Narrate to them the example of the people of the city when the messengers came to it.
And relate to them the signs of the people of the city – when two emissaries came to them.
Strike for them a similitude -- the inhabitants of the city, when the Envoys came to it;
AND SET FORTH unto them a parable - [the story of how] the people of a township [behaved] when [Our] message-bearers came unto them.
And propound thou Unto them the similitude of the inhabitants of a town, When there came thereto the sent ones;
And put forward to them a similitude; the (story of the) dwellers of the town, [It is said that the town was Antioch (Antakiya)], when there came Messengers to them.
And cite for them the parable of the landlords of the town—when the messengers came to it.
Recite to them, as a case in point, the story of the people of the town when the Messengers came to them.
And put forward to them a similitude; the Dwellers of the Town, when there came Messengers to them.
Coin for them a similitude: The people of the city when those sent (from Allah) came unto them;
Cite for them the example of the inhabitants of the town when the apostles came to it.
Give to them a parable; to the people of the village there came Messengers,
And present to them an example: the people of the city, when the messengers came to it -
Tell them the story of the people of the town to whom Messengers came.
And set out to them an example of the people of the town, when the apostles came to it.
Wa<b>i</b><u>d</u>rib lahum mathalan a<u>s</u><u>ha</u>ba alqaryati i<u>th</u> j<u>a</u>ah<u>a</u> almursaloon<b>a</b>
Recount to them the example of the people to whose town Our messengers came.
Set forth to them, by way of a parable, the (story of) the Companions of the City. Behold!, there came messengers to it.
وَٱضْرِبْ لَهُم مَّثَلًا أَصْحَٰبَ ٱلْقَرْيَةِ إِذْ جَآءَهَا ٱلْمُرْسَلُونَ
Give, O Messenger, these stubborn deniers an example that will be a lesson for them, which is the story of the people of the town when their messengers came to them.
Give, O Messenger, these stubborn deniers an example that will be a lesson for them, which is the story of the people of the town when their messengers came to them.
<p>Commentary</p><p>The expression: ضرب مثل (cite an example) in verse 13: وَاضْرِ‌بْ لَهُم مَّثَلًا أَصْحَابَ الْقَرْ‌يَةِ (And cite to them the example of the People of the Town) is generally used to prove something by giving the example of a similar thing. The following event has been narrated by the Holy Qur'an to alert people against disbelievers who rejected the very notion of there being a prophet or messenger.</p><p>The town in which this event took place</p><p>The Qur'an does not tell us the name of this town. In historical narrations, Muhammad Ibn Ishaq has reported from Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas, Ka'b Ahbar and Wahb Ibn Munabbih ؓ that it was the town of Antakiyah (Antioch) and majority of commentators have opted for it. Abu Hayyan and Ibn Kathir have said that no statement counter to it has been reported from any of the commentators. According to details given in Mu` jim-ul-Buldan, Antakiyah is a wellknown town of Syria, famous, for its verdant growth and stability. Its fort and its protective wall around the town are considered ideal. The town has many churches with inlay work in gold and silver. This is a coastal town. During the Islamic period, it was conquered by the famous Sahabi Sayyidna Abu ` Ubaidah Ibn Jarrah ؓ . Yaqut al-Hamawi, the author of Mu` jim-ul-Buldan has also written that the grave of Habib Najjar (whose story appears a little later in this verse) is a known site in Antakiyah. People from far and near come to visit it. From this clear statement from him also, it seems likely that the town mentioned in this verse is this very town of Antakiyah.</p><p>Ibn Kathir has written that Antakiyah is one of the four major towns which have been deemed to be the centers of the Christian faith, that is, al-Quds, (Jerusalem), Rumiyyah (Rome), Iskandariyyah (Alexandria) and Antakiyah (Antioch). And he also said that Antakiyah is the first city that embraced the faith brought by Sayyidna ` Isa al-Masih (علیہ السلام) . It is on this very ground that Ibn Kathir is reluctant in accepting that the town mentioned in this verse could be the famous town of Antakiyah - because, according to the explicit statement of the Qur'an, this was a town of disbelievers who refused to accept any prophet or messenger. And according to historical accounts, they were idolaters and polytheists. If so, how can Antakiyah, that was foremost in welcoming and embracing the faith of Sayyidna ` Isa al-Masih (علیہ السلام) ، be the town referred to here?