Tarikh (al-Tabari) 191
The story of Jonah (peace and blessings be upon him)
قِصَّةُ قَوْمِ يُونُسَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ جَاءَ ذِكْرُ قَوْمِ يُونُسَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ فِي كِتَابِ اللَّهِ سُبْحَانَهُ فِي غَيْرِ مَا مَوْضِعٍ، فَقَالَ سُبْحَانَهُ: فَلَوْلا كَانَتْ قَرْيَةٌ آمَنَتْ فَنَفَعَهَا إِيمَانُهَا إِلا قَوْمَ يُونُسَ لَمَّا آمَنُوا كَشَفْنَا عَنْهُمْ عَذَابَ الْخِزْيِ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَمَتَّعْنَاهُمْ إِلَى حِينٍ [يُونُسَ: 98]. وَذَا النُّونِ إِذْ ذَهَبَ مُغَاضِبًا فَظَنَّ أَنْ لَنْ نَقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ فَنَادَى فِي الظُّلُمَاتِ أَنْ لا إِلَهَ إِلا أَنْتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنْتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ فَاسْتَجَبْنَا لَهُ وَنَجَّيْنَاهُ مِنَ الْغَمِّ وَكَذَلِكَ نُنْجِي الْمُؤْمِنِينَ [الْأَنْبِيَاءِ: 87، 88]. وَقَالَ تَعَالَى: وَإِنَّ يُونُسَ لَمِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِذْ أَبَقَ إِلَى الْفُلْكِ الْمَشْحُونِ فَسَاهَمَ فَكَانَ مِنَ الْمُدْحَضِينَ فَالْتَقَمَهُ الْحُوتُ وَهُوَ مُلِيمٌ فَلَوْلا أَنَّهُ كَانَ مِنَ الْمُسَبِّحِينَ لَلَبِثَ فِي بَطْنِهِ إِلَى يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ فَنَبَذْنَاهُ بِالْعَرَاءِ وَهُوَ سَقِيمٌ وَأَنْبَتْنَا عَلَيْهِ شَجَرَةً مِنْ يَقْطِينٍ وَأَرْسَلْنَاهُ إِلَى مِائَةِ أَلْفٍ أَوْ يَزِيدُونَ فَآمَنُوا فَمَتَّعْنَاهُمْ إِلَى حِينٍ [الصَّافَّاتِ: 139 - 148]. فَاصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ وَلا تَكُنْ كَصَاحِبِ الْحُوتِ إِذْ نَادَى وَهُوَ مَكْظُومٌ لَوْلا أَنْ تَدَارَكَهُ نِعْمَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِ لَنُبِذَ بِالْعَرَاءِ وَهُوَ مَذْمُومٌ فَاجْتَبَاهُ رَبُّهُ فَجَعَلَهُ مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ [الْقَلَمِ: 48 - 50]. فِي هَذِهِ الْآيَاتُ ذَكَرَ اللَّهُ تَعَالَى مَا كَانَ مِنْ قَوْمِ يُونُسَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ، وَهُمْ أَهْلُ نِينَوَى مِنْ أَرْضِ الْمَوْصِلِ، مِنْ تَكْذِيبِهِمْ لنَبِيِّهِمْ يُونُسَ بْنِ مَتَّى عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ، وَكَانُوا قَوْمًا يَعْبُدُونَ الْأَصْنَامَ فَبَعَثَهُ اللَّهُ بِدَعْوَةِ التَّوْحِيدِ، وَأَقَامَ فِيهِ ثَلَاثًا وَثَلَاثِينَ عَامًا يَدْعُوهُمْ فَلَمْ يُؤْمِنْ لَهُ إِلَّا رَجُلَانِ فَلَمَّا آيَسَ مِنْهُمْ دَعَا عَلَيْهِمْ فَأَمَرَهُ اللَّهُ أَنْ يَدْعُوَهُمْ أَرْبَعِينَ يَوْمًا فَلَمَّا دَعَاهُمْ سَبْعًا وَثَلَاثِينَ يَوْمًا حَذَّرَهُمْ أَنَّ الْعَذَابَ وَاقِعٌ بِهِمْ بَعْدَ ثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ، وَأَنَّ آيَةَ ذَلِكَ تَغَيُّرُ أَلْوَانِهِمْ، فَلَمَّا اسْتَشْعَرُوا مَا قَالَهُ لَهُمْ نَبِيُّهُمْ، وَقَدْ خَرَجَ عَنْهُمْ وَلَمَّا قَرُبَ مَوْعِدُ نُزُولِ الْعَذَابِ لَجَؤُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَابُوا إِلَيْهِ فَكَشَفَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمُ الْعَذَابَ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَيُرْجَى لَهُمْ أَنْ يَكْشِفَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ عَذَابَ الْآخِرَةِ. وَقَدْ أَخْبَرَ اللَّهُ عَنْ عَدَدِ قَوْمِ يُونُسَ وَأَنَّهُمْ مِائَةُ أَلْفٍ أَوْ يَزِيدُونَ، وَقَدِ اخْتَلَفَ الْمُفَسِّرُونَ وَالْمُؤَرِّخُونَ حَوْلَ هَذِهِ الزِّيَادَةِ فَبَعْضُهُمْ يَقُولُ إِنَّهَا عَشَرَةُ آلَافٍ وَالْبَعْضُ يَقُولُ عِشْرِينَ، وَأَوْصَلَهَا بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَى سَبْعِينَ أَلْفًا. وَلَمَّا فَارَقَ يُونُسُ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ قَوْمَهُ وَذَهَبَ مُغَاضِبًا لِقَوْمِهِ رَكِبَ سَفِينَةً فِي الْبَحْرِ فَلَجَّتْ بِهِمْ وَاضْطَرَبَتْ وَثَقُلَتْ بِمَنْ فِيهَا فَاسْتَهَمُوا مَنْ يُلْقَى مِنْهَا، فَسَاهَمَ فَوَقَعَتِ الْقُرْعَةُ عَلَيْهِ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ فَأُلْقِيَ فِي الْيَمِّ فَالْتَقَمَهُ الْحُوتُ، وَمَكَثَ فِي بَطْنِهِ مُدَّةً، اخْتَلَفَ الْعُلَمَاءُ حَوْلَهَا، فَأَلْهَمَهُ اللَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ التَّسْبِيحَ وَالتَّوْبَةَ، فَقَالَ: أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنْتَ سُبْحَانَكَ إِنِّي كُنْتُ مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ، فَأَنْجَاهُ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ مِنْ بَطْنِ الْحُوتِ وَنُبِذَ بِالْعَرَاءِ وَهُوَ سَقِيمٌ وَأَنْبَتَ اللَّهُ سُبْحَانَهُ عَلَيْهِ شَجَرَةً مِنْ يَقْطِينٍ وَهُوَ الْقَرْعُ. وَقَدْ جَاءَ فِي فَضْلِ يُونُسَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامُ قَوْلُهُ ﷺ: مَا يَنْبَغِي لِعَبْدٍ أَنْ يَقُولَ: إِنِّي خَيْرٌ مِنْ يُونُسَ بْنِ مَتَّى
