Surah Al-Hajj (22) — Ayah 15

(Ayah 15) ➊ {مَنْ كَانَ يَظُنُّ اَنْ لَّنْ يَّنْصُرَهُ اللّٰهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا …: ’’ سَبَبٌ ‘‘} Rope. {’’ السَّمَآءِ ‘‘ ’’سَمَا يَسْمُوْ‘‘} (n) is from which the meaning is to be elevated. The sky is called "Samaa" because of its height, that is why the cloud is also called "Samaa" and so is the roof.

➋ One explanation of { ’’ مَنْ كَانَ يَظُنُّ اَنْ لَّنْ يَّنْصُرَهُ اللّٰهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَ الْاٰخِرَةِ ‘‘} is the one that Tabari has narrated from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), that whoever thinks that Allah will not help Muhammad (peace be upon him) in this world and the Hereafter, he should tie a rope to the roof, then hang himself with it and strangle himself to death and see, does this extinguish the fire of anger and jealousy burning in his chest because of Allah's help to Muhammad (peace be upon him)? The meaning is that whoever thinks that Allah will not help His Messenger, let him hang himself and die, Allah will surely help His Messenger in this world and the Hereafter. Since everything has an appointed time with Allah, the delay in help does not mean at all that Allah will never help His Prophet. Allah certainly helps all His Messengers and the believers in this world and the Hereafter, as He said: «{ اِنَّا لَنَنْصُرُ رُسُلَنَا وَ الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا فِي الْحَيٰوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَ يَوْمَ يَقُوْمُ الْاَشْهَادُ }» [ المؤمن : ۵۱ ] "Indeed, We surely help Our Messengers and those who believe in the life of this world and on the Day when the witnesses will stand." On this explanation, the question arises that before or after this verse, there is no mention of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), so how can the pronoun "him" in "will not help him" refer to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him)? The answer given is that it is not necessary for the mention of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) to precede the pronoun referring to him, because his mention is present in the mind of every believer. Therefore, even if his mention is not in the words before, there is no harm.

The second explanation is the one Tabari has narrated with an authentic chain from Mujahid, that whoever (regarding himself) thinks that Allah will never help him in this world and the Hereafter, will never provide him sustenance, he should hang a rope upwards and strangle himself, then see... That is, whoever is not ready to believe in Allah's help, such a hopeless person should hang himself and die, then see if this fulfills his hope? This is just like saying to someone, if you do not believe in such and such thing, then go and bang your head against the wall and die.

Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) has given a very excellent explanation of this verse, he writes: "Whoever, in the distress of the world, loses hope in Allah and abandons His worship and worships false things, in whose hands is neither harm nor benefit, to console and satisfy his heart, he should imagine this situation: like a person is hanging from a high dangling rope, if he cannot climb, there is hope that if the rope is pulled up, he will climb. When the rope is cut, then what hope remains? The rope means Allah's hope, and he stretched this rope towards the sky, that is, towards height." (Mawdhih) In this explanation and the previous one, the connection of this verse with the previous verse: «{ وَ مِنَ النَّاسِ مَنْ يَّعْبُدُ اللّٰهَ عَلٰى حَرْفٍ }» is also becoming clear.

15. 1. One meaning given is that such a person, who wishes that Allah does not help His Messenger ﷺ, because he is distressed by his dominance and victory, should hang a rope from the roof of his house and put its noose around his neck and strangle himself. Perhaps this suicide will save him from the rage and anger he feels in his heart upon seeing the increasing influence of Muhammad ﷺ. In this case, "sky" would mean the roof of the house. The second meaning is that he should take a rope and climb up to the sky and cut off the connection of revelation or help that comes from the sky (if he can do so), and see whether his heart is cooled after that. Imam Ibn Kathir preferred the first meaning, and Imam Shawkani preferred the second meaning, and from the context, the second meaning seems closer.

15. Whoever thinks that Allah will not help him in this world and the Hereafter [14] (and turns to others), let him stretch a rope to the sky, then cut it off, and see if his plan can remove what enrages him. (No matter how hard he tries, he cannot change Allah’s decree.)

[14] In this verse, the one who thinks in such a manner refers to the same hypocrite who stands on the border between disbelief and Islam, worshipping Allah but not remaining content and grateful for Allah’s pleasure. And when he sees any benefit in joining the ranks of disbelief and polytheism, he immediately inclines towards that side, and for the sake of these insignificant worldly interests, he abandons Allah and goes to other thresholds, wandering from door to door. Yet, even then, he does not attain those benefits, so instead, he begins to curse Allah and His decree. He should try his utmost to change Allah’s decree and do whatever he can, and then see and tell whether by doing so he has succeeded in changing Allah’s decree. The words used in this verse about stretching a rope to the sky and then cutting it are metaphorical and not meant literally. Such expressions are used in almost every language. For example, in Urdu, words close in meaning to this idiom are: “Indeed, let him try everything, right or wrong,” and in Punjabi, there is an idiom that conveys the meaning exactly: “Tatte towe te gheesni piya kare,” meaning even if he rubs his backside on a hot griddle. The meaning of all these idioms is the same: let him try his utmost.

Planning is of No Use Against Destiny:

In the interpretation of this verse, some commentators have taken ﴿لَنْ يَنْصُرَهُ اللّٰهُ﴾ to mean the person of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ from ﴿ه﴾, and have explained the meaning that the promises of worldly and otherworldly victory and help that Allah has made to His Messenger will certainly be fulfilled, no matter how unpleasant and infuriating this may be to the disbelievers and polytheists. And that, in order to prevent this divine help, they may try their utmost, even to the extent of stretching a rope to the sky and climbing up to sever the divine revelation and heavenly aid from there. Then let them see whether, by these schemes, the divine revelation and help, which so greatly distresses them, ceases to come. This interpretation is somewhat appealing, but in this context, the sequence of the passage does not support this interpretation. Previously, the mention was also of hypocrites and polytheists, and afterwards, too, the mention is of disbelievers and polytheists. And if, in between, there comes a verse about the glad tidings for the believers, it is in accordance with Allah’s practice that where the disbelievers and polytheists are being warned, the glad tidings for the believers are also mentioned, and vice versa.