</p><p>In addition to that, it is also proved from the cited verses of the Qur'an that this whole town was hit by a punishment that left no one alive. No such event about the town of Antakiyah - that all its inhabitants had simultaneously died at some time - has been reported in history. Therefore, according to Ibn Kathir, either the town mentioned in this verse is some town other than Antakiyah, or that it is some other town bearing the same name of Antakiyah which is not the famous town of Antakiyah.</p><p>Though, the author of Fath-ul-Mannan has also given answers to the doubts expressed by Ibn Kathir, however, the easiest way out has been offered by Maulana Ashraf Thanavi (رح) in Tafsir Bayan-ul-Qur'an. To understand the subject of these verses of the Qur'an, he says, it is not necessary to determine the location of this town, and since the noble Qur'an has kept it ambiguous, there is just no need to exert so much effort to determine it. The famous saying of the early forbears of Islam that: اَبھِمُوا مَا اَبھَمَہُ اللہُ (Leave ambiguous that which Allah has left ambiguous) also requires nothing but this.</p>
CommentaryThe expression: ضرب مثل (cite an example) in verse 13: وَاضْرِ‌بْ لَهُم مَّثَلًا أَصْحَابَ الْقَرْ‌يَةِ (And cite to them the example of the People of the Town) is generally used to prove something by giving the example of a similar thing. The following event has been narrated by the Holy Qur'an to alert people against disbelievers who rejected the very notion of there being a prophet or messenger.The town in which this event took placeThe Qur'an does not tell us the name of this town. In historical narrations, Muhammad Ibn Ishaq has reported from Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas, Ka'b Ahbar and Wahb Ibn Munabbih ؓ that it was the town of Antakiyah (Antioch) and majority of commentators have opted for it. Abu Hayyan and Ibn Kathir have said that no statement counter to it has been reported from any of the commentators. According to details given in Mu` jim-ul-Buldan, Antakiyah is a wellknown town of Syria, famous, for its verdant growth and stability. Its fort and its protective wall around the town are considered ideal. The town has many churches with inlay work in gold and silver. This is a coastal town. During the Islamic period, it was conquered by the famous Sahabi Sayyidna Abu ` Ubaidah Ibn Jarrah ؓ . Yaqut al-Hamawi, the author of Mu` jim-ul-Buldan has also written that the grave of Habib Najjar (whose story appears a little later in this verse) is a known site in Antakiyah. People from far and near come to visit it. From this clear statement from him also, it seems likely that the town mentioned in this verse is this very town of Antakiyah.Ibn Kathir has written that Antakiyah is one of the four major towns which have been deemed to be the centers of the Christian faith, that is, al-Quds, (Jerusalem), Rumiyyah (Rome), Iskandariyyah (Alexandria) and Antakiyah (Antioch). And he also said that Antakiyah is the first city that embraced the faith brought by Sayyidna ` Isa al-Masih (علیہ السلام) . It is on this very ground that Ibn Kathir is reluctant in accepting that the town mentioned in this verse could be the famous town of Antakiyah - because, according to the explicit statement of the Qur'an, this was a town of disbelievers who refused to accept any prophet or messenger. And according to historical accounts, they were idolaters and polytheists. If so, how can Antakiyah, that was foremost in welcoming and embracing the faith of Sayyidna ` Isa al-Masih (علیہ السلام) ، be the town referred to here?In addition to that, it is also proved from the cited verses of the Qur'an that this whole town was hit by a punishment that left no one alive. No such event about the town of Antakiyah - that all its inhabitants had simultaneously died at some time - has been reported in history. Therefore, according to Ibn Kathir, either the town mentioned in this verse is some town other than Antakiyah, or that it is some other town bearing the same name of Antakiyah which is not the famous town of Antakiyah.Though, the author of Fath-ul-Mannan has also given answers to the doubts expressed by Ibn Kathir, however, the easiest way out has been offered by Maulana Ashraf Thanavi (رح) in Tafsir Bayan-ul-Qur'an. To understand the subject of these verses of the Qur'an, he says, it is not necessary to determine the location of this town, and since the noble Qur'an has kept it ambiguous, there is just no need to exert so much effort to determine it. The famous saying of the early forbears of Islam that: اَبھِمُوا مَا اَبھَمَہُ اللہُ (Leave ambiguous that which Allah has left ambiguous) also requires nothing but this.
