[a] This chapter is so intitled, because some superstitious customs of the Meccans, as to certain cattle, are therein incidentally mentioned.

[b] Except only six verses, or, say others, three verses, which are taken notice of in the notes.

[c] And then decreed the term of your lives; and the prefixed term is with him.] By the last term some understand the time of the resurrection. Others think that by the first term is intended the space between creation and death, and by the latter, that between death and the resurrection.

[d] A message shall come unto them, &c.] That is, they shall be convinced of the truth which they have made a jest of, when they see the punishment which they shall suffer for so doing, both in this world and the next; or when they shall see the glorious success of Mohammedism.

[e] We had established them in the earth in a manner wherein we have not established you, &c.] i.e. We had blessed them with greater power and length of prosperity than we have granted you, O men of Mecca ^[1] . Mohammed seems here to mean the ancient and potent tribes of Ad and Thamûd, &c ^[2] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[2] See the Prelim. Disc. §. I. p. 6. &c.

[a] Verily the matter had been decreed, &c.] That is to say, As they would not have believed, even if an angel had descended to them from heaven, God has shown his mercy in not complying with their demands; for if he had, they would have suffered immediate condemnation, and would have been allowed no time for repentance.

[b] We should have sent him in the form of a man;] As Gabriel generally appeared to Mohammed; who, tho’ a prophet, was not able to bear the sight of him when he appeared in his proper form, much less would others be able to support it.

[c] The first who professeth Islâm;] That is, the first of my nation ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[d] What thing is the strongest in bearing testimony, &c.] This passage was revealed when the Koreish told Mohammed that they had asked the Jews and Christians concerning him, who assured them they found no mention or description of him in their books of scripture, Therefore, said they, who bears witness to thee, that thou art the apostle of God ^[2] ?

[2] Idem, Jallalo’ddin.

[e] See chap. 2. p. 18.

[a] Who inventeth a lie against God;] Saying the angels are the daughters of God, and intercessors for us with him, &c ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[b] Your companions;] i.e. Your idols and false gods.

[c] And what they have blasphemously imagined flieth from them;] That is, their imaginary deities prove to be nothing, and disappear like vain phantoms and chimeras.

[d] The persons here meant were Abu Sofiân, al Walîd, al Nodar, Otba, Abu Jahl, and their comrades, who went to hear Mohammed repeat some of the Korân; and Nodar being asked what he said, answered, with an oath, that he knew not, only that he moved his tongue, and told a parcel of foolish stories, as he had done to them ^[2] .

[2] Idem.

[e] That is become manifest unto them, which they formerly concealed;] viz. Their hypocrisy and vile actions: nor does their promise proceed from any sincere intention of amendment, but from the anguish and misery of their condition ^[3] .

[3] Idem.

[f] When they shall be set before their Lord;] viz. In order for judgment.

[g] The hour;] The last day is here called the hour, as it is in scripture ^[4] ; and the preceding expression of meeting God on that day is also agreeable to the same ^[5] .

[4] i John v. 25, &c.

[5] i Thes. iv. 17.

[h] They shall carry their burthens on their backs, &c.] When an infidel comes forth from his grave, says Jallalo’ddin, his works shall be represented to him under the ugliest form that ever he beheld, having a most deformed countenance, a filthy smell, and a disagreeable voice; so that he shall cry out, God defend me from thee, what art thou? I never saw any thing more detestable? To which the figure will answer, Why dost thou wonder at my ugliness? I am thy evil works ^[1] ; thou didst ride upon me while thou wast in the world; but now will I ride upon thee, and thou shalt carry me. And immediately it shall get upon him; and whatever he shall meet shall terrify him, and say, Hail, thou enemy of God, thou art he who was meant by (these words of the Korân), and they shall carry their burthens, &c ^[2] .

[1] See Milton’s Paradise lost, book II v. 737, &c.

[2] See also ch. 3. p. 55.

[a] They do not accuse thee of falsehood; but the ungodly contradict the signs of God;] That is, it is not thou but God whom they injure by their impious gainsaying of what has been revealed to thee. It is said that Abu Jahl once told Mohammed that they did not accuse him of falsehood, because he was known to be a man of veracity, but only they did not believe the revelations which he brought them; which occasioned this passage ^[3] .

