TERM 1 | LESSON 6 | AYAH 30-33

Notes based on the Weekly Tafsi r l essons taught by U stadh Maudud Ahmed
 ‫السالم عليكم ورحمة هللا وبركاته‬

Dear Students,

These notes are based on the Weekly Tafsir classes taught by

Ustadh Maudud Ahmed ‫حفظه هللا‬

Whilst we have strived to ensure that the content is accurate and in-line with what has been
taught, please bear in mind that these notes have not been checked by the teacher himself.
As such, if you come across any errors, please notify us via email at:
[email protected]

How do I use these notes?

These notes do not take the place of students writing their own notes.
The process of note-taking benefits students tremendously in retaining knowledge.
Therefore, we recommend that you use these notes as a study aid to assist you in reviewing
and summarising your own notes.

We ask Allāh to aid you in this noble journey of seeking knowledge and to allow you to taste
the sweetness of beneficial knowledge, āmīn.

‫جزاكم هللا خيرا‬

The Sealed with Misk Team

WEEKLY TAFSIR | LESSON 6 | SURAH AL-BAQARAH, 30-33 3

INTRODUCTION

In these verses Allah ‫ ﷻ‬talks about the creation of Aadam and some of the
incidences that took place during that time.

‫ َو ِإذ‬and when
‫ قَا َل‬He (Allah) said
َ‫ َربُّك‬Your Lord
‫ ِلل َملَـٰٓئِ َك ِة‬to the angels
‫ ِإنِى‬indeed I
‫ َجا ِعل‬will place
‫ ِفى‬in
ِ ‫ ٱْلَر‬the earth
‫ض‬
‫ َخ ِليفَة‬a successor
‫ قَالُ ٰٓوا‬they said
‫ أَتَج َع ُل‬will you place
‫ ِفي َها‬in it (the earth)

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‫ َمن‬those who
‫ يُف ِس ُد‬cause corruption
‫ ِفي َها‬in it (the earth)
ُ‫ َويَس ِفك‬and shed
‫ ٱ ِلد َما ٰٓ َء‬blood
‫ َونَح ُن‬and we
َ ُ‫ ن‬we glorify
‫س ِب ُح‬
َ‫ ِب َحمدِك‬your praises
ُ ‫ َونُقَد‬and we declare your perfection
‫ِس‬
َ‫ لَك‬for you
‫ قَا َل‬He (Allah) said
‫ى‬
ٰٓ ‫ ِإ ِن‬indeed I
‫ أَع َل ُم‬know
‫ َما‬what
َ‫ َل تَعلَ ُمون‬you don’t know

ِ ‫َوإِذ قَا َل َربُّكَ لِل َملَـٰٓئِ َك ِة إِنِى َجاع ٌِۭل فِى ٱْلَر‬
‫ض َخلِيف ٌَۭة‬
And when your Lord said to the angels, “Indeed I will place on the earth a
successor/generations of man, one after another.”

• ‫ َوإِذ‬- means remember or remind them about this, this is a command from
Allah ‫ ﷻ‬to the Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬to remind the ummah of what Allah ‫ ﷻ‬said

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• ‫ َخلِيفَة‬- This is referring to Adam and his children, who come generation after
generation on the earth
• Imam ibnul Qayyum ‫ رحمه هللا‬said there is a consensus that the meaning of ‫َخلِيفَة‬
is Adam and his children
• This ayah is evidence that Allah ‫ ﷻ‬already knew that he was going to expel
Aadam from Jannah
• Allah places Aadam in Jannah and prohibited from eating from the tree and
from listening to Iblees, but Allah ‫ ﷻ‬knew that Aadam would obey Iblees and
that he would eat from that tree
• Some of the salaf mention that Allah ‫ ﷻ‬decreed that Aadam would be
expelled from Jannah before even entering him into Jannah
• ‫ = َو ِإذ قَا َل‬and when He (Allah) said - This is proof that Allah ‫ ﷻ‬speaks and that
when He speaks there is sound, this is the madhab of the salaf as-saalih (the
pious predecessors)
• َ‫ = َربُّك‬Your Lord – Muhammad is being addressed here
• The angels reply to Allah:

‫قَالُ ٰٓوا أَتَجعَ ُل فِي َها َمن يُفسِ ُد فِي َها َويَس ِفكُ ٱ ِلد َما ٰٓ َء‬
They said, “Will you place in it (the earth) those who cause corruption in it and shed
blood?”

