What is the interpretation of the word "oppressor" in the saying of Allah the Exalted: "Our Lord, take us out of this town whose people are oppressors" (An-Nisa 75)?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
The questioner says: Does the saying of Allah the Exalted[An-Nisa 4:75] mean that the people of the town are polytheists?
The Shaykh:
Yes, because "oppression" here refers to shirk (associating partners with Allah), and the intended people are the people of Makkah, specifically those who remained upon shirk and expelled the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). They are the ones intended by this verse, "whose people are oppressors." As for the land, Makkah is pure, but its people are the oppressors. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you.
The questioner:
And he asks: Is making this supplication in a Muslim country considered declaring the community to be disbelievers?
The Shaykh:
Regarding making this supplication.
The questioner:
[An-Nisa 4:75]. He asks: Is making this supplication in a Muslim country considered declaring the community to be disbelievers?
The Shaykh:
The warning is directed at the one who remains in a land of disbelief while he is able to migrate. This is the one to whom the warning applies: he remains in a land of disbelief without an excuse, and he is able to migrate. As for the one who is not able to migrate, he is excused until he is able. Yes. But he must disavow what the people of the land are upon and not agree with them. Yes.
The questioner says: Does the saying of Allah the Exalted
Our Lord, take us out of this city of oppressive people
رَبَّنَا أَخْرِجْنَا مِنْ هَٰذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِ الظَّالِمِ أَهْلُهَاThe Shaykh:
Yes, because "oppression" here refers to shirk (associating partners with Allah), and the intended people are the people of Makkah, specifically those who remained upon shirk and expelled the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). They are the ones intended by this verse, "whose people are oppressors." As for the land, Makkah is pure, but its people are the oppressors. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you.
The questioner:
And he asks: Is making this supplication in a Muslim country considered declaring the community to be disbelievers?
The Shaykh:
Regarding making this supplication.
The questioner:
Our Lord, take us out of this city of oppressive people
رَبَّنَا أَخْرِجْنَا مِنْ هَٰذِهِ الْقَرْيَةِ الظَّالِمِ أَهْلُهَاThe Shaykh:
The warning is directed at the one who remains in a land of disbelief while he is able to migrate. This is the one to whom the warning applies: he remains in a land of disbelief without an excuse, and he is able to migrate. As for the one who is not able to migrate, he is excused until he is able. Yes. But he must disavow what the people of the land are upon and not agree with them. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، ما تفسير كلمة الظالم في قوله تعالى ﴿ربّنا أخرجنا من هٰذه القرية الظّالم أهلها﴾النساء 75؟ — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.