What is the meaning of the statement of Allah the Exalted in Surat al-Baqarah: “And they followed what the devils recited during the reign of Sulayman, and Sulayman did not disbelieve…”

Machine translationRead the Arabic original

Question: What is the meaning of the statement of Allah the Exalted in Surat al-Baqarah:

⁽¹⁰²⁾ And they followed [instead] what the devils had recited during the reign of Solomon. It was not Solomon who disbelieved, but the devils disbelieved, teaching people magic and that which was revealed to the two angels at Babylon, Harut and Marut. But the two angels do not teach anyone unless they say, "We are a trial, so do not disbelieve [by practicing magic]." And [yet] they learn from them that by which they cause separation between a man and his wife. But they do not harm anyone through it except by permission of Allah. And the people learn what harms them and does not benefit them. But the Children of Israel certainly knew that whoever purchased the magic would not have in the Hereafter any share. And wretched is that for which they sold themselves, if they only knew. ⁽¹⁰³⁾ And if they had believed and feared Allah, then the reward from Allah would have been [far] better, if they only knew.

وَاتَّبَعُوا مَا تَتْلُو الشَّيَاطِينُ عَلَى مُلْكِ سُلَيْمَانَ وَمَا كَفَرَ سُلَيْمَانُ وَلَكِنَّ الشَّيَاطِينَ كَفَرُوا يُعَلِّمُونَ النَّاسَ السِّحْرَ وَمَا أُنْزِلَ عَلَى الْمَلَكَيْنِ بِبَابِلَ هَارُوتَ وَمَارُوتَ وَمَا يُعَلِّمَانِ مِنْ أَحَدٍ حَتَّى يَقُولَا إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ فِتْنَةٌ فَلَا تَكْفُرْ فَيَتَعَلَّمُونَ مِنْهُمَا مَا يُفَرِّقُونَ بِهِ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَزَوْجِهِ وَمَا هُمْ بِضَارِّينَ بِهِ مِنْ أَحَدٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ وَيَتَعَلَّمُونَ مَا يَضُرُّهُمْ وَلَا يَنْفَعُهُمْ وَلَقَدْ عَلِمُوا لَمَنِ اشْتَرَاهُ مَا لَهُ فِي الْآخِرَةِ مِنْ خَلَاقٍ وَلَبِئْسَ مَا شَرَوْا بِهِ أَنْفُسَهُمْ لَوْ كَانُوا يَعْلَمُونَ وَلَوْ أَنَّهُمْ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَمَثُوبَةٌ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ خَيْرٌ لَوْ كَانُوا يَعْلَمُونَ

[al-Baqarah: 102],And is the intended meaning of His saying:

the two kings

الْمَلَكَيْنِ

Are they Harut and Marut, or are they from the kings of mankind, and did they teach people the sorcery that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) counted among the seven destructive sins?

Answer: This verse was revealed in condemnation of the Jews and those who follow their path and do what they do.And before that, Allah the Exalted said:

⁽¹⁰¹⁾ And when a messenger from Allah came to them confirming that which was with them, a party of those who had been given the Scripture threw the Scripture of Allah behind their backs as if they did not know [what it contained]. ⁽¹⁰²⁾ And they followed [instead] what the devils had recited during the reign of Solomon. It was not Solomon who disbelieved, but the devils disbelieved, teaching people magic and that which was revealed to the two angels at Babylon, Harut and Marut. But the two angels do not teach anyone unless they say, "We are a trial, so do not disbelieve [by practicing magic]." And [yet] they learn from them that by which they cause separation between a man and his wife. But they do not harm anyone through it except by permission of Allah. And the people learn what harms them and does not benefit them. But the Children of Israel certainly knew that whoever purchased the magic would not have in the Hereafter any share. And wretched is that for which they sold themselves, if they only knew.

وَلَمَّا جَاءَهُمْ رَسُولٌ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ مُصَدِّقٌ لِمَا مَعَهُمْ نَبَذَ فَرِيقٌ مِنَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ كِتَابَ اللَّهِ وَرَاءَ ظُهُورِهِمْ كَأَنَّهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ وَاتَّبَعُوا مَا تَتْلُو الشَّيَاطِينُ عَلَى مُلْكِ سُلَيْمَانَ

[al-Baqarah: 101, 102].
This is because the Jews disbelieved in Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), whose description and confirmation of his prophethood they find in the Book of Allah that is in their hands, which is the Torah. When they disbelieved in Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), they were disbelievers in their Book, casting it behind their backs. Then they replaced the Book of Allah with books of sorcery and witchcraft. This is replacing the bad with the good, and it is a punishment from Allah for them; for whoever abandons the truth is afflicted with falsehood. So when they abandoned the Book of Allah, they replaced it with books of sorcery and devilish books. This is the Sunnah of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) with those who turn away from His Book and the Sunnah of His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): that they are afflicted with misguidance.

And they followed [instead] what the devils had recited during the reign of Solomon.

وَاتَّبَعُوا مَا تَتْلُو الشَّيَاطِينُ عَلَى مُلْكِ سُلَيْمَانَ

[Al-Baqarah 2:102]

: This means the sorcery that the devils used to perform during

the reign of Sulayman

مُلْكِ سُلَيْمَانَ

, meaning in the era of Sulayman. The devils used to perform sorcery in the era of Sulayman, so the Jews thought that the sorcery they found was from the work of Sulayman (peace be upon him).For this reason he said:

It was not Solomon who disbelieved

وَمَا كَفَرَ سُلَيْمَانُ

[Al-Baqarah 2:102]

،Meaning: This sorcery was not from his work; for this sorcery is disbelief, and the prophets are cleared of the act of disbelief.

