Sūrat al-Aʿrāf

سورۃ الاعراف

Sūrat al-Aʿrāf

Introductory Remarks

Friends! We have reached the end of Sūrat al-Anʿām. Pause for a moment and reflect — what was its central message? Throughout it, the command to affirm divine unity (tawḥīd) was proclaimed with great emphasis: serve Allāh; bear every burden for His sake; make your life and your death for Him alone. Know that whoever does good will be rewarded for it; no one can carry another's burden. To die is to come before Allāh's court — He will inform you of what you used to do, good and evil. This world is but a house of testing. Whoever labours well here will go forward in a state of great honour. Whoever strains at every difficulty, finding Allāh near — it is necessary to fear Him, and it is necessary to maintain reliance (tawakkul) upon Him.

Sūrat al-Aʿrāf. This sūra contains two hundred and six (206) verses and was revealed in Mecca.

المص

Alif Lām Mīm Ṣād.

These are among the ḥurūf al-muqaṭṭaʿāt — the abbreviated letters — which are among the mutashābihāt (the ambiguous). The firm view is that Allāh and His Messengerﷺknow their intent (maqṣad). One explanation is that Allāh wishes through them to indicate the religion; others hold they are addressed to all of creation. Some scholars have noted that these letters are a sign that this Book has been revealed — so take it to heart.

كِتَابٌ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ فَلَا يَكُن فِي صَدْرِكَ حَرَجٌ مِّنْهُ لِتُنذِرَ بِهِ وَذِكْرَىٰ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

Kitābun unzila ilayka fa-lā yakun fī ṣadrika ḥarajun minhu li-tundhira bihi wa-dhikrā li-l-muʾminīn.

"A Book has been sent down to you — so let there be no distress in your breast on its account — that you may warn by it, and as a reminder to the believers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:2)

Translation: A book has been revealed to you; let there be no constriction in your heart regarding it. It has been sent down so that you may warn the people by it, and that it may be a reminder to the faithful.

Commentary: Allāh Most High addresses His beloved Prophetﷺ: this Book has been sent down to you; do not feel any discomfort or anxiety about it. Its purpose: warn the people, and let it be a source of remembrance and illumination for the believers. Regarding the address — while it is directed to the Prophetﷺ, in one respect it reaches the hearts of all of creation.

اتَّبِعُوا مَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا مِن دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَاءَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَذَكَّرُونَ

Ittabiʿū mā unzila ilaykum min rabbikum wa-lā tattabiʿū min dūnihi awliyāʾa qalīlan mā tadhakkarūn.

"Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord, and do not follow other patrons besides Him. How little you reflect!" (al-Aʿrāf 7:3)

Translation: Follow what has been sent down to you from your Lord, and do not take patrons and friends other than Him. How seldom do you heed the lesson!

Commentary: Keep to the path commanded — obey, follow, and walk upon the straight way of what Allāh has revealed. Turn away from all other allegiances outside of Allāh. How little you contemplate and take heed! The command "follow" (ittabiʿū) is here directed to the Prophetﷺand, in another sense, to all people.

وَكَم مِّن قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكْنَاهَا فَجَاءَهَا بَأْسُنَا بَيَاتًا أَوْ هُمْ قَائِلُونَ

Wa-kam min qaryatin ahlaknāhā fa-jāʾahā baʾsunā bayātan aw hum qāʾilūn.

"How many a city have We destroyed! Our punishment came upon it by night, or while they were resting at midday." (al-Aʿrāf 7:4)

Translation: How many a town have We destroyed — Our severe punishment came to them by night or while they slept in the afternoon!

Commentary: How many townships are there whose inhabitants We caused to perish — Our terrible chastisement overtook them. The punishment of Allāh falls at unexpected hours: sometimes in the dead of night when people are asleep, sometimes in the drowsy afternoon hours. Sleep and heedlessness are alike: the punishment descends while they are utterly unaware. The lessons of past nations are recounted, and they draw the hearts of those who reflect. What was the cry (daʿwā) of those people when Our punishment reached them? Nothing more than this —

فَمَا كَانَ دَعْوَاهُمْ إِذْ جَاءَهُم بَأْسُنَا إِلَّا أَن قَالُوا إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَالِمِينَ

Fa-mā kāna daʿwāhum idh jāʾahum baʾsunā illā an qālū innā kunnā ẓālimīn.

"Their cry when Our punishment reached them was nothing but: 'Indeed, we were wrongdoers!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:5)

Translation: When Our punishment reached them, all they could say was: "We were indeed wrongdoers!"

Commentary: This is the fate of every people who persist in heedlessness and defiance: when punishment arrives there is nothing left to say, no recourse but to confess. They declared: Innā kunnā ẓālimīn — "Indeed, we were wrongdoers!" The time for repentance and action had passed; only the confession of guilt remained. Consider, O friends: how many peoples are gone — not a trace of their name remains, not a sign (nishān). They were sunk in the sleep of heedlessness, and then —

Commentary (continued): When the punishment of Allāh came to them, their only cry was: "We were wrongdoers." They wrested back no benefit from this admission, for when the door of Allāh's mercy had been open to them, they had turned away. Now the cry of confession arose, but the consequence had already come. What avails such a confession when the time is past?

فَلَنَسْأَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَنَسْأَلَنَّ الْمُرْسَلِينَ

Fa-la-nasʾalanna alladhīna ursila ilayhim wa-la-nasʾalanna al-mursalīn.

"We will surely question those to whom messengers were sent, and We will surely question the messengers themselves." (al-Aʿrāf 7:6)

Translation: We shall certainly question those to whom messengers were sent — whether they heeded the teaching and acted upon it — and We shall question the messengers themselves — whether they conveyed the message.

Commentary: On the Day of Judgement every nation will be questioned about how they responded to the message brought to them, and the messengers will be questioned regarding their conveyance. The questioning has two sides: to those addressed, What did you do with the guidance? and to the Prophets, Did you deliver what was entrusted to you? The answer of the Prophets will be their testimony: they delivered the message fully and faithfully.

فَلَنَقُصَّنَّ عَلَيْهِم بِعِلْمٍ وَمَا كُنَّا غَائِبِينَ

Fa-la-naquṣṣanna ʿalayhim bi-ʿilmin wa-mā kunnā ghāʾibīn.

"We will tell them with full knowledge — We were never absent." (al-Aʿrāf 7:7)

Translation: We shall recount it all before them with full knowledge; We were never absent from any of it.

Commentary: Allāh Most High is fully aware of every act, every moment. Nothing was hidden from His knowledge. Everything will be recounted with precision before those who are questioned. There is no concealment, no escape: Allāh was never absent from what His servants did.

وَالْوَزْنُ يَوْمَئِذٍ الْحَقُّ فَمَن ثَقُلَتْ مَوَازِينُهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ

Wa-l-waznu yawmaʾidhin al-ḥaqqu fa-man thaqulat mawāzīnuhū fa-ūlāʾika humu al-mufliḥūn.

"The weighing on that Day is the truth: whoever's scales are heavy — those are the successful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:8)

Translation: And the weighing of deeds on the Day of Judgement will be the absolute truth. Whoever's scales of good deeds are heavy — those are the triumphant, the truly successful.

Commentary: On the Day of Resurrection, the mīzān al-ʿadl — the scale of divine justice — will be established. There will be no injustice, no error. Those whose scales are weighed down with good deeds — they are the muflihūn, the prosperous, the truly victorious. The scale of Allāh leaves nothing unweighed; every deed, however small, is accounted for.

وَمَنْ خَفَّتْ مَوَازِينُهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ الَّذِينَ خَسِرُوا أَنفُسَهُمْ بِمَا كَانُوا بِآيَاتِنَا يَظْلِمُونَ

Wa-man khaffat mawāzīnuhū fa-ūlāʾika alladhīna khasirū anfusahum bi-mā kānū bi-āyātinā yaẓlimūn.

"And whoever's scales are light — those are the ones who have lost their souls, because they used to do injustice to Our signs." (al-Aʿrāf 7:9)

Translation: And those whose scales are found light — they are the ones who have brought ruin upon themselves, because they persistently wronged Our signs and rejected them.

Commentary: Ẓulm means to place a thing outside its proper station. They put Allāh's signs in the wrong place — they did not recognise them, did not honour them, and contradicted them. The result is the greatest possible loss: the loss of their own souls. O friends, reflect — what a tremendous kindness Allāh has showered upon us! Are we grateful for this order, this life?

وَلَقَدْ مَكَّنَّاكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَجَعَلْنَا لَكُمْ فِيهَا مَعَايِشَ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَشْكُرُونَ

Wa-la-qad makkannākum fī l-arḍi wa-jaʿalnā lakum fīhā maʿāyisha qalīlan mā tashkurūn.

"We established you upon the earth and made for you therein means of livelihood. How little you are grateful!" (al-Aʿrāf 7:10)

Translation: And We settled you upon the earth and made for you therein the means of livelihood — provisions, livelihoods, and arrangements for your sustenance. How little gratitude you show!

Commentary: Allāh Most High gave humanity a place of settlement, provision, and every means of sustenance. He arranged the entire structure of earthly life. Yet the response of most people is ingratitude. They are profoundly ungrateful (nā-shukrī). What an easy matter gratitude would be — yet it is withheld.

وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ صَوَّرْنَاكُمْ ثُمَّ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ لَمْ يَكُن مِّنَ السَّاجِدِينَ

Wa-la-qad khalaqnākum thumma ṣawwarnākum thumma qulnā li-l-malāʾikati asjudū li-Ādama fa-sajadū illā Iblīsa lam yakun min al-sājidīn.

"We created you, then We gave you form, then We said to the angels: 'Prostrate before Ādam.' They prostrated — all except Iblīs; he was not among those who prostrated." (al-Aʿrāf 7:11)

Translation: And it was We who created you, then gave you form and fashioned you, then commanded the angels: "Prostrate before Ādam!" They all prostrated — except Iblīs, who refused to be among those who prostrate.

Commentary: Allāh Most High reminds humanity of His extraordinary favour: He created the human form, fashioned it with dignity, and then commanded the angels to prostrate before Ādam (upon him be peace). All the angels obeyed without hesitation — except Iblīs (may Allāh's curse be upon him), who refused. His refusal was the beginning of the great tragedy that continues to this day.

قَالَ مَا مَنَعَكَ أَلَّا تَسْجُدَ إِذْ أَمَرْتُكَ قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِّنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِي مِن نَّارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِن طِينٍ

Qāla mā manaʿaka allā tasjuda idh amartuka qāla anā khayrun minhu khalaqtanī min nārin wa-khalaqtahū min ṭīn.

"He said: 'What prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?' He said: 'I am better than him. You created me from fire and created him from clay.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:12)

Translation: Allāh the Most High said: "What prevented you from prostrating when I commanded you?" Iblīs said: "I am better than him — You created me from fire, and You created him from clay."

Commentary: O friends! In our age, Iblīs-worship (anbisparast) has become rampant. It cannot be said that Iblīs took on arrogance (kibr) alone as his yoke; he held everything except Allāh in contempt. In this affair, Iblīs committed the most accursed of acts. Allāh's wisdom (ḥikma) gave the command to prostrate before the inferior (mafḍūl) — and Allāh's command to do so was itself Allāh's judgement. To dispute Allāh's wisdom is kufr (disbelief). It is forbidden to consider oneself superior to another based on race or lineage alone; the true standard of worth is ʿibādat (servitude) and ṣalāḥ (righteousness). To compare Allāh's commands against one's own assessment — that is shirk fī l-ʿilm (associating others with Allāh in knowledge). Allāh created Ādam from clay — yes, clay! — and made him the bearer of the divine vicegerency.

Know, O friends, the root of ʿibādat (servitude): it is to be born from dust, to be humble before it. Self-conceit (khud-pandī) departs from servitude; in self-conceit there is shame. Then Iblīs went further and prepared himself to confront Allāh openly — and what is this? It is savagery (darandagī). In his exchange with the angels, he had already lost the contest of grace. To resist Allāh's command upon the exaltation of the favoured (Ādam) became the cause of his downfall.

O friends: self-conceit, arrogance, and pride are among the first sins to have appeared in creation. To consider one's own person superior to another's — this is a form of dhāt-bāzī (ego-play) that was the work of Iblīs. Those who harbour arrogance based on lineage follow Iblīs. Whoever takes pride in his own name, whoever is enflamed by contempt for his origins, whoever considers his family better than others — the true standard is servitude and moral rectitude (ṣalāḥ). Wrong belief and impiety (bisṯārī) are the very marks of the followers of Iblīs.

O friends: acknowledge Allāh. Follow His commands. Act upon His ordinances. The remembrance of Allāh is the lifeblood of guidance:﴿اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ﴾— "Guide us to the straight path, the path of those whom You have blessed, not those upon whom wrath has fallen, nor those who have gone astray."

O friends: in earlier times, prostration before humans was permissible in certain contexts; in the time of Yūsuf (upon him be peace), his parents and brothers prostrated before him, and the angels prostrated before Ādam. But our Prophetﷺ— may Allāh's peace and blessings be upon him — forbade prostration to anyone other than Allāh as a matter of pure monotheism, removing all paths to shirk and kufr. No one can now validly prostrate to any created being. Any practice that our Master the Prophetﷺhas forbidden — committing it is a sin and a violation. Those who confuse gestures of reverence (taʿẓīm) with shirk are in error; gestures of honour and prostration (al-sujūd li-ghayr Allāh) are two distinct matters. The command﴿أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ﴾— "Obey Allāh and obey the Messenger" (al-Nisāʾ 4:59) — and﴿مَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُوا﴾— "Take what the Messenger gives you and refrain from what he forbids you" (al-Ḥashr 59:7) — were always before the Prophets and those who followed them.

قَالَ فَاهْبِطْ مِنْهَا فَمَا يَكُونُ لَكَ أَن تَتَكَبَّرَ فِيهَا فَاخْرُجْ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الصَّاغِرِينَ

Qāla fa-hbiṭ minhā fa-mā yakūnu laka an tatakabbara fīhā fa-khruj innaka min al-ṣāghirīn.

"He said: 'Descend from it! You have no right to be arrogant therein. Get out — you are among the abased.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:13)

Translation: Allāh the Most High said: "Descend from it! It is not your place to act arrogantly here. Get out — you are among those who are debased and lowly."

Commentary: The punishment for arrogance is degradation: Iblīs was cast out of the Garden with humiliation. Allāh Most High has no place for arrogance in His presence. Whoever arrogates himself before Allāh's command will be abased.

قَالَ أَنظِرْنِي إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ

Qāla anẓirnī ilā yawmi yubʿathūn.

"He said: 'Reprieve me until the Day they are raised.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:14)

Translation: Iblīs said: "Grant me respite until the Day when people are resurrected."

Commentary: Even in his state of disgrace and expulsion, Iblīs had the audacity to ask for a deferral. The nature of arrogance is such that it refuses to accept its own abasement.

قَالَ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الْمُنظَرِينَ

Qāla innaka min al-munẓarīn.

"He said: 'You are indeed among those given respite.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:15)

Translation: Allāh Most High said: "You are among those who have been granted respite."

Commentary: Allāh granted Iblīs the respite he requested — a respite that would be used entirely against humanity. The wisdom in this is known to Allāh alone: the trial of this world requires that the tempter be present, so that the steadfast believer may be distinguished.

قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ

Qāla fa-bi-mā aghwaytanī la-aqʿudanna lahum ṣirāṭaka al-mustaqīm.

"He said: 'Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them on Your straight path.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:16)

Translation: Iblīs said: "Because You have led me astray, I will assuredly lie in ambush for them on Your straight path!"

Commentary: Having been granted respite, Iblīs made his declaration of war. He vowed to ambush humanity from every direction on the path that leads to Allāh.

ثُمَّ لَآتِيَنَّهُم مِّن بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ أَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَن شَمَائِلِهِمْ وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ

Thumma la-ātiyannahum min bayni aydīhim wa-min khalfihim wa-ʿan aymānihim wa-ʿan shamāʾilihim wa-lā tajidu aktharahum shākirīn.

"Then I will come at them from before them and from behind them and from their right and from their left. And You will not find most of them grateful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:17)

Translation: Then I shall come at them from in front and behind, from the right and from the left — and You will find most of them ungrateful.

Commentary: O friends! Shayṭān announced that he would attack from every side — blocking their vision of Allāh's mercy descending from above, and their hands held out in supplication. To Allāh Most High it is most beloved that a servant should extend both his hands toward his Master; yet Iblīs tries to prevent this. With his four directions of attack, Shayṭān surrounds his victims. A believer must be vigilant: seek Allāh's protection at every moment; recite Aʿūdhu bi-Llāhi min al-Shayṭāni al-rajīm; make Allāh's commands your constant practice. Then Iblīs and his hosts cannot reach you.

قَالَ اخْرُجْ مِنْهَا مَذْءُومًا مَّدْحُورًا

Qāla ukhruj minhā madʾūman madḥūrā.

"He said: 'Get out from it — condemned and expelled!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:18)

Translation: Allāh Most High said: "Get out from it — despised and expelled, driven away in disgrace!"

لَمَن تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ لَأَمْلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

La-man tabiʿaka minhum la-amlaʾanna jahannam minkum ajmaʿīn.

"Whoever follows you among them — I will fill Hell with all of you together." (al-Aʿrāf 7:18)

Translation: And all those who follow you from among them — I will fill Hell with all of you together!

Commentary: The threat is dire and categorical: those who follow Shayṭān in his enmity toward Allāh will share his destination. The believer is warned to keep clear of Shayṭān's every approach.

[The Story of Ādam and Ḥawwāʾ in the Garden]

وَيَا آدَمُ اسْكُنْ أَنتَ وَزَوْجُكَ الْجَنَّةَ فَكُلَا مِنْ حَيْثُ شِئْتُمَا وَلَا تَقْرَبَا هَٰذِهِ الشَّجَرَةَ فَتَكُونَا مِنَ الظَّالِمِينَ

Wa-yā Ādamu uskun anta wa-zawjuka al-jannata fa-kulā min ḥaythu shiʾtumā wa-lā taqrabā hādhihi al-shajarata fa-takūnā min al-ẓālimīn.

"And: 'O Ādam, dwell — you and your wife — in the Garden, and eat freely from wherever you wish, but do not approach this one tree, lest you become of the wrongdoers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:19)

Translation: And Allāh said: O Ādam! You and your wife dwell in the Garden; eat from wherever you wish — but do not draw near to this tree; if you do, you will become of the wrongdoers.

فَوَسْوَسَ لَهُمَا الشَّيْطَانُ لِيُبْدِيَ لَهُمَا مَا وُورِيَ عَنْهُمَا مِن سَوْآتِهِمَا وَقَالَ مَا نَهَاكُمَا رَبُّكُمَا عَنْ هَٰذِهِ الشَّجَرَةِ إِلَّا أَن تَكُونَا مَلَكَيْنِ أَوْ تَكُونَا مِنَ الْخَالِدِينَ

Fa-waswasa lahumā al-Shayṭānu li-yubdiya lahumā mā wūriya ʿanhumā min sawʾātihimā wa-qāla mā nahākumā rabbukumā ʿan hādhihi al-shajarati illā an takūnā malakayni aw takūnā min al-khālidīn.

"Then Shayṭān whispered to them, to expose what had been concealed from them of their shameful parts, and said: 'Your Lord forbade you this tree only lest you become angels, or become of the immortal.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:20)

Translation: Then Shayṭān whispered insinuations into the hearts of both of them, seeking to reveal to them what had been concealed — their shameful parts — and he said: "Your Lord has forbidden you this tree only so that you do not become two angels, or become of those who live for ever."

Commentary: Shayṭān cast whispers (waswasā) into both of their hearts — the whispering of deception. He tried to expose what they had been protected from seeing. And he said to them: "Your Lord has forbidden you this tree for fear (makhāfatan) that you become angels or immortals." He painted the prohibition as something sinister, something that deprived them of a higher station.

وَقَاسَمَهُمَا إِنِّي لَكُمَا لَمِنَ النَّاصِحِينَ

Wa-qāsamahumā innī lakumā la-min al-nāṣiḥīn.

"And he swore to them: 'Indeed, I am for you both among the sincere advisors.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:21)

Translation: And he swore to them: "Indeed, I am truly one of your sincere well-wishers."

Commentary: And Shayṭān swore a great oath before them that he was their sincere adviser. What lying guile! He presented himself as their well-wisher in order to destroy them.

فَدَلَّاهُمَا بِغُرُورٍ فَلَمَّا ذَاقَا الشَّجَرَةَ بَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْآتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ الْجَنَّةِ وَنَادَاهُمَا رَبُّهُمَا أَلَمْ أَنْهَكُمَا عَن تِلْكُمَا الشَّجَرَةِ وَأَقُل لَّكُمَا إِنَّ الشَّيْطَانَ لَكُمَا عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ

Fa-dallāhumā bi-ghurūrin fa-lammā dhāqā al-shajarata badat lahumā sawʾātuhimā wa-ṭafiqā yakhṣifāni ʿalayhimā min waraq al-jannati wa-nādāhumā rabbuhimā a-lam anha-kumā ʿan tilkumā al-shajarati wa-aqul lakumā inna al-shayṭāna lakumā ʿaduwwun mubīn.

"So he lured them on by deception. When they tasted the tree, their shameful parts were exposed to them, and they began to cover themselves with the leaves of the Garden. And their Lord called out to them: 'Did I not forbid you both from that tree, and tell you that Shayṭān is a manifest enemy to you?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:22)

Translation: Shayṭān cast them both into the well of deception — like a bucket (dalw) lowered by a rope, he used deception as his rope. When they tasted from the tree, their shameful parts became visible to them; they began to stitch together leaves of the Garden to cover themselves. And their Lord called out to them: "Did I not forbid you both from that tree and tell you that Shayṭān is to you both a manifest enemy?"

Commentary: With consummate deception Shayṭān achieved his goal. Once they tasted the forbidden fruit, they experienced the immediate consequence — their covering was stripped away. The Garden of shame (ḥayāʾ) was their natural state; its removal was the first sign of the fall. They scrambled to cover themselves with leaves. Then came the divine call — gentle, yet reproachful: "Did I not tell you? Did I not warn you?" The Creator's warning had been given; they had been told that Shayṭān was a clear and open enemy.

قَالَا رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ

Qālā rabbanā ẓalamnā anfusanā wa-in lam taghfir lanā wa-tarḥamnā la-nakūnanna min al-khāsirīn.

"They said: 'Our Lord! We have wronged our own souls. If You do not forgive us and have mercy on us, we shall assuredly be among the losers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:23)

Translation: Both of them said — Ādam and Ḥawwāʾ — in their supplication: "Our Lord! We have wronged ourselves. If You do not forgive us and have mercy on us, we shall indeed be among the losers."

Commentary: This is the beautiful adab (spiritual etiquette) of repentance demonstrated by our father Ādam (upon him be peace). He did not dispute with Allāh, did not argue or offer excuses — he immediately acknowledged: Ẓalamnā anfusanā — "We have wronged our own souls." He sought the mercy of Allāh at once. O friends! Let us imitate our forefather in his manner: in our prayer (duʿāʾ) we too say Rabbanā ẓalamnā anfusanā — "Our Lord! We have wronged our souls; if You do not forgive us and have mercy on us, we shall indeed be among the losers."

قَالَ اهْبِطُوا بَعْضُكُمْ لِبَعْضٍ عَدُوٌّ وَلَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ مُسْتَقَرٌّ وَمَتَاعٌ إِلَىٰ حِينٍ

Qāla hbiṭū baʿḍukum li-baʿḍin ʿaduwwun wa-lakum fī l-arḍi mustaqarrun wa-matāʿun ilā ḥīn.

"He said: 'Descend! You are enemies one to another. For you on the earth is a dwelling-place and enjoyment for a time.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:24)

Translation: Allāh said: "Descend — all of you — some of you enemies to others. And on the earth you shall have a dwelling-place and a means of enjoyment for an appointed time."

Commentary: O friends, reflect: where is a friend like this to be found? In the imagination, such a friend; in reality, a friend exists only in the mind — or like a bird sitting in imagination, flying away into the distance. A true friend is not disgraced by disgrace. Let me tell you one thing — most people complain of others' fidelity; yet are you yourself a true friend to anyone? You speak of others' betrayal with your own mouth — yet your own faithfulness is nowhere. If others come to your aid, yet you do not help them in return — a friend who harms is no friend. Honour is repaid with honour. Is this not so? I do all the service and all the labour, while everyone else serves only me. Allāh the Great! How much more do we demand than what we give! Among nations, discord and warfare have spread; among individuals, self-serving and separation have grown; peace and security are lost; harmony has gone.

(The author here inserts a few lines of Urdu verse on the theme of faithlessness in friendship, including a couplet attributed to Ḥasrat:)

(1) In friendship, close as kin, tied by bonds of children and spouses — all these intimacies are there

(2) When pure self-interest calls, the friend becomes a stranger

(3) The one who makes another his means, abandons him once his purpose is served — (Ḥasrat)

wa-lakum fī l-arḍi mustaqarrun — for you on the earth there is a dwelling-place for a little while. Wa-matāʿun ilā ḥīn — and an enjoyment of life until an appointed time.

Translation: Allāh Most High said: "Descend! Now you will be enemies to one another. And on the earth you shall dwell for a little while and draw benefit from it — until the time comes when you must die and return to Allāh."

قَالَ فِيهَا تَحْيَوْنَ وَفِيهَا تَمُوتُونَ وَمِنْهَا تُخْرَجُونَ

Qāla fīhā taḥyawna wa-fīhā tamūtūna wa-minhā tukhrajūn.

"He said: 'Therein you shall live, and therein you shall die, and from it you shall be brought forth.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:25)

Translation: Allāh said: "In it you shall live, in it you shall die, and from it you shall be raised up and brought forth."

