Transliteration:( Wa warisa Sulaimaanu Daawooda wa qaala yaaa aiyuhan naasu 'ullimnaa mantiqat tairi wa ooteenaa min kulli shai'in inna haazaa lahuwal fadlul mubeen )
16. And Solomon inherited David [32] and said, "O people, we have been taught the language of the birds [33], and we have been given everything [34]. Indeed, this is a clear favor [35]."
The tafsir of Surah Naml verse 16 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Naml ayat 15 which provides the complete commentary from verse 16 through 19.
(27:16) And Solomon succeeded David[20] and said: “O people, we have been taught the speech of birds[21] and we have been endowed with all kinds of things.[22] Surely this is a conspicuous favour (from Allah).”
20. Succession here does not mean inheritance of wealth and properties, but the succession to the Prophet David (peace be upon him) in the prophethood and vicegerency. For the wealth and possessions, if at all transferred, could not be transferred to the Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him) only, because Prophet David (peace be upon him) had other children also. Therefore, this verse cannot be cited to refute the Hadith reported from the Prophet (peace be upon him), saying, “The inheritance left by us, the Prophets, is not divided as such. Whatever we leave behind is charity.” (Bukhari). And, “There is no heir to a Prophet. Whatever he leaves behind is divided among the needy and the indigent of the Muslims.” (Musnad Ahmad).
The Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him) was the youngest son of the Prophet David (peace be upon him). His Hebrew name Solomon is a synonym of Salim (rightminded, affable). He succeeded the Prophet David (peace be upon him) in 965 B.C. and ruled his kingdom for forty years, till 926 B.C. For other details of his life and works, see (Surah Al-Anbiya, ayat 81) note 74-75. Our commentators have greatly exaggerated the vastness of his kingdom, and have held that he ruled over a large part of the world. The fact, however, is that his kingdom comprised only the present Palestine and Transjordan and a part of Syria.
21. There is no mention in the Bible that the Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him) had been taught speech of the birds and animals, though the Israelite traditions contain a reference to it.
22. That is, “Allah has bestowed on us all sorts of things.” This, however, should not be understood literally; it only means the abundance of the wealth and the means of life granted by Allah. This was not said proudly by Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him) but only to express his gratitude to Allah for His grace and bounty and favors.
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