أَلَم أَعهَد إِلَيكُم يا بَني آدَمَ أَن لا تَعبُدُوا الشَّيطانَ ۖ إِنَّهُ لَكُم عَدُوٌّ مُبينٌ

‘Did I not exhort you, O children of Adam, saying: “Do not worship Satan. He is indeed your manifest enemy.

EXEGESIS

A-lam aʿhad (did I not exhort) is from the root word ʿahd, which could mean to exhort, enjoin, oblige, charge, command, or pledge.^{‎[1]Lane, p. 2183.} Alternatively, the verse could also mean: Did I not make a covenant or a testament with you against the obedience to the temptations of Satan?

Most commentators have understood the verse as: Did I not command you? The command of Allah in this regard has reached the children of Adam through His messengers. However, some have not ruled out the possibility of ʿahd to mean pledge here, so the meaning would be: Did I not take a pledge from you? They say the pledge spoken of in this verse was taken from Adam in the world of particles (ʿālam al-dhar), When your Lord took from the children of Adam, from their loins, their descendants and made them bear witness over themselves, [He said to them]: ‘Am I not your Lord?’ They said: ‘Yes indeed! We bear witness.’ This, lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection: ‘Indeed, we were unaware of this’ (7:172).

However, this meaning is certainly not intended here. Firstly, because the pledge of ʿālam al-dhar, according to the verse, is not about worship but about the lordship (rubūbiyyah) of God. It says nothing about worshipping Him and not worshipping Satan. Secondly, the commentators and theologians have a great disagreement about the concept of ʿālam al-dhar, and by adopting that meaning, we would unnecessarily bring all those discussions and confusions to the intended meaning of this verse.

Banī ādam (children of Adam); as some commentators have said, the human being is addressed here as children of Adam to remind them of the plight of their forefather Adam (a) when he obeyed Satan. This is similar to the advice given to us in 7:27, in which, after recounting the story of Adam and Eve, Allah advises us as children of Adam, O children of Adam! Do not let Satan tempt you, like he expelled your parents from paradise, stripping them of their garments to expose to them their nakedness (7:27).

Taʿbudū (worship) is a verb from ʿibādah, which means worshipping, adoration, obedience, serving, and obeying with humility or submissiveness. The compatible meanings that align with this verse’s context are worshipping Satan by submitting, obeying, serving, or following him. The main pillar of worship is obedience. If we do not obey Allah, certainly we are not worshipping Him. So here, worshipping Satan means obeying him in humility, which is translated in action as following one’s desires outside the boundaries defined by God.

Shayṭān (Satan/devil) is a well-known term for devils or the Devil. It is used for anyone who is excessively or inordinately proud, corrupt, unbelieving, rebellious, and audacious in pride and in acts of rebellion. It could be from humankind, jinn, or beasts. This word originates from shaṭana, signifying distance, remoteness, or being far from the truth or the mercy of God.^{‎[2]Lane, p. 1552.} Shayṭān in this verse signifies Satan or the genus of satans, meaning every jinn or devil who has taken the path of Satan to tempt the children of Adam (a): O children of Adam! Do not let Satan tempt you, like he expelled your parents from paradise, stripping them of their garments to expose to them their nakedness. Indeed, he sees you – he and his hosts – whence you do not see them. We have indeed made the devils friends of those who have no faith (7:27).

ʿAduwwun mubīn (manifest enemy); the manifest enemy is an enemy who does not conceal his animosity. Satan has manifested his animosity towards the children of Adam from day one, He said: ‘By Your might, I will surely pervert them all (38:82), Said he: ‘Do You see this one whom You have honoured above me? If You respite me until the Day of Resurrection, I will surely destroy his progeny, [all] except a few’ (17:62). Hence, he is clearly an outspoken enemy of man. It is not something he has kept in his heart and not revealed. It is something that he has declared openly.

EXPOSITION

Worshipping Satan is obeying his whispers and commands^{‎[3]Mizan, 17/102.} in opposition to the obligation of obeying God or those whom He commands to be obeyed. The verse justifies the prohibition of obeying Satan by stating that he is a manifest enemy and an enemy never desires any good for his rival.

It is said that the ʿahd is the covenant that God took from the children of Adam (a) when they were in the form of spirits in the primordial system or a parallel system before the creation of their bodies in this world, as explained previously.^{‎[4]Mizan, 8/305-331.} Even if this is the case, the covenant taken from everyone directly in the primordial world is precisely what is given to them here in this world through prophets and messengers, without any difference in the covenant.

