سُوْرَةُ صٓ
Surah Saad (38) — Ayah 6
وَٱنطَلَقَ ٱلْمَلَأُ مِنْهُمْ أَنِ ٱمْشُوا۟ وَٱصْبِرُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ ءَالِهَتِكُمْ ۖ إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَشَىْءٌ يُرَادُ ﴿6﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And the leaders among them went about (saying): "Go on, and remain constant to your âlihah (gods)! Verily, this is a thing designed (against you)!
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَٱنطَلَقَ
wa-inṭalaqa
And went forth
ٱلْمَلَأُ
l-mala-u
the chiefs
مِنْهُمْ
min'hum
among them
أَنِ
ani
that
ٱمْشُوا۟
im'shū
Continue
وَٱصْبِرُوا۟
wa-iṣ'birū
and be patient
عَلَىٰٓ
ʿalā
over
ءَالِهَتِكُمْ ۖ
ālihatikum
your gods
إِنَّ
inna
Indeed
هَـٰذَا
hādhā
this
لَشَىْءٌۭ
lashayon
(is) certainly a thing
يُرَادُ
yurādu
intended
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
6. And their leaders set out, saying, “Go and remain steadfast in worshipping your gods [5]. This is surely a matter intended for some other purpose [6].”
[5]
A 25-Member Delegation Comes to Abu Talib for Reconciliation:
The background of the revelation of these verses is that in the 10th year of Prophethood, Abu Talib fell ill (he passed away from this illness, and in the same year, Umm al-Mu’minin Sayyidah Khadijahؓ also passed away. Therefore, that year is called ‘Aam al-Huzn’—the Year of Grief—because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ suffered these two great losses that year). At that time, Abu Talib was 80 years old, and the hardships he endured in supporting the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, as well as the hunger he suffered in the Valley of Abu Talib, had greatly weakened him. It seemed that the days of his life were numbered. The chiefs of Quraysh thought that if, after Abu Talib’s death, they wronged his nephew Muhammad ﷺ, all of Arabia would taunt them, saying that while the uncle was alive, they could do nothing, but after his death, they began to oppress him. Therefore, while Abu Talib was still alive, a 25-member delegation of the chiefs of Quraysh came to Abu Talib with the intention of reconciliation and said, “Call your nephew. We want that we do not interfere in his religion; let him worship as he wishes according to his religion. But these people should not interfere in our religion, nor should they speak ill of our gods and elders. Let them leave us to our religion, and we will leave them to theirs.” So Abu Talib called you. At that time, there was a vacant spot near Abu Talib for one person. Abu Jahl immediately got up and sat there so that you would not be able to sit close to him. Anyway, when you ﷺ sat a little apart, Abu Talib said, “These are the noble people of your nation, and they have come to make a reconciliation and covenant on such a matter. What do you think?” Your answer: Worship one Allah and become rulers of Arabs and non-Arabs: You ﷺ replied, “Shall I not tell them a word, that if they accept it, all of Arabia will submit to them, and they will rule over the non-Arabs, and they will pay them tribute?” Hearing this, Abu Jahl said, “By your father! Not just one, even if you present ten such things, we are ready to accept them.” You ﷺ said, “Say: La ilaha illallah, and abandon all those whom you worship besides Allah.” At this, all of them slapped their hands and said, “Muhammad! All the gods replaced by just one God! This is a very strange thing.” Then they said among themselves, “Get up from here and remain firm on the religion of your forefathers. This man will never accept anything you say.” On this occasion, the first seven verses of this Surah were revealed. [ابن هشام 1: 417 تا 419]
The same incident has been narrated briefly by Imam Tirmidhi as follows: Ibn Abbasؓ says that once Abu Talib fell ill, so the Quraysh came to him, and the Prophet ﷺ also came to him, and there was only one person’s place to sit near Abu Talib. Abu Jahl got up to prevent you ﷺ from sitting there. Then those people complained to Abu Talib about you ﷺ. Abu Talib said to you ﷺ, “Nephew! What do you want from your people?” You ﷺ replied, “Just one word: if they accept it, they will become rulers over the Arabs and will take tribute from the non-Arabs.” Abu Talib said, “Just one word?” You ﷺ replied, “Yes, just one word.” Then you said, “Dear uncle! You people should accept that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah.” The Quraysh said, “Shall we worship only one God (and leave all others)? This is a very strange thing. We have never heard such a thing in the recent religion. This is nothing but a fabricated matter.” It was regarding these people that these verses were revealed. [ترمذي۔ كتاب التفسير]
In Arabia, every tribe had its own separate idol. Their belief was that each tribe’s idol would remove the difficulties of that tribe’s people and fulfill their needs, and the great God or Lord of the Worlds was only supervising them. Therefore, it seemed far-fetched, even impossible, to them that a single Lord could fulfill the needs of all the people of the worlds.
