Surah al-A`raf (The Elevated Places) 7 : 94

Overview (Verses 94 - 96)

Trials of Adversity

Never have We sent a prophet to any city without trying its people with tribulations and hardship that they may supplicate with humility. We then replaced the affliction with good fortune till they throve and said, `Hardship and good fortune befell our forefathers as well. ’” We then smote them, all of a sudden, while they were totally unaware. Yet had the people of those cities believed and been God-fearing, We would indeed have opened up for them blessings out of heaven and earth. But they disbelieved, so We smote them on account of what they had been doing. (Verses 94-96)

We are not told here of any particular incident, but an important aspect of the natural law God has set in operation is highlighted. We are told how fate is determined. We thus learn that there is a law which sets matters into a particular pattern, dictating events, and shaping human history on earth. We learn that the divine message itself, important as it is, can be regarded as one of the means of implementing the divine constitution, which is far greater in scope than the message. Matters do not simply happen by themselves. Man does not stand alone, as alleged by later day atheists. Whatever takes place in the universe is part of an elaborate scheme, and has a definite purpose, serving an ultimate aim. The law of nature is devised by an absolutely free will which has shaped the constitution. It was in accordance with that law, operated by God’s free will, that those communities, whose history was related in this sūrah, met their fate.

A Sure Way to Receive God’s Blessings

“Yet had the people of those cities believed and been God fearing, We would indeed have opened up for them blessings out of heaven and earth. But they disbelieved, so We smote them on account of what they had been doing.” (Verse 96) This is the other part of the natural law God has set in operation. Had the people of those cities believed instead of denying God’s messages, and had they been God-fearing instead of being careless, God would have opened up for them blessings from heaven and earth. They would have been given such blessings in abundance, without restriction. God’s blessings would have come to them from above and beneath. The Qur’ānic expression is so general that it imparts a sense of great abundance that is not limited to what is familiar to human beings of provisions and sustenance.

This statement and the one preceding it put in front of our eyes certain facts that relate to faith on the one hand and to human life in this world on the other. They also touch on a factor that has a great influence on human history, even though it is often overlooked and indeed denied by man-made theories and philosophies. That fact tells us that the question of having faith in God and fearing Him is not isolated from the reality of life and the course of human history. To believe in God and to fear Him qualify people to receive blessings from heaven and earth. This is a promise given by God, and God is always true to His promises.

We who believe in God accept this promise as true without having to ask first about its reasons or causes. We have no hesitation in expecting that it will come true. We believe in God, and consequently in what lies beyond human perception; therefore, we believe in the fulfilment of God’s promises. But when we reflect on God’s promise, as indeed we are ordered to do by our faith, we soon realize its causes. A person who believes in God has an alert nature, sound natural reception, accurate understanding, a healthy human constitution and a keen interaction with the universe. All these elements tend to ensure success in real life.

Moreover, faith in God represents a strong motivation. It streamlines all aspects of the human constitution and directs them to a single goal, allowing them to derive strength from God’s power and release them to implement His will in building human life on earth and safeguarding it from all elements of corruption. Again, all this tends to ensure success in practical life.

To believe in God is to be free from being enslaved by desire or by other people. There is no doubt that a human being who achieves his freedom through submission to God is, as a result, better able to fulfil man’s task of building human life on earth. To fear God is to combine awareness with wisdom so that we can steer away from rashness, recklessness and conceit as we go about our business in this life. It is a quality that directs human effort sensibly and carefully so that whoever has that quality does not transgress or exceed the limits of acceptable behaviour.

When people maintain a balance between incentives and restraints, working on earth but always looking up to heaven, free from the tyranny of human desire, submitting to God Almighty, human life maintains a steady course and yields wholesome fruits. In this way people deserve God’s help after having earned His pleasure. Hence, it will be a blessed life that earns success and prosperity. Viewed from this angle, the whole question is one of visible facts that have their unidentifiable causes, in addition to its being part of God’s promise.