Commentary: Your living and your dying — all of it is on this earth. Do not think you will remain in this world for ever; do not imagine no one will ever call you to account. Those who do good will enter the Garden; those who do evil will go to the Fire. O friends, all of us should follow the way of our forefather — crying out in supplication as he did: Rabbanā ẓalamnā anfusanā wa-in lam taghfir lanā wa-tarḥamnā la-nakūnanna min al-khāsirīn.

Translation (of vv. 24–25): Allāh Most High gave the command: "Descend! You and your children will dwell on the earth for your years; you shall die in it, and from it you shall be brought forth" — thereafter to the presence of Allāh.

يَا بَنِي آدَمَ قَدْ أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْكُمْ لِبَاسًا يُوَارِي سَوْآتِكُمْ وَرِيشًا وَلِبَاسُ التَّقْوَىٰ ذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ آيَاتِ اللَّهِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَذَّكَّرُونَ

Yā banī Ādama qad anzalnā ʿalaykum libāsan yuwārī sawʾātikum wa-rīshan wa-libāsu al-taqwā dhālika khayrun dhālika min āyāti Allāhi laʿallahum yadhdhakkarūn.

"O children of Ādam! We have sent down upon you garments to cover your shameful parts, and as adornment. But the garment of taqwā — that is best. That is one of Allāh's signs, so that they may reflect." (al-Aʿrāf 7:26)

Translation: O children of Ādam! We have sent down upon you clothing to conceal your shameful parts and as an adornment — rīsh (plumage, i.e., fine garments and beauty). But the garment of taqwā (God-consciousness and piety) — that is the best. This is one of the signs of Allāh, so that they may reflect.

Commentary: O friends! In one age, garments were a sign of honour and dignity. Today in cities, men and women go about in the barest and most immodest fashion — modesty (parda) is being discarded and exposed as something shameful. Men and women are mixed together and plunged into pools and festivals of immorality — and some places offer women entry only on the condition that they come unveiled. What has become of clothing? Men have shaved their heads and go about, or they hang around doing nothing — it is all laid bare. And the finest of garments? ʿĀriyātun kāsiyātun — clad yet naked. Good sense, it seems, is being discarded; people are racing each other to expose themselves. Those who say that the garments of old are outdated — what do they make of this?

The garment of taqwā — that is far better. Only when taqwā is present does one's outer state improve. Everything begins from within — and dhikr is the straight path. (Reconstructed from garbled commentary)

Translation: O children of Ādam! We have sent down upon you clothing to cover what is shameful and as a fine adornment (rīsh). But the garment of taqwā — that is better. This is of the signs of Allāh — so that they may reflect.

يَا بَنِي آدَمَ لَا يَفْتِنَنَّكُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ كَمَا أَخْرَجَ أَبَوَيْكُم مِّنَ الْجَنَّةِ يَنزِعُ عَنْهُمَا لِبَاسَهُمَا لِيُرِيَهُمَا سَوْآتِهِمَا إِنَّهُ يَرَاكُمْ هُوَ وَقَبِيلُهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا تَرَوْنَهُمْ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا الشَّيَاطِينَ أَوْلِيَاءَ لِلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ

Yā banī Ādama lā yaftinannakumu al-Shayṭānu kamā akhraja abawayku min al-jannati yanziʿu ʿanhumā libāsahumā li-yuriyahumā sawʾātihimā innahu yarākum huwa wa-qabīluhu min ḥaythu lā tarawnahum innā jaʿalnā al-shayāṭīna awliyāʾa li-lladhīna lā yuʾminūn.

"O children of Ādam! Do not let Shayṭān tempt you, as he expelled your parents from the Garden, stripping them of their garments to show them their shameful parts. He and his tribe see you from where you cannot see them. Indeed, We have made the shayāṭīn the allies of those who do not believe." (al-Aʿrāf 7:27)

Translation: O children of Ādam! Do not let Shayṭān put you to trial as he expelled your mother and father from the Garden — stripping away their garments, exposing their shameful parts, bringing them to nakedness and disgrace. He and his whole tribe see you from where you cannot see them. Truly, We have made the shayāṭīn the patrons of those who do not believe.

Commentary: O friends! Ponder well over Shayṭān and his nature. The unbelievers are the allies and helpers of Shayṭān. He is your ancestral enemy — the ancient foe. To be saved from this enemy requires great intellect and great caution, for his malice is extraordinary. Seek refuge with Allāh from him; recite Aʿūdhu bi-Llāhi min al-Shayṭāni al-rajīm. Become Allāh's servant; obey His commands. Devote yourself to Allāh so that Shayṭān's whisperings cannot harm you. Make the Prophetﷺand the noble awliyāʾ (saints) your guide and your path —﴿فَأُولَٰئِكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِم مِّنَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَالصِّدِّيقِينَ﴾

"…those will be in the company of those upon whom Allāh has bestowed favour, of the Prophets and the truly sincere…"﴿وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَالصَّالِحِينَ وَحَسُنَ أُولَٰئِكَ رَفِيقًا﴾— "and the martyrs and the righteous — and what excellent companions those are!" (al-Nisāʾ 4:69). Those who obey Allāh and His Messenger will be in the company of those upon whom Allāh has bestowed His favour — the Prophets, the ṣiddīqūn, the shuhadāʾ, and the ṣāliḥūn. Whoever is in their company — how good a companion he will find! Whatever guide one follows, one can only reach as far as he has gone. Know: "Ikhlaṣ" — purity of intention — is protected from Shayṭān; the sincere servants (al-mukhlaṣīn) are beyond his reach.

Now the author speaks of Shayṭān's disciples and their excuses:

وَإِذَا فَعَلُوا فَاحِشَةً قَالُوا وَجَدْنَا عَلَيْهَا آبَاءَنَا وَاللَّهُ أَمَرَنَا بِهَا قُلْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَأْمُرُ بِالْفَحْشَاءِ أَتَقُولُونَ عَلَى اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

Wa-idhā faʿalū fāḥishatan qālū wajadnā ʿalayhā ābāʾanā wa-Allāhu amaranā bihā qul inna Allāha lā yaʾmuru bi-l-faḥshāʾi a-taqūlūna ʿalā Allāhi mā lā taʿlamūn.

"And when they commit an indecency, they say: 'We found our fathers doing this, and Allāh commanded it of us.' Say: 'Indeed, Allāh does not command indecency. Do you say about Allāh what you do not know?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:28)

Translation: And when Shayṭān's followers commit some act of shamelessness and obscenity, they say: "We found our fathers doing this, and Allāh commanded it of us." Say, O Prophet: "Allāh does not command indecency! How dare you attribute to Allāh what you do not know?"

قُلْ أَمَرَ رَبِّي بِالْقِسْطِ وَأَقِيمُوا وُجُوهَكُمْ عِندَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ وَادْعُوهُ مُخْلِصِينَ لَهُ الدِّينَ كَمَا بَدَأَكُمْ تَعُودُونَ

Qul amara rabbī bi-l-qisṭi wa-aqīmū wujūhakum ʿinda kulli masjiding wa-dʿūhu mukhliṣīna lahu al-dīn kamā badaʾakum taʿūdūn.

"Say: 'My Lord has commanded justice. Set your faces upright at every mosque, and call upon Him with sincere devotion in religion. Just as He created you, so you will return.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:29)

Translation: Say: "My Lord has commanded justice — giving every right to its rightful owner: Allāh's right to Allāh, and the rights of servants to servants." Set your faces upright at every house of worship — direct yourselves toward Allāh, come to Him, call upon Him with ikhlāṣ (sincerity) and complete obedience, just as He first created you, so you shall return.

Commentary: Prayer (ṣalāt) should be performed at the mosque with full concentration, with no letting in of whispers and distractions — do not let heedlessness (ghaflat) enter.﴿إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ تَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنكَرِ﴾— "Verily prayer restrains from obscenity and wickedness." (al-ʿAnkabūt 29:45). Whoever is steadfast in prayer will stand before Allāh's door with humility, will be saved from evil — and call upon Him: wa-dʿūhu — He is Mujīb al-daʿawāt (the Answerer of supplications). Pray with complete sincerity and obedience. Just as He first created you, so He will re-create you after death. The sinner who repents is as one who has not sinned at all (al-tāʾibu min al-dhanbi ka-man lā dhanba lahu, al-Tirmidhī [reconstructed]) — one who truly repents becomes as clean as though he had committed no sin.

Translation (summary): "My Lord commands justice. Be upright in every mosque; supplicate Him with pure sincerity — just as He first created you, you shall return to Him."

فَرِيقًا هَدَىٰ وَفَرِيقًا حَقَّ عَلَيْهِمُ الضَّلَالَةُ إِنَّهُمُ اتَّخَذُوا الشَّيَاطِينَ أَوْلِيَاءَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَيَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّهُم مُّهْتَدُونَ

Farīqan hadā wa-farīqan ḥaqqa ʿalayhimu al-ḍalālatu innahum ittakhadhū al-shayāṭīna awliyāʾa min dūni Allāhi wa-yaḥsabūna annahum muhtadūn.

"A group He guided, and a group — against them misguidance is justly decreed. They took the shayāṭīn as their patrons instead of Allāh, and they think they are guided." (al-Aʿrāf 7:30)

Translation: One group Allāh guides aright; upon another group, misguidance is rightly decreed. They took the shayāṭīn as their friends and protectors instead of Allāh — and they imagine that they are on the right path!

Commentary: Two groups are described: the guided and the misguided. The second group took shayāṭīn as allies and protectors, and they imagine themselves to be rightly guided. Delusion (ghurūr) in misguidance is itself a punishment from Allāh — when a people turn away from Allāh, He allows them to remain in their confusion.

يَا بَنِي آدَمَ خُذُوا زِينَتَكُمْ عِندَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍ وَكُلُوا وَاشْرَبُوا وَلَا تُسْرِفُوا إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُسْرِفِينَ

Yā banī Ādama khudhu zīnatakum ʿinda kulli masjiding wa-kulū wa-ashrabū wa-lā tusrifū innahu lā yuḥibbu al-musrifīn.

"O children of Ādam! Take your adornment at every mosque; eat and drink, but do not be wasteful. Indeed, He does not love those who are wasteful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:31)

Translation: O children of Ādam! Put on your best adornment at every mosque — and eat and drink, but do not be extravagant and wasteful. Indeed, Allāh does not love those who are wasteful.

Commentary: In earlier times, some Arab tribes used to circumambulate the Kaʿba in a state of undress; some women would also do so immodestly. Allāh Most High addressed this: wear your proper garments at every house of worship. Some people eat excessively before prayer, then burp loudly throughout — they eat until their stomach is overwhelmed. Al-butnu sharrun wiʾāʾ — the belly is the worst of vessels [reconstructed from tradition; cf. al-Tirmidhī and Ibn Mājah]. Overeating clouds the heart; the heart's insight disappears with excessive food. Innahū lā yuḥibbu al-musrifīn — Allāh does not love those who waste and squander.

Translation: O children of Ādam! When going to the mosque, adorn yourself properly and be in a state of purity. Eat and drink — but do not be wasteful. Truly, Allāh does not love those who squander.

قُلْ مَنْ حَرَّمَ زِينَةَ اللَّهِ الَّتِي أَخْرَجَ لِعِبَادِهِ وَالطَّيِّبَاتِ مِنَ الرِّزْقِ قُلْ هِيَ لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا خَالِصَةً يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ كَذَٰلِكَ نُفَصِّلُ الْآيَاتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَعْلَمُونَ

Qul man ḥarrama zīnata Allāhi allatī akhraja li-ʿibādihī wa-l-ṭayyibāti min al-rizqi qul hiya li-lladhīna āmanū fī al-ḥayāti al-dunyā khāliṣatan yawma al-qiyāmati kadhālika nufaṣṣilu al-āyāti li-qawmin yaʿlamūn.

"Say: 'Who has forbidden the adornment of Allāh which He brought forth for His servants, and the good things of provision?' Say: 'They are for those who believe, in this worldly life and purely theirs on the Day of Resurrection.' Thus We detail the signs for a people who know." (al-Aʿrāf 7:32)

Translation: Say: "Who has forbidden the adornment of Allāh — that which He created and brought forth for His servants, and the pure and wholesome provisions?" Say: "In this worldly life, these are for the believers as well — though the unbelievers may also use them — and on the Day of Resurrection they will be purely and exclusively for those who believed." Thus We expound Our signs in detail for a people who possess knowledge.

Commentary: The verse rebukes those who invent prohibitions not decreed by Allāh. Some people abandoned meat, grew naked, or declared lawful things as forbidden in a false show of asceticism — Islam does not endorse such innovations. The pure, good things of this world — food, adornment — are given to the believers as gifts from Allāh. In the next life, they will be purely and exclusively theirs; the unbelievers will have no share. Islam's gift is to affirm that you should use good things with shukr (gratitude) and without isrāf (waste) — not to abandon the world but to hold it with proper detachment (zuhd).

قُلْ إِنَّمَا حَرَّمَ رَبِّيَ الْفَوَاحِشَ مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَمَا بَطَنَ وَالْإِثْمَ وَالْبَغْيَ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ وَأَن تُشْرِكُوا بِاللَّهِ مَا لَمْ يُنَزِّلْ بِهِ سُلْطَانًا وَأَن تَقُولُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

Qul innamā ḥarrama rabbiya al-fawāḥisha mā ẓahara minhā wa-mā baṭana wa-l-ithma wa-l-baghya bi-ghayr al-ḥaqqi wa-an tushrikū bi-Llāhi mā lam yunazzil bihi sulṭānan wa-an taqūlū ʿalā Allāhi mā lā taʿlamūn.

"Say: 'My Lord has only forbidden obscenities — both the manifest and the hidden — and sin, and unlawful transgression, and that you associate with Allāh what He sent down no authority for, and that you say about Allāh what you do not know.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:33)

Translation: Say: "My Lord has forbidden only these things: obscenities both open and concealed; all forms of sin; unlawful oppression and excess; associating partners with Allāh without any warrant or proof that He has revealed; and that you attribute to Allāh what you have no knowledge of."

Commentary: The sūra defines what Allāh has actually forbidden, as distinct from false prohibitions invented by people. The list: (1) al-fawāḥish — gross indecencies, whether public or private; (2) al-ithm — sin; (3) al-baghī bi-ghayr al-ḥaqq — oppression and transgression without just cause; (4) shirk — associating others with Allāh without any divine authority; (5) making attributions about Allāh without knowledge. These are the real prohibitions; everything else that Allāh has not forbidden is permissible.

وَلِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلٌ فَإِذَا جَاءَ أَجَلُهُمْ لَا يَسْتَأْخِرُونَ سَاعَةً وَلَا يَسْتَقْدِمُونَ

Wa-li-kulli ummatin ajalun fa-idhā jāʾa ajaluhum lā yastaʾkhirūna sāʿatan wa-lā yastaqaddimūn.

"And for every community there is an appointed time. When their time comes, they cannot delay it by a single hour, nor advance it." (al-Aʿrāf 7:34)

Translation: And for every community there is a fixed appointed term. When that term arrives, they can neither delay it by so much as a single hour, nor hasten it. The appointed time is immovable — neither extended nor shortened.

يَا بَنِي آدَمَ إِمَّا يَأْتِيَنَّكُمْ رُسُلٌ مِّنكُمْ يَقُصُّونَ عَلَيْكُمْ آيَاتِي فَمَنِ اتَّقَىٰ وَأَصْلَحَ فَلَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ

Yā banī Ādama immā yaʾtiyannakum rusulun minkum yaquṣṣūna ʿalaykum āyātī fa-man ittaqā wa-aṣlaḥa fa-lā khawfun ʿalayhim wa-lā hum yaḥzanūn.

"O children of Ādam! If there come to you messengers from among yourselves, recounting My signs to you — then whoever fears Allāh and reforms, there is no fear upon them, nor shall they grieve." (al-Aʿrāf 7:35)

Translation: O children of Ādam! Whenever messengers come to you from among yourselves, recounting My signs clearly and plainly, and calling you to piety and righteousness — whoever is God-fearing and rectifies himself will have no fear, nor will he grieve.

Commentary: The universal law of prophethood: whenever a Prophet came, his duty was tablīgh (conveyance) — recounting the signs of Allāh. And for those who heeded: no fear of what lies ahead, no grief for what was left behind. This is the great promise.

وَالَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَاسْتَكْبَرُوا عَنْهَا أُولَٰئِكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ

Wa-lladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-stakbarū ʿanhā ulāʾika aṣḥābu al-nāri hum fīhā khālidūn.

"And those who deny Our signs and are arrogant toward them — those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide therein eternally." (al-Aʿrāf 7:36)

Translation: And those who deny Our signs and arrogantly refuse to submit to them — those are the people of the Fire; they will remain therein for ever.

فَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ افْتَرَىٰ عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِبًا أَوْ كَذَّبَ بِآيَاتِهِ أُولَٰئِكَ يَنَالُهُمْ نَصِيبُهُم مِّنَ الْكِتَابِ حَتَّىٰ إِذَا جَاءَتْهُمْ رُسُلُنَا يَتَوَفَّوْنَهُمْ قَالُوا أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ قَالُوا ضَلُّوا عَنَّا وَشَهِدُوا عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا كَافِرِينَ

Fa-man aẓlamu mimman iftarā ʿalā Allāhi kadhiban aw kadhdhaba bi-āyātihī ulāʾika yanāluhum naṣībuhum min al-kitābi ḥattā idhā jāʾathum rusulunā yatawaffawnahum qālū ayna mā kuntum tadʿūna min dūni Allāhi qālū ḍallū ʿannā wa-shahidū ʿalā anfusihim annahum kānū kāfirīn.

"Who is more unjust than one who fabricates a lie about Allāh or denies His signs? Those shall receive their share in the Book, until — when Our messengers (angels) come to them to take their souls — they say: 'Where are those you used to invoke besides Allāh?' They say: 'They have abandoned us.' And they testify against themselves that they were disbelievers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:37)

Translation: Who can be more unjust than one who invents a lie about Allāh, or who denies His signs? These people will receive their allotted share of the good things of this world according to what is written — until, when Our angels come to them to take their souls at death, the angels say: "Where now are those you used to call upon beside Allāh?" They will say: "They have all disappeared from us — they have abandoned us." And they will testify against their own selves that they were indeed unbelievers.

Commentary: At the moment of death, the false deities are of no use. The idols disappear; all false supports evaporate. The dying person discovers that the objects of his devotion have vanished. He is left only with his own confession of kufr. The full accounting continues: they receive what was written for them in this world — then the reckoning begins.

قَالَ ادْخُلُوا فِي أُمَمٍ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِكُم مِّنَ الْجِنِّ وَالْإِنسِ فِي النَّارِ كُلَّمَا دَخَلَتْ أُمَّةٌ لَّعَنَتْ أُخْتَهَا حَتَّىٰ إِذَا ادَّارَكُوا فِيهَا جَمِيعًا قَالَتْ أُخْرَاهُمْ لِأُولَاهُمْ رَبَّنَا هَٰؤُلَاءِ أَضَلُّونَا فَآتِهِمْ عَذَابًا ضِعْفًا مِّنَ النَّارِ قَالَ لِكُلٍّ ضِعْفٌ وَلَٰكِن لَّا تَعْلَمُونَ

Qāla udkhulū fī umamin qad khalat min qablikum min al-jinni wa-l-insi fī al-nāri kullamā dakhalat ummatun laʿanat ukhtahā ḥattā idhā iddārakū fīhā jamīʿan qālat ukhrāhum li-ūlāhum rabbanā hāʾulāʾi aḍallūnā fa-ātihim ʿadhāban ḍiʿfan min al-nāri qāla li-kullin ḍiʿfun wa-lākin lā taʿlamūn.

"He will say: 'Enter among the communities that passed away before you — of jinn and humans — into the Fire.' Each time a community enters, it curses the one before it. When they have all gathered there, the last of them will say of the first: 'Our Lord, these led us astray, so give them double punishment from the Fire.' He will say: 'For each there is double — but you do not know.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:38)

Translation: Allāh will say: "Enter into the Fire among the communities of jinn and humankind that have passed before you!" Every time a community enters the Fire, it curses the one that came before it and led it astray. Until when they have all gathered in the Fire together, the later ones will say about the earlier: "Our Lord! These people led us astray — give them a double punishment from the Fire!" Allāh will say: "For each of you there is already a double punishment — but you do not know." The leaders who led others astray receive double punishment: for their own misguidance and for leading others astray. And those led astray also receive double: for being misguided and for remaining in misguidance without taking heed. Each person bears the full weight of his own deeds.

وَقَالَتْ أُولَاهُمْ لِأُخْرَاهُمْ فَمَا كَانَ لَكُمْ عَلَيْنَا مِن فَضْلٍ فَذُوقُوا الْعَذَابَ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَكْسِبُونَ

Wa-qālat ūlāhum li-ukhrāhum fa-mā kāna lakum ʿalaynā min faḍlin fa-dhūqū al-ʿadhāba bi-mā kuntum taksibūn.

"And the first of them will say to the last: 'You had no advantage over us — so taste the punishment for what you used to earn!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:39)

Translation: And the first among them — the leaders and originators — will say to those who followed: "You had no advantage over us; you are no better than us — both groups are equal in corruption! So taste the punishment for what you used to do."

Commentary: No one gains an advantage in the Fire through pointing fingers. Each group bears the full burden of its deeds.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَاسْتَكْبَرُوا عَنْهَا لَا تُفَتَّحُ لَهُمْ أَبْوَابُ السَّمَاءِ وَلَا يَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ حَتَّىٰ يَلِجَ الْجَمَلُ فِي سَمِّ الْخِيَاطِ وَكَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُجْرِمِينَ

Inna lladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-stakbarū ʿanhā lā tufattaḥu lahum abwābu al-samāʾi wa-lā yadkhulūna al-jannata ḥattā yalijja al-jamalu fī sammi al-khiyāṭi wa-kadhālika najzī al-mujrimīn.

"Indeed, those who deny Our signs and are arrogant toward them — the doors of heaven will not be opened for them, nor will they enter the Garden until the camel passes through the eye of a needle. And thus We recompense the criminals." (al-Aʿrāf 7:40)

Translation: Truly those who deny Our signs and arrogantly reject them — for them the gates of heaven will never be opened, and they will never enter the Garden — not until a camel can pass through the eye of a needle. Samm al-khiyāṭ means the eye of a needle, the hole through which thread is passed. Just as passing a camel through the eye of a needle is impossible, so entry into the Garden for such people is impossible. This is how We repay the criminals.

لَهُم مِّن جَهَنَّمَ مِهَادٌ وَمِن فَوْقِهِمْ غَوَاشٍ وَكَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الظَّالِمِينَ

Lahum min jahannama mihādun wa-min fawqihim ghawāshin wa-kadhālika najzī al-ẓālimīn.

"For them is a bed of Hellfire, and above them are coverings of it. Thus We repay the wrongdoers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:41)

Translation: For them Hell is their bed and Hell is their covering — their wrapping from above will be Hellfire. Thus do We repay the wrongdoers.

وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَا نُكَلِّفُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا أُولَٰئِكَ أَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ

Wa-lladhīna āmanū wa-ʿamilū al-ṣāliḥāti lā nukallifu nafsan illā wusʿahā ulāʾika aṣḥābu al-jannati hum fīhā khālidūn.

"And those who believe and do righteous deeds — We do not burden a soul beyond its capacity — those are the companions of the Garden; they shall dwell therein eternally." (al-Aʿrāf 7:42)

Translation: And those who believe and do righteous deeds — We do not place upon any soul a burden greater than it can bear — those are the people of the Garden; they will abide therein for ever.

وَنَزَعْنَا مَا فِي صُدُورِهِم مِّنْ غِلٍّ تَجْرِي مِن تَحْتِهِمُ الْأَنْهَارُ وَقَالُوا الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي هَدَانَا لِهَٰذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لِنَهْتَدِيَ لَوْلَا أَنْ هَدَانَا اللَّهُ لَقَدْ جَاءَتْ رُسُلُ رَبِّنَا بِالْحَقِّ وَنُودُوا أَن تِلْكُمُ الْجَنَّةُ أُورِثْتُمُوهَا بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

Wa-nazaʿnā mā fī ṣudūrihim min ghillin tajrī min taḥtihimu al-anhāru wa-qālū al-ḥamdu li-Llāhi alladhī hadānā li-hādhā wa-mā kunnā li-nahtadiya lawlā an hadānā Allāhu la-qad jāʾat rusulu rabbinā bi-l-ḥaqqi wa-nūdū an tilkumu al-jannatu ūrithtu-mūhā bi-mā kuntum taʿmalūn.

"And We will have removed whatever rancour is in their hearts. Rivers flow beneath them. And they will say: 'Praise be to Allāh, who guided us to this! We would never have been guided had Allāh not guided us. The messengers of our Lord had certainly come with the truth.' And it will be announced to them: 'This is the Garden; you have inherited it for what you used to do.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:43)

Translation: And We shall have stripped away all rancour and ill-will from their hearts — so that the people of the Garden enter it with hearts clean of all grudges. Rivers flow beneath them. And they shall say: "Praise be to Allāh who guided us to this! We would not have found our way had Allāh not guided us. The messengers of our Lord truly came with the truth." And a proclamation will go out to them: "This is the Garden — you have inherited it as the reward for what you used to do!"

Commentary: This is the supreme happiness of the Garden: not merely the rivers and the pleasures, but the purity of heart — all grudges removed, all inner darkness cleared away. And the acknowledgement of Allāh's grace: "We would never have found our way had Allāh not guided us."

