Surah Al-An’am Ayat 112 (6:112 Quran) With Tafsir

Ala-Maududi

(6:112) And so it is that against every Prophet We have set up the evil ones from among men and jinn, some of them inspire others with specious speech only by way of. delusion.^[79] Had it been your Lord’s will, they would not have done it.^[80] Leave them alone to fabricate what they will.

79. The Prophet (peace be on him) is told that he should not be unnerved even if the evil ones among both mankind and the jinn stood united against him and opposed him with all their might. For this was not the first time that such a thing had happened. Whenever a Prophet came and tried to lead people to the Truth, all the satanic forces joined hands to defeat his mission. ‘Specious talk’ signifies all the trickery and manoeuvring to which the enemy resorts, all his efforts aimed at sowing doubts about Islam and undermining people’s faith in it, so as to arouse them against both the Prophet (peace be on him) and his message. Taken as a whole, these are characterized as ‘delusion’, for the weapons used in their crusade by the opponents of the Truth have the effect of deluding others as well as themselves, no matter how beneficial and successful those weapons may appear to be.

80. Furthermore, we should always bear in mind that, according to the Qur’an, there is a tremendous difference between ‘God’s will’ and ‘God’s good pleasure’. The failure to differentiate between the two often gives rise to serious misconceptions. If a certain thing takes place in accord with the universal will of God, and thus by His sanction, that does not necessarily mean that God is pleased with it. Nothing at all takes place in the world unless God permits it to take place, unless He makes it a part of His scheme, and unless He makes it possible for that event to take place by creating its necessary conditions. The act of stealing on the part of a thief, the act of homicide on the part of a murderer, the wrong and corruption of the wrong-doer and the corrupt, the unbelief of the unbeliever and the polytheism of the polytheist – none of these are possible without the will of God. Likewise, the faith of the believer and the piety of the pious are inconceivable without the will of God. In short, both these require the will of God. But whereas the things in the first category do not please Him, those in the second do.

Even though the will of God is oriented to ultimate good, the course of the realization of that good is paved with conflict between the forces of light and darkness, of good and evil, of what is sound and pure on the one hand and what is corrupt and defiled on the other. With larger interests in view, God has endowed man with the disposition of obedience as well as of disobedience. He has created in man Abrahamic and Mosaic as well as Nimrodic and Pharaonic potentialities. Both the pure, unadulterated human nature and the satanic urges are ingrained in man’s being and have been provided with the opportunity to work themselves out by coming into conflict with each other. He has granted those species of His creatures who are possessed of authority (viz. man and jinn) the freedom to choose between good and evil. Whosoever chooses to act righteously has been given the power to do so, and the same is the case with him who chooses to be evil. People of both categories are in a position to use material resources within the framework of the broader considerations underlying God’s- governance of His universe. God will be pleased, however, only with those who are working for good. God likes His creatures to exercise their freedom of choice properly and commit themselves to good of their own volition.

Unlike the angels, who carry out God’s commands without resistance from any quarter, the task entrusted to men is to strive to establish the way of life sanctioned by God in the face of opposition and hostility from evil-doers and rebels against Him. In the framework of His universal will, God allows even those who have chosen the path of rebellion to strive for the realization of their goals, even as He grants the believers every opportunity to strive along the path of obedience and service to God. Despite this granting of freedom and choice to all there is no doubt that God is pleased with, and guides, directs, supports and strengthens the believers alone because their overall direction is to His liking. Nevertheless, they should not expect that by His supernatural intervention God will either force those who are disinclined to believe into believing or that He will forcibly remove the satanic forces – among both men and jinn – who are resolved to spare neither their mental and physical energy nor their material resources to impede the triumph of the Truth. Those determined to strive in the cause of the Truth, and of virtue and righteousness are told that they must prove their earnest devotion by waging a fierce struggle against the devotees of falsehood. For had God wanted to use miracles to obliterate falsehood and usher in the reign of the Truth, He would not have required human beings to accomplish the task. He could have simply seen to it that no evil one remained in the world, leaving no possibility for polytheism and unbelief to exist.

Ibn-Kathir

112. And so We have appointed for every Prophet enemies — Shayatin among mankind and Jinn, inspiring one another with adorned speech as a delusion. If your Lord had so willed, they would not have done it; so leave them alone with their fabrications. 113. And Tasgha to it that the hearts of those who do not believe in the Hereafter may incline to such (deceit), and that they may remain pleased with it, and that they may commit what they are committing.

Allah says, just as We made enemies for you, O Muhammad, who will oppose and rebel against you and become your adversaries, We also made enemies for every Prophet who came before you. Therefore, do not be saddened by this fact. Allah said in other Ayat:

(Verily, Messengers were denied before you, but with patience they bore the denial, and they were hurt…) ﴿6:34﴾, and,

(Nothing is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you. Verily, your Lord is the Possessor of forgiveness, and (also) the Possessor of painful punishment.) ﴿41:43﴾ and,

(Thus have We made for every Prophet an enemy among the criminals.) ﴿25:31﴾. Waraqah bin Nawfal said to Allah’s Messenger , “None came with what you came with but he was the subject of enmity.” Allah’s statement,

(Shayatin among mankind…) refers to,

(enemies. ..) meaning, the Prophets have enemies among the devils of mankind and the devils of the Jinns. The word, Shaytan, describes one who is dissimilar to his kind due to his or her wickedness. Indeed, only the Shayatin, may Allah humiliate and curse them, from among mankind and the Jinns oppose the Messengers. `Abdur-Razzaq said that Ma`mar narrated that Qatadah commented on Allah’s statement,

(Shayatin (devils) among mankind and Jinn…) “There are devils among the Jinns and devils among mankind who inspire each other.” Allah’s statement,

(inspiring one another with adorned speech as a delusion.) means, they inspire each other with beautified, adorned speech that deceives the ignorant who hear it,

(If your Lord had so willed, they would not have done it;) for all this occurs by Allah’s decree, will and decision, that every Prophet had enemies from these devils,

(so leave them alone with their fabrications.) and lies. This Ayah orders patience in the face of the harm of the wicked and to trust in Allah against their enmity, for, “Allah shall suffice for you (O Muhammad) and aid you against them.” Allah’s statement,

(And Tasgha to it.) means, according to Ibn `Abbas, “incline to it.”

(the hearts of those who do not believe in the Hereafter…) their hearts, mind and hearing. As-Suddi said that this Ayah refers to the hearts of the disbelievers.

(And that they may remain pleased with it.) they like and adore it. Only those who disbelieve in the Hereafter accept this evil speech, being enemies of the Prophets, etc., just as Allah said in other Ayat,

(So, verily, you (pagans) and those whom you worship (idols). Cannot lead astray. Except those who are predestined to burn in Hell!) ﴿37:161-163﴾ and,

(Certainly, you have different ideas. Turned aside therefrom is he who is turned aside.) ﴿51:8-9﴾ Allah said;

(And that they may commit what they are committing. ) meaning, “let them earn whatever they will earn”, according to `Ali bin Abi Talhah who reported this from Ibn `Abbas. As-Suddi and Ibn Zayd also commented, “Let them do whatever they will do.”