The blessings God promises to those who believe in Him and fear Him are given a strong emphasis. They come in a wide variety of shapes and forms but they are not outlined in detail or mentioned in name. The Qur’ānic statement, however, gives an impression of abounding grace that comes from every direction, without any limiting definition. Hence, the reference is to all types and forms of blessings, whether those that are familiar to human beings or those that can only be visualized in their imagination. But they also include what human beings cannot conceive or imagine.

Those who imagine that faith in God and steering away from what incurs His anger are questions of pure worship and have no bearing on practical life have no true knowledge of faith or life. They are better advised to look at this very real relationship which God Himself confirms. Needless to say, His testimony is more than enough to prove anything. Nevertheless, this relationship can be recognized by people if they will only look at different situations in life and recognize their causes: “Yet had the people of those cities believed and been God fearing, We would indeed have opened up for them blessings out of heaven and earth. But they disbelieved, so We smote them on account of what they had been doing.” (Verse 96)

Nevertheless, we see communities and people who claim to be Muslims going through hard times when they experience drought and very poor crops. At the same time, we see communities who are devoid of faith and have no fear of God, yet they enjoy abundance, power and influence. These contrasting situations lead people to ask: where is this unfailing law of nature, and why does it not operate?

But all this is mere delusion based on appearances. The people who claim to be Muslim are not believers in reality, nor do they truly fear God. They do not sincerely submit to God alone, nor do they implement in practical life the basic article of faith which requires them to declare that there is no deity other than God. They submit themselves to fellow human beings who claim for themselves a position of Godhead and begin to legislate laws for them and set values and standards. Such people are not believers, because a believer will never acknowledge that any creature can fill the position of Godhead. He will never allow a fellow human being to determine the laws that shape his life. When the predecessors of those who today claim to be Muslims were true believers, they became the masters of the world. Blessings from heaven and earth were opened up for them in fulfilment of God’s promise.

Those others enjoying a life of affluence are only going through a different stage of the operation of the law of nature: “We then replaced the affliction with good fortune till they throve and said, ‘Hardship and good fortune befell our forefathers as well.’” (Verse 95) It is then a test of plenty, which is far more difficult than a trial of adversity. There is an essential difference between what such people enjoy and the blessings God promises to those who believe in Him and fear Him. Blessings can be given with limited means if people can use those means well and combine them with goodness and a sense of reassurance, security and happiness. Many a rich and powerful community goes through a life of misery, insecurity and hollow ties between its people. The people themselves are worried, apprehensive of losing their power. It is a situation of strength without security, affluence without contentment, plenty without goodness. It is a bright present to be followed by a miserable future. It is a test that is certain to lead to doom.

The blessings that come with faith and a God-fearing attitude can be experienced in all situations, both within the human being himself and in his feelings, as well as within all enjoyable aspects of life. These blessings give growth and elevate life to a higher standard. They are so different from affluence that is combined with misery and immorality.

According to the Islamic concept, man’s will and action are factors of great importance in determining the direction of his history and how it is to be interpreted. But man’s will and action must be seen within the context of God’s free will and absolute power. Within this context, man’s will and action come into direct interaction with the entire universe. This means that there are many factors and situations which have a strong bearing on human history giving it greater scope and depth. When we understand this, then, any attempt to explain human history in purely economic, biological or geographical terms is far too narrow and petty.

“Never have We sent a prophet to any city without trying its people with tribulations and hardship that they may supplicate with humility.” (Verse 94) Far be it from God to punish His servants physically or cause them to go through adversity that affects their persons or their property for idle play. Such trials could never be motivated by hatred or the desire for revenge, as pagan legends make out. God tries with tribulations and adversity those who deny His message. By nature, such a trial reawakens human hearts and rekindles the light of goodness encouraging weak human beings to turn to God Almighty, their Creator, humbly appealing to Him to grant them forgiveness and bestow His mercy on them. By such humble supplication they declare their submission to Him, which is the ultimate aim of human existence. God does not need that human beings should supplicate humbly to Him and declare their submission: “I have not created the jinn and human beings to any end other than that they may worship Me. No sustenance do I ever demand of them, nor do I demand that they feed Me. Truly, God Himself is the provider of all sustenance, the Lord of all might, the eternal.” (51: 56-58)

