contradiction in the Qur’an regarding the denial of the command to commit indecency and the command to do it (We commanded its affluent ones, but they defiantly committed it)

 Content of the doubt:

Some sophists imagine that there is a contradiction between the words of Allah the Almighty: “Indeed, Allah does not command immorality. Do you say about Allah that which you do not know? (28)” (Al-A’raf), and His words the Almighty: “And when We desire to destroy a city, We command its affluent ones, but they defiantly disobey therein” (Al-Isra’: 16). They ask: How can Allah deny commanding immorality in the first verse, then state it explicitly in the second verse?! They aim behind that to attack the infallibility of the Holy Quran.

Ways to refute the doubt:
1) Allah the Almighty does not command immorality nor is pleased with it.
2) The type of command in His words the Almighty: “We commanded its affluent ones” is either:
· A legal command, in which case the meaning is: Allah commanded them to obey and do good, but they defiantly disobeyed.
· A cosmic command, in which case the meaning is: Allah decreed that they would defy Allah because He knew that they would go astray and transgress.
3) Some commentators have said that the meaning of the word “command” in the words of God Almighty: “We commanded its affluent ones” is either:
· It means “increase”, i.e. We increased its affluent ones so that they would obey, but they committed sin.
· Or it means “We made them leaders” according to the reading (we commanded its affluent ones) - with a shaddah on the meem.

Details:
First: God Almighty does not command immorality nor is He pleased with it:
It was said in the interpretation of the words of God Almighty: “And when they commit an immorality, they say, “We found our fathers doing it, and God has commanded us to do it.” Say, “Indeed, God does not command immorality. Do you say about God that which you do not know?” (28) (Al-A’raf), that the polytheists in the Age of Ignorance used to circumambulate the House naked, both men and women. So if it was said to them: Why do you do that? They said: We found our fathers doing it, and God commanded us to do it, until Islam came and responded to their statement, so God Almighty said: “Indeed, God does not command immorality.” Qatada said about the verse: “By God, God has never forced a servant to disobey Him, nor has He been pleased with it for him nor commanded it, but He was pleased with your obedience to Him, and forbade you from disobeying Him.[1]Second: The type of command in God Almighty’s statement: “We commanded its affluent ones,” is a legal or cosmic command. The command is used in the law and means a legal command or a cosmic command, and the difference between them is that a legal command is only in what He loves, glory be to Him, but it is not necessary for it to be fulfilled. God Almighty commands the implementation of His law, and He loves that, but many countries have not done so. The cosmic command is in what He loves and what He does not love, but it is necessary for it to happen due to a higher divine wisdom. Satan was created by God’s command, but God Almighty does not love him. If it was a legal matter, the meaning would be: God commanded them to obey Him, to believe in His Oneness, to believe in His Messengers, and to follow what they brought, but they were immoral, disobeyed God, disobeyed Him, and denied His Messengers, so the threat was made against them and punishment was due. This is as if we say: I commanded so-and-so, and he disobeyed me. And from this is the saying of the one who says:

I gave them my orders at the bend of the brigade, but they did not make up their minds until the next morning.

- This statement is what is consistent with what precedes this verse, which is the statement of the Almighty: “Whoever is guided is only guided for [the benefit of] his soul, and whoever goes astray only goes astray to its detriment. And no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another. And We never punish until We have sent a messenger (15)” (Al-Isra’). It is also what is consistent with what comes after it, which is the statement of the Almighty: “And how many generations have We destroyed after Noah? And sufficient is your Lord, concerning the sins of His servants, as Knowing and Seeing (17)” (Al-Isra’). Among the verses that indicate this statement is the statement of the Almighty: “And We did not send a warner to any city but its affluent said, ‘Indeed, we, in that with which you have been sent, are disbelievers (34)” (Saba’). The wording here is general for all the affluent from all the cities, that the messengers commanded them to obey God, but they said to them: “Indeed, we, in that with which you have been sent, are disbelievers (34)” (Saba’), and they boasted about their wealth and children.
Thus, the command in the verse is the opposite of the prohibition, and the object of the command is omitted because it is clear and known, and the meaning is: We commanded its affluent people to obey, but they committed indecencies and deserved punishment. Ibn Jarir narrated it on the authority of Ibn Abbas, and Saeed bin Jubair also said it [2] .
If it is a cosmic matter, then the meaning - according to what some scholars have stated - is that the command in the words of God Almighty: “We have commanded its affluent ones” is a cosmic predestined command, and the predestined command is like His words, Almighty and Exalted: “His command, when He intends a thing, is only to say to it, ‘Be,’ and it is (82)” (Ya Sin), and His words, Almighty and Exalted: “Our command came to them by night or by day” (Yunus: 24), like His words, Almighty and Exalted: “And Our command was but one, like the twinkling of an eye (50)” (Al Qamar), and His words, Almighty and Exalted: “So We said to them, ‘Be apes, despised (65)’” (Al Baqarah). Accordingly, what is meant here is: We decreed immorality upon them, and subjected them to committing indecencies. Because everyone is facilitated for what he was created for, meaning: it was previously known to God that these affluent people - even if God guided them to the two paths, good and evil - would incline by their will towards following the path of immorality [3] .
With this statement, it became clear to us that there is no contradiction between the two verses; since the command in this place is a cosmic predestined command, and the command in the verse of Al-A’raf is a religious legal command.