<h2 class="title">The Story of the Dwellers of the Town and Their Messengers, a Lesson that Those Who belied Their Messengers were Destroyed </h2><p>Allah says, `O Muhammad, tell your people who disbelieve in you,'</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">مَّثَلاً أَصْحَـبَ القَرْيَةِ إِذْ جَآءَهَا الْمُرْسَلُونَ</div><p>(a similitude; the Dwellers of the Town, when there came Messengers to them.) In the reports that he transmitted from Ibn `Abbas, Ka`b Al-Ahbar and Wahb bin Munabbih - Ibn Ishaq reported that it was the city of Antioch, in which there was a king called Antiochus the son of Antiochus the son of Antiochus, who used to worship idols. Allah sent to him three Messengers, whose names were Sadiq, Saduq and Shalum, and he disbelieved in them. It was also narrated from Buraydah bin Al-Husayb, `Ikrimah, Qatadah and Az-Zuhri that it was Antioch. Some of the Imams were not sure that it was Antioch, as we shall see below after telling the rest of the story, if Allah wills.</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِذْ أَرْسَلْنَآ إِلَيْهِمُ اثْنَيْنِ فَكَذَّبُوهُمَا</div><p>(When We sent to them two Messengers, they denied them both;) means, they hastened to disbelieve in them.</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَعَزَّزْنَا بِثَالِثٍ</div><p>(so We reinforced them with a third,) means, `We supported and strengthened them with a third Messenger. ' Ibn Jurayj narrated from Wahb bin Sulayman, from Shu`ayb Al-Jaba'i, "The names of the first two Messengers were Sham`un and Yuhanna, and the name of the third was Bulus, and the city was Antioch (Antakiyah).</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">فَقَالُواْ</div><p>(and they said) means, to the people of that city,</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">إِنَّآ إِلَيْكُمْ مُّرْسَلُونَ</div><p>(Verily, we have been sent to you as Messengers.) meaning, `from your Lord Who created you and Who commands you to worship Him Alone with no partners or associates.' This was the view of Abu Al-`Aliyah. Qatadah bin Di`amah claimed that they were messengers of the Messiah, peace be upon him, sent to the people of Antioch.</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">قَالُواْ مَآ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُنَا</div><p>(They said: "You are only human beings like ourselves...") means, `so how could you receive revelation when you are human beings and we are human beings, so why do we not receive revelation like you If you are Messengers, you should be angels.' This is like what many of the nations said who disbelieved, as Allah has told us in the Ayah: c</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُ كَانَت تَّأْتِيهِمْ رُسُلُهُم بِالْبَيِّنَـتِ فَقَالُواْ أَبَشَرٌ يَهْدُونَنَا</div><p>(That was because there came to them their Messengers with clear proofs, but they said: "Shall mere men guide us") (64: 6) meaning that they were amazed by that and they denied it. And Allah says:</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">قَالُواْ إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُنَا تُرِيدُونَ أَن تَصُدُّونَا عَمَّا كَانَ يَعْبُدُ ءَابَآؤُنَا فَأْتُونَا بِسُلْطَـنٍ مُّبِينٍ</div><p>(They said: "You are no more than human beings like us! You wish to turn us away from what our fathers used to worship. Then bring us a clear authority.") (14:10). And Allah tells us that they said:</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَلَئِنْ أَطَعْتُمْ بَشَراً مِّثْلَكُمْ إِنَّكُمْ إِذاً لَّخَـسِرُونَ </div><p>("If you were to obey a human being like yourselves, then verily, you indeed would be losers.") (23:34). And Allah says:</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَمَا مَنَعَ النَّاسَ أَن يُؤْمِنُواْ إِذْ جَآءَهُمُ الْهُدَى إِلاَّ أَن قَالُواْ أَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ بَشَرًا رَّسُولاً </div><p>(And nothing prevented men from believing when the guidance came to them, except that they said: "Has Allah sent a man as (His) Messenger") (17:94). These people said:</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">قَالُواْ مَآ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُنَا وَمَآ أَنَزلَ الرَّحْمَـنُ مِن شَىْءٍ إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ تَكْذِبُونَ - قَالُواْ رَبُّنَا يَعْلَمُ إِنَّآ إِلَيْكُمْ لَمُرْسَلُونَ </div><p>(You are only human beings like ourselves, and the Most Gracious has revealed nothing. You are only telling lies." The Messengers said: "Our Lord knows that we have been sent as Messengers to you.") This means that the three Messengers answered them saying: "Allah knows that we are His Messengers to you. If we were lying, He would have taken the utmost vengeance against us, but He will cause us to prevail and will make us victorious against you, and you will come to know whose will be the happy end in the Hereafter." This is like the Ayah:</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">قُلْ كَفَى بِاللَّهِ بَيْنِى وَبَيْنَكُمْ شَهِيداً يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ وَالَّذِينَ ءامَنُواْ بِالْبَـطِلِ وَكَفَرُواْ بِاللَّهِ أُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْخَـسِرُونَ </div><p>(Say: "Sufficient is Allah for a witness between me and you. He knows what is in the heavens and on earth." And those who believe in falsehood, and disbelieve in Allah, it is they who are the losers.) (29:52)</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">وَمَا عَلَيْنَآ إِلاَّ الْبَلَـغُ الْمُبِينُ </div><p>(And our duty is only to convey plainly.) means, `all we have to do is to convey to you the Message with which we have been sent; if you obey, then happiness will be yours in this world and the Hereafter, and if you do not respond, you will soon know the consequences of that.' And Allah knows best.</p><div class="text_uthmani arabic">قَالُواْ إِنَّا تَطَيَّرْنَا بِكُمْ لَئِن لَّمْ تَنتَهُواْ لَنَرْجُمَنَّكُمْ وَلَيَمَسَّنَّكُمْ مِّنَّا عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ </div>
The Story of the Dwellers of the Town and Their Messengers, a Lesson that Those Who belied Their Messengers were Destroyed Allah says, `O Muhammad, tell your people who disbelieve in you,'مَّثَلاً أَصْحَـبَ القَرْيَةِ إِذْ جَآءَهَا الْمُرْسَلُونَ(a similitude; the Dwellers of the Town, when there came Messengers to them.) In the reports that he transmitted from Ibn `Abbas, Ka`b Al-Ahbar and Wahb bin Munabbih - Ibn Ishaq reported that it was the city of Antioch, in which there was a king called Antiochus the son of Antiochus the son of Antiochus, who used to worship idols. Allah sent to him three Messengers, whose names were Sadiq, Saduq and Shalum, and he disbelieved in them. It was also narrated from Buraydah bin Al-Husayb, `Ikrimah, Qatadah and Az-Zuhri that it was Antioch. Some of the Imams were not sure that it was Antioch, as we shall see below after telling the rest of the story, if Allah wills.إِذْ أَرْسَلْنَآ إِلَيْهِمُ اثْنَيْنِ فَكَذَّبُوهُمَا(When We sent to them two Messengers, they denied them both;) means, they hastened to disbelieve in them.فَعَزَّزْنَا بِثَالِثٍ(so We reinforced them with a third,) means, `We supported and strengthened them with a third Messenger. ' Ibn Jurayj narrated from Wahb bin Sulayman, from Shu`ayb Al-Jaba'i, "The names of the first two Messengers were Sham`un and Yuhanna, and the name of the third was Bulus, and the city was Antioch (Antakiyah).