The Surah was named after this title due to the mention of the word ‘bees’ which occurs in the following verse:
And your
Lord inspired to the bee, “Take for yourself among the mountains,
houses, and among the trees and [in] that which they construct. (An-Nahl 16:68)
Period of Revelation
The surah was revealed during the last Makkan stage of Prophethood.
Like all surahs revealed in Makkah, it discusses the main topics of
faith, such as God’s oneness, revelation and resurrection. But it also
refers to a number of secondary topics, such as the essential unity
between Abraham’s faith and the faith preached by Muhammad (peace be
upon them both). It outlines the true nature of God’s will, and mentions
the human will with regard to accepting or denying the true faith,
following divine guidance or going astray.
Theme of the Surah
All the topics of the surah revolve round different aspects of the message, i.e., refutation of shirk (polytheism), proof of tawhid (monotheism), and warning of the consequences of the rejection of and opposition and antagonism to the message.
Topics of the Surah
1- The surah sounds like a massive campaign aimed at profoundly
influencing people’s hearts and minds. It is a campaign that uses a
moderate rhythm with several coherent sounds.
2- It portrays every aspect of the whole universe, looks at the
present life and the life to come, as well as secrets of the universe
and what is beyond the reach of our faculties of perception.
3- The surah also highlights a number of great natural phenomena,
reflecting the greatness of creation, God’s bounty, His knowledge and
elaborates planning.
4- The objections, doubts, pseudo-arguments and pretexts of the unbelievers are taken up, one by one, and repudiated.
5- The Prophet (peace be on him) and his Companions are being
consoled and encouraged. They are also being told how they should face
the campaign of opposition and persecution launched by the unbelievers.
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