The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 4) — Page 580
CHAPTER 30 AR-RŪM (Revealed before Hijrah) Date of Revelation and Context This Surah was admittedly revealed at Mecca. It is, however, difficult to assign an exact date to its revelation, but the most reliable authorities place it in the sixth or seventh year of the Call, as that was the time when the tide of the Persian conquest to which the Surah pointedly refers was at its height; the Persian armies were knocking at the very gates of Constantinople and the disgrace and degradation of the Romans had reached its nadir. Towards the close of the preceding Surah it was stated that the present life is but a pastime and a sport if it is not spent in a noble cause, and that life, real and everlasting, is the one in which a spiritual wayfarer strives with might and main to win the pleasure of God. Further, the true believers were told that a sincere quest after God is bound to meet with success and a true lover of God is led to the abode of eternal bliss where he sees the beautiful countenance of God and basks in the sun of His love. The present Surah opens with the prophetic words that the believers will successfully meet the ordeal of trials and tribulations through which they will be made to pass and as a reward of their sacrifice and suffering the gates of divine grace and mercy will be opened to them. Summary of the Subject Matter The present Surah is the second of the four chapters-29th, 30th, 31st and 32nd which have the abbreviated letters (b) Alif Lam Mīm, placed in their beginning. This points to the great resemblance of their subject matter. The dominant theme of these Surahs is the defeat and discomfiture of the forces of disbelief and darkness and the rise and triumph of Islam. The prophecy is repeatedly made, with an emphasis and certainty which dispels all doubt, that the old order is dying and a new and better one is emerging from its ruins. This latter order, the Sūrah says, will come into being through the noble and untiring efforts of a community of believers, who will carry the message of truth to the ends of the earth and who will be guided in their great endeavours for its dissemination and propagation by the teachings of the Quran and the noble example of the Holy Prophet. The Surah opens with the declaration of a prophecy about the ultimate success of the Romans over the Persians. The prophecy was made at a time when the tide of the Persian conquest was sweeping away everything before its irresistible onrush and the degradation and humiliation of the Romans had sunk to its lowest depths. It was then beyond human knowledge and ingenuity 2494