It was not Solomon who disbelieved, but the devils disbelieved, teaching people magic

وَمَا كَفَرَ سُلَيْمَانُ وَلَكِنَّ الشَّيَاطِينَ كَفَرُوا يُعَلِّمُونَ النَّاسَ السِّحْرَ

[Al-Baqarah 2:102]

, so this indicates that learning sorcery and teaching it is disbelief.

that which was revealed to the two angels at Babylon

وَمَا أُنْزِلَ عَلَى الْمَلَكَيْنِ بِبَابِلَ

[Al-Baqarah 2:102]

: The majority hold that they are two angels who descended from the sky to test the servants, and they used to teach sorcery as a test for the servants. For this reason, they would advise anyone who wanted to learn sorcery by saying:

We are a trial, so do not disbelieve

إِنَّمَا نَحْنُ فِتْنَةٌ فَلَا تَكْفُرْ

[Al-Baqarah 2:102]

They would advise them that sorcery is disbelief, so do not learn it. If one proceeds and learns it by his own choice, this is proof of its corruption and evil. So they are two angels, according to the majority, who descended from the sky to test and examine the servants.And some of the scholars read: “And what was revealed to the two kings” with a kasrah on the lam, in which case they would be from the kings of mankind. But the first opinion is more famous and more apparent, and they are Harut and Marut.

Question: What is the meaning of the statement of Allah the Exalted:

They ask you about wine and gambling. Say, "In them is great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people. But their sin is greater than their benefit."

يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ قُلْ فِيهِمَا إِثْمٌ كَبِيرٌ وَمَنَافِعُ لِلنَّاسِ وَإِثْمُهُمَا أَكْبَرُ مِنْ نَفْعِهِمَا

[al-Baqarah: 219].

Answer: Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) prohibited intoxicants gradually. When the people were in the early stages of Islam, they were immersed in drinking intoxicants and could not abandon it completely except gradually, little by little. Allah (Mighty and Majestic), out of His wisdom, prohibited it gradually.

So in the first stage, He, the Exalted, said:

They ask you about wine and gambling. Say, "In them is great sin and [yet, some] benefit for people. But their sin is greater than their benefit."

[Al-Baqarah 2:219]

, this was in the beginning, the first stage. So Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) made it clear that the harm of intoxicants is greater than its benefit. A person of intellect, when he knows that the harm of a thing is greater than its benefit, stays away from it; for a person does not want to take something or consume something whose harm is greater than its benefit. So when a person of intellect hears this verse, he will abandon intoxicants and gambling; for intellect commands him to do so because its harm is predominant, and a person of intellect does not proceed with something whose harm is predominant.
Then, in the second stage, He prohibited it for them at certain times, which is the verse in Surat al-Nisa,And it is His saying, the Exalted:

O you who have believed, do not approach prayer while you are intoxicated until you know what you are saying

يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَقْرَبُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَأَنْتُمْ سُكَارَى حَتَّى تَعْلَمُوا مَا تَقُولُونَ

[al-Nisa: 43], so He prohibited it for them at a specific time, which is the time of prayers. And if it is prohibited for a Muslim to drink intoxicants at the time of prayer, while the prayers are repeated five times a day and night, this takes up a long time for him during which drinking intoxicants is prohibited in the day and night. So the burden of intoxicants and the habit of intoxicants becomes lighter for him; for he will abandon it during five periods of the day and night. So at that time, its burden becomes lighter for him. Then He (Mighty and Majestic), after

That is, He prohibited it absolutely in His saying, the Exalted:

⁽⁹⁰⁾ O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone alters [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful. ⁽⁹¹⁾ Satan only wants to cause between you animosity and hatred through intoxicants and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist? ⁽⁹²⁾ And obey Allah and obey the Messenger and beware. And if you turn away - then know that upon Our Messenger is only [the responsibility for] clear notification.

يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِنَّمَا الْخَمْرُ وَالْمَيْسِرُ وَالْأَنْصَابُ وَالْأَزْلَامُ رِجْسٌ مِنْ عَمَلِ الشَّيْطَانِ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ الشَّيْطَانُ أَنْ يُوقِعَ بَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةَ وَالْبَغْضَاءَ فِي الْخَمْرِ وَالْمَيْسِرِ وَيَصُدَّكُمْ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَعَنِ الصَّلَاةِ فَهَلْ أَنْتُمْ مُنْتَهُونَ وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَاحْذَرُوا فَإِنْ تَوَلَّيْتُمْ فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّمَا عَلَى رَسُولِنَا الْبَلَاغُ الْمُبِينُ

[al-Ma'idah: 90-92], so He prohibited intoxicants absolutely in all times, in the entire life of a person, and did not leave for it any time in the life of a person. Rather, it is forbidden for the Muslim for his whole life. This was the end of intoxicants, and that is that Allah relieved the Muslims of it, prohibited it for them absolutely, and commanded them to avoid it.So He, the Exalted, said:

so avoid it that you may be successful.

فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

[Al-Ma'idah 5:90]

, so this is from the category of gradualism in the prohibition of intoxicants, and gradualism in what is difficult for souls. This is from the mercy of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).

Source shamela.ws

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

Similar fatwas