[3] Al Beidawi.

[b] And thou hast received some information concerning those who have been formerly sent from him;] i.e. Thou has been acquainted with the stories of several of the preceding prophets; what persecutions they suffered from those to whom they were sent, and in what manner God supported them and punished their enemies, according to his unalterable promise ^[4] .

[4] Idem.

[c] In this passage Mohammed is reproved for his impatience in not bearing with the obstinacy of his countrymen, and for his indiscreet desire of effecting what God hath not decreed, namely, the conversion and salvation of all men ^[5] .

[5] Idem.

[d] The greater part of them know it not;] Being both ignorant of God’s almighty power, and of the consequence of what they ask, which might prove their utter destruction.

[e] A people like unto you;] Being created and preserved by the same omnipotence and providence as ye are.

[f] We have not omitted anything in the book, &c.] That is, in the preserved table, wherein God’s decrees are written, and all things which come to pass in this world, as well the most minute as the more momentous, are exactly registered ^[6] .

[6] See the Prelim. Disc. §. IV. p. 103.

[g] Then unto their Lord shall they return;] For, according to the Mohammedan belief, the irrational animals will also be restored to life at the resurrection, that they may be brought to judgment, and have vengeance taken on them for the injuries they did one another while in this world ^[7] .

[7] See, ib. p. 86.

[a] Ye shall forget that which ye associated with him;] That is, ye shall then forsake your false gods, when ye shall be effectually convinced that God alone is able to deliver you from eternal punishment. But others rather think that this forgetting will be the effect of the distress and terror which they will then be in ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[b] We opened unto them the gates of all things;] That is, we gave them all manner of plenty; that since they took no warning by their afflictions, their prosperity might become a snare to them, and they might bring down upon themselves swifter destruction.

[c] How variously we shew forth the signs, &c.] Laying them before you in different views, and making use of arguments and motives drawn from various considerations.

[d] Suddenly or in open view That is, says al Beidâwi, either without any previous notice, or after some warning given.

[e] Drive not away those who call upon their Lord, &c.] These words were occasioned when the Koreish desired Mohammed not to admit the poor or more inferior people, such as Ammâr, Soheib, Khobbâb, and Salmân, into his company, pretending that then they would come and discourse with him; but he refusing to turn away any believers, they insisted at least that he should order them to rise up and withdraw when they came, which he agreed to do. Others say that the chief men of Mecca expelled all the poor out of their city, bidding them go to Mohammed; which they did, and offered to embrace his religion; but he made some difficulty to receive them, suspecting their motive to be necessity, and not real conviction ^[1] ; whereupon this passage was revealed.

[1] Idem, Jallalo’ddin.

[a] It belongeth not unto thee to pass any judgment on them, &c.] i.e. Rashly to decide whether their intentions be sincere or not; since thou canst not know their heart, and their faith may possibly be more firm than that of those who would persuade thee to discard them.

[b] Thus have we proved some part of them by other part, &c.] That is to say, the noble by those of mean extraction, and the rich by the poor; in that God chose to call the latter to the faith before the former ^[2] .

[2] Iidem.

[c] That which ye desire should be hastened, is not in my power, &c.] This passage is an answer to the audacious defiances of the infidels, who bad Mohammed, if he were a true prophet, to call for a shower of stones from heaven, or some other sudden and miraculous punishment, to destroy them ^[3] .

[3] Al Beidawi.

[d] The matter had been determined;] For I should e’re now have destroyed you, out of zeal for God’s honour, had it been in my power ^[4] .

[4] Al Beidawi.

[e] In the perspicuous book;] i.e. The preserved table, or register of God’s decrees.

[f] See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 88, 89.

[g] Our messengers;] That is, the angel of death and his assistants ^[5] .

[5] See the Prelim. Disc. §. IV. p 72.

[a] See the Prelim. Disc. Sect. IV. p. 88, 89.

[b] The darkness;] That is, the dangers and distresses.

[c] If thou deliver;] The Cufic copies read it in the third person, if he deliver us, &c.

