وَلا أَنا عابِدٌ ما عَبَدتُم

وَلا أَنتُم عابِدونَ ما أَعبُدُ

Nor will I worship what you have worshipped; 

nor will you worship what I worship.

EXEGESIS

While verse 2 had the same message as verse 4, the sentence structure of the two verses is different. Verse 2 is a verbal sentence, whilst verse 4 is a nominal sentence. This change in sentence structure raises the possibility that this verse may not just be a mere repetition of what was said previously, but is conveying some other meaning. The different possible meanings will be considered in the Exposition.

EXPOSITION

The overall message in verses 4-5 is the same as what was mentioned in the previous two verses. Under no circumstances will this group of disbelievers change their religion, and the Prophet is also emphatically announcing that he will never start worshipping idols.

These two verses seem to be a repetition of the previous two verses. Exegetes have offered several different reasons as to why this is the case and whether or not something new is being said in these verses:

1. The most famous opinion amongst exegetes is that this repetition has been done for the sake of emphasis and to make the disbelievers lose all hope of the Prophet ever accepting their proposal. Islam can never compromise with polytheism, and the two are completely distinct.^{‎[1]Amthal, 20/510; Mizan, 20/374; Mudarrisi, 18/407; Kashif, 7/618.} Proponents of this view add that such kinds of repetition occur commonly throughout the Quran in places of emphasis, such as 75:34-35, 94:5-6, 102:3-4, 74:19-20, and the oft-repeated phrase in Sūrat al-Raḥmān: So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny? And in Sūrat al-Qamar: Certainly We have made the Quran simple for the sake of admonishment. So is there anyone who will be admonished? What adds weight to such a view is that the Quran was revealed in the language and dialect of the Arabs who would frequently use repetition as a tool for emphasis.^{‎[2]Subḥānī, Munyat al-Ṭālibīn fī Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-Mubīn, 30/686. Tabrisi, 10/841.}
2. This repetition was because the original proposal also had a repeated clause. This understanding may be concluded from a narration that will be mentioned later.
3. The first two verses of this chapter are negating any future worship, while these two verses are negating present and past worship, and thus the verses are not completely identical. This is the chosen opinion of Ṭūsī,^{‎[3]Tibyan, 10/421.} and also Zamakhsharī.
4. The mā used in one set of verses is infinitive, and thus what is negated is the method or style of worship, while in the other set, mā is a relative pronoun (mawṣūlah) and is used to refer to the object of worship, i.e. Allah.^{‎[4]Tabrisi, 10/841.} The worship of the Prophet was one of pure tawḥīd and sincerity which differed to their worship which was based on polytheism. There are different views as to which mā is infinitive between these two sets and which one is mawṣūlah.^{‎[5]Alusi, 15/487.}

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. Abū Shākir al-Dayṣānī, a disbeliever, asked Abu Jaʿfar al-Aḥwal who was known as Muʾmin al-Ṭāq and was one of the followers of Imam al-Ṣādiq (a), why the same proposition is repeated in this surah, a kind of repetition that intelligent beings would not resort to. Abu Jaʿfar, who knew no answer for the question, went to Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) in Medina and asked him for the answer. The Imam replied that the cause for the revelation of these verses and its repetition in the surah was in reply to the repetition in the proposal by the disbelievers who told the Holy Prophet that he should worship for one year what they worshipped, and the next year they would worship what he worshipped. After that he should worship for one year what they worshipped and thereafter they would worship what he worshipped. These verses were revealed and refused all their proposals. Abu Jaʿfar returned with this reply to Abū Shākir, who upon hearing it said: ‘This is what has been carried by the camel from Hijaz.’ By this he meant: this answer is not from you but from Imam al-Ṣādiq (a).^{‎[6]Qummi, 14/474.}

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

Zamakhsharī opines that if these two verses are negating the Prophet having worshipped any idol in the past and the polytheists ever having worshipped Allah in the past, then why does the verse say Nor do you worship that which I worship [currently] instead of: Nor do you worship that which I worshipped [in the past]? He gives a strange reply stating that they were worshipping idols before the proclamation of prophethood, while the Holy Prophet was not worshipping Allah at that time!^{‎[7]Zamakhshari, 4/809.}

Subḥānī has strongly critiqued such a statement by saying that it is known that the Prophet was always a monotheist, even before proclaiming prophethood, and that he would spend hours in the cave of Ḥirāʾ worshipping only Allah, even though his method or style of worship may have differed to that after proclaiming prophethood.

Imam Ali (a), while describing the Holy Prophet, says: ‘From the time of his weaning, Allah had put a mighty angel with him to take him along the path of high character and good behaviour through day and night.’^{‎[8]Nahj, sermon 192.} Therefore, does it make sense for someone who is accompanied by such an angel since childhood to not worship Allah before proclaiming prophethood?^{‎[9]Subḥānī, Munyat al-Ṭālibīn fī Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-Mubīn, 30/687.}

The Sunni commentator, Abū Ḥayyān al-Andalusī, has also criticised Zamakhsharī for such a statement, saying it indicates ‘inadequate decorum regarding the position of prophethood’.^{‎[10] Muhit, 10/560.}

According to Rāzī, perhaps the previous two verses are negating the worship of the Prophet in the hope that the disbelievers would also join him in worship, and thus that worship is conditioned with the hope of the other party accepting the truth, while the next two verses are absolute in saying that the Prophet will never worship their idols for any reason whatsoever.^{‎[11] Razi, 32/331.} He also strangely opines that the two sets were revealed on different occasions. The disbelievers first approached the Prophet to touch their idols as a way of blessing them and thus the first two verses were revealed. After some time, they approached him again, offering him to worship their idols for one year as they would then worship Allah for one year. Thereafter, the last two verses were revealed.^{‎[12] Razi, 32/331.} However, there is no historical evidence for such a claim.

[1] Amthal, 20/510; Mizan, 20/374; Mudarrisi, 18/407; Kashif, 7/618.
[2] Subḥānī, Munyat al-Ṭālibīn fī Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-Mubīn, 30/686. Tabrisi, 10/841.
[3] Tibyan, 10/421.
[4] Tabrisi, 10/841.
[5] Alusi, 15/487.
[6] Qummi, 14/474.
[7] Zamakhshari, 4/809.
[8] Nahj, sermon 192.
[9] Subḥānī, Munyat al-Ṭālibīn fī Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-Mubīn, 30/687.
[10] Muhit, 10/560.
[11] Razi, 32/331.
[12] Razi, 32/331.