أَفَمَن كَانَ عَلَىٰ بَيِّنَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّهِۦ وَيَتْلُوهُ شَاهِدٌ مِّنْهُ وَمِن قَبْلِهِۦ كِتَٰبُ مُوسَىٰٓ إِمَامًا وَرَحْمَةً أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۦ وَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِهِۦ مِنَ ٱلْأَحْزَابِ فَٱلنَّارُ مَوْعِدُهُۥ فَلَا تَكُ فِى مِرْيَةٍ مِّنْهُ إِنَّهُ ٱلْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّكَ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ
a-fa-man kāna ʿalā bayyinatin min rabbihī wa yatlūhu shāhidun minhu wa min qablihī kitābu Mūsā imāman wa raḥmah, ulāʾika yuʾminūna bih, wa man yakfur bihī mina'l-aḥzābi fa'l-nāru mawʿiduh, fa-lā taku fī miryatin minh, innahu'l-ḥaqqu min rabbik, wa lākinna akthara'l-nāsi lā yuʾminūn
"Is one who stands on a clear proof from his Lord, followed by a witness from Him, and before it the Book of Moses as a leader and a mercy [like one who does not]? Those believe in it. And whoever of the factions denies it, the Fire is his appointed place. So be not in doubt about it; it is the truth from your Lord — but most people do not believe."
The sentence begins with a question, but the second half of the question is never spoken. a-fa-man kāna ʿalā bayyina… — "one who stands on a clear proof from his Lord…" and the side he is to be compared with has been elided.
The completion supplied in the classical sources is this: "…like one who desires the life of this world?" — that is, it attaches to the verses just before (15-16). This is a supplied reading; the verse does not say it in so many words.
The root ب-ي-ن: to separate two things; and from there, clarity. The root was worked out at al-Shuʿarāʾ 26/2 (al-kitābu'l-mubīn); I do not repeat it here.
The word bayyina occurs four times in Hūd, and all four describe the standing of a prophet or of a believer:
| Verse | Who | Expression |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | A believer | ʿalā bayyinatin min rabbih |
| 28 | Noah | in kuntu ʿalā bayyinatin min rabbī |
| 63 | Ṣāliḥ | in kuntu ʿalā bayyinatin min rabbī |
| 88 | Shuʿayb | in kuntu ʿalā bayyinatin min rabbī |
And it occurs once more in the mouth of the other side, negated: mā jiʾtanā bi-bayyina — "you have brought us no clear proof" (53, the people of Hūd).
Five occurrences, one table. This is a repetition that can be verified from the text, and it belongs to the backbone of the sūra: the two sides are divided by whether or not they hold a bayyina.
Over the referents of the two pronouns in the sentence there is a wide disagreement in the classical sources. I give it in a table and impose no preference.
| Reading | Who man kāna ʿalā bayyina is | Who the shāhid is |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Prophet | Gabriel (Jibrīl) or the Qurʾān |
| 2 | The Prophet | The Qurʾān itself |
| 3 | The believers | The Qurʾān |
| 4 | The Prophet | Someone who bears witness to him |
All four are transmitted. A note, per the method (Method): sectarian arguments have also been conducted over this verse throughout history; in this commentary no side is taken and the argument is not opened.
What is to be recorded is the work the sentence does: three supports are listed — a clear proof, a witness, an earlier book. The verse, that is, points not to a single source but to three testimonies laid one over another.
The root أ-م-م — imām: the one who stands in front, the one who is followed. The root was treated at al-Zukhruf 43/22 and in al-Qiyāma.
And the same construction occurs in Sūrat al-Aḥqāf as well: wa min qablihī kitābu Mūsā imāman wa raḥmah (al-Aḥqāf 46/12) — word for word the same expression. That verse was treated in al-Aḥqāf. The same sentence in two sūras; this is a repetition that can be verified from the text.
The root م-ر-ي: to milk a thing; and from there, to wrangle, to be in doubt. Mirya — doubt, hesitation.
The word occurs twice in the sūra: here (17) and in the hundred and ninth verse (fa-lā taku fī miryatin mimmā yaʿbudu hāʾulāʾ). In both places the command is the same: fa-lā taku fī mirya. This is a repetition that can be verified from the text.