[d] Yet afterwards ye give him companions;] Returning to your old idolatry.

[e] A punishment from above you;] That is, by storms from heaven, as he destroyed the unbelieving people of Noah, and of Lot, and the army of Abraha, the lord of the elephant ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[f] Or from under your feet;] Either by drowning you, as he did Pharaoh and his host, or causing the earth to open and swallow you up, as happened to Korah, or (as the Mohammedans name him) Karun ^[2] .

[2] Idem.

[g] Those who fear God are not at all accountable for them, &c.] And therefore need not be troubled at the indecent and impious talk of the infidels, provided they take care not to be infected by them. When the preceding passage was revealed, the Moslems told their prophet that if they were obliged to rise up whenever the idolaters spoke irreverently of the Korân, they could never sit quietly in the temple, nor perform their devotions there; whereupon these words were added ^[3] .

[3] Idem, Jallalo’ddin.

[h] See the Prelim. Disc. Sec. IV. p. 72, and 82, &c

[a] Azer.] This is the name which the Mohammedans give to Abraham’s father, named in scripture Terah. However, some of their writers pretend that Azer was the son of Terah ^[1] , and D’Herbelot says that the Arabs always distinguish them in their genealogies as different persons; but that because Abraham was the son of Terah according to Moses, it is therefore supposed (by European writers) that Terah is the same with the Azer of the Arabs ^[2] . How true this observation may be in relation to some authors, I cannot say, but I am sure it cannot be true of all; for several Arab and Turkish writers expressly make Azer and Terah the same person ^[3] . Azer, in ancient times, was the name of the planet Mars, and the month of March was so called by the most ancient Persians; for the word originally signifying fire (as it still does,) it was therefore given by them and the Chaldeans to that planet ^[4] , which partaking, as was supposed, of a fiery nature, was acknowledged by the Chaldeans and Assyrians as a god or planetary deity, whom in old times they worshipped under the form of a pillar: whence Azer became a name among the nobility, who esteemed it honourable to be denominated from their gods ^[5] , and is found in the composition of several Babylonish names. For these reasons a learned author supposes Azer to have been the heathen name of Terah, and that the other was given him on his conversion ^[6] . Al Beidâwi confirms this conjecture, saying that Azer was the name of the idol which he worshipped. It may be observed that Abraham’s father is also called Zarah in the Talmud and Athar by Eusebius.

[1] Tarîkh Montakhab, apud D’Herbel. Bibl. Orient. p. 12.

[2] D’Herbel. ibid.

[3] Al Beidawi, Jallalo’ddin, Yahya, Ebn Shohnah, Mirat Kainat, &c. V. etiam Pharhang Jehang-hiri, apud Hyde de rel. vet. persar. p. 68.

[4] Hyde, ibid. p. 63.

[5] Idem, ib. p. 64.

[6] Idem, ibid. p. 62.

[b] Do thou take images for gods;] That Azer, or Terah, was an idolater is allowed on all hands; nor can it be denied, since he is expressly said in scripture to have served strange gods ^[7] . The eastern authors unanimously agree that he was a statuary, or carver of idols; and he is represented as the first who made images of clay, pictures only having been in use before ^[8] , and taught that they were to be adored as gods ^[9] . However, we are told his employment was a very honourable one ^[10] , and that he was a great lord, and in high favour with Nimrod, whose son-in-law he was ^[11] , because he made his idols for him, and was excellent in his art. Some of the Rabbins say Terah was a priest, and chief of the order ^[12] .

[7] Josh. xxiv. 2, 14.

[8] Epiphan. adv. Hær. l. i. p. 7, 8.

[9] Suidas in Lexico, voce Σερούχ.

[10] V. Hyde, ubi sup. p. 63.

[11] D’Herbel. ubi sup.

[12] Shalshel. hakkab. p. 94.

[c] And thus did we shew unto Abraham the kingdom of heaven and earth, &c.] That is, we gave him a right apprehension of the government of the world and of the heavenly bodies, that he might know them all to be ruled by God, by putting him on making the following reflections.

