OCCASION OF REVELATION

      SAEED-IBN-JOBAIR has narrated that the above verses were sent down on the occasion that the Nighsh of Abyssinia, who was a truthful Christian, sent a group of seventy priests to Medina to study what sort of religion Islam was; and that, what was the Message which Mohammad had to convey.

      When they visited our prophet, he rehearsed to them the SUREH, YÄ-SIN of Qurän. They all wept and shed tears for the love of God, and converted saying:-

      ``....We believe in this. It is a truth from our Lord. We were submitters to the will of God before this.''

      This verse is an evidence that a group of the people of the Book were converted when a part of the Holy Qurän was rehearsed to them.

COMMENTS

      The verses of Qurän came down to the Arabs successively and one after another, in a joined train of meaningful words; in order to make them think and be mindful. But the blinded hearts did not apprehend, and rejected the truth.

      The word of God that was sent before in other languages, then was reaching Quraish in their own language, through a man who was of them, and of the same race and tribe, and they knew him and his ancestor. What excuse did they have then to reject faith and deny the facts except paganism zeal. And this was while others who had studied their scriptures, believed in him and in the Book that was given him:-

      ``Those to whom We gave the Book before it, they believe it.''

      Besides the above occasion of revelation which has its historical basis, this verse is also a general one, and even in our time it applies well, because we have seen so many Christians and also Jews, who have known our prophet through their own scriptures and have sincerely accepted the religion of Islam. This is because a truthful adherent to Moses and Jesus will soon find himself to be a Muslim too, and the converse is also true.

      Finally, reference is made to one of the important qualifications of those people of the Book, who heard the word of God and recognized it, and believed it, and adhered to it. They do not mingle with roving ramblers, who pass their time in vain talks:-

      ``And when they heard vain talks they turned away from it and said:- ``Ours is our deeds and yours is your deeds. Peace on you, we are not fond of ignorants.''

      They were so because a righteous believer will have no spare time to sit down and listen to vain talk and rubbish arguments. On the other hand, they are gentle and polite by nature. Therefore when they find themselves fallen among a company who are talkative, and driven to rambling in arguments, they do not waste their time with them, and instead of arguing to defend their deeds they politely get up and go away, and meanwhile saying:-

      ``....Ours is our deeds and yours is yours. All of us will have to taste the inevitable consequences of our deeds. Peace on you.''