Tafsir of Surah al Buruj - The Constellations (Surah 85)

1) By the heaven with its towering constellations,* 2) by the Promised Day, 3) and by the witness and the witnessed:[1] 4) Cursed be the people of the trench, 5) [kindlers of] that [searing] fire, well stocked with fuel. 6) They were seated around it, 7) witnessing what they were doing to the believers.

“By the heaven with its towering constellation,” i.e. mansions holding the sun, the moon and the stars all running their courses in perfect harmony and regulation, all proving the perfect ability of Allah, His mercy, infinite knowledge and wisdom. “By the Promised Day,” the Day of Rising, the gathering of mankind which Allah has promised, wherein the first man will be raised with the last, the Day which cannot be altered or changed. “Allah never fails in His promise.”^[2] “And by the witness and the witnessed,” this is general to all who meet this description: the one who sees and that which is seen, the one who is present and the one in whose company he is present etc. The point of the oath is to highlight what each object of oath shows: the clear Signs of Allah, His all-encompassing wisdom and vast mercy. It is also said that the point of the oath is to highlight, “cursed be the people of the trench,” this is a supplication against them for their destruction. The people of the trench were a disbelieving folk, living amongst whom were some believers. They tried to entice the believers into renegading into disbelief but they refused. In response to this the disbelievers dug trenches and lit a fire in them. Then they sat around these trenches and persecuted the believers, threatening to burn them in those trenches. Whoever renegaded was allowed to go free and whoever remained firm on his belief was thrown in. This is the extremes of fighting Allah and His party, the believers, and this is why Allah cursed them and destroyed them and threatened them by saying, “cursed be the people of the trench.” Then He proceeded to expound on these trenches by saying, “[kindlers of] that [searing] fire, well stocked with fuel. They were seated around it, witnessing what they were doing to the believers.” This represents the limits of coercion and hardness of heart for they combined obdurate rejection of the Signs of Allah with fighting those who believed in them and punishing them with a punishment that would have broken the hearts of normal people.

8) Their only grievance against them was that they believed in Allah, the Almighty, the Praiseworthy, 9) to whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and earth. Allah is witness of all things.

“Their only grievance against them was that they believed in Allah,” for them doing something praiseworthy, through which they would attain eternal felicity, “the Almighty,” whose might encompasses everything, “the Praiseworthy,” in speech, deed and attributes. “To whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and earth,” the inanimate and animate objects, directing them however He wills, “Allah is witness of all things,” in His knowledge, seeing and hearing. Knowing all this, should not those who rebel against Him fear Him, fear that they should be seized by “the Almighty, the Powerful,”^[3]? Do they not know that they are His servants, owned by Him and that they have no authority over another except by the permission of the Master? Is it hidden to them that Allah ever-encompasses their deeds and will recompense them for them? Nay, rather the disbelievers live in a state of delusion, and the ignoramus is wandering blindly in misguidance far removed from the Straight Path.^[4]
Then Allah threatened them, and promised them, and offered them the chance of repentance:

10) Those who persecuted believing men and women without subsequently repenting will have the punishment of Hell, they will have the punishment of the Searing Blaze. 11) But those who believed and worked righteous deeds will have Gardens beneath which rivers flow. That is the supreme triumph.

“Those who persecuted believing men and women without subsequently repenting will have the punishment of Hell, they will have the punishment of the Searing Blaze” al-Hasan said, ‘Look at His munificence and generosity: they killed His friends yet He invites them to repentance and forgiveness!’ After mentioning the recompense of the wrong-doers, Allah follows this with mention of the reward of the believers, “But those who believed” in their hearts “and worked righteous deeds,” with their limbs “will have Gardens beneath which rivers flow. That is the supreme triumph,” the pleasure of Allah and the Abode of His beneficence.

