“And you do not ask them for any reward for it; it (the Qur’an) is no other than a reminder for all mankind.”
In other words, remember what is the conclusion of Yūsuf.
Why is Allāh ‘azza wa jall going into this conclusion?
Allāh ‘azza wa jall is linking the sūrah to the message of our Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam).
He is linking the stories to the life and times of Rasūlullāh (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and is telling the people:
“Where do you think this sūrah is coming from?
Where do you think this Qur’ān is coming from?
You did not know these stories.
The story of Yūsuf and his brothers was unknown to you, and it is an accurate story that is being revealed in the most eloquent language to an illiterate, unlettered man.
Where did it come from?”
Then Allāh is proving the fact that this is a book from Allāh and is saying,
“Your sincerity is clear.
You have no motivation.”
Now Allāh gets to the issue of motivation.
It is human nature that we do everything for a motive. Everything that we do has a motive to it.
You go to work for a reason.
You do everything in your life for a reason.
Even in a court of law, if you establish certain evidence, you also have to say what is his motive for the crime and why he did it because it is human nature that there is a motive for everything that is done.
Allāh ‘azza wa jall in this āyah is challenging the people to think why would a man start to go against his whole nation and preach a doctrine that will bring about initial persecution and humiliation.
What is in it for him?
Does he want power?
Does he want prestige?
What prestige is he What is his motivation?
Do you think he wants money?
He is not asking you for money.
This is one of the Sunan of Allāh ‘azza wa jall. Rasūl has sunan. Allāh’s Sunan are mentioned in the Qur’ān.
What is the Sunan of Allāh?
Allāh has a custom that He shows in humanity.
A part of the custom of Allāh is that the messengers never get any reward in this world.
Every prophet comes and says the same message: “I am not asking you for money.
I am not asking you for power. I am not asking you for any reward.”
Because their motivation has been negated except for sincerity – in other words, any possible motivation has been negated. “I’m not asking you for anything other than this message and call.”
This is why Allāh is saying, “You are not even asking even money from them.”
This is a powerful tool that we can use when we talk about Islam:
go study the life of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and go see for yourself why he would preach this.
What did he gain?
The message is simple, powerful, and rational. The messenger is flawless. What can you say?
“**This is only a dhikr for all of the world.”**
Allāh is saying that this Qur’ān is a dhikr for any category, whether it is humanity versus the jinn or even within humanity there are many different groups.
This Qur’ān is a dhikr.
What does dhikr mean?
Dhikr means a remembrance or a reminder.
The most common names are the Qur’ān and the Kitāb – these two are the most common names in the book of Allah.
The two names are complementary. Qur’ān means that which is recited, and Kitāb means that which is written. The Qur’ān and the Kitāb are complementary because Allāh has promised to preserve the recitation along with preserving the writing.
You always need the recitation along with the Book. The ḥāfiẓ has the Qur’ān and uses the kitāb.
Both are complementary names. One is the recitation and the other is the speech.
The third most common name of the Qur’ān is Dhikr. This is what is used over here.
Dhikr here means that it is meant to remind and meant to bring about something that you already know.
This is a powerful message that the message of the Qur’ān is not unique and you should know it.
What is Allāh saying by using the word dhikr?
By using the word dhikr, Allāh is implying that the basic message of the Qur’ān you should know, and when the Qur’ān comes down, it should remind you of that basic message.
You guys are following this point, right?
The Qur’ān is a dhikr, meaning that it is nothing new.
What is not new?
The basic message that there is One God who is All-Perfect and worthy of being worshipped.
This is a message you don’t need to be taught; you know it already.
How does mankind know this message?
This is why the Qur’ān is called Dhikr because dhikr means it is reminding you of a message you should know.
DHIKIR also means that it is going to remind you over and over and over again.
It is always going to be a reminder and is never going to go away. In another verse. Allāh says in the Qur’ān: “This Qur’ān shall be a dhikr for you and your nation.”
What is the meaning here of dhikr?
One of the meanings is: “This Qur’ān will take you places. You will have an ‘izzah because of this Qur’ān.”
Allāh is saying, “This book will take you places.” That is one of the meanings of dhikr. Dhikr in that context means: you will be remembered and you will leave a legacy because of this book.
These are some of the meanings of dhikr, and Allāh ‘azza wa jall here is saying
“This is a dhikr for all of humanity.”
The fourth most common name is Furqān.
You should memorize these names: Qur’ān, Kitāb, Dhikr, and Furqān.
These are the four most common names of the Qur’ān in the Qur’ān.
Furqān means the criterion. Furqān means that which separates good from evil, truth from falsehood, īmān from kufr.
In this verse, once again, the concluding verses all mean to prove the truthfulness of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and the religion of Islam.
Lesson
We have no excuse to reject the call of the Prophet. He is not asking for anything in return. His conveying of the message is benefiting you only.