Translation
✧ The story of the people of Jonah ﷺ The people of Jonah ﷺ are mentioned in the Book of Allah, glorified be He, in more than one place. He, glorified be He, said: “If only there had been a town that believed and its faith benefited it, except the people of Jonah: when they believed, We removed from them the punishment of disgrace in the life of this world and gave them enjoyment for a time” [Yūnus: 98]. “And Dhū al-Nūn, when he went away in anger and thought that We would never have power over him; then he called out in the darkness: ‘There is no god but You, glory be to You; indeed I have been one of the wrongdoers.’ So We responded to him and saved him from distress; and thus do We save the believers” [al-Anbiyāʾ: 87–88]. And He, exalted be He, said: “And indeed Jonah was one of the messengers. When he ran away to the laden ship, and he drew lots and was among the losers. Then the fish swallowed him while he was blameworthy. And had he not been one of those who glorify Allah, he would have remained in its belly until the Day they are resurrected. So We cast him onto the open shore while he was ill, and We caused to grow over him a plant of gourd. And We sent him to a hundred thousand or more, and they believed, so We gave them enjoyment for a time” [al-Ṣāffāt: 139–148]. “So be patient for the decree of your Lord, and do not be like the companion of the fish, when he called out while he was distressed. Had it not been that a blessing from his Lord overtook him, he would have been cast onto the open shore while he was blameworthy. Then his Lord chose him and made him one of the righteous” [al-Qalam: 48–50]. In these verses Allah, exalted be He, mentioned what happened with the people of Jonah ﷺ, who were the people of Nineveh in the land of al-Mawṣil, in their denying their prophet Jonah b. Mattā ﷺ. They were a people who worshipped idols, so Allah sent him with the call to monotheism. He stayed among them for thirty-three years calling them, but none believed in him except two men. When he despaired of them, he supplicated against them, and Allah commanded him to call them for forty days. When he had called them for thirty-seven days, he warned them that the punishment would befall them after three days, and that the sign of that would be a change in their colors. When they sensed what their prophet had said to them, and he had left them, and when the time for the descent of the punishment drew near, they turned to Allah, glorified be He, and repented to Him. So Allah removed the punishment from them in this world, and it is hoped for them that Allah removes from them the punishment of the Hereafter. Allah has informed us of the number of the people of Jonah, that they were a hundred thousand or more. The commentators and historians have differed about this increase: some of them say it was ten thousand, others say twenty thousand, and some of them raised it to seventy thousand. When Jonah ﷺ left his people and went away in anger toward his people, he boarded a ship in the sea. It became turbulent with them and was distressed and became heavy with those on board. They cast lots to determine who would be thrown off it. He drew lots, and the lot fell upon him three times. So he was thrown into the sea, and the fish swallowed him. He remained in its belly for a period about which scholars have differed. Then Allah, glorified be He, inspired him to glorify and repent, so he said: “There is no god but You, glory be to You; indeed I have been one of the wrongdoers.” So Allah, mighty and majestic be He, saved him from the belly of the fish, and he was cast onto the open shore while he was ill. Allah, glorified be He, caused to grow over him a plant of gourd, which is the squash. In the virtue of Jonah ﷺ there has come the statement of the Prophet ﷺ: “It is not fitting for a servant to say, ‘I am better than Jonah b. Mattā.’”
Grades by grader
No grade is recorded for this wording.