The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page 341
CH. 2 كَانَ النَّاسُ أُمَّةً وَاحِدَةً فَبَعَثَ اللَّهُ النَّبِيِّنَ مُبَشِّرِينَ وَمُنْذِرِينَ وَأَنْزَلَ among themselves, so "Allah PT. 2 214. Mankind were AL-BAQARAH one community, then they differed raised Prophets as bearers of good tidings and as warners, and sent down with them the Book containing the truth that people wherein they differed. مَعَهُمُ الْكِتَبَ بِالْحَقِّ لِيَحْكُمَ بَيْنَ النَّاسِ فِيمَا اخْتَلَفُوا فِيهِ وَمَا اخْتَلَفَ فِيْهِ إِلَّا الَّذِينَ أُوتُوهُ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا جَاءَتْهُمُ He might judge between the الْبَيِّنْتُ بَغْيًا بَيْنَهُمْ ۚ فَهَدَى اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ But now they began to differ b about the Book, and none امَنُوْا لِمَا اخْتَلَفُوا فِيهِ مِنَ الْحَقِّ بِإِذْنِهِ differed about it except those to whom it was given, after clear وَاللَّهُ يَهْدِي مَنْ يَّشَاءُ إِلَى صِرَاطٍ Signs had come to them out of envy towards one another. Now has Allah, by His command, 4:166; 6:49; 18:57. keeping an account of what they spend, so God also showers His blessings upon them without reckoning; (3) that God treats the believers as friends; and as people do not keep an account of what they give to their friends, therefore God also keeps no account of what He gives to the Faithful. As to the relevancy of this clause to the previous one, it may be noted that as God promised to grant special victory and unusual greatness to believers so much so that they were to be "above" the disbelievers in all respects when the time of "resurrection" (i. e. the fall of the disbelievers and the rise of the believers) came the question naturally arose, how out of all proportion to their efforts and 341 of resources were the handful believers going to attain this glorious triumph? In reply to this implied question, the Quran says that the people need not doubt this prophecy for the matter is not to be settled by ordinary rules of cause and effect but by the fact, so amply borne out by history, that "Allah bestows His favours on whomsoever He pleases without reckoning. " In this connection we may well quote from Carlyle who, while speaking of the spectacular rise of Islam to power, says: "These Arabs, the man Mohammad, one spark on a world of what seemed black unnoticeable sand; but lo, the sand proves explosive powder, blazes heaven-high from Delhi to Granada!" (On Heroes and Hero Worship).