Transliteration:( Wa minash Shayaateeni mai yaghoosoona lahoo wa ya'maloona 'amalan doona zaalika wa kunna lahum haafizeen )
"And among the devils, those who dived for him [122] and did other work beside that [123], and We had a check over them [124]."
This verse highlights another miraculous aspect of Hazrat Sulaiman’s (peace be upon him) kingdom: even the devils (jinn) were under his command. Among them were those who would dive into the sea for him, retrieving pearls, precious stones, and other hidden treasures. This shows the extent of his authority over the unseen realm, granted by Allah.
In addition to diving, they would also perform various other laborious tasks—such as construction, crafting, and maintenance. These powerful beings became obedient workers, fulfilling worldly and administrative duties under the Prophet’s control.
Although Hazrat Sulaiman (peace be upon him) commanded them, Allah had ultimate control:
“And We had a check over them.”
This means that they could not rebel, nor exceed their assigned duties. Allah had placed strict divine surveillance over them, ensuring their absolute obedience to His Prophet’s commands. This reinforces that true authority lies only with Allah, and the power given to His Prophets is bestowed and safeguarded by His will.
The tafsir of Surah Anbiya verse 82 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Anbiya ayat 78 which provides the complete commentary from verse 78 through 82.
(21:82) And We subdued many devils who dived (into the sea) for him and carried out other jobs besides that. We kept watch over all of them.[75]
75. The subjection of satans has been explained in (Surah Saba, Ayat 12-13). Incidentally, these verses of the Quran clearly show that the satans and jinns who worked for Prophet Solomon belonged to quite a different genus from human beings. Therefore, it is wrong to pervert the Quran to prove that they were human beings as some modernist commentators have tried to do. It is obvious from the wording of the Quran and the context in which the story of the jinns has been related, that they were not human beings. Had they been so this would have been no special favor to Solomon, because human beings had already built the gigantic monuments like the pyramids of Egypt.
[898]- Preventing any disobedience or deviation by them from Solomon's instructions and protecting him from being harmed by them.
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