[6]
The Quraysh’s Notion That This Prophet Seeks Power:
That is, there must be something dubious in this call; it seems that the real intention of this Prophet is that, by invoking the name of the One God, he should make us all his followers and subordinates and establish his own rule. How can we ever let this happen? We will never accept this at any cost. Some commentators have also taken it to mean that the determination and steadfastness with which Muhammad ﷺ is presenting his call shows that he will never turn away from it, and such a revolution could indeed occur; therefore, as much as possible, remain firm in protecting your ancestral religion.
[5]
A 25-Member Delegation Comes to Abu Talib for Reconciliation:
The background of the revelation of these verses is that in the 10th year of Prophethood, Abu Talib fell ill (he passed away from this illness, and in the same year, Umm al-Mu’minin Sayyidah Khadijahؓ also passed away. Therefore, that year is called ‘Aam al-Huzn’—the Year of Grief—because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ suffered these two great losses that year). At that time, Abu Talib was 80 years old, and the hardships he endured in supporting the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, as well as the hunger he suffered in the Valley of Abu Talib, had greatly weakened him. It seemed that the days of his life were numbered. The chiefs of Quraysh thought that if, after Abu Talib’s death, they wronged his nephew Muhammad ﷺ, all of Arabia would taunt them, saying that while the uncle was alive, they could do nothing, but after his death, they began to oppress him. Therefore, while Abu Talib was still alive, a 25-member delegation of the chiefs of Quraysh came to Abu Talib with the intention of reconciliation and said, “Call your nephew. We want that we do not interfere in his religion; let him worship as he wishes according to his religion. But these people should not interfere in our religion, nor should they speak ill of our gods and elders. Let them leave us to our religion, and we will leave them to theirs.” So Abu Talib called you. At that time, there was a vacant spot near Abu Talib for one person. Abu Jahl immediately got up and sat there so that you would not be able to sit close to him. Anyway, when you ﷺ sat a little apart, Abu Talib said, “These are the noble people of your nation, and they have come to make a reconciliation and covenant on such a matter. What do you think?” Your answer: Worship one Allah and become rulers of Arabs and non-Arabs: You ﷺ replied, “Shall I not tell them a word, that if they accept it, all of Arabia will submit to them, and they will rule over the non-Arabs, and they will pay them tribute?” Hearing this, Abu Jahl said, “By your father! Not just one, even if you present ten such things, we are ready to accept them.” You ﷺ said, “Say: La ilaha illallah, and abandon all those whom you worship besides Allah.” At this, all of them slapped their hands and said, “Muhammad! All the gods replaced by just one God! This is a very strange thing.” Then they said among themselves, “Get up from here and remain firm on the religion of your forefathers. This man will never accept anything you say.” On this occasion, the first seven verses of this Surah were revealed. [ابن هشام 1: 417 تا 419]
The same incident has been narrated briefly by Imam Tirmidhi as follows: Ibn Abbasؓ says that once Abu Talib fell ill, so the Quraysh came to him, and the Prophet ﷺ also came to him, and there was only one person’s place to sit near Abu Talib. Abu Jahl got up to prevent you ﷺ from sitting there. Then those people complained to Abu Talib about you ﷺ. Abu Talib said to you ﷺ, “Nephew! What do you want from your people?” You ﷺ replied, “Just one word: if they accept it, they will become rulers over the Arabs and will take tribute from the non-Arabs.” Abu Talib said, “Just one word?” You ﷺ replied, “Yes, just one word.” Then you said, “Dear uncle! You people should accept that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah.” The Quraysh said, “Shall we worship only one God (and leave all others)? This is a very strange thing. We have never heard such a thing in the recent religion. This is nothing but a fabricated matter.” It was regarding these people that these verses were revealed. [ترمذي۔ كتاب التفسير]
In Arabia, every tribe had its own separate idol. Their belief was that each tribe’s idol would remove the difficulties of that tribe’s people and fulfill their needs, and the great God or Lord of the Worlds was only supervising them. Therefore, it seemed far-fetched, even impossible, to them that a single Lord could fulfill the needs of all the people of the worlds.
[6]
The Quraysh’s Notion That This Prophet Seeks Power:
That is, there must be something dubious in this call; it seems that the real intention of this Prophet is that, by invoking the name of the One God, he should make us all his followers and subordinates and establish his own rule. How can we ever let this happen? We will never accept this at any cost. Some commentators have also taken it to mean that the determination and steadfastness with which Muhammad ﷺ is presenting his call shows that he will never turn away from it, and such a revolution could indeed occur; therefore, as much as possible, remain firm in protecting your ancestral religion.
