Surah At-Tawba (9) — Ayah 128

(Ayah 128) {لَقَدْ جَآءَكُمْ رَسُوْلٌ مِّنْ اَنْفُسِكُمْ … :} In this, some of the exalted attributes of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and Allah’s favors upon the people are mentioned. One attribute is in {’’ لَقَدْ جَآءَكُمْ رَسُوْلٌ ‘‘}, in which the word {’’رَسُوْلٌ‘‘} is used, that you (peace be upon him) are a Messenger, meaning you did not come on your own but were sent by Allah. One favor is {’’ جَآءَكُمْ ‘‘}, meaning the Messenger who is to come to all people until the Day of Judgment has come among you Arabs; by sending an Arab Messenger, Allah has chosen you for the leadership of the world. The addressees of {’’ كُمْ ‘‘} are all the people of the world, but the primary addressees are the Arabs. Your third attribute and Allah’s favor is {’’ مِنْ اَنْفُسِكُمْ ‘‘}, that you (peace be upon him) are from your own kind, that is, from among humans. He faces all human needs, he is from the descendants of Adam, he has parents, there is some relationship with every clan of Quraysh, he has wives and children, he has gone through childhood, youth, old age, hunger, thirst, and death, he has experienced health and sickness, sorrow and comfort at every stage. Therefore, in everything, you (peace be upon him) are a model for you. If he were a jinn or an angel or of any other kind, how could he be a model and a beautiful example for you? Acknowledge Allah’s favor that He sent a model from among yourselves with His message so that you may listen to his words and, by seeing his person, act accordingly. See also Surah Al-Imran (164). Fourthly, {’’ عَزِيْزٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ ‘‘} it is extremely hard on him for you to fall into any kind of hardship or distress; he simply cannot bear that you choose disbelief and live a life worse than animals in this world, and then become fuel for Hell in the Hereafter. He is so concerned about this that Allah has to comfort him. See Surah Al-Kahf (6), Al-Imran (176), Ash-Shu’ara (3), and Ash-Shura (48). Then he brought such a religion in which there is no difficulty, it is extremely easy and simple. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: [ اِنِّيْ اُرْسِلْتُ بِحَنِيْفِيَّةٍ سَمْحَةٍ ] [ أحمد : 116/6، ح : ۲۴۹۰۸، عن عائشۃرضی اللہ عنھا ، قال شعیب الأرنؤوط وغیرہ حدیث قوی، إسنادہ حسن ] “I have been sent with the easy, upright (Hanif) Shariah of Ibrahim.” And he said: [ اِنَّ الدِّيْنَ يُسْرٌ ] “This religion is entirely easy.” [ بخاری، الإیمان، باب الدین یسر : ۳۹، عن أبی ھریرۃ رضی اللہ عنہ ] Such a merciful Prophet that he stayed in Ta’if for ten days, was beaten, came out wounded and unconscious, and when he regained consciousness, Allah sent the angel of the mountains who said, “If you wish, I will crush these disbelievers between the two mountains of Akhshabayn.” He replied, “I hope that Allah will bring forth from their descendants people who will worship Allah alone and will not associate anyone with Him.” [ بخاری، بدء الخلق، باب إذا قال إحدکم آمین… : ۳۲۳۱، عن عائشۃ رضی اللہ عنھا ]

Fifthly, {’’ حَرِيْصٌ عَلَيْكُمْ ‘‘} day and night his only effort and concern is that, in whatever way possible, you are saved from Hell and attain success in this world and the Hereafter. Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) translated {’’ حَرِيْصٌ عَلَيْكُمْ ‘‘} as “He seeks you.” In explanation, he said: “He wishes that my Ummah continues to increase.” (Mawdhih) For this reason, he encouraged marrying into families that have many children, and said: [ تَزَوَّجُوا الْوَلُوْدَ الْوَدُوْدَ فَاِنِّيْ مُكَاثِرٌ بِكُمُ الْأُمَمَ ] “Marry women who are very loving and bear many children, for I will boast of your numbers before other nations.” [ نسائی، النکاح، باب کراھیۃ تزویج العقیم : ۳۲۲۹۔ أبو داوٗد : ۲۰۵۰ ] Sixthly, {’’ بِالْمُؤْمِنِيْنَ رَءُوْفٌ رَّحِيْمٌ ‘‘} the Prophet (peace be upon him) would visit his companions when they were ill, attend their funerals, and upon hearing a child cry during prayer, would shorten the prayer out of concern for the mother’s distress. He would remain hungry himself but feed and give drink to others. Even before prophethood, if you look at his compassion and kindness towards all people, as testified by Umm al-Mu’minin Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her), you can easily understand his gentleness and mercy towards the believers. He would pray for their forgiveness and mercy. The special accepted supplication that Allah granted every Prophet, all of them used it, but he (peace be upon him) saved it to intercede for his Ummah. May Allah grant us, by His grace, the companionship of this merciful Prophet in Paradise. (Ameen)

128. 1. At the end of the surah, the great favor bestowed upon the Muslims in the form of the Prophet is being mentioned. His first attribute stated here is that he is from among your own kind, that is, from the human species (he is not light or anything else), as those afflicted with corrupt beliefs entangle the common people in such deceptions.

128. 2. عَنْت refers to things that cause a person hardship; this includes both worldly difficulties and punishment in the Hereafter. For this Prophet, every kind of hardship and difficulty you face is burdensome. That is why he said: اِنَّ ھٰذَا الدِّینَ یُسر "Indeed, this religion is easy," and "I have been sent with the easy, upright religion."

128. 3. He desires your guidance and benefit in both this world and the Hereafter, and he does not like for you to go to Hell. That is why he said, "I grab you by your backs and pull you away, but you slip away from me and forcefully enter the Fire of Hell" (Sahih Bukhari).

128. 4. This is the fourth attribute of the Prophet mentioned here. All these qualities are manifestations of his excellent character and noble traits. Indeed, he is of great moral character.

128. (O people!) There has certainly come to you a Messenger from among yourselves [148]. Your suffering grieves him [149]; he is deeply concerned for your well-being [150], and is kind [151] and merciful to the believers.

[148] That is, the Messenger is from your own tribe; you are well aware of his entire life, habits, and characteristics, and you are witnesses to his honesty, trustworthiness, and truthfulness. And he speaks in your own language, which is a source of pride and mercy for you.

[149]

You Had Intense Concern for the Hardship of the Believers:

That is, when any hardship or distress befell you, it would weigh heavily upon him, and he would be deeply concerned about removing it. Another meaning is that, in every possible way, he wished for ease for the Ummah. The religion you brought is also easy and gentle, and even when sending your emissaries, you would instruct them to make things easy for the people and not to make things difficult.

[150] His greatest desire was that people be saved from the punishment of the Hereafter, that is, Hell, and the only way for that was for them to believe in you and become obedient to Allah and His Messenger. That is, there was a special yearning in the heart of the Messenger for your well-being and goodness. This is why, when people did not believe in you, you would become extremely restless, and this state of yours has been mentioned repeatedly in the Quran.

[151] Although he was a mercy to all the worlds, you were especially compassionate and kind to the believers. Two qualities of yours regarding the believers have been mentioned together: one is "Ra'uf" (most kind), and the other is "Rahim" (most merciful). Mercy or kindness applies equally in all circumstances, and "Ra'uf" is the one whose heart immediately softens upon seeing someone in distress or hardship, and he feels pity for them.