Surah An-Nahl 16:36

The Idolators Argument that their Shirk was Divinely decreed, and the Refutation of this Claim

Allah tells us about the idolators delusion over their Shirk, and the excuse they claimed for it based on the idea that it is ordained by divine decree. He says:

لَوْ شَآءَ اللَّهُ مَا عَبَدْنَا مِن دُونِهِ مِن شَىْءٍ نَّحْنُ وَلا ءَابَاؤُنَا وَلاَ حَرَّمْنَا مِن دُونِهِ مِن شَىْءٍ

((They say:) "If Allah had so willed, neither we nor our fathers would have worshipped any but Him, nor would we have forbidden anything without (a command from) Him.") They had superstitious customs dealing with certain animals, e.g. the Bahirah the Sa'ibah and the Wasilah and other things that they had invented and innovated by themselves, with no revealed authority. The essence of what they said was: "If Allah hated what we did, He would have stopped by punishing us, and He would not have enabled us to do it." Rejecting their confusing ideas, Allah says:

فَهَلْ عَلَى الرُّسُلِ إِلاَّ الْبَلَـغُ الْمُبِينُ

(Are the Messengers charged with anything but to clearly convey the Message) meaning, the matter is not as you claim. It is not the case that Allah did not rebuke your behavior; rather, He did rebuke you, and in the strongest possible terms, and He emphatically forbade you from such behavior. To every nation - that is, to every generation, to every community of people - He sent a Messenger. All of the Messengers called their people to worship Allah (Alone) as well as forbidding them from worshipping anything or anybody except for Him.

أَنِ اعْبُدُواْ اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُواْ الْطَّـغُوتَ

(Worship Allah (Alone), and shun the Taghut (all false deities).) Allah continued sending Messengers to mankind with this Message, from the first incidence of Shirk that appeared among the Children of Adam, in the people to whom Nuh was sent - the first Messenger sent by Allah to the people of this earth - until He sent the final Messenger, Muhammad ﷺ, whose call was addressed to both men and Jinn, in the east and in the west. All of the Messengers brought the same Message, as Allah says:

وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ مِن رَّسُولٍ إِلاَّ نُوحِى إِلَيْهِ أَنَّهُ لا إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ أَنَاْ فَاعْبُدُونِ

(And We did not send any Messenger before you (O Muhammad) but We revealed to him (saying): None has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah), so worship Me (alone and none else).") (21:25)

وَاسْئلْ مَنْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ مِن رُّسُلِنَآ أَجَعَلْنَا مِن دُونِ الرَّحْمَـنِ ءَالِهَةً يُعْبَدُونَ

(And ask (O Muhammad) those Messengers of Ours whom We sent before you: "Did We ever appointed to be worshipped besides the Most Gracious (Allah)") (43:45) And in this Ayah, Allah says:

وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِى كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولاً أَنِ اعْبُدُواْ اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُواْ الْطَّـغُوتَ

(And We have indeed sent a Messenger to every Ummah (community, nation) (saying): "Worship Allah (alone), and shun the Taghut (all false deities).") So how could any of the idolators say,

لَوْ شَآءَ اللَّهُ مَا عَبَدْنَا مِن دُونِهِ مِن شَىْءٍ

(If Allah had so willed, we would not have worshipped any but Him,) The legislative will of Allah is clear and cannot be taken as an excuse by them, because He had forbidden them to do that upon the tongue of His Messengers, but by His universal will i.e., by which He allows things to occur even though they do not please Him He allowed them to do that as it was decreed for them. So there is no argument in that for them. Allah created Hell and its people both the Shayatin (devils) and disbelievers, but He does not like His servants to disbelieve. And this point constitutes the strongest proof and the most unquestionable wisdom. Then Allah informs us that He rebuked them with punishment in this world, after the Messengers issued their warning, thus He says:

فَمِنْهُم مَّنْ هَدَى اللَّهُ وَمِنْهُمْ مَّنْ حَقَّتْ عَلَيْهِ الضَّلَـلَةُ فَسِيرُواْ فِى الاٌّرْضِ فَانظُرُواْ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَـقِبَةُ الْمُكَذِّبِينَ

(Then among them were some whom Allah guided, and among them were some who deserved to be left to stray. So travel through the land and see the end of those who denied (the truth).) This means: ask about what happened to those who went against the Messengers and rejected the truth, see how:

دَمَّرَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلِلْكَـفِرِينَ أَمْثَـلُهَا

(Allah destroyed them completely, and a similar (end awaits) the disbelievers.) (47:10) and,

وَلَقَدْ كَذَّبَ الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ نكِيرِ

(And indeed those before them belied (the Messengers of Allah), so then how terrible was My denial (punishment)) (67:18) Then Allah told His Messenger that His eagerness to guide them will be of no benefit to them if Allah wills that they should be misguided, as He says:

وَمَن يُرِدِ اللَّهُ فِتْنَتَهُ فَلَن تَمْلِكَ لَهُ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيْئاً

(And for whoever Allah wills to try with error, you can do nothing for him against Allah) (5:41). Nuh said to his people:

وَلاَ يَنفَعُكُمْ نُصْحِى إِنْ أَرَدْتُّ أَنْ أَنصَحَ لَكُمْ إِن كَانَ اللَّهُ يُرِيدُ أَن يُغْوِيَكُمْ

