The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 5) — Page 254
CHAPTER 62 AL-JUMU'AH (Revealed after Hijrah) Title, Date of Revelation, and Context The Surah takes its title from v. 10, wherein Muslims are enjoined to leave off all business when call is made for the Jumu'ah Prayer. It is a Medinite Surah and seems to have been revealed several years after Hijrah (see v. 3). In the previous Sūrah Jesus's prophecy about the advent of the Prophet Aḥmad was mentioned. The present Surah further deals with that prophecy. Subject Matter The Surah like its predecessor opens with the glorification of the Might and Wisdom of God, and, as a proof and demonstration of these two Divine attributes, points to the appearance of the Holy Prophet among the unlettered Arabs, who from an unlettered and uncultured people became, through the teaching of the Quran and the Prophet's noble example, the teachers and leaders for mankind, spreading light and learning wherever they went. The Surah then refers to the same spiritual phenomenon through a great Deputy of the Holy Prophet the Promised Messiah and proceeds to condemn the Jewish people for their rejection of the Holy Prophet, in spite of the fact that their Scriptures abound in prophecies about him. Thus by implication the Surah warns Muslims against behaving like the Jews, when the Great Deputy appears among them. Towards the close of the Surah importance of the Friday Prayer is emphasized and an implied hint is made that at the time of the Second Advent of the Holy Prophet which has been likened to the Friday Prayer, there would be a mad craze for trade, commerce, and worldly gains and many other diversions to amuse and turn men away from God, and Muslims are exhorted not to let these things distract them in the midst of their religious duties. 3150