[d] He saw a star, and he said, This is my Lord, &c.] Since Abraham’s parents were idolaters, it seems to be a necessary consequence that himself was one also in his younger years; the scripture not obscurely intimates as much ^[1] , and the Jews themselves acknowledge it ^[2] . At what age he came to the knowledge of the true God and left idolatry, opinions are various. Some Jewish writers tell us he was then but three years old ^[3] , and the Mohammedans likewise suppose him very young, and that he asked his father and mother several shrewd questions when a child ^[4] . Others, however, allow him to have been a middle-aged man at that time ^[5] . Maimonides, in particular, and R. Abraham Zacuth think him to have been forty years old, which age is also mentioned in the Korân. But the general opinion of the Mohammedans is that he was about fifteen or sixteen ^[6] . As the religion wherein Abraham was educated was the Sabian, which consisted chiefly in the worship of the heavenly bodies ^[7] , he is introduced examining their nature and properties, to see whether they had a right to the worship which was paid them or not; and the first which he observed was the planet Venus, or, as others will have it, Jupiter ^[8] . This method of Abraham’s attaining to the knowledge of the supreme Creator of all things, is conformable to what Josephus writes, viz.: That he drew his notions from the changes which he had observed in the earth and the sea, and in the sun and the moon, and the rest of the celestial bodies; concluding that they were subject to the command of a superior power, to whom alone all honour and thanks are due ^[9] . The story itself is certainly taken from the Talmud ^[10] . Some of the commentators, however, suppose this reasoning of Abraham with himself was not the first means of his conversion, but that he used it only by way of argument to convince the idolaters among whom he then lived.

[1] V. Josh. xxiv. 2, 14, and Hyde, ubi sup. p. 59.

[2] Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. 7. Maimon. More Nev. part 3. c. 29, & Yad Hazzak. de Id. c. I, &c.

[3] Tanchuma, Talmud, Nedarim, 32, I, & apud Maimon. Yad Hazz. ubi sup.

[4] V. D’Herbel. Bibl. Orient. Art. Abraham.

[5] Maimon. ubi sup. R. Abr. Zacuth in Sefer Juchasin, Shalshel. hakkab, &c.

[6] V. Hyde, ubi sup. p. 60, 61, & Hotting. Smegma Orient. p. 290, &c. Genebr. in Chron.

[7] See the Prelim. Disc. §. I. p 14.

[8] Al Beidawi.

[9] Joseph. Ant. l. I, c. 7.

[10] R. Bechai, in Midrash. V. Bartolocc. Bibl. Rabb. part. i. p. 640.

[a] I fear not what ye associate with him, unless that my Lord willeth a thing, &c.] That is, I am not afraid of your false gods, which cannot hurt me, except God permitteth it, or is pleased to afflict me himself.

[b] Injustice;] By injustice, in this place, the commentators understand idolatry, or open rebellion against God.

[c] Of his posterity;] Some refer the relative his, to Abraham, the person chiefly spoken of in this passage; some to Noah, the next antecedent, because Jonas and Lot were not (say they) of Abraham’s seed; and others suppose the persons named in this and the next verse are to be understood as the descendants of Abraham, and those in the following verse, as those of Noah ^[1] .

[1] Al Beid.

[d] Job.] The Mohammedans say he was of the race of Esau. See chap. 21, and 38.

[e] Elias.] See chap. 37.

[f] Elisha.] This prophet was the successor of Elias, and as the commentators will have it, the son of Okhtûb, tho’ the scripture makes him the son of Shaphat.

[g] Jonas.] See chap. 10, 21, and 37.

[h] Lot.] See chap. 7, &c.

[a] These;] That is, the Koreish ^[1] .

[1] Idem.

[b] They make not a due estimation of God, &c.] That is, they know him not truly, nor have just notions of his goodness and mercy towards man. The persons here meant, according to some commentators, are the Jews, and according to others, the idolaters ^[2] .
This verse and the two next, as Jallalo’ddin thinks, were revealed at Medina.

[2] Idem.

[c] God hath not sent down unto man any thing;] By these words the Jews (if they were the persons meant) chiefly intended to deny the Korân to be of divine revelation, tho’ they might in strictness insist that God never revealed, or sent down, as the Korân expresses it, any real composition or material writing from heaven in the manner that Mohammed pretended his revelations were delivered ^[3] , if we except only the Decalogue, God having left to the inspired penmen not only the labour of writing, but the liberty, in a great measure at least, of putting the truths into their own words and manner of expression.

