English Translation of Al-Quran
[37].Surah As-Saffat (Those Ranged in Ranks)
Ayat 139. And, verily, Yunus AS (Jonah) was one of the Messengers.
Ayat 140. When he ran to the laden ship,
Ayat 141. He (agreed to) cast lots, and he was among the losers,
Ayat 142. Then a (big) fish swallowed him and he had done an act worthy of blame.
Ayat 143. Had he not been of them who glorify Allah,
Ayat 144. He would have indeed remained inside its belly (the fish) till the Day of Resurrection.
Ayat 145. But Allah cast him forth on the shore while he was sick,
Ayat 146. And Allah caused a plant of gourd to grow over him.
Ayat 147. And Allah sent him to a hundred thousand (people) or even more.
Ayat 148. And they believed; so Allah gave them enjoyment for a while.
Tafseer of Surah As-Saffat (Those Ranged in Ranks) Ayat 139 to 148. So also was Jonah AS among those sent (by Allah). For illustrative passages, see 21:87-88, and 68:48-50. Jonah’s mission was to the city of Nineveh, then steeped in wickedness. He was rejected and he denounced Allah’s wrath on them, but they repented and obtained Allah’s forgiveness. But Jonah AS “departed in wrath” (21:87), forgetting that Allah has Mercy as well as forgiveness. See the notes following, Cf. 10:98. When he ran away (like a slave from captivity) to the ship (fully) laden, Jonah ran away from Nineveh like a slave from captivity. He should have stuck to his post and merged his own will in Allah’s Will. He was hasty, and went off to take a ship. As if he could escape from Allah’s Plan! 141. He (agreed to) cast lots, and he was condemned: The ship was fully laden and met foul weather. The sailors, according to their superstition, wanted to find out who was responsible for the ill-luck: a fugitive slave would cause such ill-luck. The lot fell on Jonah, and he was cast off. 142. Then the big Fish did swallow him, and he had done acts worthy of blame. The rivers of Mesopotamia have some huge fishes. If it were in an open northern sea, it might be a whale. The locality is not mentioned: in the Old Testament he is said to have taken a ship in the port of Joppa (now Jaffa ) in the Mediterranean (Jonah. 1:3), which would be not less than 600 miles from Nineveh . The Tigris River, mentioned by some of our Commentators, is more likely, and it contains some fishes of extraordinary size. 143. Had it not been that he (repented and) glorified Allah, “But he cried through the depths of darkness, ‘There is no god but Thee; glory to Thee! I was indeed wrong!” (21:87). 144. He would certainly have remained inside the Fish till the Day of Resurrection. This is just an idiom. This was to be the burial and the grave of Jonah. If he had not repented, he could not have gotten out of the body of the creature that had swallowed him, until the Day of Resurrection, when all the dead would be raised up. 145. But Allah cast him forth on the shore in a state of sickness, Cf. 37:89 above. His strange situation might well have caused him to be ill. He wanted fresh air and solitude. He got both in the open plain, and the abundantly shady Gourd Plant or some fruitful tree like it gave him both shade and sustenance. The Gourd is a creeper that can spread over any roof or ruined structure. 146. And Allah caused to grow, over him, a spreading plant of the gourd kind. 147. And Allah sent him (on a mission) to a hundred thousand (men) or more. The city of Nineveh was a very large city. The Old Testament says: “Nineveh was an exceedingly great city of three days’ journey. In other words, its circuit was about 45 miles, and its population was over a hundred and twenty thousand inhabitants. 148. And they believed; so, Allah permitted them to enjoy (their life) for a while. They repented and believed, and Nineveh got a new lease of life. For the dates to which Jonah maybe referred, and the vicissitudes of the City’s history as the seat of the Assyrian Empire, The lessons from Jonah’s story are: (1) that no man should take upon himself to judge of Allah’s wrath or Allah’s mercy; (2) that nevertheless Allah forgives true repentance, whether in a righteous man, or in a wicked city; and (3) that Allah’s Plan will always prevail, and can never be defeated.
English Translation of Hadith
Hazrat Abdullah bin `Umar bin Al-Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ [SAWW](PBUH) said, “Allah accepts a slave’s repentance as long as the latter is not on his deathbed (that is, before the soul of the dying person reaches the throat)”.
[At-Tirmidhi, Hadith # 3537]
Lesson: as mentioned above in Surah As-Saffat Ayat 143. Had he not been of them who glorify Allah” The word Ghargharah means the stage when the soul is about to leave the body and reaches the throat. In other words, the time when one suffers the agony of death.