Source: Ibn Kathir
| The Call to repent before the Punishment comes |
53 Say: "O 'Ibadi (My slaves) who have transgressed against themselves (by committing evil deeds and sins)! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah, verily Allah forgives all sins. Truly, He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
This Ayah is a call to all sinners, be they disbelievers or others, to repent and turn to Allah. This Ayah tells us that Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, will forgive all the sins of those who repent to Him and turn back to Him, no matter what or how many his sins are, even if they are like the foam of the sea. This cannot be interpreted as meaning that sins will be forgiven without repentance, because Shirk can only be forgiven for the one who repents from it.
Al-Bukhari recorded that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said that some of the people of Shirk killed many people and committed Zina (illegal sexual acts) to a great extent; they came to Muhammad and said, "What you are saying and calling us to is good; if only you could tell us that there is an expiation for what we have done.'' Then the following Ayat were revealed:
(And those who invoke not any other god along with Allah, nor kill such person as Allah has forbidden, except for just cause, nor commit illegal sexual intercourse) (25:68).
(Say: "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves! Despair not of the mercy of Allah.) This was also recorded by Muslim, Abu Dawud and An-Nasa'i. What is meant by the first Ayah
(25:68) is:
(Except those who repent and believe, and do righteous deeds) (25:70).
The Two Sahihs record the Hadith of Abu Sa`id, may Allah be pleased with him, from Messenger of Allah about the man who killed ninety-nine people. Later on, he regretted it and asked a worshipper among the Children of Israel whether he could repent. He told him no, so he killed him, thus completing one hundred. Then he asked one of their scholars whether he could repent. He said, "What is stopping you from repenting'' Then he told him to go to a town where Allah was worshipped. He set out for that town, but death came to him while he was on the road. The angels of mercy and the angels of punishment disputed over him, so Allah commanded them to measure the distance between the two towns; whichever he was closer to was the one to which he belonged. They found that he was closer to the town he was heading for, so the angels of mercy took him. It was said that when he was dying, he moved himself (towards that town), and Allah commanded the good town to move closer to him and the other town to move away. This is basic meaning of the Hadith; we have quoted it in full elsewhere.
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54 "And turn in repentance and in obedience with true Faith (Islamic Monotheism) to your Lord and submit to Him, (in Islam), before the torment comes upon you, then you will not be helped.
(And turn in repentance (and in obedience with true faith) to your Lord and submit to Him) meaning, turn back to Allah and submit yourselves to Him.
(before the torment comes upon you, (and) then you will not be helped.) means, hasten to repent and do righteous deeds before His wrath comes upon you.
55 "And follow the best of that which is sent down to you from your Lord (i.e. this Quran, do what it orders you to do and keep away from what it forbids), before the torment comes on you suddenly while you perceive not!"
(And follow the best of that which is sent down to you from your Lord,) means, the Qur'an.
(before the torment comes on you suddenly while you perceive not!) means, without you realizing it.
56 Lest a person should say: "Alas, my grief that I was undutiful to Allah (i.e. I have not done what Allah has ordered me to do), and I was indeed among those who mocked [at the truth! i.e. La ilaha ill-Allah (none has the right to be worshiped but Allah), the Quran, and Muhammad SAW and at the faithful believers, etc.]
(Lest a person should say: "Alas, my grief that I was undutiful to Allah...'') means, on the Day of Resurrection, the sinner who neglected to repent and turn back to Allah will regret it, and will wish that he had been one of the righteous who obeyed Allah.
(and I was indeed among those who mocked.) means, `my actions in this world were those of one who ridicules and makes fun, not of one who has firm faith and is sincere.'
57 Or (lest) he should say: "If only Allah had guided me, I should indeed have been among the Muttaqun
(Or (lest) he should say: "If only Allah had guided me, I should indeed have been among those who have Taqwa ''. Or he should say when he sees the torment: "If only I had another chance, then I should indeed be among the doers of good.'') means, he will wish that he could go back to this world so that he could do righteous deeds. `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "Allah tells us what His servants will say before they say it and what they will do before they do it. He says:
(And none can inform you like Him Who is the All-Knower) (35:14).
(Lest a person should say: "Alas, my grief that I was undutiful to Allah, and I was indeed among those who mocked.'' Or he should say: "If only Allah had guided me, I should indeed have been among those who have Taqwa.'' Or he should say when he sees the torment: "If only I had another chance, then I should indeed be among the doers of good.'').
Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said, "The Messenger of Allah said: (Each of the people of Hell will be shown his place in Paradise and he will say, "If only Allah had guided me!'' so it will be a source of regret for him. And each of the people of Paradise will be shown his place in Hell and he will say, "If it were not for the fact that Allah guided me,'' so it will be a cause of thanks.)''
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