وَإِن يُكَذِّبُوكَ فَقَدْ كُذِّبَتْ رُسُلٌ مِّن قَبْلِكَ   

If they belie you (O Muhammad), so have other Messengers

been negated before you.

    Muhammad (pbuh) was a man with a Divine Message, the Message of Islam.  Allah (swt) chose Islam for all people and all generations, past, present, and in the times ahead.

    Islam, the Divine Message, came to transform people to what is best, the way Allah wants us to be.  It came to improve and elevate man, and help destroy or abolish the immoral ways of life.  It came to fight off indecencies and evil ways, to expose and dispel evil, and to eradicate corruption and wicked­ness.

    The disbelievers often disputed with Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and called him a liar, and they said his Message was false.  The disbelievers disputed with him and distorted the Islamic Message by wild accusations and false remarks, and with hostility.  Their efforts continued for many years, day in, day out, month in, month out, year in, year out, but all their efforts were in vain, and the energy they spent proved ineffec­tual and worthless.

    Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was a man of sensitivity, and his feelings were hurt because of what the people said against him and Islam.  Nevertheless, he did not complain.

    Allah Almighty knew well what was in Muhammad's heart, and the degree of his pain.  That is why Allah revealed this Ayah, it was to console His Prophet, to comfort him, and to ease his burden.  Allah tells Muhammad (pbuh) that he was not the only Prophet who was told his Message was false, and he was not the only one whom people accused of being a liar.  Allah says to Muhammad that the Prophets before him were also accused of the same thing, and they were also ill-treated in the same way, be they Jesus, Moses, Abraham or others.

    This hostility toward Islam has not abated much through the ages.  There are still numerous people, in numerous countries, who carry on their relentless attacks against Islam and try to tarnish it.  They do it to their utmost through their writings, on radio or TV, or among themselves.  The distortion of the mission of Islam is awful and repulsive, and is often done by people who are partly ignorant, but mostly bigoted, often narrow minded.

    If the message of Islam is presented in its true meaning, Islam will prosper and flourish fast and its rich guidelines will triumph over easily.

 وَإِلَى اللَّهِ تُرْجَعُ الأمُورُ    

And unto Allah shall all matters return.

    Having consoled Muhammad (pbuh) and made him feel at ease, and having reminded him that other Prophets before him had similar experiences, Allah (swt) says all of the affairs of men will eventually return to Him and He will give His judgment.

    In other words, Allah says He is the Judge and He is the Overseer and the Lord, and all people will return to Him to account for their actions, to have whatever is their due.

يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ   

O you people, verily the promise of Allah is true,

    This is a solemn reminder to the people, believers and disbelievers alike, affirming Allah's promise to be true and without question.  This is said to awaken the people to the seriousness of the matter.

    Allah is inviting people:

·        to hold on to Islam,

·        to struggle for Islam,

·        to spread the Islamic message,

·        to live by the Islamic message, and

·      to benefit through the Islamic message.

  Allah is calling to awake the people to take advantage of Islam which was sent as a mercy to them, so they will gain enormously in this world, and gain immensely in the eternal life in the Hereafter.

فَلا تَغُرَّنَّكُمُ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا    

so let not the life of this world captivate you,

    No degree of success or achievement should keep us away from submitting to Allah; no matter what we may gain.  By being kings, presidents, leaders, victors, men of wealth, scien­tists, professors, writers, thinkers, or philosophers, among others, we should always keep submitting to Him, Allah our Lord.

    We are warned here that life is full of temptations, the temptations are legion.

    A person can become preoccupied, and this can be blinding, so the person becomes obsessed, but at the expense of others or at the expense of his own good.  He may become arrogant, vain, and conceited, and in the process can lead to his eventual destruction.

    Allah calls us to Islam and He cautions us about the lures of our life on earth.  Islamic living will elevate a person to a high level, and Islam will uphold integrity and self‑righteousness.

    Going down hill is easy, where the lures of life are plenty and legion.  A human can have his moments of weakness, not once or twice but many times, and the roads to these lures of life are many and they all lead downhill.

