The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 2) — Page 657
PT. 9 AL-ANFĀL CH. 8 وَلَا تَكُونُوا كَالَّذِيْنَ قَالُوا سَمِعْنَا وَهُمْ And be not like those who. 22 لَا يَسْمَعُونَ say, 'We hear,' but they hear not. 1110 اِنَّ شَرَّ الدَّوَاب عِنْدَ اللهِ الصُّمُّ Surely, the worst of beasts. 23 الْبُكْمُ الَّذِينَ لَا يَعْقِلُونَ in the sight of Allah are the deaf and the dumb, who have no sense. 1111 وَلَوْ عَلِمَ اللهُ فِيْهِمْ خَيْرًا لَّاَسْمَعَهُمُ And if Allah had known any. 24 وَلَوْ أَسْمَعَهُمْ لَتَوَلَّوْا وَهُمْ مُّعْرِضُونَ certainly have made them hear good in them, He would And if He now makes them hear, they will turn away, in aversion. 1112 "2:94; 4:47. 8:56; 98:7. shock, and their false hopes were shattered. So from this time onward, they became increasingly more active in their machinations against Islam and the Holy Prophet. Hence, the need of an exhortation to Muslims to be ever obedient to God and His Messenger, for it was in obedience and in unity that lay the secret of their future success and prosperity. 1110. Commentary: True Muslims are here warned against following the example of hypocrites, who say they listen but they listen not. 1111. Commentary: The verse primarily refers to the hypocrites. They have ears but they listen not to the Word of God, so truly speaking they are deaf; they have tongues, but they do not seek after and inquire about the truth, so they are dumb; they have hearts, but they do not ponder over the truth, so they have no sense and do not understand. Indeed, if the gifts of hearing and of speaking and of thinking are taken away from man, he is left no better than a beast. Nay, he virtually becomes "the worst of beasts" for, in spite of possessing the faculty and power of hearing and speaking and thinking, he does not use these powers. 1112. Commentary: The expression (made them hear) in the first place mean that if God had known any good in them, He would have made them hear and accept the truth. The verse thus shows that it is only those whose hearts are wholly corrupt that are caused or allowed to go astray by God. Those in whose hearts there is any good are always led by God to the acceptance of the truth. 1097 The second clause of the verse