• The angels ask this is in a form of sincerely asking a question with the purpose
of seeking knowledge from Allah and not to oppose/reject what Allah has
decreed.
• They want to know the hikmah behind Allah’s ‫ ﷻ‬choice, i.e. the reason Allah ‫ﷻ‬
would place people on earth, even though they are going to cause corruption
and kill one another, while the angels have not been placed on the earth and
they are always glorifying Allah, praising Him and declaring His perfection.
• ‫ = َمن يُفسِ ُد‬those who cause corruption - meaning humans that will sin and be
disobedient to Allah, this is a general statement and refers to all types of sins
• ‫ = َويَس ِفكُ ٱ ِلد َما ٰٓ َء‬and shed blood - here the angels specify a specific type of sin
because of the severity of it i.e. killing one another

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َ‫ِس لَك‬
ُ ‫َونَحنُ نُ َسبِ ُح بِ َحمدِكَ َونُقَد‬
And we glorify your praise and we declare your perfection for you.

• Tasbeeh = to free Allah ‫ ﷻ‬from all defects and imperfections

• Al hamd = to describe Allah ‫ ﷻ‬with perfection out of love and veneration for
Him
• Taqdees = to purify; Allah’s ‫ ﷻ‬names and attributes are pure from all types of
corruption and lowly attributes
• The Prophet ‫ ﷺ‬was once asked, “What speech is the best?” He said, “That
which Allah has chosen for His angels and His slaves, that they say
“subhanAllahi wa bihamdi” (glorified is Allah and to Him belongs all praise)”1
• The angels think that they should have been the successors on the earth as
they constantly glorify and praise Allah ‫ﷻ‬, whereas mankind are sinful, they
cause corruption and they shed blood.

َ‫قَا َل إِن ِٰٓى أَعلَ ُم َما َل تَعلَ ُمون‬

He (Allah) said, “Indeed I know what you do not know.”

• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬responds to the angels question by saying that He knows what they
don’t know
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬knows what is apparent and that which is not apparent, He knows
what is inward (hidden) and outward (done in the open)
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬created mankind with a wisdom and a purpose, from that wisdom is
that amongst mankind there are prophets, messengers and righteous people
that perfect the worship of Allah ‫ﷻ‬
• Iblees asked a similar question regarding to Aadam, “Should I prostrate to one
who is made out of clay?” Allah ‫ ﷻ‬blamed him for this question, and he will be
punished for it

1
Muslim 2731

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• However, the angels’ question is similar, but they are not blamed for it
• One question is blameworthy, and the other isn’t due to intention of the one
asking. The angels didn’t ask in a form of opposing Allah ‫ ﷻ‬rather they asked
to know the wisdom behind Allah’s ‫ ﷻ‬decision, however Iblees’ question was
asked out of arrogance and rejecting what Allah ‫ ﷻ‬had decreed.

‫علَّ َم‬
َ ‫ َو‬And He taught
‫ َءا َد َم‬Aadam
‫ ٱْلَس َما ٰٓ َء‬the names
‫ ُكلَّ َها‬of everything
‫ ث ُ َّم‬then
‫ض ُهم‬
َ ‫ع َر‬
َ He (Allah) showed them
‫علَى‬
َ to
‫ ٱل َملَـٰٓئِ َك ِة‬the angels
‫ فَقَا َل‬then He said
‫ أَ ۢن ِبـُٔو ِنى‬inform me
‫ بِأَس َما ٰٓ ِء‬with the names
‫ ِإن‬if
‫ ُكنتُم‬you are

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َ‫صـ ِدقِين‬
َ truthful

‫علَّ َم َءاد ََم ٱْلَس َما ٰٓ َء كُلَّ َها‬

َ ‫َو‬
And He (Allah) taught Aadam the names of everything.

