سورة النساء

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Samaʿa said: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said regarding the verse فَکَیْفَ إِذَا جِئْنَا مِن کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَجِئْنَا بِکَ عَلَی هَؤُلَاءِ شَهِیدًا [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these?]: 'This verse was revealed specifically concerning the Ummah of Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family). In every era, an Imam from among us is a witness over [the deeds of] the people, and Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) is, in all eras, a witness over us.'

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Abdullah ibn Walid Salman said: Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said to me: "O Abdullah! What do the Shia say about Ali, Musa and Isa?" I said: "In what respect are you asking?" He said: "Regarding their knowledge, for in terms of virtue they are equal." I said: "May I be your ransom, how should I speak about them, what is correct?" He said: "By Allah, Ali (peace be upon him) is more knowledgeable than them." Then he said: "Do they not say that Ali (peace be upon him) possesses the knowledge of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family)?" I said: "Yes." He said: "Then argue with them in this matter thus: Allah says regarding Musa (peace be upon him): وَ کَتَبْنا لَهُ فِی الْأَلْواحِ مِنْ کُلِّ شَیْءٍ [And We wrote for him on the Tablets of everything] (Al-A'raf/145). This verse informs us that He did not teach him all matters, but Allah says regarding Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family): وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً وَ نَزَّلْنا عَلَیْکَ الْکِتابَ تِبْیاناً لِکُلِّ شَیْءٍ [And We have brought you as a witness against these, and We have sent down upon you the Book as a clarification of everything]."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Razin ibn Hubaysh said: I heard Imam Ali (peace be upon him) say: "... It was asked: 'O Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), who is this wali?' The Prophet said: 'Your wali in this time is me, and after me my successor, and after my successor, in every age they are the proofs (hujjahs) of Allah' ... Only he who knows them and whom they know enters Paradise, and whoever denies them and whom they deny enters the Fire of Hell; for the servants (know the Imams. When Allah took the covenant from them (the servants) to obey the Imams, He introduced them to the servants and described them in His Book thus: وَ عَلَی الْأَعْرافِ رِجالٌ یَعْرِفُونَ کُلًّا بِسِیماهُمْ [And on the heights are men who know all by their marks] (Al-A'raf/46). These are the witnesses over the people, and the Prophets, according to the covenant that Allah took for obedience to them, are witnesses over the Imams and awsiya (successors). Allah says in this regard: فَکَیْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً یَوْمَئِذٍ یَوَدُّ الَّذِینَ کَفَرُوا وَ عَصَوُا الرَّسُولَ لَوْ تُسَوَّی بِهِمُ الْأَرْضُ وَ لا یَکْتُمُونَ اللهَ حَدِیثاً [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these? On that Day those who disbelieved and disobeyed the Messenger will wish that the earth were leveled with them, and they will not conceal from Allah any statement]."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): According to this verse which says: فَکَیْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these?], the Prophets (are the witnesses [and the proof of Allah] over the people of their communities, and our Prophet is the witness and proof over all the Prophets, and Ali (peace be upon him) is the witness over the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), and Ali (peace be upon him) himself is a witness over himself.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Abu Ma'mar al-Sa'di said: Imam Ali (peace be upon him) said in describing the Day of Resurrection: "They will be gathered in a place where all creation will be made to speak, and no one will speak except the one to whom the Most Merciful gives permission and who speaks correctly. Then the Messengers will be made to stand and be questioned, and this is the saying of Allah to Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family): فَکَیْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these?]. And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) is the witness over the witnesses, and the witnesses are the Messengers."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): Just as Allah sent revelation to Nuh (peace be upon him) and the Prophets after him, and just as He sent revelation to Musa and Isa (peace be upon them), He sent revelation to him (Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family)), and he also confirmed the revelation of Allah and delivered His message, and I bear witness to this. Allah the Blessed and Exalted has said: فَکَیْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these?], and He also said: کَفی بِاللهِ شَهِیداً بَیْنِی وَ بَیْنَکُمْ وَ مَنْ عِنْدَهُ عِلْمُ الْکِتابِ [Allah, and whoever has knowledge of the Book, is sufficient as a witness between me and you] (Ra'd/43). Allah the Exalted has spoken truly and has granted him the means of advancement toward Allah. Then He said: "O you who have believed, fear Allah and be with the truthful" (Tawbah/119). By Allah, we are the truthful and the honest, and I am the brother of the Prophet in this world and the Hereafter, and I am the witness on his behalf over the people.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Abu Basir said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about the verse: فَکَیْفَ إِذَا جِئْنَا مِن کُلِّ أمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَجِئْنَا بِکَ علَی هَؤُلاء شَهِیدًا [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these?]. He said: "On the Day of Resurrection, the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) will bring from every nation the witness of that nation, who is the successor (wasi) of the Prophet of that nation, and [the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) will say:] 'O Ali (peace be upon him)! I bring you as the witness over my nation.'"

Imam Husayn (peace be upon him): I never entered upon my noble father without finding him weeping (out of fear of Allah). And he said: My noble grandfather wept intensely when this verse was revealed: فَکَیْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً [How, then, will it be when We bring from every people a witness and bring you, O Prophet, as a witness against this ummah]. So, O people, look well: how the witness weeps while you people, who are the ones witnessed against, laugh. By Allah, if it were not for ignorance, no one would open their lips in laughter. It is truly astonishing that people rise in the morning and enter the night while not being in control of themselves, and they do not know what events they will face — sometimes the blessing of wealth or bodily health is stripped from them, and sometimes they are seized by sudden death — and despite all this, they open their lips in laughter! As if they do not have ahead of them a Day equal to fifty thousand (worldly) years, in which children grow old from its terror and horror, the great ones become senseless, and pregnant women miscarry. إِنَّا لِلهِ وَ إِنَّا إِلَیْهِ راجِعُونَ [Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we shall return].

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): We are the witnesses over our Shia, and our Shia are witnesses over the people, and other people receive their reward and punishment through the testimony of our Shia.

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) said to Ibn Mas'ud: "Recite the Quran to me." Ibn Mas'ud says: "I opened Surah al-Nisa and recited, and when I reached the verse فَکَیْفَ إِذا جِئْنا مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَ جِئْنا بِکَ عَلی هؤُلاءِ شَهِیداً [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these], I saw tears flowing from both eyes of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family). He said to me: "That is enough." And he said: "Recite the Quran in such a way that your hearts grow familiar with it and it blends with your skin and flesh; for if your recitation of the Quran is different from these qualities, you are not really reciting the Quran at all."

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): The awsiya (successors) are the masters of the Sirat (path), standing upon it. No one enters Paradise except one whom the awsiya know and who knows them, and no one enters Hell except one who denies the awsiya and whom they do not know. For Allah has described them in His Book and says: "They recognise everyone by their marks." (al-A'raf/46). He appointed them as witnesses over their followers, and the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) as witness over them; He took from the servants the covenant of obedience to the Prophet and the awsiya. So his prophethood applied to them as well. In the noble verse it is stated: فَکَیْفَ إِذَا جِئْنَا مِن کُلِّ أمَّةٍ بِشَهِیدٍ وَجِئْنَا بِکَ علَی هَؤُلاء شَهِیدًا [How will it be, then, when We bring from every people a witness and bring you as a witness against these].