Surah Al-Maaida (5) — Ayah 48

(Ayah 48)➊ {وَ اَنْزَلْنَاۤ اِلَيْكَ الْكِتٰبَ بِالْحَقِّ ……:} In the previous verses, the attributes of the Torah and the Gospel were described, and the People of the Book were declared disbelievers, wrongdoers, and transgressors for not acting upon them. Now, in this verse, the description of the Quran is given, and you, O Prophet (peace be upon him), are addressed and told to judge according to the Quran. The meaning of {’’ مُهَيْمِنًا ‘‘} is protector, guardian, and witness. The Holy Quran is the protector of the previous books, meaning that the guidance, knowledge, meanings, and subjects that were in the earlier books are all presented with complete trustworthiness, and it exposes the distortions and false interpretations of the Jews. It also means that every command of the Torah and the Gospel will be tested against the standard of the Quran; if it proves authentic, it will be accepted, otherwise, it will be rejected.

➋ {فَاحْكُمْ بَيْنَهُمْ بِمَاۤ اَنْزَلَ اللّٰهُ ……:} Previously, in verse (42), the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was given the choice to judge their matters or not, as he wished, but now this command is being given in its place that even in their mutual matters, judge according to the Quran.

➌ {لِكُلٍّ جَعَلْنَا مِنْكُمْ شِرْعَةً وَّ مِنْهَاجًا:} Its addressees are the Jews, Christians, and Muslims, meaning that although the religion of all the Prophets is one, in their respective times, the Shariah (secondary rulings) and methods of each community have been different. In the Shariah of each subsequent Prophet, there have been rulings different from the previous Shariah. Now, the Shariah of the Last Prophet is complete in every respect and is for all times until the Day of Judgment. In a hadith it is said: "The Prophets are paternal brothers; their mothers are different, but their religion is one." [ بخاری، أحادیث الأنبیاء، باب قول اﷲ : «واذكر في الكتاب مريم…… » : ۳۴۴۳ ] That is, the religion and principles of all are one; whatever differences exist are only in the secondary rulings. Now, after the Last Prophet, neither the rulings and issues of any previous Prophet will be acted upon, nor on the statement, opinion, or fatwa of any Imam or Mujtahid of this Ummah.

➍ {وَلٰكِنْ لِّيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِيْ مَاۤ اٰتٰىكُمْ:} That is, if Allah Almighty had willed, He could have made you all one community by force, but this difference exists so that Allah Almighty may test you as to how you use the intellect and choices He has given you, so that reward and punishment may be based on that.

➎ {فَاسْتَبِقُوا الْخَيْرٰتِ:} That is, leaving aside unnecessary disputes, strive to excel one another in those good deeds which you are now commanded to do in the final Shariah.

48. 1 Every heavenly book has been a confirmer of the book before it, just as the Quran is a confirmer of all previous books, and the meaning of confirmation is that all these books are indeed revealed by Allah. But along with being a confirmer, the Quran is also مُهَيْمِن (protector, trustworthy, witness, and judge). That is, since there has been distortion and alteration (i.e., cutting, editing, and changing) in the previous books, the decisive judgment will be that of the Quran; whatever it declares authentic is authentic, and the rest is false.

48. 2 Previously, in verse number 42, the Prophet was given the choice to decide their matters or not, as he wished. But now, instead, this command is being given that even in their mutual matters, decisions should be made according to the Noble Quran.

48. 3 In fact, this is teaching the Ummah that making decisions based on people's desires and opinions or their self-made assumptions and thoughts, apart from the book revealed by Allah, is misguidance. If even the Prophet is not permitted this, then how can anyone else have this right?

48. 4 This refers to previous laws, some of whose rulings differed from each other. In one law, some things were forbidden, while in another they were permitted; in some, there was strictness in a matter, and in another, leniency. But the religion of all was one, that is, based on monotheism. Therefore, their call was the same. This subject is described in a hadith as follows: "نحن معاشر الانبیاء اخوۃ لعلات، دیننا واحد" — "We, the group of Prophets, are brothers from different mothers; our religion is one." Brothers from different mothers are those whose mothers are different but father is one. The meaning is that their religion was the same, but their laws were different. However, after the Shariah of Muhammad, now all previous laws have also been abrogated, and now both the religion and the law are one.