[3] See the Prelim. Disc. §. III. p 64, &c.

[d] Who is more wicked than he who forgeth a lie concerning God, &c.] Falsely pretending to have received revelations from him, as did Moseilama, al Aswad al Ansi, and others.

[e] Or saith, This was revealed unto me; when nothing hath been revealed unto him;] As did Abda’llah Ebn Saad Ebn Abi Sarah, who for some time was the prophet’s amanuensis, and when these words were dictated to him as revealed, viz. We created man of a purer kind of clay, &c. ^[4] , cried out, by way of admiration, Blessed be God the best Creator! and being ordered by Mohammed to write these words down also, as part of the inspired passage, began to think himself as great a prophet as his master ^[5] . Whereupon he took upon himself to corrupt and alter the Korân according to his own fancy, and at length apostatizing, was one of the ten who were proscribed at the taking of Mecca ^[6] , and narrowly escaped with life on his recantation, by the interposition of Othmân Ebn Affán, whose foster-brother he was ^[7] .

[4] Korân. chap. 23.

[5] Al Beidawi.

[6] See the Prelim. Disc. p. 55.

[7] Abu’lfed. Vit. Moh. p. 109.

[f] And who saith, I will produce a revelation, &c.] For some Arabs, it seems, had the vanity to imagine, and gave out, that, if they pleased, they could write a book nothing inferior to the Korân.

[a] See before, p. 94. not. g.

[b] Alone;] That is, without your wealth, your children, or your friends, which ye so much depended on in your lifetime.

[c] As we created you at first;] i.e. Naked and helpless.

[d] Your intercessors;] Or false gods.

[e] What ye imagined;] Concerning the intercession of your idols, or the disbelief of future rewards and punishments.

[f] See chap. 3. p. 38.

[g] A sure receptacle and a repository;] Namely, in the loins of your fathers, and the wombs of your mothers ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[h] Genii;] This word signifies properly the genus of rational, invisible beings, whether angels, devils, or that intermediate species usually called genii. Some of the commentators therefore, in this place, understand the angels, whom the pagan Arabs worshipped; and others the devils, either because they became their servants by adoring idols at their instigation, or else because, according to the Magian system, they looked on the devil as a sort of creator, making him the author and principle of all evil, and God the author of good only ^[2] .

[2] Idem.

[i] See the Prelim. Discourse. p. 17 and 39.

[a] The gracious;] Or, as the word may be translated, the incomprehensible ^[1] .

[1] Idem.

[b] That they may say, Thou hast studied diligently;] That is, Thou hast been instructed by the Jews and Christians in these matters, and only retailest to us what thou hast learned of them. For this the infidels objected to Mohammed, thinking it impossible for him to discourse on subjects of so high a nature, and in so clear and pertinent a manner, without being well versed in the doctrines and sacred writings of those people.

[c] In this passage Mohammed endeavours to excuse his inability of working a miracle, as had been demanded of him; declaring that God did not think fit to comply with their desires; and that if he had so thought fit, yet it had been in vain, because if they were not convinced by the Korân, they would not be convinced by the greatest miracle ^[2] .

[2] Confer Luke xvi. 31.

[d] Therein;] i.e. In the Korân.

[e] And tho’ we had sent down angels unto them, &c.] For the Meccans required that Mohammed should either shew them an angel descending from heaven in their sight, or raise their dead fathers, that they might discourse with them, or prevail on God and his angels to appear to them in a body.

[a] There is none who can change his words;] Some interpret this of the immutability of God’s decree, and the certainty of his threats and promises; others, of his particular promise to preserve the Korân from any such alterations or corruptions as they imagine to have happened to the Pentateuch and the Gospel ^[1] ; and others, of the unalterable duration of the Mohammedan law, which they hold is to last till the end of the world, there being no other prophet, law, or dispensation to be expected after it.

[1] See the Prelim. Disc. p. 75. and Kor. c. 15.