وَنَادَىٰ أَصْحَابُ الْجَنَّةِ أَصْحَابَ النَّارِ أَن قَدْ وَجَدْنَا مَا وَعَدَنَا رَبُّنَا حَقًّا فَهَلْ وَجَدتُّمْ مَّا وَعَدَ رَبُّكُمْ حَقًّا قَالُوا نَعَمْ فَأَذَّنَ مُؤَذِّنٌ بَيْنَهُمْ أَن لَّعْنَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَى الظَّالِمِينَ

Wa-nādā aṣḥābu al-jannati aṣḥāba al-nāri an qad wajadnā mā waʿadanā rabbunā ḥaqqan fa-hal wajadtum mā waʿada rabbukum ḥaqqan qālū naʿam fa-adhdhana muʾadhdhinun baynahum an laʿnatu Allāhi ʿalā al-ẓālimīn.

"And the companions of the Garden will call out to the companions of the Fire: 'We have found what our Lord promised us to be true — have you found what your Lord promised to be true?' They will say: 'Yes.' Then a proclaimer will proclaim between them: 'The curse of Allāh is upon the wrongdoers!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:44)

Translation: The people of the Garden will call across to the people of the Fire: "We found what our Lord promised us to be absolutely true — have you found what your Lord promised to be true?" They will be compelled to say: "Yes." Then a great announcer will make the proclamation between them: "The curse of Allāh is upon the wrongdoers!"

Commentary: Whether the call of the Garden-dwellers is an actual future event or a vivid present description, the mufassirūn have discussed both possibilities. The contrast is absolute: the people of the Garden confirmed in their bliss, the people of the Fire confirmed in their punishment. Both found the promise of Allāh true — one group to their rejoicing, the other to their ruin.

الَّذِينَ يَصُدُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَيَبْغُونَهَا عِوَجًا وَهُم بِالْآخِرَةِ كَافِرُونَ

Alladhīna yaṣuddūna ʿan sabīli Allāhi wa-yabghūnahā ʿiwajan wa-hum bi-l-ākhirati kāfirūn.

"Those who bar others from the path of Allāh, seeking to make it crooked, and who disbelieve in the Hereafter." (al-Aʿrāf 7:45)

Translation: These are the ones who bar others from the path of Allāh and seek to make that path appear crooked — corrupting people's beliefs and increasing their doubts — while they themselves are disbelievers in the Hereafter.

وَبَيْنَهُمَا حِجَابٌ وَعَلَى الْأَعْرَافِ رِجَالٌ يَعْرِفُونَ كُلًّا بِسِيمَاهُمْ وَنَادَوْا أَصْحَابَ الْجَنَّةِ أَن سَلَامٌ عَلَيْكُمْ لَمْ يَدْخُلُوهَا وَهُمْ يَطْمَعُونَ

Wa-baynahumā ḥijābun wa-ʿalā al-Aʿrāfi rijālun yaʿrifūna kullan bi-sīmāhum wa-nādaw aṣḥāba al-jannati an salāmun ʿalaykum lam yadkhulūhā wa-hum yaṭmaʿūn.

"And between them is a veil, and on the Heights (al-Aʿrāf) are men who recognise each group by their features. They will call out to the people of the Garden: 'Peace be upon you!' — they will not yet have entered it, but they hope." (al-Aʿrāf 7:46)

Translation: And between the two groups — the Garden-dwellers and the Fire-dwellers — there will be a barrier (ḥijāb), so that neither can see the other. On the Aʿrāf — the Heights — there will be a group of men who can identify both groups by their outward features. They call out to the people of the Garden: "Salāmun ʿalaykum!" — though they have not yet entered the Garden themselves, they are full of hope that they will.

Commentary: The Aʿrāf is a matter of scholarly discussion. Some scholars say it is an intermediate level between the Garden and the Fire — neither like the Gardens of the blessed nor like the torment of the condemned. Those who are there are neither fully in the Garden nor in the Fire — they hold a middle station. Some scholars say the aṣḥāb al-Aʿrāf are the most distinguished people — those of elevated spiritual rank — who know both groups and will be witnesses. Their radiant faces will be visible; they will salute the Garden-dwellers. And they hope: when they see the people of the Garden, they will feel confident that they too will surely enter. When the people of the Aʿrāf give salutation to the Garden-dwellers, this is itself a glad tiding — for they are waiting with hope.

Commentary (continued): Between the two (Garden and Fire) there will be a veil so that none can see the other. Yet on the Aʿrāf there will be certain people who recognise both groups by their marks and features. They will call to the Garden-dwellers: "Salāmun ʿalaykum" — and they have not yet entered, yet their hope is strong and their expectation certain.

وَإِذَا صُرِفَتْ أَبْصَارُهُمْ تِلْقَاءَ أَصْحَابِ النَّارِ قَالُوا رَبَّنَا لَا تَجْعَلْنَا مَعَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

Wa-idhā ṣurifat abṣāruhum tilqāʾa aṣḥābi al-nāri qālū rabbanā lā tajʿalnā maʿa al-qawmi al-ẓālimīn.

"And when their eyes are turned toward the companions of the Fire, they say: 'Our Lord! Do not place us with the wrongdoing people!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:47)

Translation: And when the glances of the Aʿrāf-dwellers fall toward the people of the Fire, they are seized with horror and cry: "Our Lord! Do not place us with the wrongdoing people! Do not make us their companions!"

وَنَادَىٰ أَصْحَابُ الْأَعْرَافِ رِجَالًا يَعْرِفُونَهُم بِسِيمَاهُمْ قَالُوا مَا أَغْنَىٰ عَنكُمْ جَمْعُكُمْ وَمَا كُنتُمْ تَسْتَكْبِرُونَ

Wa-nādā aṣḥābu al-Aʿrāfi rijālan yaʿrifūnahum bi-sīmāhum qālū mā aghnā ʿankum jamʿukum wa-mā kuntum tastakbirūn.

"And the companions of the Aʿrāf will call out to men whom they recognise by their features, saying: 'Your gathering and your arrogance have availed you nothing!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:48)

Translation: And the people of the Aʿrāf will call out to those Fire-people whom they recognise by their features, saying: "What good did your gathering and your arrogance do you? All that proud assembly — where has it gone?"

أَهَٰؤُلَاءِ الَّذِينَ أَقْسَمْتُمْ لَا يَنَالُهُمُ اللَّهُ بِرَحْمَةٍ ادْخُلُوا الْجَنَّةَ لَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْكُمْ وَلَا أَنتُمْ تَحْزَنُونَ

A-hāʾulāʾi alladhīna aqsam-tum lā yanāluhumu Allāhu bi-raḥmatin udkhulū al-jannata lā khawfun ʿalaykum wa-lā antum taḥzanūn.

"'Are these the ones about whom you swore that Allāh would never touch them with mercy? Enter the Garden — no fear upon you, and you shall not grieve!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:49)

Translation: The Aʿrāf-dwellers will say, pointing to the Garden-dwellers: "Are these the very ones about whom you used to swear — 'Allāh will never show them mercy'?" Then the command comes to those Garden-dwellers: "Enter the Garden! There is no fear upon you, and you shall not grieve!"

وَنَادَىٰ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ أَصْحَابَ الْجَنَّةِ أَنْ أَفِيضُوا عَلَيْنَا مِنَ الْمَاءِ أَوْ مِمَّا رَزَقَكُمُ اللَّهُ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ حَرَّمَهُمَا عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ

Wa-nādā aṣḥābu al-nāri aṣḥāba al-jannati an afīḍū ʿalaynā min al-māʾi aw mimmā razaqakumu Allāhu qālū inna Allāha ḥarramahumā ʿalā al-kāfirīn.

"And the companions of the Fire will call out to the companions of the Garden: 'Pour over us some water, or some of what Allāh has provided you.' They will say: 'Indeed, Allāh has forbidden them both to the disbelievers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:50)

Translation: And the people of the Fire will call out in desperation to the people of the Garden: "Pour down upon us some water or some of what Allāh has given you!" The Garden-dwellers will reply: "Allāh has forbidden them both to the disbelievers — we cannot share with you!"

الَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا دِينَهُمْ لَهْوًا وَلَعِبًا وَغَرَّتْهُمُ الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا فَالْيَوْمَ نَنسَاهُمْ كَمَا نَسُوا لِقَاءَ يَوْمِهِمْ هَٰذَا وَمَا كَانُوا بِآيَاتِنَا يَجْحَدُونَ

Alladhīna ittakhadhū dīnahum lahwan wa-laʿiban wa-gharrathumu al-ḥayātu al-dunyā fa-l-yawma nansāhum kamā nasū liqāʾa yawmihim hādhā wa-mā kānū bi-āyātinā yajḥadūn.

"Those who took their religion as amusement and play, and were deceived by the life of this world — today We shall forget them, just as they forgot the meeting of this Day of theirs, and because they used to deny Our signs." (al-Aʿrāf 7:51)

Translation: These are the ones who made their religion a pastime and a plaything — a mere entertainment (lahw wa-laʿib) — and were deceived and lulled by the life of this world. Today We shall leave them aside (nansāhum), just as they forgot the meeting of this Day and persistently denied Our signs.

Commentary: "We shall forget them" — Allāh Most High uses the word nasiya (forget) as a mutashākalah (a symmetrical response): they treated Allāh's meeting with forgetfulness, so We shall treat them with the same forgetfulness. Allāh the Most High is entirely free from actual forgetfulness — He is aware of all things. This means: We shall leave them without mercy, as they left the obligations of faith without care. Those who turn away from the remembrance of Allāh and fill themselves with worldly diversion will find that diversion ultimately leads to ruin.

وَلَقَدْ جِئْنَاهُم بِكِتَابٍ فَصَّلْنَاهُ عَلَىٰ عِلْمٍ هُدًى وَرَحْمَةً لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ

Wa-la-qad jiʾnāhum bi-kitābin faṣṣalnāhu ʿalā ʿilmin hudān wa-raḥmatan li-qawmin yuʾminūn.

"And We had certainly brought them a Book which We have detailed with knowledge — a guidance and mercy for a people who believe." (al-Aʿrāf 7:52)

Translation: And indeed We brought them a Book — We expounded and detailed it with full knowledge — a guidance and a mercy for those who believe. For those whose hearts hold faith, this Book is a sufficient guide, leaving them in need of no more.

هَلْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَّا تَأْوِيلَهُ يَوْمَ يَأْتِي تَأْوِيلُهُ يَقُولُ الَّذِينَ نَسُوهُ مِن قَبْلُ قَدْ جَاءَتْ رُسُلُ رَبِّنَا بِالْحَقِّ فَهَل لَّنَا مِن شُفَعَاءَ فَيَشْفَعُوا لَنَا أَوْ نُرَدُّ فَنَعْمَلَ غَيْرَ الَّذِي كُنَّا نَعْمَلُ قَدْ خَسِرُوا أَنفُسَهُمْ وَضَلَّ عَنْهُمْ مَّا كَانُوا يَفْتَرُونَ

Hal yanẓurūna illā taʾwīlahū yawma yaʾtī taʾwīluhū yaqūlu lladhīna nasūhu min qablu qad jāʾat rusulu rabbinā bi-l-ḥaqqi fa-hal lanā min shufahāʾa fa-yashfaʿū lanā aw nuraddu fa-naʿmala ghayra lladhī kunnā naʿmalu qad khasirū anfusahum wa-ḍalla ʿanhum mā kānū yaftarūn.

"Do they wait for anything but the fulfilment of it? The Day its fulfilment comes, those who had forgotten it before will say: 'The messengers of our Lord certainly came with the truth. Do we have any intercessors who will intercede for us, or can we be sent back to act differently from what we used to do?' They have ruined their own souls, and what they used to fabricate has failed them." (al-Aʿrāf 7:53)

Translation: Are they waiting only for the fulfilment of the Book's warnings to come true? On the Day when that fulfilment arrives, those who had forgotten and disregarded it before will say: "The messengers of our Lord spoke nothing but the truth. Is there anyone who will intercede for us? Or could we be sent back to this world so that we may act differently?" They have destroyed their own souls, and all that they invented has deserted them and gone to waste.

Commentary: The regret of the unbelievers at the hour of reckoning will be profound. The cry for intercessors, the wish to return — all of it will be in vain. They will realise that their fabrications and schemes in this world were worthless. They destroyed themselves with their own hands. The author laments: the same condition pertains today — people busy themselves with worldly schemes while forgetting the Day of Reckoning. The accounting will come.

إِنَّ رَبَّكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ ثُمَّ اسْتَوَىٰ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ يُغْشِي اللَّيْلَ النَّهَارَ يَطْلُبُهُ حَثِيثًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ وَالنُّجُومَ مُسَخَّرَاتٍ بِأَمْرِهِ أَلَا لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالْأَمْرُ تَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Inna rabbakumu Allāhu lladhī khalaqa al-samāwāti wa-l-arḍa fī sittati ayyāmin thumma istawā ʿalā al-ʿarshi yughshī al-layla al-nahāra yaṭlubuhū ḥathīthan wa-l-shamsa wa-l-qamara wa-l-nujūma musakhkharātin bi-amrihī alā lahu al-khalqu wa-l-amru tabāraka Allāhu rabbu al-ʿālamīn.

"Indeed, your Lord is Allāh, who created the heavens and the earth in six days, then established Himself upon the Throne. He covers the night with the day — each swiftly pursuing the other — and the sun, the moon, and the stars are subservient by His command. Unquestionably, to Him belongs the creation and the command. Blessed be Allāh, Lord of all worlds." (al-Aʿrāf 7:54)

Translation: Truly, your Lord is Allāh — who created the heavens and the earth in six days, then istawā ʿalā al-ʿarsh — established Himself upon the Throne in a manner befitting His Majesty. He wraps the night over the day, each swiftly pursuing the other in constant succession. The sun, the moon, and the stars are all subdued and subservient to His command — moving to their ordained times and places, never swerving, never stopping. Verily, to Him belongs both creation (khalq) and command (amr). Blessed and exalted is Allāh, Lord of all worlds!

Commentary: Know well: to deny Allāh's being upon the Throne, in the realm of divine knowledge, is not appropriate. Allāh Most High in His glory is upon the Throne. The Throne is subject to His power and might. Wherever one looks, the signs of His light are apparent. He is your Companion (sāhib), from within you and without — from within your hearts and in the horizons. He encompasses all things — Muhīṭ, the Encompasser; all things are encompassed (muḥāṭ) by Him.

Yughshī al-layla al-nahāra — He wraps the night over the day like a dark garment. Yaṭlubuhū ḥathīthan — the night pursues the day swiftly, relentlessly: if the light of day fades, night covers it and day retreats. Day and night are in perpetual alternation, each relentlessly pursuing the other. The sun, the moon, the stars — all are musakhkharāt bi-amrihī — subservient to His command, moving at appointed times and courses in precise, ordained orbits, never disobeying. How foolish to take the celestial bodies as one's objects of worship! All of them are subservient to Allāh. Alā lahu al-khalqu wa-l-amr — everything belongs to Him: both creation (khalq) — the world of physical reality — and command (amr) — which belongs to the realm of divine decrees. Tabāraka Allāhu rabbu al-ʿālamīn — Blessed is Allāh, Lord of all worlds. When all things in creation obey His will and power, He is exalted without measure.

Commentary (continued): The sun, the moon, and the stars are subservient to His command, bound to their ordained paths and times — this is the general principle of the world of creation (ʿālam khalq). As for the world of command (ʿālam amr) — the souls — these are created differently, in a finer and nobler manner. Tabāraka Allāh Rabbu l-ʿālamīn — Allāh be praised, the Lord of all worlds.

ادْعُوا رَبَّكُمْ تَضَرُّعًا وَخُفْيَةً إِنَّهُ لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُعْتَدِينَ

Udʿū rabbakum taḍarruʿan wa-khufyatan innahu lā yuḥibbu al-muʿtadīn.

"Call upon your Lord in humility and in private. Indeed, He does not love those who transgress." (al-Aʿrāf 7:55)

Translation: Call upon your Lord in humility, submission, and brokenness, and in a quiet, inward manner. Allāh does not love those who transgress and overstep bounds in supplication.

وَلَا تُفْسِدُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ بَعْدَ إِصْلَاحِهَا وَادْعُوهُ خَوْفًا وَطَمَعًا إِنَّ رَحْمَتَ اللَّهِ قَرِيبٌ مِّنَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

Wa-lā tufsidū fī al-arḍi baʿda iṣlāḥihā wa-dʿūhu khawfan wa-ṭamaʿan inna raḥmata Allāhi qarībun min al-muḥsinīn.

"And do not cause corruption in the land after its reformation, and call upon Him in fear and hope. Indeed, the mercy of Allāh is near to those who do good." (al-Aʿrāf 7:56)

Translation: And do not spread corruption and disorder in the earth after Allāh has reformed it and set it right. Call upon Him in fear and in hope — fear of your own sins and shortcomings, hope in His grace and generosity. Truly, the mercy of Allāh is near to those who do good (al-muḥsinīn).

وَهُوَ الَّذِي يُرْسِلُ الرِّيَاحَ بُشْرًا بَيْنَ يَدَيْ رَحْمَتِهِ حَتَّىٰ إِذَا أَقَلَّتْ سَحَابًا ثِقَالًا سُقْنَاهُ لِبَلَدٍ مَّيِّتٍ فَأَنزَلْنَا بِهِ الْمَاءَ فَأَخْرَجْنَا بِهِ مِن كُلِّ الثَّمَرَاتِ كَذَٰلِكَ نُخْرِجُ الْمَوْتَىٰ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ

Wa-huwa lladhī yursilu al-riyāḥa bushran bayna yaday raḥmatihī ḥattā idhā aqallat saḥāban thiqālan suqnāhu li-baladin mayyitin fa-anzalnā bihi al-māʾa fa-akhrajnā bihi min kulli al-thamarāti kadhālika nukhrijū al-mawtā laʿallakum tadhakkarūn.

"And it is He who sends the winds as heralds of good tidings before His mercy. When they carry heavy clouds, We drive them to a dead land and send down rain from them, and We bring forth thereby all manner of fruit. Thus We shall bring forth the dead — so that you may reflect." (al-Aʿrāf 7:57)

Translation: And He is the One who sends the winds as glad tidings (bushrā) — messengers ahead of His mercy, the rain. When the winds carry heavy, rain-laden clouds, We drive those clouds toward a land that is dead and barren — utterly dry. Then We send down water from them. With that water We cause all kinds of fruit to spring forth. This is exactly how (kadhālika) We shall bring forth the dead on the Day of Resurrection — springing them from the earth's dust. So reflect and take heed!

Commentary: The analogy of the dead earth being revived by rain is one of the Qurʾān's most vivid arguments for resurrection. The earth that was lifeless becomes teeming with life through water — so too the dead will come forth through Allāh's command on the Day of Rising.

وَالْبَلَدُ الطَّيِّبُ يَخْرُجُ نَبَاتُهُ بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِ وَالَّذِي خَبُثَ لَا يَخْرُجُ إِلَّا نَكِدًا كَذَٰلِكَ نُصَرِّفُ الْآيَاتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَشْكُرُونَ

Wa-l-baladu al-ṭayyibu yakhruji nabātuhū bi-idhni rabbihī wa-lladhī khabutha lā yakhruji illā nakidan kadhālika nuṣarrifu al-āyāti li-qawmin yashkurūn.

"And the good land — its vegetation springs forth by the permission of its Lord. And that which is corrupt — it produces nothing but poor growth. Thus We diversify the signs for a people who are grateful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:58)

Translation: Good, wholesome earth brings forth its vegetation with full abundance by Allāh's leave. But corrupted, barren soil produces only scanty, poor growth. In this manner We turn and present the signs (āyāt) in various ways — for a people who are grateful (shākirīn).

Commentary: The analogy extends to human hearts: a pure heart receives divine guidance and grows in faith and virtue; a corrupt heart benefits little even from the rain of revelation. We set out these signs from different angles — for whom? For those who know how to give thanks.

The Stories of the Prophets: The Pattern of Warning and Judgement

لَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَىٰ قَوْمِهِ فَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَٰهٍ غَيْرُهُ إِنِّي أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمْ عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ

La-qad arsalnā Nūḥan ilā qawmihī fa-qāla yā qawmi ʿbudū Allāha mā lakum min ilāhin ghayruhu innī akhāfu ʿalaykum ʿadhāba yawmin ʿaẓīm.

"We sent Nūḥ to his people, and he said: 'O my people! Worship Allāh — you have no deity other than Him. I fear for you the punishment of a momentous Day.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:59)

Translation: Indeed, We sent Nūḥ (upon him be peace) to his people — dispatching him as a messenger — and he said: "O my people! Worship Allāh alone; you have no deity other than Him. I fear for you the punishment of a tremendously dreadful Day."

Commentary: Here the great cycle of prophetic history begins in this sūra. Each Prophet is sent to his people with the same essential message: tawḥīd — pure monotheism — and a warning against the punishment of Allāh. Nūḥ (upon him be peace) feared for his people. His message was one of love and concern.

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِهِ إِنَّا لَنَرَاكَ فِي ضَلَالٍ مُّبِينٍ

Qāla al-malaʾu min qawmihī innā la-narāka fī ḍalālin mubīn.

"The notables of his people said: 'Indeed, we see you in manifest error.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:60)

Translation: The tribal leaders (al-malaʾ) of his people said: "We certainly see you in manifest, obvious misguidance!"

Commentary: The chiefs (al-malaʾ — the patricians and leaders) of his people were the first to reject — as is always the pattern. The wealthy and powerful stood firm in their denial.

قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَيْسَ بِي ضَلَالَةٌ وَلَٰكِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِّن رَّبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Qāla yā qawmi laysa bī ḍalālatun wa-lākinnī rasūlun min rabbi al-ʿālamīn.

"He said: 'O my people! There is no error in me; rather, I am a messenger from the Lord of all worlds.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:61)

Translation: Nūḥ (upon him be peace) replied: "O my people! There is no misguidance in me whatsoever. I am a messenger from the Lord of all worlds."

أُبَلِّغُكُمْ رِسَالَاتِ رَبِّي وَأَنصَحُ لَكُمْ وَأَعْلَمُ مِنَ اللَّهِ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ

Uballighu-kum risālāti rabbī wa-anṣaḥu lakum wa-aʿlamu min Allāhi mā lā taʿlamūn.

"I convey to you the messages of my Lord, I give you sincere counsel, and I know from Allāh what you do not know." (al-Aʿrāf 7:62)

Translation: I am conveying to you the messages of my Lord; I am your sincere well-wisher; and I know from Allāh that which you do not know.

Commentary: This is the Prophet's threefold declaration: (1) I convey Allāh's message faithfully (tablīgh); (2) I am your genuine well-wisher (naṣīḥa); (3) I possess knowledge from Allāh that has not been disclosed to you. The People of Nūḥ had access to this wisdom; they chose to ignore it.

أَوَعَجِبْتُمْ أَن جَاءَكُمْ ذِكْرٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ عَلَىٰ رَجُلٍ مِّنكُمْ لِيُنذِرَكُمْ وَلِتَتَّقُوا وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ

A-wa-ʿajibtum an jāʾakum dhikrun min rabbikum ʿalā rajulin minkum li-yundhirakum wa-li-tattaqū wa-laʿallakum turḥamūn.

"Are you astonished that a reminder from your Lord has come to you through a man from among you — to warn you, so that you may guard yourselves, and that mercy may be shown to you?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:63)

Translation: Are you astonished that a reminder from your Lord has come to you upon one man from among yourselves — to warn you, so that you may become God-fearing and so that perhaps Allāh may show you mercy?

فَكَذَّبُوهُ فَأَنجَيْنَاهُ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ فِي الْفُلْكِ وَأَغْرَقْنَا الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا قَوْمًا عَمِينَ

Fa-kadhdhabūhu fa-anjayināhu wa-lladhīna maʿahū fī al-fulki wa-aghraqnā lladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā innahum kānū qawman ʿamīn.

"But they denied him. So We saved him and those with him in the Ark, and We drowned those who denied Our signs — for they were a blind people." (al-Aʿrāf 7:64)

Translation: They denied him (kadhdhabūhu). So We saved Nūḥ (upon him be peace) and those who were with him in the Ark, and We drowned those who denied Our signs. They were a people blind of heart — heedless, ignorant, and utterly misguided.

Commentary: The people of Nūḥ are a standing lesson for all humanity. A person who ignores the signs of Allāh from prior nations and faces the same consequences — he is like them. The factors that destroyed the people of Nūḥ have been analysed; protect yourself from those same causes. In this connection, the story of Hūd (upon him be peace) now follows.

وَإِلَىٰ عَادٍ أَخَاهُمْ هُودًا قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَٰهٍ غَيْرُهُ أَفَلَا تَتَّقُونَ

Wa-ilā ʿādin akhāhum Hūdan qāla yā qawmi ʿbudū Allāha mā lakum min ilāhin ghayruhu a-fa-lā tattaqūn.

"And to ʿĀd — their brother Hūd. He said: 'O my people! Worship Allāh — you have no deity other than Him. Will you not, then, be God-fearing?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:65)

Translation: And to the people of ʿĀd We sent their brother Hūd (upon him be peace), from their own tribe and kin — and he said: "O my people! Worship Allāh; you have no deity other than Him. Will you not, then, be God-fearing?"

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن قَوْمِهِ إِنَّا لَنَرَاكَ فِي سَفَاهَةٍ وَإِنَّا لَنَظُنُّكَ مِنَ الْكَاذِبِينَ

Qāla al-malaʾu alladhīna kafarū min qawmihī innā la-narāka fī safāhatin wa-innā la-naẓunnuka min al-kādhibīn.