• Al-Qurtubi ‫ رحمه هللا‬mentions the statement of ibnu Juwayz Mindaad “this is

evidence that the Arabic language is something that is tawqifiyyah (it was
taught to Aadam) and that Allah taught Aadam everything in general and in
detail as well.2
• Ibn Abbas ‫رحمه هللا‬: Allah taught him the names of everything, even that of
bowls, utensils etc.3
• Ibn Kathir ‫رحمه هللا‬: its said that Hud was the first to speak Arabic and others say
that it was Nuh, the third opinion is that it was Aadam, and this seems to be
the correct opinion.4
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬raises the status of knowledge and shows us that knowledge is a
cause of different levels amongst people. People can claim to be more
virtuous than other based on how much knowledge they have.
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬praises and raises the status of Aadam because he had knowledge
that the angels didn’t have

َ‫صـ ِدقِين‬ ٰٓ َ ‫علَى ٱل َملَـٰٓئِ َك ِة فَقَا َل أَ ۢنبِـُٔونِى بِأَس َمآٰءِ هَـٰٓؤ‬

َ ‫ُلءِ إِن كُنتُم‬ َ ‫ض ُهم‬ َ ‫ث ُ َّم‬
َ ‫ع َر‬
Then He (Allah) showed them to the angels, then He said, “Inform Me of the names
of these, if you are truthful.”

• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬tests the angels by showing them all of the things that Aadam knows
the names of and says to them, inform me of the names of these things, if you
are truthful in your claim - that you are deserving to go to the earth over
Aadam and his progeny

2
Tafsir al-Qurtubi 1/282
3
Tafsir al-Qurtubi 1/282
4
Al-Bidaayah wa’n-Nihaayah

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• This again shows the virtue of knowledge and that Aadam has virtue over the
angels

‫ قَالُوا‬they said
َ‫سب َحـنَك‬
ُ glory be to You
‫ َل‬no
‫ ِعل َم‬knowledge
ٰٓ ‫ لَنَا‬for us
‫ ِإ َّل‬except
‫ َما‬what
ٰٓ ‫علَّمتَنَا‬
َ You taught us
َ‫ ِإنَّك‬indeed You
َ‫ أَنت‬You (are)
‫ ٱل َع ِلي ُم‬the All-Knowing
‫ ٱل َح ِكي ُم‬the All-Wise

‫علَّمتَنَا ٰٓ ۖ ِإنَّكَ أَنتَ ٱل َعلِي ُم ٱل َحكِي ُم‬

َ ‫قَالُوا سُب َحـنَكَ َل عِل َم لَنَا ٰٓ ِإ َّل َما‬
They said, "Glory be to You; we have no knowledge except what You have taught us.
Indeed, You are the All-Knowing, the All-Wise."

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• The angels respond by saying ‫ سُب َحـنَك‬- You, Allah ‫ﷻ‬, are free from any
imperfections, and we have no knowledge whatsoever, except for that which
you have taught us
• You are ‫ ٱلعَلِي ُم‬- the All-Knowing, without been taught by anyone
• You are ‫ ٱل َحكِي ُم‬- the Most-Wise in Your creation, in Your commands, You teach
who you want to, You place on the earth who You want and You are the most
Wise in making these decisions
• The angels negated knowledge for themselves and affirmed the perfect
knowledge and wisdom of Allah ‫ﷻ‬
• From this, we learn that it’s an obligation upon the believers to submit
ourselves to Allah ‫ﷻ‬, even if we don’t know the wisdom behind something, and
not to reject it
• If you hear a ruling in the shari’ah, even if you don’t know the hikmah behind it,
you accept it and say, “we hear and we obey”.
• There is wisdom in it, but we just don’t know it, our job is to submit – as the
angels said
• This shows the humility of the angels towards Allah ‫ ﷻ‬and is a reminder that
regardless of how much knowledge we have, we have to stay humble because
we have no knowledge except what Allah ‫ ﷻ‬has taught us
• Continue to ask Allah ‫ ﷻ‬to increase you in beneficial knowledge

‫ قَا َل‬He (Allah) said

‫ يَـٰٓـَٔا َد ُم‬O Aadam

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‫ أَ ۢن ِبئ ُهم‬inform them (the angels)

