And they say, “Why is a sign not sent down to him from his Lord?” So say, “The unseen is only for Allah [to administer], so wait; indeed, I am with you among those who wait.” [Yunus:20]
Some questions are not meant to be answered directly because the intention behind the question is not what is explicitly stated. Below are some notes on the above verse from Imam Alūsi’s Tafseer Ruh al-Ma’ani.
In his tafseer class, Mufti Yusuf Mullan goes through the different interpretations of the above verse provided in Ruh al-Ma’ani. Although the Mufti prefers Ashraf Ali Thanwi’s tafseer on this verse which is different to the below, there were still a few important points to take away from Imam Alūsi’s discussion, one of which was the concept of جواب على الاسلوب الحكيم (jawaab ‘alaa al-usloob-il-hakeem).
Please note that the below is not the final tafseer that Imam Alūsi provides of the above verse. I am just paraphrasing the portion related to the topic of this post – جواب على الاسلوب الحكيم:
The Meccans ask for these signs by way of stubborn rejection. Otherwise, the prophet (may peace be upon him) has already brought clear proofs and astounding miracles, which are superior to and surpass all possible miracles. Especially, the miraculousness of the Qur’an remains for all times until the day of judgement.
If they were just, they would not have needed any miracle other than the prophet himself because he is the greatest miracle of all. Whoever saw him and analysed his circumstances would hardly even doubt that he is the messenger of Allah.
So say, “The unseen is only for Allah [to administer], so wait; indeed, I am with you among those who wait.”
According to al-Tibi, this response to their question is جواب على الاسلوب الحكيم, which means their actual question is ignored and instead something more appropriate is given to them. It’s like the response given to questions about the crescent:
They ask you, [O Muhammad], about the new moons. Say, “They are measurements of time for the people and for Hajj.” [2:189]
Instead of giving an astronomical explanation, the benefits of the waxing and waning of the moon are mentioned, which are what the questioner needs to know.
In the case of the verse from Surah Yunus above, it is an example of جواب على الاسلوب الحكيم because when they asked for miracles despite numerous miracles already existing, it showed that it was not a genuine request. Rather, they were merely asking out of stubborn rejection. So they were given the above response in order to suggest that their question was the question of those who ask for pointless things. By doing that, they become deserving of Allah’s wrath. However, neither the prophet and nor the questioners know when the punishment would descend because it is a matter of the ghayb (unseen). Hence, the below instruction:
So say, “The unseen is only for Allah [to administer], so wait; indeed, I am with you among those who wait.”
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جواب على الاسلوب الحكيم
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Qur'anic Reflections 