("And my advice will not profit you, even if I wish to give you good counsel, if Allah's will is to keep you astray.")(11:34). In this Ayah, Allah says:

إِن تَحْرِصْ عَلَى هُدَاهُمْ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لاَ يَهْدِى مَن يُضِلُّ

((Even) if you desire that they be guided, then verily, Allah does not guide those whom He allowed to stray,) As Allah says:

مَن يُضْلِلِ اللَّهُ فَلاَ هَادِيَ لَهُ وَيَذَرُهُمْ فِى طُغْيَـنِهِمْ يَعْمَهُونَ

(Whomsoever Allah allows to stray, then there is no guide for him; and He lets them wander blindly in their transgressions.) (7:186)

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ حَقَّتْ عَلَيْهِمْ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ لاَ يُؤْمِنُونَ - وَلَوْ جَآءَتْهُمْ كُلُّ ءايَةٍ حَتَّى يَرَوُاْ الْعَذَابَ الاٌّلِيمَ

(Truly! Those deserving the Word (wrath) of your Lord will not believe, even if every sign should come to them - until they see the painful torment) (10:96-97).

فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ

(then verily, Allah) meaning, this is the way in which Allah does things. If He wills a thing, then it happens, and if He does not will a thing, then it does not happen. For this reason Allah says:

لاَ يَهْدِى مَن يُضِلُّ

(Allah does not guide those whom He allowed to stray,) meaning the one whom He has caused to go astray, so who can guide him apart from Allah No one.

وَمَا لَهُم مِّن نَّـصِرِينَ

(And they will have no helpers.) means, they will have no one to save them from the punishment of Allah,

أَلاَ لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالاٌّمْرُ تَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ رَبُّ الْعَـلَمِينَ

(Surely, His is the creation and commandment. Blessed is Allah, the Lord of all that exists!) (7:54).

Allah swt menjelaskan bahwa para rasul itu diutus sesuai dengan sunatullah yang berlaku pada umat sebelumnya. Mereka itu adalah pembimbing manusia ke jalan yang lurus. Bimbingan rasul-rasul itu diterima oleh orang-orang yang dikehendaki oleh Allah dan membawa mereka kepada kesejahteraan dunia dan kebahagiaan akhirat.

Allah swt menjelaskan bahwa Dia telah mengutus rasul kepada tiap-tiap umat yang terdahulu, seperti halnya Dia mengutus Nabi Muhammad saw kepada umat manusia seluruhnya. Oleh sebab itu, manusia hendaklah mengikuti seruannya dan meninggalkan segala larangannya.

Allah swt berfirman:

Sungguh, Kami mengutus engkau dengan membawa kebenaran sebagai pembawa berita gembira dan sebagai pemberi peringatan. Dan tidak ada satu pun umat melainkan di sana telah datang seorang pemberi peringatan. (Fathir/35: 24)

Dan firman-Nya:

Dan tanyakanlah (Muhammad) kepada rasul-rasul Kami yang telah Kami utus sebelum engkau, "Apakah Kami menentukan tuhan-tuhan selain (Allah) Yang Maha Pengasih untuk disembah?" (az-Zukhruf/43: 45)

Dari uraian tersebut dapat dipahami bahwa Allah tidak menghendaki hamba-Nya menjadi kafir, karena Allah swt telah melarang mereka mengingkari-Nya. Larangan itu telah disampaikan melalui para rasul-Nya. Akan tetapi, ditinjau dari tabiat manusia, mungkin saja ada di antara mereka yang mengingkari Allah, karena manusia telah diberi akal pikiran dan kebebasan untuk memilih sesuai dengan kehendaknya. Takdir Allah berlaku sesuai dengan pilihan mereka. Oleh karena itu, apabila ada di antara hamba-Nya yang tetap bergelimang dalam kekafiran dan dimasukkan ke neraka Jahanam, maka tidak ada alasan bagi mereka untuk membantah. Allah telah cukup memberikan akal pikiran dan kebebasan untuk memilih dan menentu-kan sikap jalan mana yang akan mereka tempuh. Sedang Allah sendiri tidak menghendaki apabila hamba-Nya menjadi orang-orang yang kafir.

Kemudian dijelaskan lebih lanjut bahwa Allah telah mengingatkan hamba-Nya yang mendustakan kebenaran rasul dengan ancaman hukuman di dunia apabila mereka tidak mau mengubah pendiriannya dan menerima petunjuk yang dibawa rasul. Oleh karena itu, Allah membinasakan mereka dengan hukuman-Nya yang sangat pedih. Tetapi ada pula di antara mereka yang diberi petunjuk oleh Allah, sehingga mereka menerima dan mengikuti petunjuk dan wahyu yang dibawa rasul-Nya. Mereka inilah orang-orang yang berbahagia dan selamat dari azab Allah.

Sesudah itu, Allah swt memerintahkan kepada mereka agar bepergian ke seantero muka bumi dan menyaksikan negeri-negeri yang didiami oleh orang-orang zalim. Mereka disuruh melihat bagaimana akhir kehidupan orang-orang yang mendustakan agama Allah. Di dalam ayat ini, Allah swt menyuruh manusia agar mengadakan penelitian terhadap sejarah bangsa-bangsa lain dan membandingkan antara bangsa-bangsa yang menaati Allah dan rasul-Nya dengan yang mengingkari seruan Allah dan rasul-Nya. Hal ini tiada lain hanyalah karena Allah menginginkan agar mereka mau mengikuti seruan rasul.