"The notables who disbelieved among his people said: 'We certainly see you in folly, and we think you are among the liars.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:66)

Translation: The unbelieving chiefs of his people said: "We see nothing but foolishness in you, and we reckon you to be among the liars!"

قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَيْسَ بِي سَفَاهَةٌ وَلَٰكِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِّن رَّبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Qāla yā qawmi laysa bī safāhatun wa-lākinnī rasūlun min rabbi al-ʿālamīn.

"He said: 'O my people! There is no folly in me; rather, I am a messenger from the Lord of all worlds.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:67)

Translation: Hūd (upon him be peace) replied: "O my people! There is no foolishness in me. I am a messenger from the Lord of all worlds."

أُبَلِّغُكُمْ رِسَالَاتِ رَبِّي وَأَنَا لَكُمْ نَاصِحٌ أَمِينٌ

Uballighu-kum risālāti rabbī wa-anā lakum nāṣiḥun amīn.

"I convey to you the messages of my Lord, and I am a trustworthy adviser to you." (al-Aʿrāf 7:68)

Translation: I convey the messages of my Lord to you, and I am for you a sincere, trustworthy counsellor.

أَوَعَجِبْتُمْ أَن جَاءَكُمْ ذِكْرٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ عَلَىٰ رَجُلٍ مِّنكُمْ لِيُنذِرَكُمْ وَاذْكُرُوا إِذْ جَعَلَكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ مِن بَعْدِ قَوْمِ نُوحٍ وَزَادَكُمْ فِي الْخَلْقِ بَسْطَةً فَاذْكُرُوا آلَاءَ اللَّهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

A-wa-ʿajibtum an jāʾakum dhikrun min rabbikum ʿalā rajulin minkum li-yundhirakum wa-dhkurū idh jaʿalakum khulafāʾa min baʿdi qawmi Nūḥin wa-zādakum fī al-khalqi basṭatan fa-dhkurū ālāʾa Allāhi laʿallakum tufliḥūn.

"Are you astonished that a reminder from your Lord has come upon a man from among you to warn you? And remember when He made you successors after the people of Nūḥ and increased you in stature. So remember the favours of Allāh, that you may be successful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:69)

Translation: Are you astonished that a reminder from your Lord has come upon a man from among you to warn you? And remember how He made you the successors of the people of Nūḥ and gave you an increase in bodily stature and power over them. So call to mind the bounties (ālāʾ) of Allāh — so that you may prosper.

Commentary: The people of ʿĀd were noted for their great physical stature and power — bāṣṭatan fī l-khalq. They are mentioned elsewhere in the Qurʾān as well. A scholar in the chain of transmitters of the Bāb Shuʿba school has noted the blessing of Allāh in this matter: two of these blessings are imkān (empowerment) and qudrat (might). Remember the bounties of Allāh and direct your attention toward gratitude.

قَالُوا أَجِئْتَنَا لِنَعْبُدَ اللَّهَ وَحْدَهُ وَنَذَرَ مَا كَانَ يَعْبُدُ آبَاؤُنَا فَأْتِنَا بِمَا تَعِدُنَا إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ

Qālū a-jiʾtanā li-naʿbuda Allāha waḥdahū wa-nadhara mā kāna yaʿbudu ābāʾunā fa-ʾtinā bi-mā taʿidunā in kunta min al-ṣādiqīn.

"They said: 'Have you come to us so that we worship Allāh alone and abandon what our fathers used to worship? Then bring us what you have promised us, if you are of the truthful!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:70)

Translation: The people of ʿĀd said: "Have you come to us so that we worship Allāh alone and abandon all that our fathers used to worship? Bring us then the punishment you keep threatening us with, if you are indeed truthful!"

Commentary: The arrogant challenge of an unbelieving people — they clung to ancestral custom and mocked the Prophet's warning. Their response is the paradigm of taqlīd al-ābāʾ (blind following of the forefathers) — the very argument that mushrikūn always used.

قَالَ قَدْ وَقَعَ عَلَيْكُم مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ رِجْسٌ وَغَضَبٌ أَتُجَادِلُونَنِي فِي أَسْمَاءٍ سَمَّيْتُمُوهَا أَنتُمْ وَآبَاؤُكُم مَّا نَزَّلَ اللَّهُ بِهَا مِن سُلْطَانٍ فَانتَظِرُوا إِنِّي مَعَكُم مِّنَ الْمُنتَظِرِينَ

Qāla qad waqaʿa ʿalaykum min rabbikum rijsun wa-ghaḍabun a-tujādilūnanī fī asmāʾin sammaytumūhā antum wa-ābāʾukum mā nazzala Allāhu bihā min sulṭānin fa-ntaẓirū innī maʿakum min al-muntaẓirīn.

"He said: 'Punishment and wrath from your Lord have already fallen upon you. Are you disputing with me about names you and your fathers invented — for which Allāh sent down no authority? Then wait; I too am waiting with you.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:71)

Translation: Hūd (upon him be peace) said: "The punishment and the wrath of your Lord have already fallen upon you! Are you disputing with me over mere names — names you and your fathers invented, for which Allāh sent down absolutely no proof or authority? Very well — wait! I too am waiting along with you."

فَأَنجَيْنَاهُ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ بِرَحْمَةٍ مِّنَّا وَقَطَعْنَا دَابِرَ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَمَا كَانُوا مُؤْمِنِينَ

Fa-anjayināhu wa-lladhīna maʿahū bi-raḥmatin minnā wa-qaṭaʿnā dābira lladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-mā kānū muʾminīn.

"So We saved him and those with him by mercy from Us, and We cut off the last remnant of those who denied Our signs and did not believe." (al-Aʿrāf 7:72)

Translation: So We saved Hūd and those who were with him through Our mercy, and We utterly severed (qaṭaʿnā dābirahum) the last root of those who denied Our signs and were not believers.

Commentary: O friends! Among the people of this world, there have always been those who mock and oppress the faithful. Allāh Most High eventually sent His punishment upon the oppressors; those who remained — no name, no trace. The same pattern continues: look at the current state of the world. In it, those who deny the truth of religion continue in their ways — but their allotted time has been given. The punishment will come; Allāh's mercy saved Hūd and the faithful.

O friends! In the current era, look at affairs: are people drawing near to Allāh? Are they occupied with the worship of the Lord or with the worship of the world's tyrants? Their time too will come, as it did for those before them. Allāh has the custom of trying each era with different circumstances — so that we might take warning. In our present time, because of our pride and corruption, hundreds of thousands have perished. May Allāh preserve us. Just as He saved Hūd (upon him be peace) and his companions through His mercy — may He save us too.

وَإِلَىٰ ثَمُودَ أَخَاهُمْ صَالِحًا قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَٰهٍ غَيْرُهُ قَدْ جَاءَتْكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ هَٰذِهِ نَاقَةُ اللَّهِ لَكُمْ آيَةً فَذَرُوهَا تَأْكُلْ فِي أَرْضِ اللَّهِ وَلَا تَمَسُّوهَا بِسُوءٍ فَيَأْخُذَكُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

Wa-ilā Thamūda akhāhum Ṣāliḥan qāla yā qawmi ʿbudū Allāha mā lakum min ilāhin ghayruhu qad jāʾatkum bayyinatun min rabbikum hādhihi nāqatu Allāhi lakum āyatan fa-dharūhā taʾkul fī arḍi Allāhi wa-lā tamassūhā bi-sūʾin fa-yaʾkhudha-kum ʿadhābun alīm.

"And to Thamūd — their brother Ṣāliḥ. He said: 'O my people! Worship Allāh — you have no deity other than Him. There has come to you a clear proof from your Lord: this is the she-camel of Allāh, a sign for you. So leave her to eat in Allāh's earth and do not touch her with harm, lest a painful punishment seize you.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:73)

Translation: And to the people of Thamūd We sent their brother Ṣāliḥ (upon him be peace) as their messenger. He said: "O my people! Worship Allāh; you have no deity other than Him. A clear proof has come to you from your Lord — this is the she-camel of Allāh (nāqat Allāh), a sign for you. Leave her to graze freely in Allāh's earth, and do not harm her in any way — otherwise a painful punishment will seize you."

Commentary: The she-camel of Ṣāliḥ (upon him be peace) was a miraculous sign. The iḍāfa (nāqat Allāh — Allāh's camel) is an iḍāfat tashkhīṣ wa-tashrīf (an attribution of honour and dignity); everything in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allāh, but this she-camel is attributed specifically to Him as a mark of honour. Fa-dharūhā — the command: leave her alone; let her graze in Allāh's earth. Wa-lā tamassūhā bi-sūʾ — do not harm her in any way. The punishment for harming her: a painful chastisement.

وَاذْكُرُوا إِذْ جَعَلَكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ مِن بَعْدِ عَادٍ وَبَوَّأَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ تَتَّخِذُونَ مِن سُهُولِهَا قُصُورًا وَتَنْحِتُونَ الْجِبَالَ بُيُوتًا فَاذْكُرُوا آلَاءَ اللَّهِ وَلَا تَعْثَوْا فِي الْأَرْضِ مُفْسِدِينَ

Wa-dhkurū idh jaʿalakum khulafāʾa min baʿdi ʿādin wa-bawwaʾakum fī al-arḍi tattakhidhūna min suhūlihā quṣūran wa-tanḥitūna al-jibāla buyūtan fa-dhkurū ālāʾa Allāhi wa-lā taʿthaw fī al-arḍi mufsidīn.

"And remember when He made you successors after ʿĀd and settled you in the land — you build palaces on its plains and carve houses in the mountains. So remember the favours of Allāh, and do not go about the earth spreading corruption." (al-Aʿrāf 7:74)

Translation: And remember how Allāh made you the successors of the people of ʿĀd and settled you in the earth — you build grand palaces on its plains and carve dwellings into the mountains. So remember the bounties of Allāh, and do not go around corrupting the earth.

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا مِن قَوْمِهِ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا لِمَنْ آمَنَ مِنْهُمْ أَتَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّ صَالِحًا مُّرْسَلٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِ قَالُوا إِنَّا بِمَا أُرْسِلَ بِهِ مُؤْمِنُونَ

Qāla al-malaʾu alladhīna stakbarū min qawmihī li-lladhīna istuḍʿifū li-man āmana minhum a-taʿlamūna anna Ṣāliḥan mursalun min rabbihī qālū innā bi-mā ursila bihi muʾminūn.

"The arrogant notables of his people said to those considered weak — to those of them who believed: 'Do you know that Ṣāliḥ is sent from his Lord?' They said: 'We do indeed believe in what he has been sent with.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:75)

Translation: The arrogant leading chiefs of his people said, addressing those they considered weak and beneath them — those who had believed among them: "Do you actually know that Ṣāliḥ is truly a messenger from his Lord?" The humble believers replied firmly: "Indeed, we believe in what he has been sent with."

قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا إِنَّا بِالَّذِي آمَنتُم بِهِ كَافِرُونَ

Qāla alladhīna stakbarū innā bi-lladhī āmantum bihi kāfirūn.

"Those who were arrogant said: 'We are indeed disbelievers in what you have believed in.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:76)

Translation: The arrogant chiefs declared: "We completely reject and disbelieve in that which you have believed!"

فَعَقَرُوا النَّاقَةَ وَعَتَوْا عَنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّهِمْ وَقَالُوا يَا صَالِحُ ائْتِنَا بِمَا تَعِدُنَا إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ

Fa-ʿaqarū al-nāqata wa-ʿataw ʿan amri rabbihim wa-qālū yā Ṣāliḥu iʾtinā bi-mā taʿidunā in kunta min al-mursalīn.

"So they hamstrung the she-camel and defied the command of their Lord, and said: 'O Ṣāliḥ! Bring us what you promised us, if you are indeed of the messengers!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:77)

Translation: Then they hamstrung the she-camel, defying the command of their Lord — they committed the act of cutting her behind the knees. This began, as the source text indicates, with a wicked ringleader who spurred on the deed. And they said: "O Ṣāliḥ! Bring us now that punishment you keep promising us — if you are truly among the messengers!"

Commentary: The cutting of the she-camel was the act that sealed their doom. It is narrated that a wicked man and a wicked woman collaborated in this crime. The whole tribe was complicit in allowing it. What followed was immediate and total: the punishment came.

فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ فَأَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِهِمْ جَاثِمِينَ

Fa-akhadhat-humu al-rajfatu fa-aṣbaḥū fī dārihim jāthimīn.

"So the earthquake seized them, and they became lying prostrate in their dwellings." (al-Aʿrāf 7:78)

Translation: The earthquake (rajfa) seized them and they became lying face down in their homes — utterly destroyed.

فَتَوَلَّىٰ عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَةَ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ وَلَٰكِن لَّا تُحِبُّونَ النَّاصِحِينَ

Fa-tawallā ʿanhum wa-qāla yā qawmi la-qad ablaghtukum risālata rabbī wa-naṣaḥtu lakum wa-lākin lā tuḥibbūna al-nāṣiḥīn.

"So he turned away from them and said: 'O my people! I did convey to you the message of my Lord and gave you sincere counsel — but you do not like the sincere advisers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:79)

Translation: Ṣāliḥ (upon him be peace) turned away from them and said: "O my people! I conveyed to you the message of my Lord with complete sincerity — I gave you my truest counsel. But you do not like sincere advisers and well-wishers."

[The Story of Lūṭ (upon him be peace)]

The valley of al-Qurā (wādī al-qurā) — a portion of which includes the land of Thamūd — was inhabited by a people called the people of Lūṭ. They were wicked evildoers. And a transgression similar to theirs spread even more later. One day, men among the people of Lūṭ — an evildoer among them acted with another evildoer in their vile manner — and the punishment came. Such is the consequence of wickedness and defiance of Allāh's laws. Lā ḥawla wa-lā quwwata illā bi-Llāh.

وَلُوطًا إِذْ قَالَ لِقَوْمِهِ أَتَأْتُونَ الْفَاحِشَةَ مَا سَبَقَكُم بِهَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّنَ الْعَالَمِينَ

Wa-Lūṭan idh qāla li-qawmihī a-taʾtūna al-fāḥishata mā sabaqakum bihā min aḥadin min al-ʿālamīn.

"And Lūṭ — when he said to his people: 'Do you commit an obscenity such as no one in all the worlds has committed before you?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:80)

Translation: And We sent Lūṭ (upon him be peace), who said to his people: "Are you committing this gross indecency — such wickedness as no one in the entirety of creation has ever committed before you?"

إِنَّكُمْ لَتَأْتُونَ الرِّجَالَ شَهْوَةً مِّن دُونِ النِّسَاءِ بَلْ أَنتُمْ قَوْمٌ مُّسْرِفُونَ

Innakum la-taʾtūna al-rijāla shahwatan min dūni al-nisāʾi bal antum qawmun musrifūn.

"You approach men out of desire instead of women — no, you are a people who transgress!" (al-Aʿrāf 7:81)

Translation: You approach men out of desire, setting aside women — you are a people who have transgressed all bounds!

Commentary: O friends! What a terrible state this community had fallen into! Such an act had never been known before in creation. Homosexual relations are against the fiṭra (primordial human nature); same-sex unions — male with male — are contrary to the natural order. This vice, alas, is no longer confined to men; it has spread among women too. And in some societies, a deluge of such immorality is now pouring down. Who among them will be held back from the reckoning? All those who indulge in it are heading toward the same punishment. The only way out is to return to the path of Allāh.

وَمَا كَانَ جَوَابَ قَوْمِهِ إِلَّا أَن قَالُوا أَخْرِجُوهُم مِّن قَرْيَتِكُمْ إِنَّهُمْ أُنَاسٌ يَتَطَهَّرُونَ

Wa-mā kāna jawāba qawmihī illā an qālū akhrijūhum min qaryatikum innahum unāsun yataṭahharūn.

"And the reply of his people was nothing but that they said: 'Drive them out of your city — they are people who keep themselves pure!'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:82)

Translation: And the only response his people could muster was: "Expel them from your town — for they are people who aspire to purity!" They mocked purity itself!

Commentary: The perversity of their depravity: they took purity as grounds for expulsion! Those who called for modesty and decency were to be driven away, while the corrupt were to remain. This is the logic of moral inversion.

فَأَنجَيْنَاهُ وَأَهْلَهُ إِلَّا امْرَأَتَهُ كَانَتْ مِنَ الْغَابِرِينَ

Fa-anjayināhu wa-ahlahū illā imraʾatahū kānat min al-ghābirīn.

"So We saved him and his family — except his wife; she was among those who remained behind." (al-Aʿrāf 7:83)

Translation: We saved Lūṭ and his household — except for his wife, who remained behind with the destroyed and was among those who perished.

وَأَمْطَرْنَا عَلَيْهِم مَّطَرًا فَانظُرْ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُجْرِمِينَ

Wa-amṭarnā ʿalayhim maṭaran fa-nẓur kayfa kāna ʿāqibatu al-mujrimīn.

"And We rained upon them a rain. So look how was the end of the criminals!" (al-Aʿrāf 7:84)

Translation: And We rained down upon them a devastating shower of stones. Reflect then — what was the end (ʿāqiba) of the criminals?

Commentary: O friends! Allāh Most High recounts one story after another — one people after another. He narrates their shirk, their wickedness, and their moral corruption. He describes how their fate came to be; He conveys the fate of all these peoples as a warning — so that we take heed and reform ourselves. In our present time, the condition of all these past nations has come to resemble our own — yet we remain deeply asleep in our heedlessness. No one is sincere toward Allāh from the heart; no one's attention turns toward Him. Each person is preoccupied with pride and oppressing others.

O friends! Especially I would draw the attention of women toward themselves — in the age of Lūṭ (upon him be peace), the same shamelessness that was widespread then is now once again universal. Repent! Turn toward Allāh Most High. Reform your condition now, and Allāh will also reform His dealing with you. Lā ḥawla wa-lā quwwata illā bi-Llāh.

[The Story of Shuʿayb (upon him be peace) and the People of Madyan]

وَإِلَىٰ مَدْيَنَ أَخَاهُمْ شُعَيْبًا قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَٰهٍ غَيْرُهُ قَدْ جَاءَتْكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ فَأَوْفُوا الْكَيْلَ وَالْمِيزَانَ وَلَا تَبْخَسُوا النَّاسَ أَشْيَاءَهُمْ وَلَا تُفْسِدُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ بَعْدَ إِصْلَاحِهَا ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

Wa-ilā Madyana akhāhum Shuʿayban qāla yā qawmi ʿbudū Allāha mā lakum min ilāhin ghayruhu qad jāʾatkum bayyinatun min rabbikum fa-awfū al-kayla wa-l-mīzāna wa-lā tabkhasū al-nāsa ashyāʾahum wa-lā tufsidū fī al-arḍi baʿda iṣlāḥihā dhālikum khayrun lakum in kuntum muʾminīn.

"And to Madyan — their brother Shuʿayb. He said: 'O my people! Worship Allāh — you have no deity other than Him. A clear proof has indeed come to you from your Lord. So give full measure and weight, and do not deprive people of their due, and do not corrupt the land after its reformation. That is better for you, if you are believers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:85)

Translation: And We sent to the people of Madyan their brother Shuʿayb (upon him be peace), from their own kin. He said: "O my people! Worship Allāh alone; you have no deity other than Him. Clear proof and guidance has come to you from your Lord. So give full measure and weight — do not defraud people in their due. Do not corrupt and spread disorder in the earth after Allāh has reformed it. This is what is better for you — if you are truly believers."

وَلَا تَقْعُدُوا بِكُلِّ صِرَاطٍ تُوعِدُونَ وَتَصُدُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ مَنْ آمَنَ بِهِ وَتَبْغُونَهَا عِوَجًا وَاذْكُرُوا إِذْ كُنتُمْ قَلِيلًا فَكَثَّرَكُمْ وَانظُرُوا كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُفْسِدِينَ

Wa-lā taqʿudū bi-kulli ṣirāṭin tūʿidūna wa-taṣuddūna ʿan sabīli Allāhi man āmana bihi wa-tabghūnahā ʿiwajan wa-dhkurū idh kuntum qalīlan fa-kaththarakum wa-nẓurū kayfa kāna ʿāqibatu al-mufsidīn.

"And do not sit at every road threatening, and barring from the path of Allāh those who believe in Him, seeking to make it crooked. Remember when you were few and He multiplied you. And see how the fate of the corrupters was." (al-Aʿrāf 7:86)

Translation: And do not sit on every road issuing threats and barring from Allāh's path those who believe in Him, seeking to make that path appear crooked. And remember when you were few in number and Allāh multiplied you and increased your numbers and your settlements. Now look at what the fate of those who spread corruption was!

وَإِن كَانَ طَائِفَةٌ مِّنكُمْ آمَنُوا بِالَّذِي أُرْسِلْتُ بِهِ وَطَائِفَةٌ لَّمْ يُؤْمِنُوا فَاصْبِرُوا حَتَّىٰ يَحْكُمَ اللَّهُ بَيْنَنَا وَهُوَ خَيْرُ الْحَاكِمِينَ

Wa-in kāna ṭāʾifatun minkum āmanū bi-lladhī ursiltu bihi wa-ṭāʾifatun lam yuʾminū fa-ṣbirū ḥattā yaḥkuma Allāhu baynanā wa-huwa khayru al-ḥākimīn.

"And if a group among you has believed in what I was sent with and another group has not believed, then be patient until Allāh judges between us. He is the best of judges." (al-Aʿrāf 7:87)

Translation: And if among you there is one group that has believed in what I was sent with and another group that has not believed — then be patient until Allāh judges between us. He is the best of judges.

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا مِن قَوْمِهِ لَنُخْرِجَنَّكَ يَا شُعَيْبُ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مَعَكَ مِن قَرْيَتِنَا أَوْ لَتَعُودُنَّ فِي مِلَّتِنَا قَالَ أَوَلَوْ كُنَّا كَارِهِينَ

Qāla al-malaʾu alladhīna stakbarū min qawmihī la-nukhrijannaka yā Shuʿaybu wa-lladhīna āmanū maʿaka min qaryatinā aw la-taʿūdunna fī millatinā qāla a-wa-law kunnā kārihīn.

"The arrogant notables of his people said: 'We will surely drive you out, O Shuʿayb, and those who believe with you, from our town — unless you return to our religion.' He said: 'Even though we detest it?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:88)

Translation: The arrogant chiefs of his people said: "We will certainly expel you, O Shuʿayb, and all those who have believed with you — expel you all from our town! Unless you return to our creed and way!" Shuʿayb (upon him be peace) replied: "Even if we utterly hate and detest it?"

قَدِ افْتَرَيْنَا عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِبًا إِنْ عُدْنَا فِي مِلَّتِكُمْ بَعْدَ إِذْ نَجَّانَا اللَّهُ مِنْهَا وَمَا يَكُونُ لَنَا أَن نَّعُودَ فِيهَا إِلَّا أَن يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ رَبُّنَا وَسِعَ رَبُّنَا كُلَّ شَيْءٍ عِلْمًا عَلَى اللَّهِ تَوَكَّلْنَا رَبَّنَا افْتَحْ بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَ قَوْمِنَا بِالْحَقِّ

Qad iftaraynā ʿalā Allāhi kadhiban in ʿudnā fī millatikum baʿda idh najjānā Allāhu minhā wa-mā yakūnu lanā an naʿūda fīhā illā an yashāʾa Allāhu rabbunā wasiʿa rabbunā kulla shayʾin ʿilman ʿalā Allāhi tawakkalnā rabbanā iftaḥ baynanā wa-bayna qawminā bi-l-ḥaqq.

"We would have fabricated a lie against Allāh if we returned to your religion after Allāh has saved us from it. It is not for us to return to it unless Allāh, our Lord, should will. Our Lord encompasses all things in knowledge. In Allāh we have placed our trust. Our Lord, decide between us and our people in truth —" (al-Aʿrāf 7:89)

Translation: "If we were to return to your religion after Allāh has saved us from it — we would indeed be fabricating a lie against Allāh! It is not fitting for us to return to it — unless Allāh our Lord wills otherwise. Our Lord encompasses all things in His knowledge. We place our full trust and reliance (tawakkul) upon Allāh. Our Lord! Open up (iftaḥ) and decide between us and our people in truth and justice —"

وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الْفَاتِحِينَ

Wa-anta khayru al-fātiḥīn.

"— and You are the best of those who decide." (al-Aʿrāf 7:89)

Translation: "And You are the best of all who open and decide."

Commentary: The meaning of fatḥ here is the opening of the door of truth and the delivering of a just verdict between the righteous and the wicked. The du'āʾ of Shuʿayb is a model supplication for those caught between truth and oppression: they place their complete trust in Allāh and ask Him to open the way with justice.

We placed our trust in Allāh — our reliance, our tawakkul, is in Him. ʿAlā Allāhi tawakkalnā — if your way is evil, we will not return to it; Allāh will decide. And the best of those who decide is Allāh. What does the opening of judgement mean here? For the believers — reward and salvation; for the oppressors — destruction.

وَقَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن قَوْمِهِ لَئِنِ اتَّبَعْتُمْ شُعَيْبًا إِنَّكُمْ إِذًا لَّخَاسِرُونَ

Wa-qāla al-malaʾu alladhīna kafarū min qawmihī la-in ittabaʿtum Shuʿayban innakum idhan la-khāsirūn.

"And the unbelieving notables of his people said: 'If you follow Shuʿayb, you will indeed then be losers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:90)

Translation: The unbelieving chiefs of his people said to the common people: "If you follow Shuʿayb, you will certainly be the great losers — you will suffer great harm!"

And what happened to these threats?

فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ فَأَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِهِمْ جَاثِمِينَ

Fa-akhadhat-humu al-rajfatu fa-aṣbaḥū fī dārihim jāthimīn.

