surah. Why did the Quran mention only Abu Lahab by name? Here, the question arises that he had many other enemies, even greater than Abu Lahab. So, among all these enemies, why was only Abu Lahab mentioned by name in the Quran? The answer is that for the following two reasons, Abu Lahab’s crime was indeed so severe that the Quran mentioned him by name in condemnation. The first reason is that there was no formal government in Arabia where one could seek justice. The only thing that worked in such times was tribal solidarity. The oppressed person would immediately call upon his tribe for help, and the whole tribe would rise in his support. Therefore, they were compelled, even if reluctantly, to observe the ties of kinship. Abu Lahab was the only wretched person who broke this respected law of the time and, against his own tribe, stubbornly opposed him. Furthermore, when Banu Hashim and Banu Muttalib were besieged in the valley of Abu Talib due to the social boycott, even then Abu Lahab did not support his tribe. And it is clear that among those besieged in the valley of Abu Talib, there were many who had not believed in him ﷺ, yet, due to tribal solidarity, they endured everything and fulfilled the right of respecting this law. To the extent that your younger uncle Abu Talib took upon himself the opposition of the Quraysh of Makkah for your protection throughout his life, even though he did not believe until his last breath. [بخاری، کتاب التفسیر زیر آیت : __QUR_3__]
And the second reason is that in that tribal society, an uncle was also regarded as a father, especially in the case where the real father had passed away. In this respect, Abu Lahab should have fulfilled the duty of protecting you ﷺ in the best possible manner, whether he believed or not. But instead of protecting him, he went so far in his malice and enmity that he was counted among your ﷺ foremost enemies. The reason you ﷺ remained silent at his ill-nature and insolence on Mount Safa was also that, on a social level, Abu Lahab held the position of your father, and the etiquette of fatherhood demanded that you remain silent. Therefore, Allah Almighty Himself responded to his insolence by mentioning his name. Note that: ﴿تَبَّتْ يَدَا اَبِيْ لَهبٍ﴾ does not mean that Abu Lahab’s hands would literally break; rather, these are words of curse, uttered in anger and displeasure. And such expressions are not only found in Arabic, but in every language.