فَقَالُواْ(and they said) means, to the people of that city,إِنَّآ إِلَيْكُمْ مُّرْسَلُونَ(Verily, we have been sent to you as Messengers.) meaning, `from your Lord Who created you and Who commands you to worship Him Alone with no partners or associates.' This was the view of Abu Al-`Aliyah. Qatadah bin Di`amah claimed that they were messengers of the Messiah, peace be upon him, sent to the people of Antioch.قَالُواْ مَآ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُنَا(They said: "You are only human beings like ourselves...") means, `so how could you receive revelation when you are human beings and we are human beings, so why do we not receive revelation like you If you are Messengers, you should be angels.' This is like what many of the nations said who disbelieved, as Allah has told us in the Ayah: cذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُ كَانَت تَّأْتِيهِمْ رُسُلُهُم بِالْبَيِّنَـتِ فَقَالُواْ أَبَشَرٌ يَهْدُونَنَا(That was because there came to them their Messengers with clear proofs, but they said: "Shall mere men guide us") (64: 6) meaning that they were amazed by that and they denied it. And Allah says:قَالُواْ إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُنَا تُرِيدُونَ أَن تَصُدُّونَا عَمَّا كَانَ يَعْبُدُ ءَابَآؤُنَا فَأْتُونَا بِسُلْطَـنٍ مُّبِينٍ(They said: "You are no more than human beings like us! You wish to turn us away from what our fathers used to worship. Then bring us a clear authority.") (14:10). And Allah tells us that they said:وَلَئِنْ أَطَعْتُمْ بَشَراً مِّثْلَكُمْ إِنَّكُمْ إِذاً لَّخَـسِرُونَ ("If you were to obey a human being like yourselves, then verily, you indeed would be losers.") (23:34). And Allah says:وَمَا مَنَعَ النَّاسَ أَن يُؤْمِنُواْ إِذْ جَآءَهُمُ الْهُدَى إِلاَّ أَن قَالُواْ أَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ بَشَرًا رَّسُولاً (And nothing prevented men from believing when the guidance came to them, except that they said: "Has Allah sent a man as (His) Messenger") (17:94). These people said:قَالُواْ مَآ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُنَا وَمَآ أَنَزلَ الرَّحْمَـنُ مِن شَىْءٍ إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلاَّ تَكْذِبُونَ - قَالُواْ رَبُّنَا يَعْلَمُ إِنَّآ إِلَيْكُمْ لَمُرْسَلُونَ (You are only human beings like ourselves, and the Most Gracious has revealed nothing. You are only telling lies." The Messengers said: "Our Lord knows that we have been sent as Messengers to you.") This means that the three Messengers answered them saying: "Allah knows that we are His Messengers to you. If we were lying, He would have taken the utmost vengeance against us, but He will cause us to prevail and will make us victorious against you, and you will come to know whose will be the happy end in the Hereafter." This is like the Ayah:قُلْ كَفَى بِاللَّهِ بَيْنِى وَبَيْنَكُمْ شَهِيداً يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ وَالَّذِينَ ءامَنُواْ بِالْبَـطِلِ وَكَفَرُواْ بِاللَّهِ أُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْخَـسِرُونَ (Say: "Sufficient is Allah for a witness between me and you. He knows what is in the heavens and on earth." And those who believe in falsehood, and disbelieve in Allah, it is they who are the losers.) (29:52)وَمَا عَلَيْنَآ إِلاَّ الْبَلَـغُ الْمُبِينُ (And our duty is only to convey plainly.) means, `all we have to do is to convey to you the Message with which we have been sent; if you obey, then happiness will be yours in this world and the Hereafter, and if you do not respond, you will soon know the consequences of that.' And Allah knows best.قَالُواْ إِنَّا تَطَيَّرْنَا بِكُمْ لَئِن لَّمْ تَنتَهُواْ لَنَرْجُمَنَّكُمْ وَلَيَمَسَّنَّكُمْ مِّنَّا عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ 