Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “And they do not teach anyone until they say: We are only a trial, so do not disbelieve”
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Question:
May Allah reward you. This questioner, Honorable Shaykh, is asking about a set of questions. He did not mention his name in his message, but he says: I am inquiring about the first noble verse:[Al-Baqarah 2:102]
Answer:
“And they do not teach” refers to the two angels who descended from the sky. Indeed, Allah sent down from the sky two angels to test the servants by teaching sorcery. They descended to teach sorcery for the sake of trial and examination. When someone who wants to learn sorcery comes to them, they advise him and say to him: “We are only a trial,” meaning a test and an examination. This is not to say that sorcery is lawful and permissible, but rather that we teach it for the sake of trial and examination, so that the believer is distinguished from the disbeliever. They advise him and say to him:[Al-Baqarah 2:102]. This is part of their advice, their clarification, and their compassion for the children of Adam. This is the meaning of the verse. They do not teach sorcery as if it were permissible or lawful, but rather they teach it for the sake of trial and examination, and to test people: who will uphold faith and abandon sorcery, and who will reject faith and accept sorcery. The trial and examination are carried out upon the servants. Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, says: [Al-Fatihah 1:1]. Alif, Lam, Sad [Al-'Ankabut 29:2-3]. And among that is the measure of the two angels to test people: who will remain firm upon faith and abandon sorcery, and who will waver from faith and learn sorcery. Yes.
May Allah reward you. This questioner, Honorable Shaykh, is asking about a set of questions. He did not mention his name in his message, but he says: I am inquiring about the first noble verse:
But the two angels do not teach anyone unless they say, "We are a trial, so do not disbelieve
وَمَا يُعَلِّمَانِ مِنْ أَحَدٍ حَتَّىٰ يَقُولَا إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ فِتْنَةٌ فَلَا تَكْفُرْAnswer:
“And they do not teach” refers to the two angels who descended from the sky. Indeed, Allah sent down from the sky two angels to test the servants by teaching sorcery. They descended to teach sorcery for the sake of trial and examination. When someone who wants to learn sorcery comes to them, they advise him and say to him: “We are only a trial,” meaning a test and an examination. This is not to say that sorcery is lawful and permissible, but rather that we teach it for the sake of trial and examination, so that the believer is distinguished from the disbeliever. They advise him and say to him:
We are a trial, so do not disbelieve
إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ فِتْنَةٌ فَلَا تَكْفُرْIn the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ(2) Do the people think that they will be left to say, "We believe" and they will not be tried? (3) But We have certainly tried those before them, and Allah will surely make evident those who are truthful, and He will surely make evident the liars.
النَّاسُ أَن يُتْرَكُوا أَن يَقُولُوا آمَنَّا وَهُمْ لَا يُفْتَنُونَ وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَاذِبِينَ
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، 6602- تفسير قوله تعالى: وما يعلمان من أحد حتى يقولا إنما نحن فتنة فلا تكفر - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.