Was it for this that thou assembled us?

Was it for this that thou assembled us?" It was at that moment that this Surah was revealed, saying: "May the hands of Abu Lahab perish, may he (himself) perish". the danger and enmity of Abu Lahab and his wife was not limited only to that action. They were the worst people of that time and the most habitual enemies of early Islam. That is why the Qur'an clearly and scornfully reproaches them. Some other details will be pointed out later, Allah willing.

“And his wife, the bearer of the firewood,” 5. “Upon her neck a rope of twisted palm-fibre.” Perish the Hands of Abu Lahab! As it was said in the 'Occasion of Revelation of the Surah', this Surah is, indeed, an answer to the disgraceful words of Abu Lahab; the Prophet's uncle and the son of Abdul Muttalib. Among those people he was one of the strongest enemies of Islam.

When he heard the clear, general invitation of the holy Messenger of Allah (S) and his warning of the punishment of Allah, he said: "Perdition to thee! Was it for this, that thou assembled us?" then, the Holy Qur'an answers him: "May the hands of Abu Lahab perish, may he (himself) perish.” The terms /tab/ and /tabab/, as Raqib cites in Mufradat, mean 'the constant loss', but Tabarsi cites in Majma'-al-Bayan' that 'the meaning is a loss which leads to perdition’.

Some of the philologists have rendered it to mean 'to cut' which, perhaps, is for the reason that a constant loss naturally leads to a stop. However, from all these meanings it is concluded that it is the same meaning that was said in the verse. Of course, this perdition may refer to this world or to the spiritual world or both of them. Why does the Holy Qur'an, inspite of its common style, mention Abu Lahab, so strongly scorned, by name?

To make the answer of this question clear, Abu Lahab should be introduced. Abu Lahab, i.e. the Father of the Flames, whose name was 'Abdul-'Uzza and means the servant of the idol 'Uzza, was a man of fiery temperament with a reddish face.