The
tafsīr
of al-Qurṭubī is perhaps one of the most compendious of them all and is certainly among the most famous. As its title,
al-Jāmi' li Aḥkām al-Qur'ān
- The General Judgments of the Qur'an, suggests, its main focus is on the rulings and judgments to be found in the Qur'ān. However, in the course of doing that, al-Qurṭubī examines all the relevant sciences necessary, such as the
ḥadīth
pertaining to the
āyahs
, events in the
sīrah,
what the Companions, their Followers and other noted people of knowledge said about the
, essential aspects of Arabic etymology, syntax and usage, copiously illustrated by examples, and much more.
In this volume, comprising the bulk of Sūrat an-Nisā' - from
āyat
s
23 - 176, there are many matters to do with the rights of women, marriage and divorce, marital relations and disputes and their resolution, and the laws of inheritance, but also jihad, a key
āyah
on governance, hypocrisy and
īmān
, and about 'Īsā the son of Maryam, peace be upon him, and the People of the Book.