"So the earthquake seized them, and they lay prostrate in their homes." (al-Aʿrāf 7:91)

Translation: A violent earthquake seized them and they all fell face down in their homes — destroyed.

الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا شُعَيْبًا كَأَن لَّمْ يَغْنَوْا فِيهَا الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا شُعَيْبًا كَانُوا هُمُ الْخَاسِرِينَ

Alladhīna kadhdhabū Shuʿayban ka-an lam yaghnaw fīhā alladhīna kadhdhabū Shuʿayban kānū humu al-khāsirīn.

"Those who denied Shuʿayb — it was as if they had never dwelt there. Those who denied Shuʿayb — they were the losers!" (al-Aʿrāf 7:92)

Translation: Those who denied Shuʿayb (upon him be peace) were obliterated as though they had never even existed in that place. Those who denied Shuʿayb — they were the true losers and the ruined ones. The mockers — they perished; the loss fell upon them, not upon Shuʿayb.

فَتَوَلَّىٰ عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِسَالَاتِ رَبِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ فَكَيْفَ آسَىٰ عَلَىٰ قَوْمٍ كَافِرِينَ

Fa-tawallā ʿanhum wa-qāla yā qawmi la-qad ablaghtukum risālāti rabbī wa-naṣaḥtu lakum fa-kayfa āsā ʿalā qawmin kāfirīn.

"Then he turned away from them and said: 'O my people! I did convey to you the messages of my Lord and gave you sincere counsel. How then should I mourn for a disbelieving people?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:93)

Translation: Shuʿayb (upon him be peace) turned away from them — withdrawing — and said: "O my people! I conveyed to you the messages of my Lord and gave you my most sincere counsel. Now how should I grieve over a people who rejected faith?"

Commentary: O friends! The Prophet Ibrāhīm (upon him be peace) is the grandfather of the Arabs. Shuʿayb (upon him be peace) is also from that lineage. In fact, Shuʿayb belonged to the family of Ibrāhīm; some narrations indicate he was the Prophet with whom Mūsā (upon him be peace) stayed in Madyan, and his daughter was given in marriage to Mūsā. The Jews do not consider Shuʿayb among the Prophets. The people of Shuʿayb would waylay travellers and rob them, and they would defraud buyers in their measures. Shuʿayb said to them: "Either follow our way or leave. We will not follow your path" — and if they reached the limit of disobedience, the punishment came: a catastrophic earthquake and a devastating covering cloud (ʿadhāb yawm al-ẓulla). The earth shook; fire rained down. In the chaos they fell face-down in the afternoon — all finished. One lesson to remember: Allāh Most High, whenever He sends a Prophet, the nature of His wisdom is this — He grants victory to the righteous and the truthful, and destroys those who reject.

O friends! Allāh Most High narrates one story after another — each people's shirk, wickedness, and moral corruption. The fate that befell them is made plain. He gives warning. Reflect: what circumstances are arising now, and what is the condition of the people of this age? Has the lesson of these earlier peoples been taken? Come and repent. Take heed. Yet you remain in the deep sleep of heedlessness. Near you is the new — and what is happening is attributed to coincidence, not to Allāh's hand. You do not recognise Allāh. One fights and strikes another unjustly; one roams around indulgently — and then you say: we are believers! But you are in great loss. You cannot see what your end will be. You are heading toward your ruin. When you will have inflicted harm upon the good — then you will hear what will reach you. Lā ḥawla wa-lā quwwata illā bi-Llāh.

General Principle: The Pattern of Punishment and Mercy

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا فِي قَرْيَةٍ مِّن نَّبِيٍّ إِلَّا أَخَذْنَا أَهْلَهَا بِالْبَأْسَاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَضَّرَّعُونَ

Wa-mā arsalnā fī qaryatin min nabiyyin illā akhadhnā ahlahā bi-l-baʾsāʾi wa-l-ḍarrāʾi laʿallahum yaḍḍarraʿūn.

"And We did not send a prophet to any city without afflicting its people with hardship and adversity so that they might humble themselves." (al-Aʿrāf 7:94)

Translation: And We never sent a Prophet to any city except that We seized its inhabitants with hardship (baʾsāʾ — poverty, calamity) and misfortune (ḍarrāʾ — illness, loss) — so that they might humble themselves before Allāh and turn to Him in supplication.

ثُمَّ بَدَّلْنَا مَكَانَ السَّيِّئَةِ الْحَسَنَةَ حَتَّىٰ عَفَوْا وَقَالُوا قَدْ مَسَّ آبَاءَنَا الضَّرَّاءُ وَالسَّرَّاءُ فَأَخَذْنَاهُم بَغْتَةً وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ

Thumma baddalnā makāna al-sayyiʾati al-ḥasanata ḥattā ʿafaw wa-qālū qad massa ābāʾanā al-ḍarrāʾu wa-l-sarrāʾu fa-akhadhnāhum baghtatan wa-hum lā yashʿurūn.

"Then We changed adversity into prosperity until they flourished and said: 'Hardship and ease already touched our fathers.' So We seized them suddenly while they did not perceive." (al-Aʿrāf 7:95)

Translation: Then We replaced the hardship with ease and prosperity — until they became prosperous and comfortable and forgot; and then they said: "Our ancestors also experienced hardship and ease — this is nothing new." So We seized them suddenly and without warning, while they had no awareness of what was coming.

وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَىٰ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَرَكَاتٍ مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَلَٰكِن كَذَّبُوا فَأَخَذْنَاهُم بِمَا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُونَ

Wa-law anna ahla al-qurā āmanū wa-ttaqaw la-ftaḥnā ʿalayhim barakātin min al-samāʾi wa-l-arḍi wa-lākin kadhdhabū fa-akhadhnāhum bi-mā kānū yaksibūn.

"And if the people of those cities had believed and been God-fearing, We would have opened upon them blessings from the sky and the earth. But they denied, so We seized them for what they used to earn." (al-Aʿrāf 7:96)

Translation: And if the people of those towns and cities had believed and feared Allāh, We would have opened the doors of blessings (barakāt) upon them from the sky and from the earth. But they denied — so We seized them for what they used to earn.

أَفَأَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَىٰ أَن يَأْتِيَهُم بَأْسُنَا بَيَاتًا وَهُمْ نَائِمُونَ

A-fa-amina ahlu al-qurā an yaʾtiyahum baʾsunā bayātan wa-hum nāʾimūn.

"Did the people of the cities feel secure that Our punishment would not come upon them at night while they slept?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:97)

Translation: Did the people of these towns feel safe — secure that Our punishment would not come upon them by night while they slept?

أَوَأَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَىٰ أَن يَأْتِيَهُم بَأْسُنَا ضُحًى وَهُمْ يَلْعَبُونَ

Aw a-amina ahlu al-qurā an yaʾtiyahum baʾsunā ḍuḥan wa-hum yalʿabūn.

"Or did the people of the cities feel secure that Our punishment would not come upon them in broad daylight while they played?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:98)

Translation: Or did the people of those towns feel secure that Our punishment would not descend upon them in broad daylight while they were absorbed in play and amusement?

أَفَأَمِنُوا مَكْرَ اللَّهِ فَلَا يَأْمَنُ مَكْرَ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ

A-fa-aminū makra Allāhi fa-lā yaʾmanu makra Allāhi illā al-qawmu al-khāsirūn.

"Did they feel secure from Allāh's plan? None feels secure from Allāh's plan except the people who are losers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:99)

Translation: Did they feel secure from Allāh's plan (makr Allāh)? None feels safe from Allāh's plan — none dismisses the possibility of divine retribution — except the truly ruined people, the losers. Only those who have already lost their way imagine themselves safe from Allāh's reckoning.

أَوَلَمْ يَهْدِ لِلَّذِينَ يَرِثُونَ الْأَرْضَ مِن بَعْدِ أَهْلِهَا أَن لَّوْ نَشَاءُ أَصَبْنَاهُم بِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَنَطْبَعُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ فَهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُونَ

A-wa-lam yahdi li-lladhīna yarithūna al-arḍa min baʿdi ahlihā an law nashāʾu aṣabnāhum bi-dhunūbihim wa-naṭbaʿu ʿalā qulūbihim fa-hum lā yasmaʿūn.

"Has it not become clear to those who inherit the earth after its former inhabitants that if We willed, We could strike them for their sins? And We seal over their hearts so they do not hear." (al-Aʿrāf 7:100)

Translation: Does it not guide those who inherit the earth after its previous inhabitants — should it not be a lesson to them — that if We wished, We could strike them too for their sins? And We seal over their hearts so that they cannot hear the truth.

تِلْكَ الْقُرَىٰ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنبَائِهَا وَلَقَدْ جَاءَتْهُمْ رُسُلُهُم بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ فَمَا كَانُوا لِيُؤْمِنُوا بِمَا كَذَّبُوا مِن قَبْلُ كَذَٰلِكَ يَطْبَعُ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِ الْكَافِرِينَ

Tilka al-qurā naquṣṣu ʿalayka min anbāʾihā wa-la-qad jāʾathum rusuluhum bi-l-bayyināti fa-mā kānū li-yuʾminū bi-mā kadhdhabū min qablu kadhālika yaṭbaʿu Allāhu ʿalā qulūbi al-kāfirīn.

"These are the cities — We relate to you some of their news. Their messengers had come to them with clear proofs, but they would not believe in what they had previously denied. Thus Allāh seals over the hearts of the disbelievers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:101)

Translation: These are the cities and towns — We are narrating their tidings and histories to you. Their messengers came to them with clear proofs and miracles. But they would not believe in what they had already earlier disbelieved in and denied. This is how Allāh seals over the hearts of the disbelievers — they become sealed, corroded, unreceptive.

وَمَا وَجَدْنَا لِأَكْثَرِهِم مِّنْ عَهْدٍ وَإِن وَجَدْنَا أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَفَاسِقِينَ

Wa-mā wajadnā li-aktharihim min ʿahdin wa-in wajadnā aktharahum la-fāsiqīn.

"And We did not find in most of them any covenant. Indeed, We found most of them to be transgressors." (al-Aʿrāf 7:102)

Translation: And We did not find in most of them any fulfilment of the covenant — the covenant of Allāh's signs, the covenant of faith. Indeed, We found most of them to be fāsiqīn — transgressors and sinners.

ثُمَّ بَعَثْنَا مِن بَعْدِهِم مُّوسَىٰ بِآيَاتِنَا إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ وَمَلَئِهِ فَظَلَمُوا بِهَا فَانظُرْ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَاقِبَةُ الْمُفْسِدِينَ

Thumma baʿathnā min baʿdihim Mūsā bi-āyātinā ilā firʿawna wa-malāʾihī fa-ẓalamū bihā fa-nẓur kayfa kāna ʿāqibatu al-mufsidīn.

"Then We sent, after them, Mūsā with Our signs to Pharaoh and his chiefs. But they were unjust toward them. So look how the end of the corrupters was!" (al-Aʿrāf 7:103)

Translation: Then, after all these Prophets, We sent Mūsā (upon him be peace) with Our signs to Pharaoh and his court. But they acted unjustly toward those signs — they denied them and refused to submit. So look — what was the end of those who spread corruption?

وَقَالَ مُوسَىٰ يَا فِرْعَوْنُ إِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِّن رَّبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Wa-qāla Mūsā yā firʿawnu innī rasūlun min rabbi al-ʿālamīn.

"And Mūsā said: 'O Pharaoh! I am a messenger from the Lord of all worlds.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:104)

Translation: And Mūsā (upon him be peace) said: "O Pharaoh! I am truly a messenger from the Lord of all worlds — Rabb al-ʿālamīn."

حَقِيقٌ عَلَىٰ أَن لَّا أَقُولَ عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَّ قَدْ جِئْتُكُم بِبَيِّنَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ فَأَرْسِلْ مَعِيَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ

Ḥaqīqun ʿalā an lā aqūla ʿalā Allāhi illā al-ḥaqqa qad jiʾtukum bi-bayyinatin min rabbikum fa-arsil maʿiya banī Isrāʾīl.

"It is incumbent upon me to say nothing about Allāh except the truth. I have come to you with a clear proof from your Lord — so send with me the Children of Israel." (al-Aʿrāf 7:105)

Translation: It is binding and incumbent upon me to say nothing concerning Allāh but the absolute truth — al-ḥaqq. I have come to you with a clear, luminous proof (bayyina) from your Lord. So release with me the Children of Israel — let them come with me; release this people from your bondage.

Commentary: Mūsā (upon him be peace) stood before the greatest tyrant of his age — Pharaoh — with absolute composure and certainty. He declared: (1) I am Allāh's messenger; (2) I speak only truth; (3) I bear proof and signs from your Lord. And he made the demand: release the Children of Israel. The mission of Mūsā was both tablīgh — proclaiming the truth — and ḥurriyat — the liberation of an oppressed people.

[The source text breaks off at p.260 at the beginning of Pharaoh's response, mid-sentence. The translation covers precisely the assigned range of pp.209–260.]

Sūrat al-Aʿrāf (7) — continued

فَأَلْقَى عَصَاهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ ثُعْبَانٌ مُّبِينٌ ۝ وَنَزَعَ يَدَهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ بَيْضَآءُ لِلنَّاظِرِينَ

Fa-alqā ʿaṣāhu fa-idhā hiya thuʿbānun mubīn. Wa-nazaʿa yadahu fa-idhā hiya bayḍāʾu li-l-nāẓirīn.

"So he cast his staff, and at once it became a manifest serpent. And he drew out his hand, and at once it was white to the beholders." (al-Aʿrāf 7:107–108)

Translation: He cast his staff, and it became a great serpent clearly visible to all; and he drew his hand from his garment, and it shone luminously white before the eyes of all who looked.

Commentary: Bayḍāʾ — brilliant white, radiant. Li-l-nāẓirīn — for those who were watching. These were two of the nine signs (āyāt) granted to the Prophet Mūsā (upon him be peace): a staff that became a living serpent, and a hand that radiated with a divine white light. Both signs were manifest and undeniable before Pharaoh's court.

قَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّ هَذَا لَسَاحِرٌ عَلِيمٌ

Qāla al-malaʾu min qawmi Firʿawna inna hādhā la-sāḥirun ʿalīm.

"The chiefs of Pharaoh's people said: 'Indeed, this is a learned sorcerer.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:109)

Translation: The nobles of Pharaoh's court said: This man is nothing but a highly skilled and knowing sorcerer.

Commentary: ʿAlīm — knowledgeable, expert, masterful. This was the first line of attack employed by the arrogant and the powerful against a Prophet of Allāh: to reduce a divine miracle to the category of worldly trickery. The chiefs of Pharaoh's household, consumed by pride and disbelief, attributed the luminous signs of Prophethood to sorcery.

يُرِيدُ أَن يُخْرِجَكُم مِّنْ أَرْضِكُمْ فَمَاذَا تَأْمُرُونَ

Yurīdu an yukhrijākum min arḍikum fa-mādhā taʾmurūn.

"He intends to drive you out of your land, so what do you counsel?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:110)

Translation: He wants to expel you from your own land. What is your counsel? What decision do you advise?

Commentary: Pharaoh sought to inflame the fear and self-interest of his courtiers by framing Mūsā's mission as a political threat. This is a recurring strategy of tyranny: turning spiritual truth into a manufactured danger so as to maintain the loyalty of one's subordinates.

قَالُوا أَرْجِهْ وَأَخَاهُ وَأَرْسِلْ فِي الْمَدَآئِنِ حَاشِرِينَ

Qālū arjihi wa-akhāhu wa-arsil fī al-madāʾini ḥāshirīn.

"They said: 'Detain him and his brother, and send into the cities gatherers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:111)

Translation: They counselled: Give him and his brother a reprieve for the time being, and send emissaries throughout the cities to summon and assemble all the sorcerers to you.

يَأْتُوكَ بِكُلِّ سَاحِرٍ عَلِيمٍ

Yaʾtūka bi-kulli sāḥirin ʿalīm.

"They shall bring to you every learned sorcerer." (al-Aʿrāf 7:112)

Translation: So that they may bring you every accomplished and expert sorcerer from every corner of the land.

Commentary: Pharaoh's advisors responded to divine signs with the only currency they understood: worldly skill and spectacle. Their plan was to overwhelm Mūsā's miracle with sheer number and craft. This counsel reveals the essential poverty of the disbelieving mind — it can only conceive of opposing truth with greater technique.

وَجَآءَ السَّحَرَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ قَالُوا إِنَّ لَنَا لَأَجْرًا إِن كُنَّا نَحْنُ الْغَالِبِينَ

Wa-jāʾa al-saḥaratu Firʿawna qālū inna lanā la-ajran in kunnā naḥnu al-ghālibīn.

"And the sorcerers came to Pharaoh and said: 'Shall we indeed have a reward if we are the victors?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:113)

Translation: And the sorcerers came to Pharaoh's court and said: Will there be a remuneration for us — a payment, a fee — if we are the ones who prevail?

Commentary: From the very first words, the sorcerers disclosed their motivation: not conviction, not principle, but reward. This contrasts starkly with the condition of the true believer, who acts for the sake of Allāh alone.

قَالَ نَعَمْ وَإِنَّكُمْ لَمِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ

Qāla naʿam wa-innakum la-min al-muqarrabīn.

"He said: 'Yes, and you shall indeed be among the intimates of my court.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:114)

Translation: Pharaoh said: Certainly — you will have your reward, and beyond that you shall be elevated to the rank of those nearest to the royal throne.

Commentary: Pharaoh offered them both wealth and proximity to power. Worldly kings have always used these two lures — property and prestige — to purchase loyalty in their campaigns against the truth. But Allāh's plan superseded all of Pharaoh's calculations.

قَالُوا يَا مُوسَى إِمَّا أَن تُلْقِيَ وَإِمَّا أَن نَّكُونَ نَحْنُ الْمُلْقِينَ

Qālū yā Mūsā immā an tulqiya wa-immā an nakūna naḥnu al-mulqīn.

"They said: 'O Mūsā, either you cast, or we shall be the ones to cast.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:115)

Translation: The sorcerers said to Mūsā (upon him be peace): You choose — either you cast first, or we shall cast.

قَالَ أَلْقُوا فَلَمَّا أَلْقَوا سَحَرُوا أَعْيُنَ النَّاسِ وَاسْتَرْهَبُوهُمْ وَجَاءُوا بِسِحْرٍ عَظِيمٍ

Qāla alqū fa-lammā alqaw saḥarū aʿyuna al-nāsi wa-istarhabūhum wa-jāʾū bi-siḥrin ʿaẓīm.

"He said: 'Cast.' And when they cast, they bewitched the eyes of the people and terrified them, and they produced a tremendous sorcery." (al-Aʿrāf 7:116)

Translation: Mūsā said: You cast. And when they cast their ropes and staffs, they bewitched the eyes of the onlookers, creating the illusion of a vast, writhing spectacle, and they filled the hearts of the people with fear — and they had indeed produced a great feat of sorcery.

Commentary: The sorcerers employed mass optical illusion: they bewitched the eyes of the spectators so that the ropes and staffs appeared to move as living serpents. This was the height of their art, a spectacle designed to overwhelm and terrify. But the believer knows: illusion, however grand, cannot withstand the confrontation with divine reality.

وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصَاكَ فَإِذَا هِيَ تَلْقَفُ مَا يَأْفِكُونَ

Wa-awḥaynā ilā Mūsā an alqi ʿaṣāka fa-idhā hiya talqafu mā yaʾfikūn.

"And We revealed to Mūsā: 'Cast your staff,' and at once it swallowed up what they were fabricating." (al-Aʿrāf 7:117)

Translation: And We sent revelation to Mūsā (upon him be peace): Cast your staff. And at once it swallowed up all that they had fabricated with their sorcery.

Commentary: The word talqafu — to swallow up, devour at speed — conveys the instantaneous totality of the miracle. The serpent formed from Mūsā's staff consumed all the illusory serpents of the sorcerers. Truth does not merely compete with falsehood; it annihilates it entirely.

فَوَقَعَ الْحَقُّ وَبَطَلَ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ

Fa-waqaʿa al-ḥaqqu wa-baṭala mā kānū yaʿmalūn.

"So the truth was established, and what they had been doing was nullified." (al-Aʿrāf 7:118)

Translation: Truth stood firm and was confirmed, and all that the sorcerers had fashioned and crafted was rendered null and void.

فَغُلِبُوا هُنَالِكَ وَانقَلَبُوا صَاغِرِينَ

Fa-ghulibū hunālika wa-nqalabū ṣāghirīn.

"And they were defeated there and then, and they returned in a state of humiliation." (al-Aʿrāf 7:119)

Translation: The sorcerers were vanquished on the spot, and they turned back in utter humiliation and disgrace.

وَأُلْقِيَ السَّحَرَةُ سَاجِدِينَ

Wa-ulqiya al-saḥaratu sājidīn.

"And the sorcerers were cast down in prostration." (al-Aʿrāf 7:120)

Translation: And the sorcerers fell down in prostration — casting themselves before Allāh in submission.

Commentary: The moment of defeat for the sorcerers became the moment of their spiritual liberation. Those who had been hired instruments of Pharaoh's vanity became, in an instant, witnesses to divine power. They had the professional eye to recognise that what Mūsā performed was not sorcery at all but a true and living miracle. Their fall to the earth in sujūd (prostration) is among the most moving scenes in the Qurʾān.

قَالُوا آمَنَّا بِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ ۝ رَبِّ مُوسَى وَهَارُونَ

Qālū āmannā bi-rabbi al-ʿālamīn. Rabbi Mūsā wa-Hārūn.

"They said: 'We have believed in the Lord of all the worlds — the Lord of Mūsā and Hārūn.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:121–122)

Translation: The sorcerers declared: We believe in the Lord of all worlds — the Lord who is the Master of Mūsā (upon him be peace) and Hārūn (upon him be peace).

Commentary: Their declaration of faith was immediate, total, and publicly courageous. They specified: Rabbi Mūsā wa-Hārūn — the Lord of Mūsā and Hārūn — thereby distancing themselves clearly from the claim of Pharaoh that he himself was lord. This specificity was both a theological statement and an act of defiance.

The author (may Allāh have mercy on him) reflects here: Ponder well, dear reader, upon these āyāt and the many lessons they contain. Sorcery and miracle are of entirely different kinds. Sorcery originates in deception: ropes and staffs are made to appear as serpents through manipulation of perception. A miracle, however, springs from the immediate power of Allāh — the staff of Mūsā (upon him be peace) truly became a living creature. The sorcerer serves himself and his own desires; the Prophet serves Allāh alone. Sorcery, moreover, brings only harm — it yields nothing except injury, while the miracle of a Prophet benefits all creation. Sorcery involves seeking assistance from evil spirits (arwāḥ khabītha) and drawing on the power of base entities. The sorcerers themselves, possessing expert eyes, recognised the distinction at once — and with that recognition came faith (īmān), firm and unshakeable. Even under the immediate threat of Pharaoh's brutal punishment, they stood firm: We believe, and we shall return to our Lord. One day all must die; one day all must stand before the court of the divine. O Lord of Power! Keep us firm in faith, grant us patience, and let us depart this world as Muslims.

قَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ آمَنتُم بِهِ قَبْلَ أَن آذَنَ لَكُمْ إِنَّ هَذَا لَمَكْرٌ مَّكَرْتُمُوهُ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ لِتُخْرِجُوا مِنْهَا أَهْلَهَا فَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

Qāla Firʿawnu āmantum bihi qabla an ādhana lakum inna hādhā la-makrun makartumūhu fī al-madīnati li-tukhrijū minhā ahlahā fa-sawfa taʿlamūn.

"Pharaoh said: 'You believe in him before I have given you permission? This is surely a plot you have hatched in the city to drive its people out. You shall soon know.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:123)

Translation: Pharaoh cried out: You dared to believe in him before I gave you leave?! This is a conspiracy that you all devised together in the city, intended to drive its people out. You will come to know your fate.

Commentary: Makr — conspiracy, cunning scheme. Pharaoh, confronted with a spiritual reality he could not explain away, resorted to the tyrant's oldest manoeuvre: fabricating a political conspiracy. He recast a genuine moment of faith as a pre-arranged plot between Mūsā and the sorcerers. This is the nature of arrogant disbelief: rather than recognise truth, it weaves ever more elaborate fictions to deny it.

لَأُقَطِّعَنَّ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُم مِّنْ خِلَافٍ ثُمَّ لَأُصَلِّبَنَّكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ

La-uqaṭṭiʿanna aydiyakum wa-arjulakum min khilāfin thumma la-uṣallibannakum ajmaʿīn.

"I will surely cut off your hands and your feet from alternate sides, and then I will surely crucify you all." (al-Aʿrāf 7:124)

Translation: I will certainly sever your hands and your feet from opposite sides — right hand and left foot, or left hand and right foot — and then I will certainly crucify every one of you.

Commentary: Pharaoh's response to the most luminous moment of faith was a threat of savage mutilation and execution. Min khilāf — from opposition, alternating sides — is the cruelest form of amputation, designed to render the victim incapable of balance or movement before death. Yet the newly-believing sorcerers did not flinch.

قَالُوا إِنَّا إِلَى رَبِّنَا مُنقَلِبُونَ

Qālū innā ilā rabbinā munqalibūn.

"They said: 'Indeed, we are returning to our Lord.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:125)

Translation: The sorcerers replied: We are simply returning to our Lord. We go to meet Him — death holds no terror for one who has found his Lord.

Commentary: What a testament to the transformative power of true faith! Moments before, these men had been hired performers for a godless tyrant. Now, facing death by crucifixion, they proclaimed their indifference to worldly destruction. The world and all Pharaoh could do in it had become small in their sight. This is the state of the heart that has tasted divine reality.

