Saba (Sheba)

51. “And could you see when they shall become terrified, but (then) there shall be no escape and they shall be seized upon a near place (you will surprise),”

52. “And they shall say: ‘We believe in it’, and how shall the attaining (of faith) be possible to them from a distant place?”

The impatience and fear of polytheists and their asking for help do not solve any problem out of their problems for them, because polytheists have no place of refuge.

Regarding to the discussions about the obstinate polytheists mentioned in the former verses, the above verses address the Prophet (S) again and illustrate the circumstance of this group when they are in the grips of the Divine chastisement, showing that how they will think of Faith after that they will be involved in it, but their faith will not be useful for them.

It says:

“And could you see when they shall become terrified, but (then) there shall be no escape and they shall be seized upon a near place (you will surprise),”

The opinions of the commentators are divided upon that to which time this impatience and fear relate.

Some of them believe that this status relates to the worldly chastisement or to the chastisement at the time of their death, while some others say that it relates to the punishment of the Day of Hereafter.

But in the last verse of the verses under discussion, there is a meaning which shows that these verses are all related to this world and the worldly sudden punishment for incorrigible wrong doers, or the punishment of the time of giving up one’s life, because in that verse the Qur’an says:

“And a barrier shall be set between them and that which they desire, as was done unto the likes of them afore-time…”16

This meaning does not adapt to the punishment of the Day of Hereafter, because, on that Day, all will be gathered with together for Reckoning, as Surah Hud, No. 11, verse 103 says:

“…That is a Day (when) mankind are to be gathered to, and that is a Day that shall be witnessed (by all).”

And Surah Al-Waqi‘ah, No. 56, verses 49-50 say:

“Say: ‘Those of old and those of later times,” “All will certainly be gathered together for the meeting appointed for a Day well-known.” Therefore, the purpose of the sentence: “…they shall be seized upon a near place” is that these faithless and cruel persons not only cannot escape from the realm of the Power of Allah, but also He will seize them from a place which is very near to them.

Were not the Pharaohs buried under the waves of the Nile which was the capital of their honour? Did not Korah sink into the earth with his treasures?

Did not the people of Sheba whose story is referred to in this very Surah afflict from the nearest place, i.e., the same great dam which was in the midst of their city and was the cause of their life and motion? So, Allah afflicts them from the nearest place in order that they see His Power.

A great deal of unjust kings were killed or destroyed by their nearest men; and many of the cruel powerful men received the last stroke from the inside of their homes.

Many Islamic narrations, introduced by the way of the Shi‘ites and the Sunnites, have adapted this verse to the revolt of Sufyani.

(There are a group of people who follow the school of thought of Abu-Sufyan, the continuation of the thought of the Age of Ignorance, who will raise against the adherents of the Truth in the threshold of the reappearance of Mahdi (as) and his army.)

At time when they will be going toward Mecca to occupy it they will afflict the Divine punishment. A severe earth-quake causes that the earth will split asunder and they will fall into it.

This meaning, in fact, is the statement of one of the expansions of the Qur’anic phrase:

“…they shall be seized upon a near place”,

that they shall meet the Divine punishment in a place where on they are standing.

Ibn-’Abbas, Ibn-Mas‘ud, Abu-Hurayrah, Abu-Hathifah, Umm-us-Salamah, and ‘Ayishah, according to what has been mentioned in the books of the Sunnites, have narrated the content of this tradition from the Messenger of Allah (S).17

And many of the commentators of the Shi‘ites have recorded this tradition in their commentary Books, such as: Qummi, Majma‘-ul-Bayan, Nur-uth-Thaqalayn, and As-Safi. Also a group of the commentators of the Sunnites such as the writer of the Commentary of Ruh-ul-Ma‘ani and Rauh-ul-Bayan, and Qurtubi have narrated it following to the verses under discussion.

The Late ‘Allamah Majlisi has narrated a lot of traditions in this regard in Bihar-ul-’Anwar from Imam Muhammad Baqir (as) and from the Prophet (S) which show that one of the denotation expansions of the verses under discussion is the revolt of Sufyani at the time of reappearance of Hadrat Mahdi (as), when Allah will seize and destroy them from the nearest place to them.18

As it has repeatedly been said, the narrations which are mentioned upon the commentary of the verses of the Qur’an mostly refer to the clear denotation expansions and they are never as a reason for limiting the concepts of them.

In the next verse, their circumstance, when they are involved in the grips of the Divine chastisement, is explained. It implicitly says that they will say they believe in the Qur’an, in its bringer, and in Origin and End.

It says:

“And they shall say: ‘We believe in it’…” “…and how shall the attaining (of faith) be possible to them from a distant place?”

Yes, when the death and the sudden punishment come, the doors of return will absolutely be closed, and, as if, there will be created a firm dam between man and recompense of the past wrong deeds. For this very reason, expression of Faith at that time is done from a very far distance.

Principally, such a faith which is compulsory, and is because of extraordinary terror of the punishment they see by their own eyes, is not valuable.

Therefore, some other verses of the Qur’an say:

“…and even if they were returned, they would revert to what they were prohibited, and most certainly they are liars.” 19

The Arabic word /tanawuš/ is derived from /nauš/ in the sense of ‘taking something’, and some have taken it in the sense of ‘to take easily’, i.e., how can they reach an aim easily which is very far?