Third: The difference of opinion among the commentators about the meaning of the word “command” in the Almighty’s statement: “We commanded its affluent ones”:
The scholars’ interpretations of the meaning of the word “command” in this verse differed, and among these interpretations are:
1. We commanded its affluent ones, meaning we increased its affluent ones; so that they would obey, but they immoralized, and therefore He said after that: “And how many generations have We destroyed after Noah” (Al-Isra’: 17), and all of that is an encouragement to obedience, and a warning against disobedience [4] .
What indicates that "amr" in the language means: became numerous and appeared, is what was reported from Abdullah bin Masoud, who said: "We used to say to a tribe when they became numerous in the pre-Islamic era: the Banu so-and-so became amr" [5] . And from this is the long hadith of Abu Sufyan with Heraclius, in which Abu Sufyan said: "The amr of Ibn Abi Kabsha has been issued; the king of the yellow people fears him" [6] [7] .
o Amrna mutrafeeha - with a shaddah on the m and not a light one - means: We made them princes, so they went astray and led their people astray. Ibn Jarir said: It is possible that its meaning is: We made them princes. I said: This only comes according to the reading of the one who read "amrna mutrafeeha". Ali bin Talha said: On the authority of Ibn Abbas, his saying: "We ordered its mutrafeeha, so they disobeyed therein" means: We gave power to its wicked ones, so they disobeyed therein, and if they did that, Allah would destroy them with punishment, and this is His saying:“And thus We have placed in every town the greatest of its criminals to plot therein. But they plot not except against themselves, and they perceive [it] not (123)” (Al-An’am). This is what Abu Al-Aaliyah, Mujahid, and Al-Rabi’ bin Anas said [8] .
This statement invalidates the claim that the Qur’an contradicts itself regarding the command to commit indecency and the prohibition of it.

Conclusion:
Allah does not command indecency nor is pleased with it. The people of the Age of Ignorance used to circumambulate the Kaaba naked and say: We found our fathers doing it and Allah commanded us to do it. Allah explained to them that He does not like indecency and does not command it.
The type of command in His Almighty’s statement: “We commanded its affluent ones” may be:
- Legal: in which case the meaning is: Allah commanded them to obey and follow His Messengers, but they refused, disobeyed and committed sin, so punishment was justified for them. The subject of the command here is omitted because it is known, as Allah Almighty only commands obedience.
- Universal: in which case the meaning is: Allah Almighty, when He knew from eternity that its affluent ones would go astray, decreed sin for them, so they committed sin, so punishment was justified for them.
Some commentators have said that the meaning of “the matter” may be: We increased their affluent people, so the word “matter” is used to mean: increased and great, or: We ordered - with emphasis on the “ra” - meaning: We made them leaders who led their people astray and led them astray, and thus there is no contradiction between the two verses.
 

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[1] Al-Durr Al-Manthur, Al-Suyuti, Dar Al-Fikr, Beirut, 1st ed., 1983, Vol. 3, pp. 436, 437.
[2] Adwaa Al-Bayan, Al-Shanqeeti, Ibn Taymiyyah Library, Cairo, 1992, Vol. 3, p. 441.
[3] Adwaa Al-Bayan, Al-Shanqeeti, Ibn Taymiyyah Library, Cairo, 1992, p. 441.
[4] See: Daf’ Iham Al-I’tirbat ‘an Ayat Al-Kitab, Sheikh Muhammad Al-Amin Al-Shanqeeti, Arab History Foundation, Beirut, 2nd ed., 1420 AH/2000 AD, pp. 107, 108. Response to the Book “Divine Errors in the Holy Qur’an”, Islamic Research Complex, Dar Al-Sa’ada, Cairo, 2003, pp. 60: 62. Tanzih Al-Qur’an from Objections, Judge Abdul-Jabbar, edited by: Dr.
[5] Narrated by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih, Book of Interpretation, Chapter of Surat Al-Isra (4434). [6] Narrated by Al-Bukhari in his Sahih, Book of Jihad and Expeditions
, Chapter of the Prophet’s Call to Islam and Prophethood (2782), and in other places, and by Muslim in his Sahih, Book of Jihad and Expeditions, Chapter of the Prophet’s Letter to Heraclius Inviting Him to Islam (4707). [7] Al-Bayan fi Daf’ Al-Ta’arub Al-Mutahhabi
Bayn Ayat Al-Qur’an, Dr. Muhammad Abu Al-Nur Al-Hadeedi, Al-Amanah Library, Cairo, 1401 AH/1981 AD, pp. 118, 119.
[8] Jami’ Al-Bayan ‘an Ta’wil Ayat Al-Qur’an, Muhammad ibn Jarir Al-Tabari, when interpreting the verse.