وَمَا تَنقِمُ مِنَّا إِلَّا أَنْ آمَنَّا بِآيَاتِ رَبِّنَا لَمَّا جَاءَتْنَا رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ

Wa-mā tanqimu minnā illā an āmannā bi-āyāti rabbinā lammā jāʾatnā. Rabbanā afrigh ʿalaynā ṣabran wa-tawaffanā muslimīn.

"And you take vengeance on us only because we believed in the signs of our Lord when they came to us. Our Lord! Pour out upon us patience, and let us die as Muslims." (al-Aʿrāf 7:126)

Translation: And O Pharaoh, the only offence you hold against us is that we believed in the signs of our Lord when they came before our eyes. O our Lord! Pour out upon us an abundance of patience and let us depart this world as Muslims.

Commentary: Afrigh ʿalaynā ṣabran — pour out patience upon us like water being poured from a vessel — this image of ifrāgh (pouring out, flooding) speaks to the scale of the patience they were asking for: not a trickle but a flood of divine sustenance to endure what lay ahead. Tawaffanā muslimīn — let our death be in the state of Islam, in complete submission to Allāh. This is among the most beautiful prayers in the Qurʾān, and every believer ought to make it their own.

وَقَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ أَتَذَرُ مُوسَى وَقَوْمَهُ لِيُفْسِدُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَيَذَرَكَ وَآلِهَتَكَ قَالَ سَنُقَتِّلُ أَبْنَاءَهُمْ وَنَسْتَحْيِي نِسَاءَهُمْ وَإِنَّا فَوْقَهُمْ قَاهِرُونَ

Wa-qāla al-malaʾu min qawmi Firʿawna a-tadharu Mūsā wa-qawmahu li-yufsidū fī al-arḍi wa-yadharaka wa-ālihataka. Qāla sa-nuqattilu abnāʾahum wa-nastaḥyī nisāʾahum wa-innā fawqahum qāhirūn.

"And the chiefs of Pharaoh's people said: 'Will you leave Mūsā and his people to spread corruption in the land and to abandon you and your gods?' He said: 'We shall kill their sons and spare their women, and we are dominant over them.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:127)

Translation: The chieftains of Pharaoh's court said: Will you permit Mūsā and his people to go free, that they may spread disorder in the land of Egypt and abandon the worship of you and your deities? Pharaoh replied: We shall slaughter their male children and keep their women alive as servants. We are powerful over them and we shall crush them.

Commentary: Pharaoh's response was to revive the very same policy of systematic infanticide and subjugation that Allāh had used as the original backdrop for Mūsā's birth and mission. He had done this before Mūsā's birth, and now, after all the signs he had witnessed, he could only return to the same brutality. This is the nature of Pharaonic arrogance: it cannot learn; it can only repeat itself in ever greater cycles of oppression.

قَالَ مُوسَى لِقَوْمِهِ اسْتَعِينُوا بِاللَّهِ وَاصْبِرُوا إِنَّ الْأَرْضَ لِلَّهِ يُورِثُهَا مَن يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

Qāla Mūsā li-qawmihi istaʿīnū bi-llāhi wa-iṣbirū inna al-arḍa li-llāhi yūrithuhā man yashāʾu min ʿibādihi wa-l-ʿāqibatu li-l-muttaqīn.

"Mūsā said to his people: 'Seek help from Allāh and be patient. Indeed, the earth belongs to Allāh; He bequeaths it to whom He wills of His servants, and the final outcome is for the God-fearing.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:128)

Translation: Mūsā (upon him be peace) addressed his people: Seek Allāh's help and be steadfast. Truly the whole earth belongs to Allāh; He gives its inheritance to whomever He wills among His servants, and the ultimate good outcome belongs to those who possess taqwā (God-consciousness).

Commentary: This is one of the great counsels of Prophetic wisdom: two prescriptions — istaʿīnū (seek divine help) and iṣbirū (be patient) — for the most severe earthly oppression. The reason given is cosmic and eternal: the earth belongs to Allāh, not to Pharaoh, not to any earthly power. The one who holds fast to taqwā need not fear — the final state of affairs belongs to the God-fearing. This principle has consoled and strengthened the people of faith across all ages.

قَالُوا أُوذِينَا مِن قَبْلِ أَن تَأْتِيَنَا وَمِن بَعْدِ مَا جِئْتَنَا قَالَ عَسَى رَبُّكُمْ أَن يُهْلِكَ عَدُوَّكُمْ وَيَسْتَخْلِفَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ فَيَنظُرَ كَيْفَ تَعْمَلُونَ

Qālū ūdhīnā min qabli an taʾtiyanā wa-min baʿdi mā jiʾtanā. Qāla ʿasā rabbukum an yuhlika ʿaduwwakum wa-yastakhlifakum fī al-arḍi fa-yanẓura kayfa taʿmalūn.

"They said: 'We were oppressed before you came to us and after you have come to us.' He said: 'Perhaps your Lord will destroy your enemy and appoint you as successors in the land, and then observe how you act.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:129)

Translation: The Children of Israel said: We were being persecuted before you arrived among us, and we continue to be persecuted now that you have come. Mūsā replied: It may well be that your Lord will annihilate your enemy and appoint you as His vicegerents and successors in this land — and then He will observe what deeds you perform.

Commentary: The complaint of the Children of Israel reflects the human capacity for short-sightedness in the middle of affliction. They saw only the hardship of the present moment, not the divine plan unfolding. Mūsā's response redirects their gaze: ʿasā rabbukum — perhaps your Lord — a phrasing that in Qurʾānic usage carries near-certainty of divine promise. Yet it comes with a condition: fa-yanẓura kayfa taʿmalūn — and then He will see what you do with what you have been given. Blessing comes with responsibility; vicegerency (khilāfa) on earth is a trust (amāna), not an entitlement.

وَلَقَدْ أَخَذْنَا آلَ فِرْعَوْنَ بِالسِّنِينَ وَنَقْصٍ مِّنَ الثَّمَرَاتِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَذَّكَّرُونَ

Wa-laqad akhadhnā āla Firʿawna bi-l-sinīna wa-naqṣin min al-thamarāti laʿallahum yadhdhakkarūn.

"And We certainly seized the people of Pharaoh with years of drought and a shortfall of fruits, so that they might take heed." (al-Aʿrāf 7:130)

Translation: And indeed We afflicted the people of Pharaoh with years of drought and a reduction in the produce of the earth — in their harvests and their fruits — so that they might return to awareness and remember Allāh.

Commentary: Al-sinīn — years of drought and famine. Naqṣ min al-thamarāt — reduction in crops and produce. Allāh the Most High does not delight in the suffering of His servants, but when a people turn their hearts away from Him, He brings trials (taklīf) and privation so that they might be shaken into remembrance. Had Pharaoh's people turned, had even a fraction of them sought Allāh, the door of mercy was open. But they were heedless.

فَإِذَا جَاءَتْهُمُ الْحَسَنَةُ قَالُوا لَنَا هَذِهِ وَإِن تُصِبْهُمْ سَيِّئَةٌ يَطَّيَّرُوا بِمُوسَى وَمَن مَّعَهُ أَلَا إِنَّمَا طَائِرُهُمْ عِندَ اللَّهِ وَلَكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

Fa-idhā jāʾathum al-ḥasanatu qālū lanā hādhihi wa-in tuṣibhum sayyi'atun yaṭṭayyarū bi-Mūsā wa-man maʿahu. Alā innamā ṭāʾiruhum ʿinda Allāhi wa-lākinna aktharahum lā yaʿlamūn.

"But when good came to them, they said: 'This is our due.' And if evil struck them, they would take it as a bad omen from Mūsā and those with him. Truly, their omen rested with Allāh, but most of them did not know." (al-Aʿrāf 7:131)

Translation: When prosperity and good fortune came to them, they said: This is our own doing, the fruit of our own labours. But when calamity or hardship struck them, they would ascribe it as ill-omen (ṭīra) to Mūsā and his followers. Beware! Their fate and their destiny rested with Allāh — it was the consequence of their own deeds — yet most of them knew nothing of this.

Commentary: Yaṭṭayyarū — to take evil omen, to attribute misfortune to an unlucky presence. The people of Pharaoh exemplified a universal human failing: taking credit for blessings and blaming others for trials. When Allāh's bounty came, they attributed it to themselves; when His warning came, they blamed the Prophet. This is a sickness of the heart that the Qurʾān repeatedly diagnoses and condemns. Ṭāʾiruhum ʿinda Allāh — their fortune, their fate, their destiny is with Allāh, determined by their own choices and deeds.

وَقَالُوا مَهْمَا تَأْتِنَا بِهِ مِنْ آيَةٍ لِّتَسْحَرَنَا بِهَا فَمَا نَحْنُ لَكَ بِمُؤْمِنِينَ

Wa-qālū mahmā taʾtinā bihi min āyatin li-tasḥaranā bihā fa-mā naḥnu laka bi-muʾminīn.

"And they said: 'Whatever sign you bring us to bewitch us with, we will not believe in you.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:132)

Translation: And the people of Pharaoh said: Whatever sign or miracle you bring to enchant us with, we shall never believe in you.

Commentary: This is the declaration of a heart that has sealed itself against truth. It is no longer a matter of evidence; they had decided in advance. The Qurʾān records this as testimony against them, and as a warning to those who approach divine signs with predetermined rejection rather than sincere inquiry.

فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمُ الطُّوفَانَ وَالْجَرَادَ وَالْقُمَّلَ وَالضَّفَادِعَ وَالدَّمَ آيَاتٍ مُّفَصَّلَاتٍ فَاسْتَكْبَرُوا وَكَانُوا قَوْمًا مُّجْرِمِينَ

Fa-arsalnā ʿalayhim al-ṭūfāna wa-l-jarāda wa-l-qummala wa-l-ḍafādiʿa wa-l-dama āyātin mufaṣṣalātin fa-stakbarū wa-kānū qawman mujrimīn.

"So We sent upon them the flood, and locusts, and lice, and frogs, and blood — signs distinct and detailed. But they were arrogant and were a people of criminals." (al-Aʿrāf 7:133)

Translation: So We sent upon them: the great flood (ṭūfān), and locusts (jarād), and lice (qummal), and frogs (ḍafādiʿ), and blood (dam) — each a clear and distinct sign, each a separate warning. But they remained arrogant and haughty, and they were a people sunk in crime and transgression.

Commentary: The five great plagues sent upon Pharaoh's people are enumerated here. Āyātin mufaṣṣalāt — signs that were distinct, separated, detailed, each arriving separately as a discrete divine message. Ṭūfān — a catastrophic flood or overwhelming inundation; jarād — swarms of locusts devouring all crops; qummal — lice or vermin infesting their bodies and food; ḍafādiʿ — frogs swarming in every space; dam — blood, which according to the commentators afflicted the water supply. Each sign was a clear invitation to repent, yet each was followed by a return to arrogance. Fa-stakbarū — they became even more arrogant. This is the terrifying spiral of hardened disbelief: each sign, instead of softening the heart, causes it to harden further.

وَلَمَّا وَقَعَ عَلَيْهِمُ الرِّجْزُ قَالُوا يَا مُوسَى ادْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ بِمَا عَهِدَ عِندَكَ لَئِن كَشَفْتَ عَنَّا الرِّجْزَ لَنُؤْمِنَنَّ لَكَ وَلَنُرْسِلَنَّ مَعَكَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ

Wa-lammā waqaʿa ʿalayhim al-rijzu qālū yā Mūsā idʿu lanā rabbaka bi-mā ʿahida ʿindaka la-in kashafta ʿannā al-rijza la-nuʾminanna laka wa-la-nursilanna maʿaka banī Isrāʾīl.

"And when the torment fell upon them, they said: 'O Mūsā, call upon your Lord for us by virtue of the covenant He has made with you. If you remove the torment from us, we will surely believe in you and send the Children of Israel with you.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:134)

Translation: And when the punishment fell heavily upon them, they cried out: O Mūsā! Pray to your Lord on our behalf by virtue of the covenant He has established with you. If you lift this torment from us, we will certainly believe in you and we will release the Children of Israel to go with you.

Commentary: Al-rijz — punishment, torment, affliction. When the punishments struck hard, Pharaoh's people suddenly found humility and made promises. Allāh the Most High has said: Call upon Me and I will respond (Ghāfir 40:60). The promise of response was standing. But the people of Pharaoh sought relief from suffering without any real commitment to truth. Their pleas were transactional, not spiritual — as becomes evident in the next verse.

فَلَمَّا كَشَفْنَا عَنْهُمُ الرِّجْزَ إِلَى أَجَلٍ هُم بَالِغُوهُ إِذَا هُمْ يَنكُثُونَ

Fa-lammā kashafnā ʿanhum al-rijza ilā ajalin hum bālighuhu idhā hum yankuthūn.

"But when We removed from them the torment until a term which they were to reach, they at once broke their promise." (al-Aʿrāf 7:135)

Translation: Then when We lifted the torment from them — until a fixed appointed time that would inevitably come — they at once broke their promises and returned to their former ways.

Commentary: Yankuthūn — they broke their covenant, they went back on their word. The removal of suffering dissolved every promise they had made. This is the pattern of those whose turning to Allāh is born purely of distress rather than of conviction: when the pain passes, the remembrance passes with it. The appointed time (ajal) referred to here is the time decreed for their ultimate destruction by drowning in the sea — a term they would inevitably meet.

فَانتَقَمْنَا مِنْهُمْ فَأَغْرَقْنَاهُمْ فِي الْيَمِّ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَكَانُوا عَنْهَا غَافِلِينَ

Fa-ntaqamnā minhum fa-aghraqnāhum fī al-yammi bi-annahum kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-kānū ʿanhā ghāfilīn.

"So We took retribution from them and drowned them in the sea, because they denied Our signs and were heedless of them." (al-Aʿrāf 7:136)

Translation: So We exacted retribution from them and drowned them in the sea — for they had denied Our signs and were utterly heedless and negligent of them.

Commentary: Al-yamm — the sea, specifically the sea of Qulzum (the Red Sea). Ghafilīn — heedless, negligent, absent-minded before Allāh's signs. The two causes given for their destruction are both spiritual: takdhīb (denial of signs) and ghafla (heedlessness). Denial is an active rejection; heedlessness is a passive abandonment. Both lead to the same fate.

وَأَوْرَثْنَا الْقَوْمَ الَّذِينَ كَانُوا يُسْتَضْعَفُونَ مَشَارِقَ الْأَرْضِ وَمَغَارِبَهَا الَّتِي بَارَكْنَا فِيهَا وَتَمَّتْ كَلِمَتُ رَبِّكَ الْحُسْنَى عَلَى بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ بِمَا صَبَرُوا وَدَمَّرْنَا مَا كَانَ يَصْنَعُ فِرْعَوْنُ وَقَوْمُهُ وَمَا كَانُوا يَعْرِشُونَ

Wa-awrathnā al-qawma alladhīna kānū yustaḍʿafūna mashāriqa al-arḍi wa-maghāribahā allatī bāraknā fīhā wa-tammat kalimatu rabbika al-ḥusnā ʿalā banī Isrāʾīla bi-mā ṣabarū wa-dammarnā mā kāna yaṣnaʿu Firʿawnu wa-qawmuhu wa-mā kānū yaʿrishūn.

"And We caused the people who had been oppressed to inherit the eastern and western regions of the land, which We had blessed. And the most beautiful word of your Lord was fulfilled concerning the Children of Israel because of their patient endurance. And We destroyed what Pharaoh and his people had been building and what they had been erecting." (al-Aʿrāf 7:137)

Translation: And We made the people who had been deemed weak and of no account — the Children of Israel — heirs to the eastern and western regions of the blessed land. And the most excellent promise of your Lord to the Children of Israel was fulfilled, because of the patience and endurance they had borne. And We utterly demolished what Pharaoh and his people had constructed and what they had raised up in those towering structures.

Commentary: Kalimatu rabbika al-ḥusnā — the most beautiful word, the most excellent promise of your Lord. This is the promise of Allāh to those who maintain faith under oppression: ultimate vicegerency, ultimate inheritance. Bi-mā ṣabarū — because of their patient endurance. Patience (ṣabr) is the key that unlocks divine promise. Pharaoh and his people had built great structures — palaces, towers, monuments of civilisation — and all of it was reduced to nothing. No worldly power, however elaborate its architecture, outlasts the decree of Allāh.

وَجَاوَزْنَا بِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ الْبَحْرَ فَأَتَوْا عَلَى قَوْمٍ يَعْكُفُونَ عَلَى أَصْنَامٍ لَّهُمْ قَالُوا يَا مُوسَى اجْعَل لَّنَا إِلَهًا كَمَا لَهُمْ آلِهَةٌ قَالَ إِنَّكُمْ قَوْمٌ تَجْهَلُونَ

Wa-jāwaznā bi-banī Isrāʾīla al-baḥra fa-ataw ʿalā qawmin yaʿkufūna ʿalā aṣnāmin lahum qālū yā Mūsā ijʿal lanā ilāhan kamā lahum ālihatun. Qāla innakum qawmun tajhalūn.

"And We brought the Children of Israel across the sea, and they came upon a people who were devoted to certain idols of theirs. They said: 'O Mūsā, make for us a god as they have gods.' He said: 'Indeed, you are a people who act in ignorance.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:138)

Translation: And We caused the Children of Israel to cross the sea, and on the other side they came upon a people who were sitting in devotion before their idols. The Children of Israel said: O Mūsā, fashion for us too a god, just as these people have their gods. Mūsā (upon him be peace) replied: You are indeed a people of profound ignorance.

Commentary: Yaʿkufūna — sitting in devoted concentration before, engaged in worship. After having witnessed the parting of the sea, the destruction of Pharaoh, and a series of divine miracles unprecedented in human history, the Children of Israel immediately requested an idol — simply because they saw others worshipping one. This is the power of environment and visual suggestion over hearts not yet purified. Mūsā's response was direct and cutting: Innakum qawmun tajhalūn — you are a people who act in ignorance. Abandoning Allāh, who has just drowned your enemies and parted the sea for you, in favour of a constructed idol — what greater ignorance can there be?

إِنَّ هَؤُلَاءِ مُتَبَّرٌ مَّا هُمْ فِيهِ وَبَاطِلٌ مَّا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ

Inna hāʾulāʾi mutabbarun mā hum fīhi wa-bāṭilun mā kānū yaʿmalūn.

"Indeed, what they are engaged in is destined for destruction, and what they have been doing is futile." (al-Aʿrāf 7:139)

Translation: Indeed, that to which these idol-worshippers are devoted is heading toward total ruin and destruction; and everything they have been doing is false and vain.

Commentary: Mutabbar — ruined, shattered, destroyed. Bāṭil — false, empty, void of reality. Mūsā (upon him be peace) did not merely refuse the request; he prophesied the ultimate fate of the path of idol-worship. All the structures of false religion are inherently unstable — built on nothing real, they collapse under the weight of reality.

قَالَ أَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ أَبْغِيكُمْ إِلَهًا وَهُوَ فَضَّلَكُمْ عَلَى الْعَالَمِينَ

Qāla a-ghayra Allāhi abghīkum ilāhan wa-huwa faḍḍalakum ʿalā al-ʿālamīn.

"He said: 'Shall I seek for you a god other than Allāh, while He has favoured you above all the worlds?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:140)

Translation: Mūsā said: How can I seek any deity for you other than Allāh — when He is the One who has favoured and distinguished you above all peoples of the world?

Commentary: Faḍḍalakum ʿalā al-ʿālamīn — He has given you privilege and distinction above the peoples of the world. To exchange the worship of such a Lord for a fabricated idol is not merely foolish; it is a profound ingratitude (kufrān al-niʿma). The author notes here: to abandon Allāh and then nurture attachment to some imagined form or created thing — even in one's thoughts — is itself a form of ingratitude.

وَإِذْ أَنجَيْنَاكُم مِّنْ آلِ فِرْعَوْنَ يَسُومُونَكُمْ سُوءَ الْعَذَابِ يُقَتِّلُونَ أَبْنَاءَكُمْ وَيَسْتَحْيُونَ نِسَاءَكُمْ وَفِي ذَلِكُمْ بَلَاءٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ عَظِيمٌ

Wa-idh anjay nākum min āli Firʿawna yasūmūnakum sūʾa al-ʿadhābi yuqattilūna abnāʾakum wa-yastaḥyūna nisāʾakum wa-fī dhālikum balāʾun min rabbikum ʿaẓīm.

"And recall when We saved you from the people of Pharaoh who were inflicting upon you a grievous torment, slaughtering your sons and sparing your women — and in that was a tremendous trial from your Lord." (al-Aʿrāf 7:141)

Translation: And remember when We rescued you from the people of Pharaoh who were subjecting you to the worst of torments — slaughtering your male children and keeping your women alive to serve them. In all of this was a tremendous trial and testing from your Lord.

Commentary: Yasūmūnakum — they were causing you to taste, making you drink from the cup of torment. Balāʾun ʿaẓīm — a tremendous trial. The reminder of Allāh's rescue is here paired with a call to gratitude and to testing: the severity of what they endured was simultaneously an affliction and a divine examination. Balāʾ in Arabic carries both the meaning of affliction and of trial — and indeed every severe trial is both. The people of faith are tested by hardship so that their patience and faith may be revealed and strengthened.

وَوَاعَدْنَا مُوسَى ثَلَاثِينَ لَيْلَةً وَأَتْمَمْنَاهَا بِعَشْرٍ فَتَمَّ مِيقَاتُ رَبِّهِ أَرْبَعِينَ لَيْلَةً وَقَالَ مُوسَى لِأَخِيهِ هَارُونَ اخْلُفْنِي فِي قَوْمِي وَأَصْلِحْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ سَبِيلَ الْمُفْسِدِينَ

Wa-wāʿadnā Mūsā thalāthīna laylatan wa-atmmamnāhā bi-ʿashrin fa-tamma mīqātu rabbihi arbaʿīna laylatan wa-qāla Mūsā li-akhīhi Hārūna ukhlufnī fī qawmī wa-aṣliḥ wa-lā tattabiʿ sabīla al-mufsidīn.

"And We appointed for Mūsā thirty nights and completed them with ten, so the appointed time of his Lord was completed as forty nights. And Mūsā said to his brother Hārūn: 'Be my successor among my people, act rightly, and do not follow the path of the corrupters.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:142)

Translation: And We made an appointment with Mūsā (upon him be peace) of thirty nights and completed it with an additional ten, so the total appointed time with his Lord was forty nights. In Arabic reckoning, the reference is to nights since the night precedes the day in Islamic usage — so forty days of seclusion (chilla) is intended. Before departing, Mūsā said to his brother Hārūn (upon him be peace): Act as my deputy (khalīfa) among my people, conduct their affairs rightly and well, and do not follow the path of those who cause corruption.

Commentary: The forty-night retreat on the mountain of Ṭūr is the archetype for the spiritual seclusion (chilla or khalwa) practised in the tradition of the awliyāʾ. Mūsā's instruction to Hārūn — wa-aṣliḥ (act rightly, make reform) and lā tattabiʿ sabīla al-mufsidīn (do not follow the way of corrupters) — contains a complete programme of leadership. Reform (iṣlāḥ) and refusal to follow the corrupt are the two pillars of sound vicegerency.

وَلَمَّا جَاءَ مُوسَى لِمِيقَاتِنَا وَكَلَّمَهُ رَبُّهُ قَالَ رَبِّ أَرِنِي أَنظُرْ إِلَيْكَ قَالَ لَن تَرَانِي وَلَكِنِ انظُرْ إِلَى الْجَبَلِ فَإِنِ اسْتَقَرَّ مَكَانَهُ فَسَوْفَ تَرَانِي فَلَمَّا تَجَلَّى رَبُّهُ لِلْجَبَلِ جَعَلَهُ دَكًّا وَخَرَّ مُوسَى صَعِقًا فَلَمَّا أَفَاقَ قَالَ سُبْحَانَكَ تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَأَنَا أَوَّلُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ

Wa-lammā jāʾa Mūsā li-mīqātinā wa-kallamahu rabbuhu qāla rabbi arinī anẓur ilayka. Qāla lan tarānī wa-lākin unẓur ilā al-jabali fa-in istaqarra makānahu fa-sawfa tarānī. Fa-lammā tajallā rabbuhu li-l-jabali jaʿalahu dakkan wa-kharra Mūsā ṣāʿiqan. Fa-lammā afāqa qāla subḥānaka tubtu ilayka wa-anā awwalu al-muʾminīn.

"And when Mūsā came at Our appointed time and his Lord spoke to him, he said: 'My Lord, show Yourself to me that I may look upon You.' He said: 'You shall not see Me. But look at the mountain; if it remains in its place, you shall see Me.' And when his Lord manifested His glory to the mountain, He made it crumble to dust, and Mūsā fell down thunderstruck. And when he recovered, he said: 'Glory be to You! I turn to You in repentance, and I am the first of the believers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:143)

Translation: When Mūsā (upon him be peace) arrived at Our appointed station and his Lord spoke with him in direct speech (kalām), the longing of proximity and intimate conversation moved him to say: My Lord, manifest Yourself to me that I may see You. Allāh the Most High replied: You cannot see Me in this world. But turn your gaze to the mountain — if it remains in its place when My manifestation (tajallī) falls upon it, then you may see Me. When his Lord manifested a gleam of His divine glory upon Mount Ṭūr, it crumbled to powder and fragments, and Mūsā (upon him be peace) fell down thunderstruck and unconscious. When he regained consciousness, he said: Glory be to You, my Lord — utterly transcendent beyond all limitation. I turn to You in repentance, and I am the foremost of those who believe in Your absolute transcendence and incomparability.