It is also suggested that worshipping Satan is the worshipping of the idols taken besides God, and the reason Satan was mentioned instead of the idols is because he is the one who made man worship idols. However, this interpretation is redundant and not required. In addition, it requires further clues of context to indicate such meaning, and those clues are absent.^{‎[5]Mizan, 17/102.}

At any rate, after separating the unrighteous from the righteous in previous verses, God blames the unrighteous and the evildoers for breaking the covenant of God by not obeying Him and obeying Satan. Besides the repeated reminders given to humankind mentioned earlier, a few other verses emphasise such points, such as: O humankind! Eat of what is lawful and pure in the earth, and do not follow in Satan’s steps. Indeed he is your manifest enemy (2:168).

The verse may also be a reference to the divinely designed constitution and the innate nature of humankind which is structured upon monotheism and purely restricts obedience to God. This may be the meaning of the covenant of God taken from them.^{‎[6]Amthal, 14/220-221.}

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. Imam al-Bāqir (a) said: ‘Whoever listens to a speaker has worshipped him. So, if the speaker speaks from God, he would have worshipped God, and if he speaks from Satan, he would have worshipped Satan.’^{‎[7]Wasail, 18/91; Kafi, 7/434; Mizan, 17/103-105.}
2. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘Whoever obeys a person in sinning has worshipped him.’^{‎[8]Wasail, 18/91.}
3. Imam al-Husayn (a) said: ‘I warn you against paying heed to Satan’s whispers within you, for he is your manifest enemy.’^{‎[9]Ihtijaj, 2/23.}
4. The Messenger of God said to ʿAbd-Allāh ibn Masʿūd: ‘O Ibn Masʿūd, take Satan as your enemy; for surely, God the all-mighty says: Satan is indeed your enemy, so treat him as an enemy [35:6] … O Ibn Masʿūd, do not consume what is forbidden, do not wear what is forbidden, do not take from what is forbidden, and do not disobey God, because God, the exalted, tells Iblīs: ‘Instigate [tempt] whomever of them you can with your voice, and rally against them your cavalry and your infantry, and share with them in wealth and children, and make promises to them!’ But Satan promises them nothing but delusion [17:64], and He said: So, do not let the life of the world deceive you, nor let the deceiver deceive you concerning Allah [35:5].’^{‎[10]Bihar, 74/105.}

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

Rāzī argues that the covenant made between God and humans could be referring to the one made with our father Adam (a) as mentioned in, Certainly, We had enjoined (ʿahidnā) Adam earlier; but he forgot, and We did not find any resoluteness in him (20:115). However, he affirms that the strongest opinion indicates the covenant that was made by every messenger of God with their people.

The next issue Rāzī discusses is that the worship of Satan means obeying him and disobeying those who are mentioned in O you who have faith! Obey Allah and obey the Apostle and those vested with authority among you (4:59). Therefore, when these three are obeyed by the command of God, their obedience becomes worshipping God, as opposed to obeying others against the obedience of God, which becomes worshipping others such as Satan and tyrants. Satan commands a person to go against the commands of God either directly through his whispers or through someone else who is under his whisper and influence.^{‎[11]Razi, 26/96.}

The final point Rāzī discusses in this verse is that if Satan is a manifest enemy, why do humans incline towards him? It is because Satan uses the tools of lust and desires of humans and their anger to blind them from comprehending the obviousness of his animosity. God places such faculties in humans to benefit them; however, Satan uses it to destroy humans and their bond with God.^{‎[12]Razi, 26/98.} If humans govern their anger and lust by way of the intellect, they will never become under Satan’s influence and control.^{‎[13]Razi, 26/99.}

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. And said, “You son of the Devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?”^{‎[14]Acts 13:10.}
2. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the Devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith.^{‎[15]1 Peter 5:8-9.}
3. Submit yourselves, to God. Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.^{‎[16]James 4:7.}
4. Put on the whole armour of God that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the Devil, for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.^{‎[17]Ephesians 6:11-12.}

[1] Lane, p. 2183.
[2] Lane, p. 1552.
[3] Mizan, 17/102.
[4] Mizan, 8/305-331.
[5] Mizan, 17/102.
[6] Amthal, 14/220-221.
[7] Wasail, 18/91; Kafi, 7/434; Mizan, 17/103-105.
[8] Wasail, 18/91.
[9] Ihtijaj, 2/23.
[10] Bihar, 74/105.
[11] Razi, 26/96.
[12] Razi, 26/98.
[13] Razi, 26/99.
[14] Acts 13:10.
[15] 1 Peter 5:8-9.
[16] James 4:7.
[17] Ephesians 6:11-12.