Commentary on al-Jalalayn’s Tafsir: “And the good deed and the bad deed are not equal” in their rewards

Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, said: "

And the good deed and the bad deed are not equal

ولا تستوي الحسنة ولا السيئة

Sunan al-Bayhaqi 10:697

in their details, because some of them are above others " His statement: The author explained it to mean: good deeds are not equal to one another, nor are bad deeds equal to one another. According to this interpretation, is not superfluous; it is essential, and the meaning of the verse is the negation of the equality of good deeds and the negation of the equality of bad deeds. This is a matter in which there is no doubt: some good deeds are better than others, more excellent, and more emphatic, and likewise, some bad deeds are worse and more severe. However, there is another interpretation: that good deeds and bad deeds are not equal, as indicated by His saying: and so on. Based on this, is superfluous for emphasis, just as it is in His saying: Here, is superfluous for emphasis. Therefore, if you were to say in other than the Noble Qur'an, "other than those upon whom anger has been and the astray," the speech would be correct. If someone asks: Is there a preference? We say: The author preferred the first meaning, which is that good deeds are not equal and bad deeds are not equal. Some preferred the second because he said: and so on. If both meanings were adopted, there would be no harm, because if a verse can bear two meanings equally and they do not contradict each other, it is to be understood as bearing both. This is a rule in the principles of exegesis. what is good to mention and what is bad to mention. This is the general interpretation of the good deed and the bad deed. He said: "

Repel

ادفع

the bad deed

with that which

بالتي

namely with the quality that

it is better

هي أحسن

" and so on. It is strange that the author's statement in implies that the meaning of the preceding phrase is: a good deed is not equal to a bad deed. "

repel

ادفع

the bad deed

with that which

بالتي

namely with the quality that

it is better

هي أحسن

" He, may Allah have mercy on him, informed us that is an attribute of a deleted described noun, namely: with the quality that is better. Better than what? Better than the bad deed. If someone says: There is no goodness in a bad deed, so how can one say "better than the bad deed"? We say: The name of preference may come even if there is nothing in the other side, as in His saying: even though the people of the Fire have no good in their abode and no good in their resting place. The meaning of the verse is that since it is customary for a person not to repel a bad deed with one that is better, Allah commanded him to repel it with one that is better. This is because repelling a bad deed takes place in three ways: The first way is to repel a bad deed with its like, and this is permissible. The second is to repel the bad deed with a good deed, but there is something better than that, and this is also permissible and higher than the first. The third is to repel the bad deed with the one that is better, meaning with the best thing by which it can be repelled, and this is the most excellent and purest, and it is what Allah commanded. Thus, the response to a bad deed is in three ways: First, a bad deed with its like ; second, with a good deed, but another is better; third, with the one that is better. This means that if a person wrongs you, do not respond to him with wrongdoing, nor respond to him with a good deed; rather, respond to him with what is better. The author gives examples: " such as anger with patience, ignorance with forbearance, and wrongdoing with pardon " These are examples: meaning if a person becomes angry with you, be patient and endure. If a person wrongs you with ignorance, respond to him with forbearance. If a person says: Is ignorance responded to with forbearance or with knowledge? We say: As for ignorance which is the lack of knowledge, it is responded to with knowledge. As for ignorance which is the opposite of forbearance, meaning that a person is aggressive toward others, this is responded to with forbearance. The Arab poet said:
Let no one be ignorant with us, lest we be ignorant beyond the ignorance of the ignorant
Likewise, repelling wrongdoing with forgiveness: if a person wrongs you, forgive him. It has been mentioned repeatedly, and we repeat it repeatedly, that forgiveness is only recommended if there is reform in it, as He, the Exalted, said: .
The suddenness and the fa is a conjunction, meaning: If you repel with that which is better, this state suddenly befalls you, which is: the enmity of the person who wronged you turns around so that he becomes like a close friend, meaning a close friend. Is that clear? Consider the suddenness of the answer with to realize that the turning of his enmity into close friendship does not take long, because the suddenness indicates immediacy. If the one reporting this were other than Allah, Mighty and Majestic, a person would hesitate and wonder how an enemy becomes a close friend so quickly? We say: The one who reported this is Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and who is more truthful in speech than Allah? Moreover, the one who reported this is the One whose hearts of the children of Adam are between two of His fingers, and He turns them as He wills. Do not be surprised by these matters; they are in the hand of Allah. How many enemies have become friends and friends have become enemies? “

and thereupon the one whom between you and him is enmity [will become] as though he was a devoted friend.

فإذا الذي بينك وبينه عداوة كأنه ولي حميم

[Fussilat 41:34]

meaning your enemy becomes like a close friend in his love for you if you do that. So

the one who

الذي

is the subject and

as if he

كأنه

is the predicate, and

If

إذا

is an adverb for the meaning of comparison” The author parsed it, saying: is the subject and this is the attribute of the described noun, and is the predicate of what? The predicate of the subject , and is an adverb for the meaning of comparison in his saying: is an adverb for the meaning of comparison which is , because the comparison contains the meaning of an action, so it is correct for the adverb to be attached to it. This is what the author held regarding , and the correct view is that the suddenness does not require an attachment.