Surah Saad (38) — Ayah 41

(Ayah 41 to 44) ➊ {وَ اذْكُرْ عَبْدَنَاۤ اَيُّوْبَ … :} Its connection is with the previous {’’ وَ اذْكُرْ عَبْدَنَا دَاوٗدَ ذَا الْاَيْدِ ‘‘}. In the word {’’ عَبْدَنَا ‘‘ }, Allah’s relationship with them is being expressed. Among the stories mentioned in this surah, this is the third story: that Allah’s blessings upon Dawud and Sulaiman (peace be upon them) and the test of both are mentioned, and the calamities and hardships that befell Ayyub (peace be upon him) and the blessing of their removal are mentioned. The purpose is to give a lesson to all.

➋ { اَنِّيْ مَسَّنِيَ الشَّيْطٰنُ بِنُصْبٍ وَّ عَذَابٍ: ’’نُصْبٌ‘‘} refers to fatigue and hardship, and {’’ عَذَابٍ ‘‘} to severe physical pain. That is, two types of suffering befell me: one, intense grief due to the loss of wealth, children, and well-being, and the other, physical pain due to illness.

➌ See the beautiful etiquette of Ayyub (peace be upon him) in this supplication: he did not attribute the pain and suffering to Allah, but to Shaytan. Although grief or comfort, evil or good, all are under Allah’s will and He is the Creator of all, but since most of the time their connection is, in some near or distant way, with Shaytan, therefore Allah’s close servants attribute evil to themselves or to Shaytan, not to Allah. Just as Ibrahim (peace be upon him) attributed illness to himself and healing to Allah, he said: « وَ اِذَا مَرِضْتُ فَهُوَ يَشْفِيْنِ» [ الشعرآء : ۸۰ ] “And when I am ill, He is the One who cures me.” And in the story of Musa and Khidr (peace be upon them), Yusha bin Nun (peace be upon him) attributed forgetfulness to Shaytan, he said: «وَ مَاۤ اَنْسٰىنِيْهُ اِلَّا الشَّيْطٰنُ اَنْ اَذْكُرَهٗ » [ الکہف : ۶۳ ] “And none made me forget except Shaytan that I should mention it.” In Sahih Muslim, there is a long supplication narrated from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) recited at the beginning of prayer, which starts with {’’ وَجَّهْتُ وَجْهِيَ لِلَّذِيْ فَطَرَ السَّمٰوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ‘‘}, and in it are these words: [ لَبَّيْكَ وَسَعْدَيْكَ وَ الْخَيْرُ كُلُّهُ فِيْ يَدَيْكَ وَالشَّرُّ لَيْسَ إِلَيْكَ ] [ مسلم، صلاۃ المسافرین، باب الدعاء في صلاۃ اللیل و قیامہ : ۷۷۱، عن علي بن أبي طالب رضی اللہ عنہ ] “I am present, I am present, and all good is in Your hands, and evil is not attributed to You.”

➍ In this supplication of Ayyub (peace be upon him) and in the supplication mentioned in Surah Al-Anbiya (83): « اَنِّيْ مَسَّنِيَ الضُّرُّ وَ اَنْتَ اَرْحَمُ الرّٰحِمِيْنَ» (Indeed, adversity has touched me, and You are the Most Merciful of the merciful), the etiquette of Ayyub (peace be upon him) in supplication is being expressed, that instead of explicitly stating his request, he mentioned his miserable state and the mercy of his Lord in such words that Allah Himself showed mercy and granted him healing.

➎ For a detailed explanation of these four verses, see the commentary of Surah Al-Anbiya, verses (83, 84).

41. 1. The illness of Prophet Ayyub (علیہ السلام) and his patience during it are well-known, according to which Allah Almighty tested him through the destruction of his family and wealth and through illness, in which he remained afflicted for many years. Until only one wife remained with him, who served him morning and evening and also arranged for sustenance by working somewhere to provide for their needs. This has been attributed to Shaytan, even though the only One who does everything is Allah, because it is possible that the whispers of Shaytan became the cause of some action that brought about this trial, or it is out of etiquette that good is attributed to Allah Almighty and evil is attributed to oneself or to Shaytan.

41. And remember Our servant Job, when he called upon his Lord, "Indeed, Satan [47] has afflicted me with hardship and torment."

[47]
Attributing Evil to Satan:

It is part of every Muslim's belief and a component of his faith in the unseen that whether it is distress or comfort, evil or good, everything happens under Allah's will. However, sometimes this will is also, to some extent, dependent on a person's own faults or satanic whispers. And from the study of the Quran, it is understood that in matters where there is an aspect of evil, harm, or the loss of a rightful purpose, Allah's close servants, out of respect and humility, never attribute such things to Allah, but rather to themselves or to Satan. For example, Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ attributed his illness to himself. Yusha bin Nun, who was with Sayyiduna Musaؑ, attributed the fish going into the sea to Satan. Similarly, Ayyub also attributed his illness and suffering to Satan, and it could also mean that Sayyiduna Ayyubؑ, due to prolonged illness and suffering, was unable to worship Allah properly, so he considered the cause of this shortcoming to be satanic whispers.