As clearly stated in a sacred, or qudsī ĥadīth, if all human beings and jinn were as pious and obedient to God as the most pious and obedient person that ever lived, that would not increase God’s kingdom in any way. Conversely, if all human beings and jinn were as wicked as the most wicked person that ever lived, that would not decrease God’s kingdom in any way. But people’s supplication and submission to God is of great benefit to them. It sets their lives on the right course. When human beings declare that they submit to God alone, they actually free themselves from submission to anyone else, particularly to Satan who tries hard to lead them astray, as mentioned earlier in this sūrah. They also free themselves from the yoke of their desires. They break the shackles of subjugation to other people and feel too ashamed to follow Satan’s guidance or to incur God’s displeasure through any action or purpose, particularly when they realize that they seek His help to remove any affliction they may suffer. This helps them follow the right course.

It is because of this that God’s will is such that He tries any community who rejects His guidance, provided through His prophets and messengers, causing them to experience physical adversity and loss of property. Such pain may open up the elements of goodness in their nature and awaken their consciences. Thus, they may turn to God, seeking His mercy and appealing to Him to replace their affliction with comfort and reassurance.

But then God may decide to change the type of trial: “We then replaced the affliction with good fortune.” (Verse 95) Thus, every aspect of difficulty is replaced by an aspect of comfort and happiness. People begin to enjoy affluence, ease, blessings, good health, fertility, numerical strength and security after they had experienced poverty, hardship, depression, poor health, sterility, numerical weakness and fear. But the change of fortunes is no more than a new trial.

A test exposing people to hardship may be met with perseverance, because hardship may sharpen the elements of determined resistance. It may remind those who are good at heart of God, so they turn to Him with earnest supplication which gives them hope, reassurance and a promise of better things to come. A trial with affluence is withstood by only a few, because affluence makes people forget and riches cause them to feel self-sufficient. Hence, they indulge themselves seeking every type of pleasure. Such a test is passed only by a very small number of people.

“We then replaced the affliction with good fortune till they throve and said, Hardship and good fortune befell our forefathers as well:” (Verse 95) This statement indicates that they had increased in numbers and enjoyed an easy life, tasting every pleasure, to the extent that they no longer hesitated to do anything they desired, nor did they feel embarrassed by any action. The Arabic term which is translated here as “they throve” also connotes a certain attitude of mind which is rather careless, even bordering on recklessness. It views everything as easy, and acts on impulse. This attitude is very common among affluent people who enjoy riches for a long period, whether at the individual or community level. It is an attitude that suggests a blunted sensitivity and a care-free attitude. They spend and enjoy themselves with recklessness and they care little for the rights of others. No cardinal sin or ghastly crime seems to worry them. They do not care if they incur God’s wrath or people’s criticism. They do not reflect on the trials to which other people have been exposed. They think that life just goes on, without a purpose or a definite goal.

“They throve and said, ‘Hardship and good fortune befell our forefathers as well.’” (Verse 95) They look at it as if it is the turn of a repeated cycle. They have had their turn in adversity and now they are due for some good fortune. This all just happens without any particular consequence. At this moment, when they are totally heedless, indulging themselves in all sorts of transgression, their fate is sealed in accordance with God’s law: “We then smote them, all of a sudden, while they were totally unaware.” (Verse 95) They had gone so far astray that they no longer felt ashamed of anything they did. To fear God does not occur to them at all.

Thus we see how God’s law operates, fulfilling His will. Human history thus moves by human will and human action, within the context of God’s will and the laws He has set in operation. The Qur’ān reveals this fact to human beings and warns them that they must prove themselves when they are subjected to a trial of adversity or a test of affluence. It kindles in them a state of alertness which brings back to them a sense of fearing the outcome which befits what they do in this life. Those who do not respond, and continue in their erring ways wrong only themselves because they expose themselves to God’s punishment which is certain to engulf them. No one will suffer any injustice.