Commentary: This passage is among the most profound in all of Qurʾānic commentary and has been the subject of extended discussion by the greatest scholars of Islamic theology (ʿilm al-kalām) and spiritual science (taṣawwuf).

Tajallī — divine self-manifestation, a gleam of the divine light of majesty. The mountain could not withstand even a degree of this manifestation and was reduced to dust. As for Mūsā (upon him be peace), he lost consciousness — ṣaʿiqa means to fall struck down, as if by a thunderbolt. When he recovered, his words were: Subḥānaka tawwabtu ilayka — Glory be to You, I turn in repentance to You. His repentance here is not from sin — for the Prophets (upon them all be peace) are protected (maʿṣūm) — but from the very request he had made. The experience taught him at the deepest possible level of embodied knowledge that the divine Being in His absolute transcendence cannot be encompassed by the human eye in this world.

Wa-anā awwalu al-muʾminīn — and I am the first of the believers. Mūsā's faith, always firm, was after this experience taken to a new plane of certainty — a plane of direct experiential knowledge (yaqīn) beyond all ordinary faith.

قَالَ يَا مُوسَى إِنِّي اصْطَفَيْتُكَ عَلَى النَّاسِ بِرِسَالَاتِي وَبِكَلَامِي فَخُذْ مَا آتَيْتُكَ وَكُن مِّنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ

Qāla yā Mūsā innī iṣṭafaytuka ʿalā al-nāsi bi-risālātī wa-bi-kalāmī fa-khudh mā āataytuka wa-kun min al-shākirīn.

"He said: 'O Mūsā, I have chosen you above the people by My messages and by My speech. So take what I have given you and be among the grateful.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:144)

Translation: Allāh the Most High said: O Mūsā, I have selected you and distinguished you above the generality of mankind by entrusting you with My messages and by honouring you with My direct speech. Take firm hold of all that I have given you, and be among the grateful.

Commentary: Iṣṭafaytuka — I have chosen you with the choice of purity (ṣafāʾ). Bi-risālātī wa-bi-kalāmī — by both My missions/messages and My speech. Mūsā (upon him be peace) possessed two singular distinctions: that of rasūl (the one who bears and delivers the message) and that of kalīm Allāh (the one to whom Allāh spoke directly without intermediary). The command fa-khudh mā āataytuka — take what I have given you — is a command to embrace, act upon, and embody the gift of Prophethood with full commitment. And the injunction kun min al-shākirīn — be among the grateful — reminds us that gratitude is itself an act and a station, not merely a feeling.

وَكَتَبْنَا لَهُ فِي الْأَلْوَاحِ مِن كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مَّوْعِظَةً وَتَفْصِيلًا لِّكُلِّ شَيْءٍ فَخُذْهَا بِقُوَّةٍ وَأْمُرْ قَوْمَكَ يَأْخُذُوا بِأَحْسَنِهَا سَأُرِيكُمْ دَارَ الْفَاسِقِينَ

Wa-katabnā lahu fī al-alwāḥi min kulli shayʾin mawʿiẓatan wa-tafṣīlan li-kulli shayʾin fa-khudhā bi-quwwatin wa-ʾmur qawmaka yaʾkhudhū bi-aḥsanihā sa-urīkum dāra al-fāsiqīn.

"And We wrote for him on the Tablets of everything — admonition and detailed explanation of all things. So take hold of them firmly, and command your people to take the best of them. I shall show you the abode of the transgressors." (al-Aʿrāf 7:145)

Translation: And We inscribed for Mūsā (upon him be peace) on the Tablets a comprehensive admonition and a detailed exposition of all the great matters — the principles and universal rulings — of divine guidance. Take hold of these Tablets firmly and with strength of purpose, and command your people to act upon the finest and most excellent of their injunctions. I shall soon show you — and through you, all of them — how the transgressors end up and what becomes of them.

Commentary: Al-alwāḥ — the Tablets; these are the Tablets of the Tawrāh granted to Mūsā (upon him be peace) on Mount Ṭūr. Min kulli shayʾin mawʿiẓatan — from every matter, an admonition. Tafṣīlan li-kulli shayʾin — a detailed explanation of everything. Fa-khudhā bi-quwwatin — take hold of it with strength, firmness, and full commitment — not half-heartedly or passively. Dār al-fāsiqīn — the abode of the transgressors: this refers to the ultimate fate of those who transgress, whether in this world or in the Hereafter. The word fāsiq refers to one who has broken out of the boundaries of obedience, like a date that has burst through its skin.

سَأَصْرِفُ عَنْ آيَاتِيَ الَّذِينَ يَتَكَبَّرُونَ فِي الْأَرْضِ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ وَإِن يَرَوْا كُلَّ آيَةٍ لَّا يُؤْمِنُوا بِهَا وَإِن يَرَوْا سَبِيلَ الرُّشْدِ لَا يَتَّخِذُوهُ سَبِيلًا وَإِن يَرَوْا سَبِيلَ الْغَيِّ يَتَّخِذُوهُ سَبِيلًا ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَكَانُوا عَنْهَا غَافِلِينَ

Sa-aṣrifu ʿan āyātiya alladhīna yatakabbarūna fī al-arḍi bi-ghayri al-ḥaqqi wa-in yaraw kulla āyatin lā yuʾminū bihā wa-in yaraw sabīla al-rushdi lā yattakhidhūhu sabīlan wa-in yaraw sabīla al-ghayyi yattakhidhūhu sabīlā. Dhālika bi-annahum kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-kānū ʿanhā ghāfilīn.

"I shall turn away from My signs those who are arrogant in the earth without right. And if they see every sign, they will not believe in it; and if they see the way of right guidance, they will not adopt it as a way; and if they see the way of error, they will adopt it as a way. That is because they denied Our signs and were heedless of them." (al-Aʿrāf 7:146)

Translation: I shall divert away from My signs those who behave arrogantly on the earth without any justification. Were they to witness every single sign and miracle, they would not believe in it; and were they to see the path of right guidance (rushd) laid out clearly before them, they would not take it; and if the path of misguidance and error (ghayy) were to appear before them, they would rush to adopt it. And why? — because they denied Our signs and remained heedlessly indifferent to them.

Commentary: This is among the most profound statements in the Qurʾān concerning the spiritual mechanism of divine tawfīq (assistance toward guidance) and its withdrawal. When a person persists in arrogance — takabbur bi-ghayri al-ḥaqq (arrogance without right, meaning groundless arrogance) — they create a veil between themselves and the divine signs. Allāh does not compel guidance; He makes it available, and when a person persistently turns away, their very capacity to receive it diminishes. The Ḥanafī Māturīdī position is clear: guidance (hidāya) is from Allāh, but the human being's turning (tawajjuh) toward or away from it carries moral weight and spiritual consequence.

وَالَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَلِقَاءِ الْآخِرَةِ حَبِطَتْ أَعْمَالُهُمْ هَلْ يُجْزَوْنَ إِلَّا مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ

Wa-alladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-liqāʾi al-ākhirati ḥabiṭat aʿmāluhum hal yujzawna illā mā kānū yaʿmalūn.

"And those who denied Our signs and the meeting of the Hereafter — their deeds have collapsed into futility. Shall they be recompensed except for what they used to do?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:147)

Translation: Those who denied Our signs and denied the reality of the meeting with the Hereafter — all their deeds are nullified and rendered void (ḥabiṭat). And their recompense shall be nothing other than the fruit of what they themselves used to do.

Commentary: Ḥabiṭat aʿmāluhum — their deeds collapsed, were negated. The word ḥabaṭa originally refers to an animal that eats too much and its stomach bloats and bursts — the image is of effort that undoes itself, deeds that contain the seeds of their own annihilation. Good deeds built on a foundation of kufr (rejection of Allāh and the Hereafter) carry no weight on the Day of Reckoning.

وَاتَّخَذَ قَوْمُ مُوسَى مِن بَعْدِهِ مِنْ حُلِيِّهِمْ عِجْلًا جَسَدًا لَّهُ خُوَارٌ أَلَمْ يَرَوْا أَنَّهُ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمْ وَلَا يَهْدِيهِمْ سَبِيلًا اتَّخَذُوهُ وَكَانُوا ظَالِمِينَ

Wa-ttakhadha qawmu Mūsā min baʿdihi min ḥuliyyihim ʿijlan jasadan lahu khuwārun. Alam yaraw annahu lā yukallimuhum wa-lā yahdīhim sabīlan. Ittakhadhūhu wa-kānū ẓālimīn.

"And the people of Mūsā, after him, took from their ornaments a calf — a body that lowed. Did they not see that it could not speak to them and could not guide them on any path? They took it as a deity, and they were wrongdoers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:148)

Translation: After Mūsā departed for his appointment on Mount Ṭūr, his people fashioned from their gold ornaments a calf — a body with a lowing sound. Did they not perceive that this calf could not speak to them, could not address them, and could not guide them on any path? And yet they took it as a deity to worship. They were transgressors.

Commentary: According to the commentators, it was the Sāmirī who crafted the calf and gave it its distinctive sound. There is a narration that Jibrīl (upon him be peace) had passed riding on his horse, and wherever the horse's hooves struck the ground, the earth became alive. The Sāmirī took a handful of that earth and cast it into the molten gold, and the calf began to low. This is mentioned in Sūrat Ṭāhā. The people, seeing it move and hearing its sound, were seduced into worshipping it — demonstrating the extreme vulnerability of hearts not anchored in deep spiritual awareness (maʿrifa).

The author (may Allāh have mercy on him) draws an important lesson: This incident demonstrates the profound effect of spiritual company (ṣuḥba). The sanctified earth, merely by proximity to a holy being, carried a divine trace. And yet the Sāmirī used that trace for the purposes of deception. Dear reader, in our own times, attend to the company you keep. The spiritually alive can revive; the spiritually dead can corrupt.

وَلَمَّا سُقِطَ فِي أَيْدِيهِمْ وَرَأَوْا أَنَّهُمْ قَدْ ضَلُّوا قَالُوا لَئِن لَّمْ يَرْحَمْنَا رَبُّنَا وَيَغْفِرْ لَنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ

Wa-lammā suqiṭa fī aydīhim wa-raʾaw annahum qad ḍallū qālū la-in lam yarḥamnā rabbunā wa-yaghfir lanā la-nakūnanna min al-khāsirīn.

"And when they fell into remorse and saw that they had gone astray, they said: 'If our Lord does not have mercy on us and forgive us, we shall surely be among the losers.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:149)

Translation: When they were overcome with deep remorse — when the reality of their error struck home — and they saw plainly that they had fallen into misguidance, they said: If our Lord does not show us mercy and forgive us, we shall surely be counted among those who are utterly ruined.

Commentary: Suqiṭa fī aydīhim — an idiom of profound regret, literally meaning "something was dropped into their hands" — a state of helplessness and shame, of being overcome by remorse. This is the beginning of tawba (repentance): the recognition of error, the feeling of shame (ḥayāʾ), and the awareness of one's desperate need for divine mercy. The verse records their cry as a model of sincere contrition.

وَلَمَّا رَجَعَ مُوسَى إِلَى قَوْمِهِ غَضْبَانَ أَسِفًا قَالَ بِئْسَمَا خَلَفْتُمُونِي مِن بَعْدِي أَعَجِلْتُمْ أَمْرَ رَبِّكُمْ وَأَلْقَى الْأَلْوَاحَ وَأَخَذَ بِرَأْسِ أَخِيهِ يَجُرُّهُ إِلَيْهِ قَالَ ابْنَ أُمَّ إِنَّ الْقَوْمَ اسْتَضْعَفُونِي وَكَادُوا يَقْتُلُونَنِي فَلَا تُشْمِتْ بِيَ الْأَعْدَاءَ وَلَا تَجْعَلْنِي مَعَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

Wa-lammā rajaʿa Mūsā ilā qawmihi ghaḍbāna āsifan qāla biʾsamā khalaftumūnī min baʿdī a-ʿajiltum amra rabbikum wa-alqā al-alwāḥa wa-akhadha bi-raʾsi akhīhi yajurruhu ilayhi. Qāla ibna umma inna al-qawma istaḍʿafūnī wa-kādū yaqtulūnanī fa-lā tushmit biya al-aʿdāʾa wa-lā tajʿalnī maʿa al-qawmi al-ẓālimīn.

"And when Mūsā returned to his people, angry and grieving, he said: 'How evil is what you did in my absence! Did you hasten the command of your Lord?' And he threw down the Tablets and seized his brother by the head, dragging him toward himself. Hārūn said: 'O son of my mother, the people deemed me weak and nearly killed me. So do not let the enemies gloat over me, and do not place me with the wrongdoing people.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:150)

Translation: When Mūsā (upon him be peace) returned from Ṭūr to his people, in a state of intense anger and profound grief, he cried out: What an evil substitution you have made in my absence! Did you rush headlong to violate the command of your Lord?! And he threw the Tablets down and seized his brother Hārūn (upon him be peace) by the head, drawing him toward himself in reproach. Hārūn said: O son of my mother — (he addressed him tenderly by this form) — the people overpowered me and nearly killed me. Do not make the enemies gloat over me by treating me harshly; and do not count me among the wrongdoing people.

Commentary: The intensity of Mūsā's grief (asif) — a word deeper than ordinary anger, signifying a grief that consumes — speaks to the depth of his love for his people and the pain of seeing them abandon the very faith for which he had striven. The throwing down of the Tablets was not a careless act but an expression of this consuming anguish. As for Hārūn (upon him be peace), he had indeed tried to prevent the people from their error — he had rebuked them and warned them, but they were too many and too determined, and he feared that if he pressed too hard they would erupt into violence. Ibn umm — O son of my mother — the appeal to maternal kinship is a Semitic expression of maximum tenderness and intimacy, designed to calm anger and evoke compassion. Hārūn's defence was honest and true: he had done what he could without causing greater harm.

قَالَ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِأَخِي وَأَدْخِلْنَا فِي رَحْمَتِكَ وَأَنتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ

Qāla rabbi ighfir lī wa-li-akhī wa-adkhilnā fī raḥmatika wa-anta arḥamu al-rāḥimīn.

"He said: 'My Lord, forgive me and my brother, and admit us into Your mercy, for You are the Most Merciful of the merciful.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:151)

Translation: Mūsā (upon him be peace) supplicated: My Lord, forgive me and my brother Hārūn, and draw us both into the embrace of Your mercy, for You are the Most Merciful of all who show mercy.

Commentary: Having heard Hārūn's account, Mūsā's anger dissolved into prayer. This is the manner of the people of Allāh: even in moments of intense grief and anger, they ultimately return to duʿāʾ (supplication). The prayer encompasses both himself and his brother — ighfir lī wa-li-akhī — placing his own need for forgiveness before Hārūn's, in a gesture of humility and fraternal love. Wa-adkhilnā fī raḥmatika — draw us into the interior of Your mercy, not merely at its edges.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا الْعِجْلَ سَيَنَالُهُمْ غَضَبٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ وَذِلَّةٌ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَكَذَلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُفْتَرِينَ

Inna alladhīna ittakhadhū al-ʿijla sa-yanāluhum ghaḍabun min rabbihim wa-dhillatun fī al-ḥayāti al-dunyā wa-kadhālika najzī al-muftarīn.

"Indeed, those who took the calf will be struck by anger from their Lord and by humiliation in the life of this world, and thus We recompense those who invent falsehoods." (al-Aʿrāf 7:152)

Translation: Indeed, those who took the calf as a deity — divine wrath will descend upon them from their Lord, and abasement and humiliation will be their portion in this worldly life. And this is how We recompense those who fabricate lies and slanders.

Commentary: Two punishments are specified: ghaḍab (divine wrath) and dhilla (abasement/humiliation). Allāh the Most High created the human being as the noblest of creatures (ashraf al-makhlūqāt), and to choose to worship a calf — a beast — over the Creator is such a profound inversion of the human dignity that humiliation in this world becomes its inevitable counterpart. The author reflects: What greater humiliation can there be? Allāh fashioned Adam as the crown of creation; animal worship is the abdication of that dignity. Brothers and sisters, the acts of those who worship the calf — in whatever form the calf takes in any age — are as strange and ugly as following the cow while claiming to honour the tradition of its followers. Take heed.

وَالَّذِينَ عَمِلُوا السَّيِّئَاتِ ثُمَّ تَابُوا مِن بَعْدِهَا وَآمَنُوا إِنَّ رَبَّكَ مِن بَعْدِهَا لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

Wa-alladhīna ʿamilū al-sayyiʾāti thumma tābū min baʿdihā wa-āmanū inna rabbaka min baʿdihā la-ghafūrun raḥīm.

"But those who committed evil deeds and then repented after that and believed — indeed, your Lord, after that, is Forgiving, Merciful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:153)

Translation: As for those who committed evil deeds — including the sin of calf-worship — and then turned back in sincere repentance and renewed their faith, indeed your Lord after all of that is Forgiving and Merciful.

Commentary: The door of tawba is not closed even after shirk (associating partners with Allāh) — provided the repentance is genuine and is accompanied by renewed īmān (faith). This is the immensity of divine mercy. The Qurʾān juxtaposes the punishment of the stubborn with the forgiveness of the repentant in the very same passage — making clear that the divine decree is not arbitrary cruelty but a system of perfect justice and boundless compassion.

وَلَمَّا سَكَتَ عَن مُّوسَى الْغَضَبُ أَخَذَ الْأَلْوَاحَ وَفِي نُسْخَتِهَا هُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّلَّذِينَ هُمْ لِرَبِّهِمْ يَرْهَبُونَ

Wa-lammā sakata ʿan Mūsā al-ghaḍabu akhadha al-alwāḥa wa-fī nuskhatiha hudan wa-raḥmatun li-lladhīna hum li-rabbihim yarhabūn.

"And when the anger subsided in Mūsā, he picked up the Tablets, and in their inscription was guidance and mercy for those who hold their Lord in awe." (al-Aʿrāf 7:154)

Translation: And when the anger receded from Mūsā (upon him be peace) and subsided, he lifted up the Tablets once more. In their divine text was guidance (hudā) and mercy (raḥma) for those who hold their Lord in reverential awe (yarhab).

Commentary: Sakata ʿanhu al-ghaḍab — the anger fell silent from him — a beautiful idiom. Anger is here described as something that speaks and then is silent, an external force that passed through Mūsā rather than something permanently resident in his noble nature. When the storm of prophetic anger passed, he returned to what mattered: the Tablets of divine guidance. Li-lladhīna hum li-rabbihim yarhabūn — for those who stand in awe and reverent fear before their Lord. The guidance and mercy within the Tablets are accessible only to hearts that carry rahba (reverential awe) — the gift is real but it requires a particular quality of heart to receive it.

وَاخْتَارَ مُوسَى قَوْمَهُ سَبْعِينَ رَجُلًا لِّمِيقَاتِنَا فَلَمَّا أَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّجْفَةُ قَالَ رَبِّ لَوْ شِئْتَ أَهْلَكْتَهُم مِّن قَبْلُ وَإِيَّايَ أَتُهْلِكُنَا بِمَا فَعَلَ السُّفَهَاءُ مِنَّا إِنْ هِيَ إِلَّا فِتْنَتُكَ تُضِلُّ بِهَا مَن تَشَاءُ وَتَهْدِي مَن تَشَاءُ أَنتَ وَلِيُّنَا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الْغَافِرِينَ

Wa-khtāra Mūsā qawmahu sabʿīna rajulan li-mīqātinā fa-lammā akhadhat-hum al-rajfatu qāla rabbi law shiʾta ahlakata-hum min qablu wa-iyyāya. A-tuhlikunā bi-mā faʿala al-sufahāʾu minnā in hiya illā fitnatuka tuḍillu bihā man tashāʾu wa-tahdī man tashāʾu anta waliyyunā fa-ghfir lanā wa-rḥamnā wa-anta khayru al-ghāfirīn.

"And Mūsā chose from his people seventy men for Our appointed time. Then when the earthquake seized them, he said: 'My Lord, if You had wished, You could have destroyed them and me before. Will You destroy us for what the foolish among us have done? This is nothing but Your trial — through it You lead astray whom You will and guide whom You will. You are our Guardian, so forgive us and have mercy on us, for You are the best of those who forgive.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:155)

Translation: Mūsā (upon him be peace) selected seventy of the finest men from his people to attend Our appointed station for worship and supplication. These were men of piety and rigour who had undertaken seclusion and spiritual training. What did they do there? Some accounts say they saw or heard something of the divine glory and were unable to sustain it. When the earthquake (rajfa) seized them — knocking them down — Mūsā cried out: My Lord! If You had willed, You could have destroyed them long before this, and me along with them. Will You now destroy us because of what our foolish ones have done? All of this is nothing but Your fitna (trial and testing) — through it You allow to go astray those whose own choices lead them there, and You guide those who turn toward You. You are our Master and Guardian, so forgive us and have mercy on us, for You are the best and most excellent of all who forgive.

Commentary: This supplication of Mūsā (upon him be peace) is a masterpiece of theological depth and intercessory prayer. He first appeals to the divine logic of proportionate justice: a-tuhlikunā bi-mā faʿala al-sufahāʾ — would You punish all of us for what the foolish ones among us did? This is the argument of collective mercy, and it draws on the intimate relationship (walāya) between the Prophet and his Lord. He then makes a profound theological statement: in hiya illā fitnatuka — this is nothing but Your trial. The entire history of misguidance and guidance belongs to the divine dispensation — which in Māturīdī theology means that human choice is real but divine knowledge and will encompass it entirely. The prayer ends with the most beautiful of closings: wa-anta khayru al-ghāfirīn — and You are the best of those who forgive. Forgiveness in Allāh is not a concession to failure but a supreme positive attribute.

وَاكْتُبْ لَنَا فِي هَذِهِ الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الْآخِرَةِ إِنَّا هُدْنَا إِلَيْكَ قَالَ عَذَابِي أُصِيبُ بِهِ مَنْ أَشَاءُ وَرَحْمَتِي وَسِعَتْ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَسَأَكْتُبُهَا لِلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ وَيُؤْتُونَ الزَّكَاةَ وَالَّذِينَ هُم بِآيَاتِنَا يُؤْمِنُونَ

Wa-ktub lanā fī hādhihi al-dunyā ḥasanatan wa-fī al-ākhirati innā hudnā ilayk. Qāla ʿadhābī uṣību bihi man ashāʾu wa-raḥmatī wasiʿat kulla shayʾin fa-sa-aktubu hā li-lladhīna yattaqūna wa-yuʾtūna al-zakāta wa-lladhīna hum bi-āyātinā yuʾminūn.

"'And decree for us good in this world and in the Hereafter; indeed we have turned to You.' He said: 'I afflict with My punishment whom I will, but My mercy encompasses all things; I shall decree it for those who have taqwā and give zakāt and those who believe in Our signs.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:156)

Translation: And write for us a good portion — well-being, blessings, and goodness — in this world and in the Hereafter. Indeed we have turned back to You in repentance. Allāh the Most High replied: My punishment I bring upon whomever I will — and this is perfect justice — but My mercy encompasses all things, all of creation. I shall designate this mercy specifically for those who adopt taqwā, who pay zakāt, and those who believe in Our signs.

Commentary: Raḥmatī wasiʿat kulla shayʾ — My mercy encompasses every single thing. This is one of the most magnificent declarations of the breadth of divine mercy in the entire Qurʾān. Then Allāh specifies the condition for this mercy's particular and special inscription: taqwā (God-consciousness and piety), zakāt (the purification-alms, the structured giving that purifies wealth and soul), and īmān (faith in the divine signs). Taqwā and zakāt and all forms of righteous action are connected to tawfīq — they come when one acts in reliance on Allāh. This is how the author understands the verse: when taqwā is present, zakāt follows naturally; and when zakāt is withheld, it is a sign of the weakening of taqwā.

الَّذِينَ يَتَّبِعُونَ الرَّسُولَ النَّبِيَّ الْأُمِّيَّ الَّذِي يَجِدُونَهُ مَكْتُوبًا عِندَهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَالْإِنجِيلِ يَأْمُرُهُم بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَاهُمْ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَيُحِلُّ لَهُمُ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَيُحَرِّمُ عَلَيْهِمُ الْخَبَائِثَ وَيَضَعُ عَنْهُمْ إِصْرَهُمْ وَالْأَغْلَالَ الَّتِي كَانَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ فَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِهِ وَعَزَّرُوهُ وَنَصَرُوهُ وَاتَّبَعُوا النُّورَ الَّذِي أُنزِلَ مَعَهُ أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ

Alladhīna yattabiʿūna al-rasūla al-nabiyya al-ummiyya alladhī yajidūnahu maktūban ʿindahum fī al-tawrāti wa-l-injīli yaʾmuruhum bi-l-maʿrūfi wa-yanhāhum ʿan al-munkari wa-yuḥillu lahum al-ṭayyibāti wa-yuḥarrimu ʿalayhim al-khabāʾitha wa-yaḍaʿu ʿanhum iṣrahum wa-l-aghlāla allatī kānat ʿalayhim. Fa-alladhīna āmanū bihi wa-ʿazzarūhu wa-naṣarūhu wa-ttabaʿū al-nūra alladhī unzila maʿahu ulāʾika hum al-mufliḥūn.

"Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find written in the Torah and the Gospel with them — he commands them to what is right and forbids them from what is wrong, and he makes lawful for them the good things and prohibits for them the evil things, and he relieves them of their burden and the shackles that were upon them. So those who believe in him, honour and support him, and follow the light that was sent down with him — it is they who are the successful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:157)

Translation: The divine mercy is written specifically for those who follow the Messenger — the Prophet Muḥammadﷺ— the nabī ummī. Ummī signifies one who is untaught by human instruction, primordially natural in constitution — reading no book except the Book of Allāh, taught by no teacher except Allāh Himself. His description is found written in the Torah and the Gospel that they possess. He commands them to what is right and good (maʿrūf) and forbids them from what is reprehensible and evil (munkar). He makes lawful the wholesome and pure things (ṭayyibāt) and prohibits the impure and harmful things (khabāʾith). He removes from them their burdens — the heavy legal restrictions of previous dispensations — and the fetters (aghlāl) that were upon them; many arduous rulings in earlier religions that Islām has lightened or abrogated. Those who believe in him, honour (ʿazzara) and revere him, support him (naṣara), and follow the Light sent down with him — that is, the Qurʾān and Islām — they and they alone are the truly successful (mufliḥūn).