وَلا يَغُرَّنَّكُم بِاللَّهِ الْغَرُورُ    

nor let the arch beguiler deceive you about Allah.

    The essence of Islam is that you submit to Allah Almighty, and worship Him, and be dedicated to His service and follow the instructions of His religion.  The essence of Islamic living is that you live, act and behave feeling as though Allah is observing you and overseeing you every moment.

    But this is the ideal, and most people fall short of it.  An example is when people attain a high position or become intoxicated with success, or when their wealth makes them arrogant, then conceit and vanity will creep in.

    We are alerted by Allah against such weakness, and we are reminded that whatever our achievement in life is and whatever success we attain, our true safeguard and salvation is belief in Allah and submitting to His authority, and applying His religion the best we can.

إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ فَاتَّخِذُوهُ عَدُوًّا   

Verily Sheitan is your enemy,

so treat him as a foe.

    Satan is evil.  We know what is meant by this, and we are told in this Ayah that Satan is our arch enemy, and he is a grave, persuasive, and cunning enemy at that.

·        Satan stands to represent temptations and enticements;

·        Satan invites to what is mischievous, immoral and distrusting;

·        Satan entices to what is doubtful and suspicious.

·        Satan misleads and deceives, and

Satan overreaches, tricks and misin­forms.  Man may easily become enmeshed and entangled in the webs of evil, the lures of the Evil One, Satan.

    If Satan is that way, and if we know that he can lead us to roads of personal hurt and injury, shall we consider him as a friend or an enemy?  Can a person follow the advice of his enemy, is that good sense or foolishness?  It is obvious that fol­lowing the tricky ways of Satan will lead to our own destruction.  Yet numerous people succumb to Satan and do follow in his footsteps, and do take him as their patron.

    Allah asks us to be actively alert, to be sound thinkers, to be vigilant in our daily living.  Allah asks us to be cautious against Satan's inroads and his enticements and temptations, and to take of him as a grave enemy, an enemy that is bad and clever.

إِنَّمَا يَدْعُو حِزْبَهُ لِيَكُونُوا مِنْ أَصْحَابِ السَّعِيرِ    

He only invites his party so they may become dwellers of the blazing Fire.

    Evil has its attractions, and Satan has his followers, and they are legion.

    Life on earth is short and transient.  Allah Almighty wants to test us, and He gave us His guidance in the form of the religion of Islam.  This is our means to struggle against Satan, and it is a struggle which goes on and on all through life.  We can be successful in fighting him and he who succeeds will be the true winner, and he will win handsomely in the Hereafter.

    But the person who wants to experience the temptations of life, who wants to indulge in forbidden pleasures, he will certainly be the loser in the long run.  That is because such a man will have failed the test, and he will have chosen not to deserve the Heavenly Grace and the Good Eternal life.  He failed the test because he preferred to be the follower of Satan and his ways, which will make of him the inmate of HellFire.

الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ شَدِيدٌ    

For those who disbelieve there shall be severe torment,

    This Ayah is a re‑emphasis for what awaits the people who follow Satan and ignore the Islamic guidance or take it too lightly.

    He who disbelieves will have chosen to ignore the Islamic way, and the one who does that may end up with ominous punishment in Hell.

وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتٌِ    

but for those who believe and work righteousness

     Once again this is a re‑emphasis for those who believe in Islam.  They are the ones who truly believe and have lived Islamicly, they will have won the race, will have passed the test successfully, and they will earn the pleasure of Allah.

 لَهُم مَّغْفِرَةٌ وَأَجْرٌ كَبِير   

there will be forgiveness and a great recompense.

    To those who truly believe they stand to reap good reward.

    They will reap Allah's forgiveness, and there will be the delight of delights, the ecstasy and joy of an everlasting life in Paradise.  It will be a life of happiness, a life free of boredom and struggle, a life of ease and elegance.  The Everlast­ing life will bring us many surprises beyond our compre­hension now, Paradise is Paradise.