‫ ِبأَس َمآٰئِ ِهم‬with their names
ٰٓ ‫ فَلَ َّما‬and when
‫ أَ ۢنبَأَهُم‬he informed them
‫ بِأَس َمآٰئِ ِهم‬with their names
‫ قَا َل‬He (Allah) said
‫ أَ َلم‬didn’t
‫ أَقُل‬I say
‫ لَّ ُكم‬to you (the angels)
‫ى‬
ٰٓ ‫ ِإ ِن‬indeed I
‫ أَعلَ ُم‬I know
‫ب‬
َ ‫ غَي‬unseen
‫ت‬
ِ ‫س َمـ َو‬
َّ ‫ ٱل‬the heavens
ِ ‫ َوٱْلَر‬and the earth
‫ض‬
‫ َوأَعلَ ُم‬and I know
‫ َما‬what
َ‫ تُبدُون‬you reveal
‫ َو َما‬and what
‫ ُكنتُم‬you are

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َ‫ تَكت ُ ُمون‬concealing

‫قَا َل يَـٰٓـَٔا َد ُم أَ ۢنبِئ ُهم بِأَس َمآٰئِ ِهم‬

He (Allah) said, "O Adam, inform them (the angels) of their names."

• After teaching the names of everything to the Aadam, Allah ‫ ﷻ‬commanded

Aadam to teach these names to the angels
• From his virtue, Aadam has more knowledge than the angels
• When the angels were shown these things, they didn’t have knowledge of
their names

َ‫ض َوأَعلَ ُم َما تُبدُونَ َو َما كُنتُم تَكت ُ ُمون‬

ِ ‫ت َوٱْلَر‬ َ ‫فَلَ َّما ٰٓ أَ ۢنبَأَهُم بِأَس َمآٰئِ ِهم قَا َل أَلَم أَقُل لَّكُم ِإن ِٰٓى أَعلَ ُم غَي‬
ِ ‫ب ٱل َّس َمـ َو‬
And when he had informed them of their names, He said, "Did I say to you that
indeed I know the unseen of the heavens and the earth? And I know what you reveal
and what you are concealing."

• Imam Ibnul Qayyum ‫ رحمه هللا‬derived from this aayah, the virtue of knowledge
and the status of the people of knowledge over others.5
• Allah’s ‫ ﷻ‬knowledge encompasses everything in the heavens and the earth,
including the things that we can and cannot see.
• He ‫ ﷻ‬knows what is in our hearts, the things that we do openly and that we
conceal within us, that which we intend to do and what we don’t intend to do,
and even the thoughts that cross our minds
• When you understand this properly, you will be able to achieve khashiyah –
true fear of Allah ‫ ﷻ‬and worship Him even through your thoughts - i.e. Allah ‫ﷻ‬
knows what you are thinking, so how can you even let a bad thought cross
your mind?
• We should all try to achieve this level of khashiyah in-shaa Allah.

Recap:

5
Miftaah dar as-Sa’aadah

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• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬begins by mentioning to the Prophet ‫ﷺ‬, the conversation that He had
with the angels, where he informs them that He will place on the earth Aadam
and his future generations
• The angels ask Allah ‫ ﷻ‬a sincere question (paraphrased): Why are you going
to place on the earth people who are going to sin and kill one another when
you have the option of placing us on the earth and we are constantly glorifying
and praising you?
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬responds by saying that He ‫ ﷻ‬knows that they don’t know, Allah ‫ ﷻ‬has
knowledge of why He ‫ ﷻ‬is doing this which the angels don’t possess
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬used Aadam as an example, He taught Aadam the names of
everything and then showed the same objects to the angels to test if they are
truthful in their claim that they are more virtuous than Aadam and his progeny
• The angels out of their veneration, respect and good manners with Allah ‫ﷻ‬
said they don’t know anything except that which Allah ‫ ﷻ‬has taught them, He
is the All-Wise and the all-Knowing ‫ﷻ‬
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬then commands Aadam to teach the angels the names of these
objects.
• Allah ‫ ﷻ‬is the knower of everything that happens in the heavens and the earth

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