[b] They follow an uncertain opinion only;] Imagining that the true religion was that which their idolatrous ancestors professed.

[c] See chap. 2. p. 20, and chap. 5. p. 82.

[d] Leave both the outside of iniquity, and inside thereof;] That is, both open and secret sins.

[e] The persons primarily intended in this passage, were Hamza, Mohammed’s uncle, and Abu Jahl; others, instead of Hamza, name Omar, or Ammâr

[f] And thus have we placed in every city chief leaders of the wicked men thereof;] In the same manner as we have done in Mecca.

[g] A sign;] i.e. Any verse or passage of the Korân.

[h] We will by no means believe until a revelation be brought unto us, &c.] These were the words of the Koreish, who thought that there were persons among themselves more worthy of the honour of being God’s messenger than Mohammed.

[i] God best knoweth whom he will appoint for his messenger;] Literally, Where he will place his commission. God, says al Beidâwi, bestows not the gift of prophecy on any one on account of his nobility or riches, but for their spiritual qualifications; making choice of such of his servants as he pleases, and who he knows will execute their commissions faithfully.

[a] As tho’ he were climbing up to heaven;] Or had undertaken the most impossible thing in the world. In like manner shall the heart of such a man be incapable of receiving the truth.

[b] O company of genii;] That is, of devils ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[c] Ye have been much concerned with mankind;] In tempting and seducing them to sin.

[d] The one of us hath received advantage from the other;] The advantage which men received from the evil spirits, was their raising and satisfying their lusts and appetites; and that which the latter received in return, was the obedience paid them by the former, &c ^[2] .

[2] Idem, Jallalo’ddin.

[e] Our limited term, &c.] viz. The day of resurrection, which we believed not in the other world.

[f] Unless as God shall please to mitigate your pains;] The commentators tell us that this alleviation of the pains of the damned will be when they shall be taken out of the fire to drink the boiling water ^[3] , or to suffer the extreme cold, called al Zamharîr, which is to be one part of their punishment; but others think the respite which God will grant to some before they are thrown into hell, is here intended ^[4] . According to the exposition of Ebn Abbas, these words may be rendered, Unless him whom God shall please to deliver thence ^[5] .

[3] Jallalo’ddin.

[4] Al Beidawi.

[5] See the Prelim. Disc. §. IV. p 92, &c.

[g] Did not messengers from among yourselves come unto you, &c.] It is the Mohammedan belief that apostles were sent by God for the conversion both of genii and of men; being generally of humane race (as Mohammed, in particular, who pretended to have a commission to preach to both kinds); according to this passage, it seems there must have been prophets of the race of genii also, tho’ their mission be a secret to us.

[h] While their inhabitants were careless;] Or considered not their danger; but God first sent some prophet to them to warn them of it, and to invite them to repentance.

[a] Act according to your power; and I will act according to my duty;] That is, ye may proceed in your rebellion against God and your malice towards me, and be confirmed in your infidelity; but I will persevere to bear your insults with patience, and to publish those revelations which God has commanded me ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[b] Our companions;] i.e. Our idols. In which sense this word is to be taken through the whole passage.

[c] As to this custom of the pagan Arabs, see the Prelim. Disc. §. I. p. 16. To what is there said we may add, that the share set apart for God was employed chiefly in relieving the poor and strangers; and the share of the idols, for paying their priests, and providing sacrifices for them ^[2] .

[2] Idem, Jallalo’ddin.

[d] To slay their children;] Either by that inhuman custom, which prevailed among those of Kendah and some other tribes, of burying their daughters alive, so soon as they were born, if they apprehended they could not maintain them ^[3] ; or else be offering them to their idols, at the instigation of those who had the custody of their temples ^[4] .

[3] See chap. 81.

[4] Al Beidawi.

[e] And render their religion obscure and confused;] By corrupting with horrid superstitions that religion which Ismael had left to his posterity ^[5] .

[5] Idem.

[f] But who we please;] That is, those who serve our idols, and are of the male sex; for the women were not allowed to eat of them ^[6] .

[6] Idem.

[g] And there are cattle whose backs are forbidden to be rode on, &c.] Which they superstitiously exempted from such services, in some particular cases, as they did the Bahîra, the Sâïba, and the Hâmi ^[7] .

