In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
They could be compelled to believe if Allah so willed At the beginning of the explanation of Surat Al-Baqarah we discussed the letters which appear at the beginning of some Surahs. Allah's saying:
(These are the Ayat of the Book Mubin.) means, these are the verses of the Clear Qur'an, i.e. the clear and unambiguous Book which distinguishes between truth and falsehood, misguidance and guidance.
(It may be that you are going Bakhi` yourself,) means, destroy yourself -- because of your keenness that they should be guided and your grief for them.
(that they do not become believers.) Here Allah is consoling His Messenger for the lack of faith of those among the disbelievers who do not believe in him. This is like the Ayat:
(So destroy not yourself in sorrow for them) (35:8).
(Perhaps, you would Bakhi` yourself, over their footsteps, because they believe not in this narration) (18:6). Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Qatadah, `Atiyyah, Ad-Dahhak, Al-Hasan and others said that:
(It may be that you are going Bakhi` yourself,) means, `kill yourself.' Then Allah says:
(If We will, We could send down to them from the heaven a sign, to which they would bend their necks in humility.) meaning, `if We so willed, We could send down a sign that would force them to believe, but We will not do that because We do not want anyone to believe except by choice.' Allah says:
(And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed, all of them together. So, will you then compel mankind, until they become believers.) (10:99)
(And if your Lord had so willed, He could surely, have made mankind one Ummah...) (11:118) But Allah's will has acted, His decree has come to pass, and His proof has been conveyed to mankind by mission of Messengers and the revelation of Books to them. Then Allah says:
(And never comes there unto them a Reminder as a recent revelation from the Most Gracious, but they turn away therefrom.) meaning, every time a Scripture comes from heaven to them, most of the people turn away from it. As Allah says:
(And most of mankind will not believe even if you desire it eagerly.) (12:103)
(Alas for mankind! There never came a Messenger to them but they used to mock at him.) (36:30)
(Then We sent Our Messengers in succession. Every time there came to a nation their Messenger, they denied him...) (23:44). Allah says here:
(So, they have indeed denied, then the news of what they mocked at will come to them.) meaning, they denied the truth that came to them, so they will come to know the news of the consequences of this denial after a while.
(And those who do wrong will come to know by what overturning they will be overturned) (26:227). Then Allah tells those who dared to oppose His Messenger and disbelieve in His Book, that He is the Subduer, the Almighty, the All-Powerful, Who created the earth and caused every good kind of crop, fruit and animal to grow therein. Sufyan Ath-Thawri narrated from a man from Ash-Sha`bi that people are a product of the earth. So whoever enters Paradise is good and noble, and whoever enters Hell is base and vile.
(Verily, in this is an Ayah,) meaning an evidence of the power of the Creator of all things. He spread out the earth and raised the canopy of the heavens, yet despite that the majority of people do not believe, rather they deny Him, His Messengers, and His Books, and they go against His commands doing the things He had prohibited. His saying:
(And verily your Lord, He is truly the All-Mighty,) means, the One Who has power over all things, to subdue and control them,
(the Most Merciful. ) means, towards His creation, for He does not hasten to punish the one who sins, but He gives him time to repent, and if he does not, then He seizes him with a mighty punishment. Abu Al-`Aliyah, Qatadah, Ar-Rabi` bin Anas and Ibn Ishaq said: "He is Almighty in His punishment of those who went against His commands and worshipped others besides Him." Sa`id bin Jubayr said: "He is Most Merciful towards those who repent to Him and turn to Him."