12) Indeed, your Lord’s assault is very fierce. – 13) It is He who originates [creation] and repeats [it], 14) He is the Ever Forgiving, the Loving, 15) Owner of the Throne, the Glorious,** 16) always doing whatever He wishes. –

“Indeed, your Lord’s assault is very fierce,” i.e. His punishment of the criminals and grave sinners is severe. He is ever-watching the wrongdoers. Allah says, “Such is the grasp of your Lord when He grasps the townships while they are doing wrong. His grasp is painful, very strong.”^[5] “It is He who originates [creation] and repeats [it],” He alone is the One who originates creation and repeats it; none shares with Him in this. “He is the Ever-Forgiving,” the One who forgives all sins for the penitent, and overlooks evil deeds for the one who asks His forgiveness, “the Loving,” who is loved by the lovers with a love that is unique and resembles no other. Just as nothing resembles Him in any of His Attributes of beauty and Grandeur, or in any of His actions, so too this love of Him which is placed in the hearts of the elite of His creation does not resemble any other love. This is why loving Allah is the foundation of servitude and this love precedes, and overcomes, all other loves. If however, another love takes precedence over this love, it is in reality a punishment for that person. He, Most High, is the Loving, loving His lovers as Allah says, “He loves them and they love him.”^[6] Mawaddah is pure love.
There is a subtle reason behind mentioning the Name 'the Loving' alongside 'the Ever-Forgiving.' This is: if the sinful repent and turn to Allah, He will forgive them their sins and love them; not as some of the wrong-doers claim, ‘He forgives them but does not return His love to them!’ Rather, Allah is more delighted at the repentance of His servants than a man who loses his mount, laden with his food and drink, in the middle of a vast desert. Giving up all hope of finding it again, he lays down in the shade of a tree waiting for death. While like this, he suddenly finds his mount standing by his head and takes hold of it by its reigns. Allah is more delighted at the repentance of His servant than this man is at finding his mount again: the delight and joy of this man being the greatest that one can imagine. So all praise is due to Allah as is unadulterated love. How great is His beneficence, how copious is His good, how amazing is His grace and how vast is His blessings! “Owner of the Throne, the Glorious” the Great Throne that encompasses the Heaven, the earth and theKursī. TheKursī, with respect to the Throne is like a ring thrown into a desert. The Throne has been specifically mentioned here because of its greatness and it is the closest of created objects to Him. The word 'Glorious' is either a description of the Throne according to one reading, or a description of Allah according to another. The word glory signifies vastness and greatness of descriptions and attributes. “Always doing whatever He wishes,” whenever and whatever He wishes, He does. He says to it, “Be! and it is.”^[7] There is none who can do what he wants save Allah, this is because any creature, when it wants to do something, there will always something aiding its facilitation or preventing its occurrence, this is not so for Allah, for He stands in no need of aid and none can oppose Him.
Then Allah proceeds to mention some of His actions that prove the truth of what the Messengers brought:

17) Has the story of the hosts reached you, 18) [those of] Pharaoh and Thamud? 19) Yet those who disbelieve persist in denial, 20) while Allah encompasses them from behind.*** 21) This, however, is a glorious Qur’an 22) [inscribed] on a Preserved Tablet.

“Has the story of the hosts reached you, 18) [those of] Pharaoh and Thamud?” how they denied the Messengers and were destroyed. “Yet those who disbelieve persist in denial,” remaining in it, the Signs do not benefit them and they are not moved by exhortation. “While Allah encompasses them from behind,” in knowledge and power as He says, “Your Lord is ever watchful.”^[8] This verse then contains a severe threat directed at the disbelievers who are in His grasp and under His regulation. “This, however, is a glorious Qur’an” vast in meaning, containing great import, vast in goodness and knowledge, “[inscribed] on a Preserved Tablet,” preserved from alteration, addition or subtraction, and preserved from the devils. The preserved tablet is the tablet in which Allah has written everything and this in turn shows us the greatness of this Qur’an and its standing with Allah, Most High.
Allah knows best.