[7] See chap. 5. p. 96. and Prelim. Disc. §. V.

[h] See chap. 5. p. 82.

[i] That which is in the bellies of these cattle;] That is, the foetus or embryos of the Bahîra and the Sâïba, which shall be brought forth alive.

[k] But if it prove abortive, they both partake thereof;] For if those cattle cast their young, the women might eat thereof as well as the men.

[l] See above, note d.

[m] Without knowledge;] Not having a due sense of God’s providence.

[a] Supported on trails of wood, and not supported;] Or, as some choose to interpret the words, Trees or plants which are planted by the labour of man, and those which grow naturally in the deserts and on mountains.

[b] And pay the due thereof, &c.] That is, give alms thereof to the poor. And these alms, as al Beidâwi observes, were what they used to give before the Zacât, or legal alms, was instituted, which was done after Mohammed had retired from Mecca, where this verse was revealed. Yet some are of another opinion, and for this very reason will have the verse to have been revealed at Medina.

[c] Be not profuse;] i.e. Give not so much thereof in alms as to leave your own families in want, for charity begins at home.

[d] Four pair;] Or, literally, eight males and females paired together; that is, four of each sex, and two of every distinct kind.

[e] In this passage Mohammed endeavours to convince the Arabs of their superstitious folly in making it unlawful, one while, to eat the males of these four kinds of cattle; another while, the females; and at another time, their young ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[f] Who is more unjust than he who deviseth a lie against God, &c.] The person particularly intended here, some say, was Amru Ebn Lohai, king of Hejâz, a great introducer of idolatry and superstition among the Arabs ^[2] .

[2] Idem, See the Prelim. Disc. p. 20, and Pocock. Spec. p. 80.

[g] Blood poured forth;] That is, fluid blood; in opposition to what the Arabs suppose to be also blood, but not fluid; as the liver and the spleen ^[3] .

[3] Al Beidawi, Jallalo’ddin.

[h] We forbade them the fat, &c.] See Levit. vii. 23, and iii. 16.

[i] Or which should be intermixed with the bone;] viz. The fat of the rumps or tails of sheep, which are very large in the east, a small one weighing ten or twelve pounds, and some no less than threescore.

[a] This and the two following verses Jallalo’ddin supposes to have been revealed at Medina.

[b] Hainous crimes;] The original word signifies peculiarly fornication, and avarice.

[c] Unless for a just cause;] As for murder, apostasy, or adultery ^[1] .

[1] Al Beidawi.

[d] Unto two people;] That is, the Jews and the Christians.

[e] And we neglected to peruse them, &c.] Either because we knew nothing of them, or did not understand the language wherein they were written.

[f] We would surely have been better directed than they;] Because of the acuteness of our wit, the clearness of our understanding, and our facility of learning sciences-as appears from our excelling in history, poetry, and oratory, notwithstanding we are illiterate people ^[2] .

[2] Idem.

[a] Al Beidâwi, from a tradition of Mohammed, says that ten signs will precede the last day, viz. the smoke, the beast of the earth, an eclipse in the east, another in the west, and a third in the peninsula of Arabia, the appearance of Antichrist, the sun’s rising in the west, the eruption of Gog and Magog, the descent of Jesus on earth, and fire which shall break forth from Aden ^[1] .

[1] See the Prelim. Disc. §. IV. p 79, &c.

[b] Its faith shall not profit a soul which believed not, &c.] For faith in the next life will be of no advantage to those who have not believed in this; nor yet faith in this life without good works.

[c] They who make a division in their religion;] That is, who believe in part of it, and disbelieve other parts of it, or who form schisms therein. Mohammed is reported to have declared that the Jews were divided into seventy-one sects, and the Christians into seventy two: and that his own followers would be split into seventy-three sects; and that all of them would be damned, except only one of each ^[2] .

[2] Al Beidawi.

[d] See before, p. 100.

[e] No burthened soul shall bear the burthen of another;] This was revealed in answer to the pressing instances of the idolaters, who offered to take the crime upon themselves, if Mohammed would conform to their worship ^[3] .

[3] Idem.