Transliteration:( Wa lammaa jaaa'ahum Kitaabum min 'indil laahi musaddiqul limaa ma'ahum wa kaanoo min qablu yastaftihoona 'alal lazeena kafaroo falammaa jaaa'ahum maa 'arafoo kafaroo bih; fala 'natul laahi 'alal kaafireen )
"And when there came to them a Book from Allah, confirming [165] what was with them, and they used to pray for victory over the disbelievers [166] before, then when there came to them what they recognized [167], they disbelieved in it. So the curse of Allah is upon the disbelievers. [168]"
The word “confirming” in this verse refers to the Qur’an, which verifies the truth and divine origin of earlier revealed scriptures like the Tawrat (Old Testament) and Injeel (New Testament).
These Books contained prophecies about the coming of the Qur’an and the Final Prophet ﷺ, all of which came true upon the Qur’an’s revelation.
Additionally, it is because of the Qur’an that humanity recognizes the truth of earlier scriptures, as it provides authentication of their divine origin.
Although approximately 124,000 Prophets were sent to mankind, only those mentioned in the Qur’an are remembered and honored today.
Whenever the People of the Book (Yahud and Nasara) fought against disbelievers, they would pray for victory by invoking the name of the Final Prophet ﷺ, saying:
“O Allah, grant us success for the sake of the Final Prophet.”
Allah would grant them victory through this intercession (waseelah), which was an established and accepted practice.
The previous scriptures and Prophets had all prophesied the coming of the Holy Prophet ﷺ.
This verse is a rebuke to those who once believed in his arrival and sought his mediation, but rejected him when he finally appeared.
It also affirms that seeking the waseelah (intercession) of the Prophet ﷺ is a blessed and long-standing practice, and rejecting it is worse than the denial by the Jews and Christians.
The word “him” refers to the Holy Prophet ﷺ.
He was clearly described with signs and attributes in the previous scriptures. Just as Allah says:
“And do not marry those women whom your fathers have married” (Surah An-Nisa: 22)
Likewise, Hazrat Isa (عليه السلام) had proclaimed:
“I give you glad tidings of a Messenger to come after me, whose name is Ahmed.” (Surah As-Saff: 6)
This proves that they recognized the Prophet ﷺ personally, and not just through revelation, since they were aware of his characteristics, not of the Qur’an at that point.
Allah does not condemn their act of seeking mediation, which was actually accepted and beneficial.
Instead, His curse falls upon them for rejecting the Holy Prophet ﷺ after having recognized him.
This is why the verse says “the curse of Allah is upon the disbelievers”, not upon them specifically, so that no one mistakenly interprets the rejection of mediation as the reason for this curse.
The true cause was their arrogance, hypocrisy, and denial of the Final Messenger ﷺ.
89. And when there came to them (the Jews), a Book (this Qur’an) from Allah confirming what is with them (the Tawrah) and the Injil (Gospel), although aforetime they had invoked Allah (for the coming of Muhammad ) in order to gain victory over those who disbelieved, then when there came to them that which they had recognised, they disbelieved in it. So let the curse of Allah be on the disbelievers.
Allah said,
(And when there came to them) meaning, the Jews,
(a Book from Allah) meaning, the Qur’an that Allah sent down to Muhammad,
(confirming what is with them) meaning, the Tawrah. Further, Allah said,
(although aforetime they had invoked Allah (for coming of Muhammad ) in order to gain victory over those who disbelieved) meaning, before this Messenger came to them, they used to ask Allah to aid them by his arrival, against their polytheistic enemies in war. They used to say to the polytheists, “A Prophet shall be sent just before the end of this world and we, along with him, shall exterminate you, just as the nations of `Ad and Iram were exterminated.” Also, Muhammad bin Ishaq narrated that Ibn `Abbas said, “The Jews used to invoke Allah (for the coming of Muhammad ) in order to gain victory over the Aws and Khazraj, before the Prophet was sent. When Allah sent him to the Arabs, they rejected him and denied what they used to say about him. Hence, Mu`adh bin Jabal and Bishr bin Al-Bara’ bin Ma`rur, from Bani Salamah, said to them, `O Jews! Fear Allah and embrace Islam. You used to invoke Allah for the coming of Muhammad when we were still disbelievers and you used to tell us that he would come and describe him to us,’ Salam bin Mushkim from Bani An-Nadir replied, `He did not bring anything that we recognize. He is not the Prophet we told you about.’ Allah then revealed this Ayah about their statement,
(And when there came to them (the Jews), a Book (this Qur’an) from Allah confirming what is with them (the Tawrah) and the Injil (Gospel)).”’
Abu Al-`Aliyah said, “The Jews used to ask Allah to send Muhammad so that they would gain victory over the Arab disbelievers. They used to say, `O Allah! Send the Prophet that we read about – in the Tawrah – so that we can torment and kill the disbelievers alongside him.’ When Allah sent Muhammad and they saw that he was not one of them, they rejected him and envied the Arabs, even though they knew that he was the Messenger of Allah. Hence, Allah said,
(Then when there came to them that which they had recognized, they disbelieved in it. So let the curse of Allah be on the disbelievers). ”
(2:89) And now that there has come to them a Book from Allah, how are they treating it? Even though it confirms the Truth already in their possession, and even though they had prayed for victory against the unbelievers, and yet when that Book came to them – and they recognized it – they refused to acknowledge its Truth.[95] Allah’s curse be upon the unbelievers.
95. Before the advent of the Prophet, the Jews were eagerly awaiting a Prophet whose coming had been prophesied by their own Prophets. In fact, the Jews used to pray for his advent so that the dominance of the unbelievers could come to an end and the age of their own dominance he ushered in. The people of Madina were witnesses to the fact that these same Jewish neighbours of theirs had yearned for the advent of such a Prophet. They often used to say: ‘People may oppress us today as they wish, but when our awaited Prophet comes, we will settle our scores with our oppressors.’
Since the people of Madina had themselves heard such statements they were inclined to embrace the religion of the Prophet all the more readily lest their Jewish neighbours supersede them in acquiring this honour. It was therefore astonishing for them to find that when the promised Prophet did appear those same Jews who had so eagerly looked forward to welcoming him turned into his greatest enemies.
The statement ‘and they recognized it’ is confirmed by several contemporaneous events. The most authentic evidence in this connection is that of Safiyah, a wife of the Prophet, who was herself the daughter of one learned Jewish scholar (Huyayy b. Akhtab) and the niece of another (Abu Yasir). She says that when the Prophet migrated to Madina both her father and uncle went to meet him and conversed with him for quite a while. When they returned home, she heard the following conversation:
Uncle: Is he really the same Prophet whose advent has been prophesied in our Scriptures?
Father: By God, he is.
Uncle: Do you believe that?
Father: Yes..
Uncle. Then what do you intend to do?
Father: 1 will continue to oppose him and will not let his claim prevail as long as I live.
(Ibn Hishim, Sirah, eds., Mustafa al-Saqqa’ et al., 2 vols., II edition, Cairo, 137511955, see vol. 1, pp. 518 f. See also Ibn IshAq, The Life of Muhammad, tr. and notes by A. Guillaume, London, Oxford University Press, 1955, pp. 241 f. – Ed.)
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