ٱتَّخَذُوٓاْ أَيۡمَـٰنَہُمۡ جُنَّةً۬ فَصَدُّواْ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِۚ إِنَّہُمۡ سَآءَ مَا كَانُواْ يَعۡمَلُونَ
63:2. They made/took their oaths/declarations as a cover/safeguard so that they may block the Path of Allah. Verily they made evil that which they are wont to do
wont: customary habits
Ibn Kathir
They used their oaths/declarations as a safeguard or shield against the people by false expressions of belief.
تفسير تفسير القرآن العظيم/ ابن كثير (ت 774 هـ)
{ ٱتَّخَذُوۤاْ أَيْمَانَهُمْ جُنَّةً فَصَدُّواْ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ إِنَّهُمْ سَآءَ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ }
وقوله تعالى { ٱتَّخَذْوۤاْ أَيْمَـٰنَهُمْ جُنَّةً فَصَدُّواْ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ } أي اتقوا الناس بالأيمان الكاذبة
Baidhavi
They used their false belief to prevent death and capture.
In other words the enjoyed the safety and freedom alongside the Prophet and Muslims and their false pretentious belief efficiently kept up the appearances for those purposes, all the while Muslims were tortured and killed and bound to protect them.
تفسير انوار التنزيل واسرار التأويل/ البيضاوي (ت 685 هـ)
وقرىء «إيمانهم» { جُنَّةُ } وقاية من القتل والسبي.
Qurtubi
To block the Allah‘s Path means they blocked the willing Jews and pagans who wished to enter into Islam by their deception i.e. they would critically say to them: We are one of his people (Prophet’s) and we disbelief in what Muslims say and if Muhammad was true you would have heard accordingly from us.
Mood: Imagine your friends come visit you often, and spend time having tea or lunch and go for walks or cozy up chatting with you, keep singing your praises and brag about your virtues and yet soon you discover that they actually dislike you and talk foul behind your back and have no respect for you! This was the close nature of the hypocrites relationship to Muhammad peace be upon him.
تفسير الجامع لاحكام القرآن/ القرطبي (ت 671 هـ)
{ ٱتَّخَذُوۤاْ أَيْمَانَهُمْ جُنَّةً فَصَدُّواْ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ إِنَّهُمْ سَآءَ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ }
وقيل: فصدّوا اليهود والمشركين عن الدخول في الإسلام، بأن يقولوا ها نحن كافرون بهم، ولو كان محمد حقاً لعرف هذا منّا،
I’rab & Vocabulary
ٱتَّخَذُوٓاْ
ٱتَّخَذُ+وٓاْ
‘Ittakhaz-u: They take , grasp at, past tense namely they took. Waw واْ to make third person plural.
وٓ
Waw with hat, indication of stretching the sound of “oo”.
Irfan (Noesis) 1. Their false continual declarations and stretching through time from the past to now, even our selves need to be wary of such falsehood!
وٓ is Fa’il (Agent doer) .
أَيْمَٰنَهُمْ
أَيْمَٰنَ+هُمْ
‘Aymāna-hum: Plural, Single يَمين oath or declaration of something to be true. يَمين originally means right side, being on the right side, to the right side.
أَيْمَٰنَهُمْ
مفعولٌ بهِ
Maf’oul-un Bi-hi: Direct Patient, patient is directly acted upon by the verb act of coming.
أَيْمَٰنَ+هُ+مْ
هُ
مضاف إليه
Hu: هُ Annexed Noun (مضاف إليه) to أَيْمَٰنَ. Hu هُ annexed makes the third person and مْ makes the plural third person form.
جُنَّةً
Junna: From جنن Janan to cover to guard against something.
جنن
” جَنَّ الشيءَ يَجُنُّه جَنّاً : سَتَره .
وكلُّ شيء سُتر عنك فقد جُنَّ عنك .
مفعولٌ بهِ
Maf’oul-un Bi-hi: Secondary Direct Patient, patient is directly acted upon by the verb act of took their oaths.
فَصَدُّواْ
فَ+صَدُّ+واْ
Fa-Sadd-u:
فَ
Fa: For the purpose of, ordered connects the previous to what follows.
صَدُّ
Sadd: To block to occlude to impede. Past tense.
واْ
Waw to make third person plural.
Waw also the Fa’il (Agent doer).
عَن
جَرّ
‘An: Off, away, from.
Jarr (Tugger): ‘An is the tugger tugging سَبِيلِ
سَبِيلِ
مَجْرور
Sabil-i: Path tugged by ‘عَن.
ٱللَّهِ
Allah-i: Annexed Noun (مضاف إليه) to سَبِيلِ .
‘An tugs Sabil and noun Allah is annexed to Sabil.
Nuhas
Two possible usage in place meaning actual word or omission of Maf’oul (Patient):
- omitted namely blocking the people
- in place namely blocking the Path of Allah
{فَصَدُّواْ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ} يجوز أن يكون المفعول محذوفاً أي صدّوا الناس، ويجوز أن يكون الفعل لازماً أي أعرضوا عن سبيل الله أي دينه الذي ارتضاهُ وشريعته التي بعث بها نبيَّهُ صلى الله عليه وسلم
إِنَّهُمْ
إِنَّ+هُ+مْ
‘Inna-hum: hu هُ is the noun for Inna.
Usage of Inna indicates that the hypocrites are they way they are, it is not merely a temporary state of mind or social accident.
`Inna: Both `Anna and `Inna serve as semi-verbs i.e. acting upon their noun as if it is a subject/object of a sentence.
Al-Huruf
Farabi
Chapter 1
`Inna (`Anna) means steadfast continuity perfection and solidity both for the Wujud (Being-ness) and the knowledge of some object.
الحروف الفارابي
الباب الأول
الحُروفُ وَ أسمَاء المقولات
الفصل الأوّل
حرف إنّ
(1) أمّا بعد فإنّ معنى انّ الثبات والدوام والكمال والوثاقة في الوجود وفي العلم بالشيء.
ولذلك تسمّي الفلاسفة الوجود الكامل ” إنية ” الشيء- وهو بعينه ماهيّته – ويقولون ” وما إنية الشيء ” يعنون ما وجوده الأكمل، وهو ماهيته.
سَآءَ
Sā’a: سوء to become bad foul evil. سَآءَ past tense. This verb is فِعْلِ جامِدْ or inert verb namely is not conjugated in all its tenses.
مَا
Mā: what, how about, how, why. مَا is Fa’il (Agent doer).
Omission: Khabar (Information) about Inna is omitted.
كَانُواْ
كَانُ+واْ
Kānu: كَانُ used to , واْ make plural as in they used to. Past tense.
واْ is the noun fro كَانُ.
يَعْمَلُونَ
يَ+عْمَلُ+ونَ
Ya’maloun: يَ indicates present continual tense for verb doing, و is Fa’il (Agent doer) namely they are doing or they do.
Omission: Khabar (Information) about كَانُ is omitted.
All together:
إِنَّهُمْ سَآءَ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ
Indeed they fouled up what they used to be doing
Translator’s Note: Such usage of سَآءَ needs more verification.
© 2019-2002, Dara O. Shayda