وَمَكَروا مَكرًا كُبّارًا
And they have devised an outrageous plot.
EXEGESIS
Makarū (they have devised) and makr (plot), as verb and noun respectively, are commonly associated with cunningness, a ruse, deception, and so forth, but its literal meaning is ‘to turn someone away from what he or she intends using a stratagem or any means, so as to accomplish an end’. And so makr can be praiseworthy or blameworthy, the former being done with the intent to bring about a beautiful result, and the latter with the intent to result in something unpleasant. Examples of positive makr in the Quran are usually the verses that ascribe this term for God, such as and Allah is the best of devisers (mākirīn) (3:54), whereas when used for people, it usually implies a negative meaning, such as the verse: When the faithless plotted (yamkuru) against you (8:30). And at times, the term is qualified with an adjective, to make clear the sense in which it is used. For example: and evil schemes (makr al-sayyiʾ) beset only their authors (35:43).
In many verses the same term is used twice, once for God in the positive sense, and the other for the transgressors in the negative sense: They devised a plot (wa makarū makran) and We [too] devised a plan (wa makarnā makran) but they were unaware (27:50). Exegetes have explained God’s devising as His giving the unjust respite, or even strengthening them in their pursuit and acquisition of the fleeting goods of the world, so that they are destroyed by the very things they hoard and run after, believing it to be good for them: Let not the faithless suppose that the respite We grant them is good for their souls: We give them respite only that they may increase in sin (3:178). Do they suppose that whatever aid We provide them in regard to wealth and children [is because] We are eager to bring them good? Rather they are not aware! (23:55-56). Rāghib quotes a tradition from Imam Ali (a) that says: ‘One for whom the world is made more accessible without his realising that he is being set up (mukira bi-hi), has been deceived by his intellect.’ The idea of God devising, or allowing a person’s ruse and deception to turn back on himself, is explained in detail under 2:15.
Kubbār (outrageous) is the exaggeration (mubālaghah) of kabīr (that which is great). It is given with an intensification (tashdīd) just like ghaffāra (verse 10) for exceedingly forgiving, and kaffāra (verse 27) for excessively faithless.
And they have devised refers to the leaders or the elite of the community. In Prophet Noah’s (a) describing their plot as an outrageous plot (makran kubbāra), it suggests that they premeditated their plot to undermine Prophet Noah’s (a) preaching and to turn people away from him, with help of the affluent – someone whose wealth and children only add to his loss (verse 21).
This outrageous plot included upholding the practice of worshipping false deities, as is made clear in the following verse. The Quran recounts Prophet Noah (a) challenging them, saying: so conspire together, along with your partners [i.e. false deities] leaving nothing vague in your plan, then carry it out against me without giving me any respite (10:71).
Their outrageous plot also included confusing the masses and misleading them so they would not heed Prophet Noah’s (a) words. This is understood from verses related to the Day of Judgement: when the wrongdoers are made to stop before their Lord, casting the blame on one another, those who were abased will say to those who were arrogant: ‘Had it not been for you, we would surely have been faithful’ (34:31). Those who were abased will say to those who were arrogant: ‘Rather [it was your] night and day plotting (makr), when you prompted us to forswear Allah and to set up equals to Him’ (34:33).
Though very short, this verse is particularly pithy and eloquent in its original Arabic. Ṭabrisī relates that a Bedouin heard the Prophet reciting this verse and remarked: ‘How eloquent is your Lord, O Muhammad!’ ‘But this,’ Ṭabrisī adds, ‘was improper on the part of the Bedouin, because God, the exalted, cannot be humanised with the quality of eloquence.’
EXPOSITION
We know from other verses of the Quran that the elite used three specific arguments to cast doubt in the minds of people: first, they argued that Prophet Noah (a) cannot be a prophet because he was but a human being like ourselves (11:27), who seeks to dominate you (23:24). If you obey a human being like yourselves, you will indeed be losers (23:34) (cf. 23:47, 25:7-8). To which Prophet Noah (a) responded: I do not say to you that I possess the treasures of Allah, neither do I know the unseen. I do not claim to be an angel (11:31).
Second, they argued that no one followed Prophet Noah (a) but the simple-minded riff-raff (11:27), meaning the poor. Prophet Noah (a) defended his followers, most of whom were seen as downtrodden and poor, saying Allah knows best what is in their hearts (11:31). But they insisted, Shall we believe in you when it is the riff-raff who follow you? (26:111). Their arrogant attitude was a part of what was described earlier in verse 7.
And third, the elite tried turning people away from Prophet Noah (a) by arguing, we never heard of such a thing among our forefathers. He is just a man possessed by madness (23:24-25). They said: You are nothing but humans like us who desire to bar us from what our fathers used to worship (14:10). And when they are told: ‘Come to what Allah has sent down and [come] to the Apostle,’ they say: ‘Sufficient for us is what we have found our fathers following’ (5:104). See also 7:28, 10:78, and 31:21.
All these arguments repeat themselves in different nations after Prophet Noah (a) and they reveal three consistent habits in human history: first, that humans find it hard to accept that someone ordinary could be chosen by God. So they will either reject him or elevate him to some superhuman or divine form before they accept his connection to God, and they may even deify him. Second, that people, and especially those whose reliance on possessions is greater than their trust in God, will look up to and even revere the wealthy and powerful and refuse to associate with the poor. And third, unless one sees social ills for what they are and recognises a sincere reformer, the mind will always doubt that tradition upheld for generations can be wrong. Yet most people follow tradition blindly, without reflecting on their origin or purpose. For a more detailed analysis of human tendencies and reactions to God’s prophets, see the surah’s Introduction.
Prophet Muhammad (s), a poor orphan whose initial followers were only the slaves and the poor, faced the same plot from his tribe, the powerful Quraysh of Mecca, who would argue: Why was not this Quran sent down to some great man from the two cities? (43:31). And before him, Prophet Moses (a) was similarly judged by the Pharaoh: And Pharaoh proclaimed amongst his people. He said: ‘O my people! Does not the kingdom of Egypt belong to me and these rivers that run at my feet? Do you not perceive? Am I not better than this humble one [meaning Moses] who cannot even speak clearly? Why have no bracelets of gold been cast upon him, nor have the angels come with him as escorts?’ So he misled his people and they obeyed him (43:51-54).
In all these examples, the outrageous plot of the affluent community elders was to confuse people by arguing that material success was a sign of being favoured by God.
And at times their plot including scheming, to physically harm Prophet Noah (a): They said: ‘Noah, if you do not relinquish, you will certainly be stoned [to death]’ (26:116). A report from Ibn Abbas narrates that when Prophet Noah (a) preached to his people, they would at times beat him until he passed out, then wrap him in a blanket and throw him in his house, leaving him for dead. When he awoke, he would again go out to preach to them. See also the Insights from Hadith under verse 26 and the Review of Tafsīr Literature for verse 6.
[1] Raghib, m-k-r.
[2] Raghib, m-k-r.
[3] Raghib, m-k-r.
[4] Ṭabrisi, 10/545.
[5] Nasr, p. 1424.