48. 5 That is, after the revelation of the Quran, salvation is now dependent on it. But to adopt this path of salvation, Allah Almighty has not compelled people. Otherwise, He could have done so, but then your trial would not have been possible, whereas He wants to test you.

48. And We have revealed to you the Book in truth, confirming the Scripture that came before it and as a guardian over it [87]. So judge between them by what Allah has revealed, and do not follow their desires, turning away from the truth that has come to you. For each of you We have appointed a law and a way [88]. Had Allah willed, He could have made you one community, but He intended to test you in what He has given you [89]. So compete with one another in good deeds. To Allah you will all return, and He will inform you about that over which you used to differ [90].

[87]
How is the Quran a Guardian Over Previous Scriptures?

Muhaimin means protector and overseer. There are various types of protection and supervision. Muhaimin refers to such protection and supervision as a hen gathers all her chicks under her wings so that no bird, such as a kite, can attack them, or so that she can protect her chicks from the cold. Here, calling the Quran a Muhaimin over all other revealed books means that all the subjects of the previous divine books are included in it. Furthermore, the Quran serves as a criterion for all those books in such a way that:
1. Any content in the Gospel or Torah that is in accordance with the Quran is certainly the word of Allah.
2. And any content that is contrary to the Quran can never be the word of Allah. That is certainly the word of people, which has been included in the Book of Allah. For example, in the present Gospels, the doctrines of the Trinity, the divinity of Christ, and the atonement of Christ are found, and in the Bible, besides the disrespect of the Prophets, there are many such subjects from which it is clearly known that they cannot be the word of Allah.
3. And any content that is neither in accordance with nor contrary to the Quran, Muslims have been commanded to remain silent about it, neither confirming nor denying it.

[88]
The Difference in Shari'ahs:

That is, the religion of all the Prophets and their communities was one, but the Shari'ahs were different. By religion is meant the fundamental beliefs and doctrines, such as believing only Allah to be the Creator, Owner, and Sustainer, not associating anyone with Him, and worshipping Him alone. To fully obey Allah and His Messengers, to believe in the Day of Judgment, and to believe in reward and punishment for one's deeds, etc. And by Shari'ah is meant those commands that were given according to the needs of the time. For example, all communities were commanded to perform prayer, give zakat, and fast. But there was a difference in the number of prayers and the manner of prayer, likewise, there was a difference in the nisab of zakat and the rate of zakat, and also in the number of fasts. Or, for example, in the children of Adam, marriage between brothers and sisters was permissible, and this was a matter of necessity. Later, when there was no longer a need, it became forbidden. Before the Muslim Ummah, there was no restriction on the number of wives, as our master Solomon had a hundred wives, and so on. There are countless such issues, relating to every aspect of life.

[89]
The Demand of Sound Intellect and the Test in the World:

Allah Almighty has given man the power of discernment, the power of will, and the power of choice precisely so that it may be known who among humans obeys and submits to Allah and His Messengers and who deviates from them. And if Allah had willed, He would not have endowed man with these powers despite being a living being, and man would have been compelled and bound to obey Allah and His Messengers just as other things in the universe are compelled and bound before the commands of Allah. In this way, there would never have been any difference in any community. But in this way, the purpose of creating man, sending him to the world, and making the world a place of action and a place of trial could not have been fulfilled. Therefore, now the real task of man is not to misuse these powers, to follow his desires, to deviate from the commands of Allah, to interpret the meanings of the verses of the Book of Allah in such a way as to open the way for differences in the community, and to misuse his freedom by laying the foundation of sectarianism. Rather, his real task should be to keep this freedom of opinion, will, and choice subject to the commands of Allah and to excel one another in good deeds.

[90] That is, the differences of the sectarians cannot be ended in this world because of their own stubbornness and mutual antagonism. Their final decision can neither be made in debate assemblies nor on the battlefield. Allah Almighty Himself will decide this on the Day of Resurrection. At that time, they will know how much of the truth and how much of falsehood was there in the disputes in which they wasted their lives.