Commentary: This is among the most comprehensive and beautiful portraits of the Prophet Muḥammadﷺin the Qurʾān. Al-nabī al-ummī — the unlettered Prophet — this is a mark not of limitation but of miraculous distinction: his knowledge came not from human learning but directly from the divine. The Torah and the Gospel as they originally stood testified to his coming. He is described here through five functions: commanding good (amr bi-l-maʿrūf), forbidding evil (nahy ʿan al-munkar), making lawful the good (taḥlīl al-ṭayyibāt), prohibiting the impure (taḥrīm al-khabāʾith), and lifting burdens (rafʿ al-āṣār wa-l-aghlāl). The last point is significant from a Ḥanafī legal perspective: the sharīʿa of Islām is characterised by taysīr (ease) and the removal of excessive restrictions. Al-nūr alladhī unzila maʿahu — the Light sent down with him — is the Qurʾān and the entire illuminating guidance of the Islamic tradition.

The author (may Allāh have mercy on him) adds a note of concern for his times: There is a great arrogance, a lack of manners, a disrespect circulating among people today. Day and night there are those who attempt to create a distinction between the Prophetﷺand his Companions (may Allāh be pleased with them all), and between the Companions and the Islamic framework, so as to make the path of faith appear narrow. Our standard for right and wrong comes from the Qurʾān and the Sunna. Our tradition's chain is unbroken. The people of ḥāl (spiritual state) know well how to distinguish. We know in our tradition that a righteous person (ṣāliḥ) knows what is right by his state and his light; we do not need outsiders to define ethical rectitude for us.

قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيْكُمْ جَمِيعًا الَّذِي لَهُ مُلْكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ فَآمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ النَّبِيِّ الْأُمِّيِّ الَّذِي يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَكَلِمَاتِهِ وَاتَّبِعُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ

Qul yā ayyuhā al-nāsu innī rasūlu Allāhi ilaykum jamīʿan alladhī lahu mulku al-samāwāti wa-l-arḍi lā ilāha illā huwa yuḥyī wa-yumītu fa-āminū bi-llāhi wa-rasūlihi al-nabiyyi al-ummiyyi alladhī yuʾminu bi-llāhi wa-kalimātihi wa-ttabiʿūhu laʿallakum tahtadūn.

"Say: 'O people, I am the Messenger of Allāh to you all — He to whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth; there is no deity except Him; He gives life and causes death. So believe in Allāh and His Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, who believes in Allāh and His words, and follow him so that you may be guided.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:158)

Translation: Say, O Prophet Muḥammadﷺ: O all of mankind! I am the Messenger of Allāh sent to every one of you — to all peoples, to all nations, to all times. This Allāh, in Whose name I come, is He to Whom belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth; there is no deity worthy of worship except Him; He is the One who gives life and brings death. So believe in Allāh and in His Messenger — this unlettered Prophet — the one who himself believes in Allāh and in all of His words and decrees; and follow him in all things, so that you may find guidance.

Commentary: This āyah establishes definitively the universal (ʿāmm) nature of the Prophet Muḥammad'sﷺmission. Ilaykum jamīʿan — to all of you, without exception — every human being, every nation, every era until the Day of Reckoning. This is one of the textual proofs for the universality of the Prophetic message, in contrast to the missions of previous Prophets which were directed toward specific communities (iqawm). The description of the Prophetﷺas alladhī yuʾminu bi-llāhi wa-kalimātihi — he who himself believes in Allāh and in His decrees — places the Prophet's own faith at the forefront. The one being called to follows a leader who himself walks the path fully.

وَمِن قَوْمِ مُوسَى أُمَّةٌ يَهْدُونَ بِالْحَقِّ وَبِهِ يَعْدِلُونَ

Wa-min qawmi Mūsā ummatun yahdūna bi-l-ḥaqqi wa-bihi yaʿdilūn.

"And among the people of Mūsā is a community who guides by truth and by it establishes justice." (al-Aʿrāf 7:159)

Translation: And among the people of Mūsā (upon him be peace) there is a community (umma) — a group — who guide others by the truth and establish justice in accordance with it.

Commentary: Allāh the Most High, having described the failings of many among the Children of Israel, now notes with equity that not all of them fell into error. There was among them a community that guided by truth and upheld justice. This is the manner of the Qurʾān: it does not generalise unfairly against any group. Among every people there are those who hold to righteousness, and they deserve recognition.

وَقَطَّعْنَاهُمُ اثْنَتَيْ عَشْرَةَ أَسْبَاطًا أُمَمًا وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَى مُوسَى إِذِ اسْتَسْقَاهُ قَوْمُهُ أَنِ اضْرِب بِّعَصَاكَ الْحَجَرَ فَانبَجَسَتْ مِنْهُ اثْنَتَا عَشْرَةَ عَيْنًا قَدْ عَلِمَ كُلُّ أُنَاسٍ مَّشْرَبَهُمْ وَظَلَّلْنَا عَلَيْهِمُ الْغَمَامَ وَأَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمُ الْمَنَّ وَالسَّلْوَى كُلُوا مِن طَيِّبَاتِ مَا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ وَمَا ظَلَمُونَا وَلَكِن كَانُوا أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ

Wa-qaṭṭaʿnāhum ithnataʿ-ashrata asbāṭan umaman wa-awḥaynā ilā Mūsā idhi istasqāhu qawmuhu an iḍrib bi-ʿaṣāka al-ḥajara fa-nbajasat minhu ithnataʿ-ashrata ʿaynan qad ʿalima kullu unāsin mashrabahum wa-ẓallalnā ʿalayhim al-ghamāma wa-anzalnā ʿalayhim al-manna wa-l-salwā. Kulū min ṭayyibāti mā razaqnākum wa-mā ẓalamūnā wa-lākin kānū anfusahum yaẓlimūn.

"And We divided them into twelve tribes as communities, and We revealed to Mūsā when his people asked him for water: 'Strike the rock with your staff,' and twelve springs burst forth from it — every group knew its drinking place. And We shaded them with clouds and sent down to them manna and quails: 'Eat of the wholesome things We have provided you.' And they did not wrong Us, but they wronged themselves." (al-Aʿrāf 7:160)

Translation: And We divided the Children of Israel into twelve tribes (asbāṭ) — distinct communities, each with its own identity. And We revealed to Mūsā (upon him be peace) when his people asked him for water: Strike the rock with your staff. And twelve springs gushed forth from it — each group of the twelve tribes knew their own spring and their own drinking place. And We created a shade of clouds above them in the heat of the desert, and We sent down upon them mann (manna) and salwā (quail) as their food, and We told them: Eat of the pure and wholesome provisions We have granted you. And they did not wrong Us — for Allāh cannot be harmed — but they wronged only themselves.

Commentary: The divine provisioning of the Children of Israel in the Sinai is a catalogue of miracles: water from a rock, shade from clouds, food from heaven. Mann — the sweet substance (like honeydew or a heavenly confection) that descended at night; salwā — the quail that came to them ready to eat. Yet even with all this, they found reasons to grumble and disobey. Wa-mā ẓalamūnā wa-lākin kānū anfusahum yaẓlimūn — they did not wrong Us; they wronged themselves. This phrase recurs in the Qurʾān as a reminder: every act of disobedience is ultimately an act of self-harm. Allāh is above needing anything from His creation.

وَإِذْ قِيلَ لَهُمُ اسْكُنُوا هَذِهِ الْقَرْيَةَ وَكُلُوا مِنْهَا حَيْثُ شِئْتُمْ وَقُولُوا حِطَّةٌ وَادْخُلُوا الْبَابَ سُجَّدًا وَسَنَزِيدُ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

Wa-idh qīla lahum uskunu hādhihi al-qaryata wa-kulū minhā ḥaythu shiʾtum wa-qūlū ḥiṭṭatun wa-udkhulū al-bāba sujjadan wa-sa-nazīdu al-muḥsinīn.

"And when it was said to them: 'Dwell in this town and eat from it wherever you wish, and say "Relieve us of our burdens" and enter the gate in prostration — We will forgive your sins and We will increase the doers of good.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:161)

Translation: And recall when they were told: Settle in this town and eat freely from whatever it offers. And say the word ḥiṭṭa — meaning: relieve us of our sins, we seek forgiveness — and enter the gate of the town in a posture of humility and prostration. We will forgive your transgressions and We will give even more to those who excel in doing good.

Commentary: Ḥiṭṭatun — the word of forgiveness-seeking, the verbal act of placing one's burdens down before Allāh. Together with the physical act of entering in prostration (sujjad), this was an act of integrated repentance — word and body united in submission. The command was clear, the promise was magnanimous. What did they do instead?

فَبَدَّلَ الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا مِنْهُمْ قَوْلًا غَيْرَ الَّذِي قِيلَ لَهُمْ فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ رِجْزًا مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ بِمَا كَانُوا يَظْلِمُونَ

Fa-baddala alladhīna ẓalamū minhum qawlan ghayra alladhī qīla lahum fa-arsalnā ʿalayhim rijzan min al-samāʾi bi-mā kānū yaẓlimūn.

"But those among them who wronged substituted a saying other than that which had been said to them, so We sent upon them a punishment from the sky because of their wrongdoing." (al-Aʿrāf 7:162)

Translation: But the wrongdoers among them changed the word — they substituted a different saying for the one they had been commanded — so We sent down upon them a punishment from the heavens because of their persistent wrongdoing.

Commentary: They mocked the command, changed the sacred word into a jest, and entered the gate in a manner opposite to what they had been instructed. The punishment from heaven was the consequence of this deliberate contempt for divine command. This episode illustrates that divine commands require exact obedience — not a spirit of technical compliance combined with a mocking spirit.

وَاسْأَلْهُمْ عَنِ الْقَرْيَةِ الَّتِي كَانَتْ حَاضِرَةَ الْبَحْرِ إِذْ يَعْدُونَ فِي السَّبْتِ إِذْ تَأْتِيهِمْ حِيتَانُهُمْ يَوْمَ سَبْتِهِمْ شُرَّعًا وَيَوْمَ لَا يَسْبِتُونَ لَا تَأْتِيهِمْ كَذَلِكَ نَبْلُوهُم بِمَا كَانُوا يَفْسُقُونَ

Wa-sal-hum ʿan al-qaryati allatī kānat ḥāḍirata al-baḥri idh yaʿdūna fī al-sabti idh taʾtīhim ḥītānuhum yawma sabtihim shurraʿan wa-yawma lā yasbitūna lā taʾtīhim kadhālika nablūhum bi-mā kānū yafsuqūn.

"And ask them about the town that was by the sea — when they transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath, when their fish came to them on their Sabbath day surfacing openly, and on days when they did not observe the Sabbath they did not come. Thus did We test them because of their transgression." (al-Aʿrāf 7:163)

Translation: Ask them — O Prophetﷺ— about the account of the coastal town whose inhabitants observed the Sabbath. When they transgressed in their Sabbath observance, the fish would come to them on the Sabbath day surfacing visibly at the water's surface — teasing them, in a sense — and on the days when there was no Sabbath restriction, the fish would not come. And thus We tested them with this trial because of their inclination to transgress.

Commentary: Every community has one day set aside for the worship of Allāh: for the Muslims it is Friday, for the Jews it was Saturday (sabt), for the Christians it is nominally Sunday. The people of this coastal town found themselves tested by an extraordinary divine arrangement: the fish appeared in abundance on the very day they were forbidden to fish, and disappeared on other days. This was the fitna — could they hold fast to Allāh's command even when the opportunity for worldly gain was dangled before them? Their failure to do so resulted in a divine transformation, as will be described.

The author draws a powerful parallel: Today in our times the Muslims' day of congregational worship is Friday (jumʿa). What happens on Friday? Shops open, manufacturing runs, the bazaar continues — everything that could dilute the sanctity of the day proceeds. The Sabbath-breakers built traps and nets on Friday evening and pulled them on Sunday — technically not fishing on Saturday. This kind of legalistic evasion (makhāriJ) that violates the spirit while observing the letter of divine command is what these verses condemn. Guard the sanctity of Friday, dear community. Do not let those who care nothing for the obligations of the day lead you away from them.

وَإِذْ قَالَتْ أُمَّةٌ مِّنْهُمْ لِمَ تَعِظُونَ قَوْمًا اللَّهُ مُهْلِكُهُمْ أَوْ مُعَذِّبُهُمْ عَذَابًا شَدِيدًا قَالُوا مَعْذِرَةً إِلَى رَبِّكُمْ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ

Wa-idh qālat ummatun minhum li-ma taʿiẓūna qawman Allāhu muhlikuhum aw muʿadhdhibuhum ʿadhāban shadīdan. Qālū maʿdhiratan ilā rabbikum wa-laʿallahum yattaqūn.

"And when a group of them said: 'Why do you preach to a people whom Allāh is going to destroy or punish with a severe punishment?' They said: 'As a justification before your Lord, and perhaps they may fear Him.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:164)

Translation: And recall when a group among them said: Why do you keep preaching to and admonishing a people whom Allāh is certainly going to destroy or will afflict with a terrible punishment anyway? Those who preached replied: As a discharge of our duty before our Lord — so that we have fulfilled our obligation — and perhaps they may take heed and adopt taqwā.

Commentary: The town was divided into three groups: those who violated the Sabbath; those who admonished the violators; and a third group who questioned the purpose of the admonition, saying it was futile. The response of the preachers — maʿdhiratan ilā rabbikum wa-laʿallahum yattaqūn — is the principle of the obligation of commanding right and forbidding wrong (amr bi-l-maʿrūf wa-nahy ʿan al-munkar) in Islamic law: it is an obligation regardless of outcome. Even if there is little hope of the advice being heeded, the believer's duty is to discharge the obligation before Allāh. The outcome belongs to Allāh; the effort belongs to the servant.

فَلَمَّا نَسُوا مَا ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ أَنجَيْنَا الَّذِينَ يَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ السُّوءِ وَأَخَذْنَا الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا بِعَذَابٍ بَئِيسٍ بِمَا كَانُوا يَفْسُقُونَ

Fa-lammā nasū mā dhukkirū bihi anjay nā alladhīna yanhawna ʿan al-sūʾi wa-akhadhnā alladhīna ẓalamū bi-ʿadhābin baʾīsin bi-mā kānū yafsuqūn.

"Then when they forgot what they had been reminded of, We saved those who had been forbidding evil and seized those who had done wrong with a severe punishment because of their transgression." (al-Aʿrāf 7:165)

Translation: When they completely ignored and abandoned the admonitions that had been given to them, We rescued those who had been forbidding evil and commanding right — and We seized those who had wronged with a terrible, grievous punishment, because of their persistent transgression and sinfulness.

Commentary: Three groups, three fates: the transgressors were punished; those who admonished were saved; and as for the third group who stood aside questioning the utility of admonition — the scholars of tafsīr differ as to whether they were saved with the preachers or perished with the transgressors. The majority opinion is that they were saved, as the verse specifically mentions saving those who forbade evil — implying that even passive non-participation in the transgression afforded some protection. But active preaching was the highest station and the most certain protection.

فَلَمَّا عَتَوْا عَن مَّا نُهُوا عَنْهُ قُلْنَا لَهُمْ كُونُوا قِرَدَةً خَاسِئِينَ

Fa-lammā ʿataw ʿammā nuhū ʿanhu qulnā lahum kūnū qiradatan khāsiʾīn.

"And when they persisted in what they had been forbidden, We said to them: 'Be despised apes.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:166)

Translation: And when they defiantly persisted in the very thing they had been forbidden, We commanded: Be transformed into contemptible apes, driven away in disgrace.

Commentary: ʿAtaw — they went beyond the limit in defiance; it implies a systematic, deliberate, and contemptuous transgression. Qiradatan khāsiʾīn — apes, driven away in disgrace. The divine transformation (maskh) of the Sabbath-breakers is among the well-known accounts in Qurʾānic commentary and in Islamic tradition. The scholars note that those transformed lived only a short time thereafter — the transformation was both punishment and sign. This episode is cited frequently in the tradition as a warning against seeking to evade divine commands through technical stratagems and legal trickery. The evasion of divine law — even when technically ingenious — carries the seed of destruction. Lā ḥawla wa-lā quwwata illā bi-llāh.

وَإِذْ تَأَذَّنَ رَبُّكَ لَيَبْعَثَنَّ عَلَيْهِمْ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ مَن يَسُومُهُمْ سُوءَ الْعَذَابِ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَسَرِيعُ الْعِقَابِ وَإِنَّهُ لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

Wa-idh taʾadhdhana rabbuka la-yabʿathanna ʿalayhim ilā yawmi al-qiyāmati man yasūmuhum sūʾa al-ʿadhābi inna rabbaka la-sarīʿu al-ʿiqābi wa-innahu la-ghafūrun raḥīm.

"And when your Lord declared that He would surely send against them, until the Day of Resurrection, those who would inflict a dreadful punishment upon them. Surely your Lord is swift in punishment, and indeed He is Forgiving, Merciful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:167)

Translation: And recall when your Lord proclaimed and announced — taʾadhdhana implies a public declaration with authority — that He would surely send over them until the Day of Resurrection those who would subject them to grievous suffering. Indeed, your Lord is swift in punishment when His decree falls; and indeed He is also Forgiving and Merciful.

Commentary: This verse pronounces a perpetual divine judgement upon those who transgress after receiving clear guidance: a cycle of subjugation until the Day of Reckoning. The two attributes mentioned together — sarīʿ al-ʿiqāb (swift in punishment) and ghafūrun raḥīm (Forgiving, Merciful) — hold the full tension of divine justice and divine mercy. Neither is diminished by the other. For those who persist in transgression, the punishment is real and certain; for those who repent and return, the mercy is equally real and equally certain.

وَقَطَّعْنَاهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ أُمَمًا مِّنْهُمُ الصَّالِحُونَ وَمِنْهُمْ دُونَ ذَلِكَ وَبَلَوْنَاهُم بِالْحَسَنَاتِ وَالسَّيِّئَاتِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ

Wa-qaṭṭaʿnāhum fī al-arḍi umaman minhum al-ṣāliḥūna wa-minhum dūna dhālika wa-balawnāhum bi-l-ḥasanāti wa-l-sayyiʾāti laʿallahum yarjiʿūn.

"And We dispersed them throughout the earth as communities — among them the righteous and among them those below that — and We tested them with good things and bad so that they might return." (al-Aʿrāf 7:168)

Translation: And We scattered them and divided them throughout the earth as separate communities, group by group. Among them were the righteous, and among them were those of lesser standing. And We tested them with prosperity and with adversity — with blessings and with hardship — so that they might return to the right path and repent.

Commentary: The dispersion of the Children of Israel across the earth is described as a divine dispensation: qaṭṭaʿnāhum fī al-arḍi — We cut them apart and scattered them, group by group. Within each community some maintained righteousness and some fell short. The pattern of testing with both blessings (ḥasanāt) and afflictions (sayyiʾāt) is the universal divine method: alternating conditions to keep the heart alert and to provide recurring opportunities for return (rujūʿ) to Allāh.

فَخَلَفَ مِن بَعْدِهِمْ خَلْفٌ وَرِثُوا الْكِتَابَ يَأْخُذُونَ عَرَضَ هَذَا الْأَدْنَى وَيَقُولُونَ سَيُغْفَرُ لَنَا وَإِن يَأْتِهِمْ عَرَضٌ مِّثْلُهُ يَأْخُذُوهُ أَلَمْ يُؤْخَذْ عَلَيْهِم مِّيثَاقُ الْكِتَابِ أَن لَّا يَقُولُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَّ وَدَرَسُوا مَا فِيهِ وَالدَّارُ الْآخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لِّلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ

Fa-khalafa min baʿdihim khalfun warithū al-kitāba yaʾkhudhūna ʿaraḍa hādhā al-adnā wa-yaqūlūna sa-yughfaru lanā wa-in yaʾtihim ʿaraḍun mithluhu yaʾkhudhūhu. Alam yuʾkhadh ʿalayhim mīthāqu al-kitābi an lā yaqūlū ʿalā Allāhi illā al-ḥaqqa wa-darasū mā fīhi wa-l-dāru al-ākhiratu khayrun li-lladhīna yattaqūna a-fa-lā taʿqilūn.

"Then after them there succeeded a generation who inherited the Book, taking the goods of this lower world and saying: 'We shall be forgiven.' And if goods like them came to them, they would take them. Was not the covenant of the Book taken from them that they would not say about Allāh except the truth, and they studied what was in it? And the abode of the Hereafter is better for those who have taqwā. Do you not understand?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:169)

Translation: Then after the righteous generations there came a succession of degenerate inheritors (khalfun — a deteriorated progeny) who received the inheritance of the Book. They would seize the cheap goods and transient pleasures of this lower world, all the while saying: We shall be forgiven in the end — our sins will be pardoned. And if another opportunity for worldly gain presented itself, they would seize that too, without any hesitation or self-restraint. Had not the covenant of the Book been taken from them — that they would speak about Allāh only the truth? And they had indeed studied what the Book contained. But the abode of the Hereafter is immeasurably better for those who hold to taqwā. Do they not use their reason?

Commentary: Khalfun — a successor generation that is worse than those before it, a degenerate inheritor. This contrasts with khalaf (with a fatḥa) which means a good inheritor. The degenerate inheritor seizes worldly goods while uttering the comforting fiction: sa-yughfaru lanā — we will be forgiven. This is a profound moral hazard: using divine mercy as a justification for continuing to sin. The Qurʾān dismantles this logic here with the reminder of the covenant and the reminder that the Hereafter — with its permanent and superior goods — awaits the God-fearing.

The author (may Allāh have mercy on him) applies this directly to his own era: The unworthy inheritors of religious learning in every age exhibit this pattern. They possess the outward dress and lineage of scholarship, they know people defer to them, and they use this deference to accumulate worldly advantage — while assuring themselves and others that their status secures their forgiveness. But what does the Book say to them? Have they not read it? As one poet put it: the honour of the pious lies in their piety; the honour of the spiritually vain lies in their appearance — and that is a very different matter.

وَالَّذِينَ يُمَسِّكُونَ بِالْكِتَابِ وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ إِنَّا لَا نُضِيعُ أَجْرَ الْمُصْلِحِينَ

Wa-alladhīna yumasikūna bi-l-kitābi wa-aqāmū al-ṣalāta innā lā nuḍīʿu ajra al-muṣliḥīn.

"And those who hold fast to the Book and establish the prayer — indeed, We do not allow the reward of the reformers to be lost." (al-Aʿrāf 7:170)

Translation: As for those who hold firmly to the Book — yumasikūna, they grip it with strength and constancy — and who establish the prayer with care and presence of heart, We shall never allow the reward of those who do good and reform to be wasted.

Commentary: Yumasikūna — the intensive form of holding: not merely possessing the Book but gripping it, living it, embodying it. This is contrasted with those in the previous verse who inherited the Book but merely used it as a source of worldly credential. The pairing of kitāb (Book/revelation) with ṣalāt (prayer) recurs throughout the Qurʾān as the two pillars of the practising believer's life: knowledge and worship, ʿilm and ʿibāda. Al-muṣliḥīn — the reformers, those who do right and promote righteousness. Their reward with Allāh is preserved and protected.

وَإِذْ نَتَقْنَا الْجَبَلَ فَوْقَهُمْ كَأَنَّهُ ظُلَّةٌ وَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُ وَاقِعٌ بِهِمْ خُذُوا مَا آتَيْنَاكُم بِقُوَّةٍ وَاذْكُرُوا مَا فِيهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

Wa-idh nataqnā al-jabala fawqahum ka-annahu ẓullatun wa-ẓannū annahu wāqiʿun bihim khudhū mā ātaynākum bi-quwwatin wa-dhkurū mā fīhi laʿallakum tattaqūn.

"And when We raised the mountain above them as if it were a cloud and they thought it would fall upon them: 'Take what We have given you with firmness and remember what is in it so that you may have taqwā.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:171)

Translation: And recall when We lifted the mountain above them — over their heads — as if it were a hovering canopy of cloud, and they became certain that it was about to fall upon them. And the divine command came: Take what We have given you — this Book, these commandments — with full strength and firmness of commitment; and remember and reflect upon what it contains, so that you may attain taqwā.

Commentary: The lifting of the mountain over the Children of Israel as a compulsive prompt to accept the Torah is a famous episode in Qurʾānic commentary. The mountain hung above them like a massive shade canopy (ẓulla). The scholars differ as to whether this compulsion (ilzām) is compatible with the principle of free acceptance of the divine covenant: the Ḥanafī Māturīdī position holds that the essential acceptance was still voluntary — the people had already consented, and the mountain was a further confirmation of the gravity of the commitment they were making.

The author (may Allāh have mercy on him) notes with wisdom: For those of firm spiritual vision (aṣḥāb al-kashf), Allāh's magnificent power is a cause of joy and wonder, not terror. Those who make a habit of reducing divine omnipotence to mere metaphor, who are incapable of accepting the literal truth of extraordinary divine acts, find this passage difficult. But to say that the mountain being raised over them means only a psychological sense of burden is to distort the clear meaning of the text. Mā shāʾa Allāhu kāna wa-mā lam yashāʾ lam yakun — What Allāh willed, happened; what He did not will, did not happen. A-lam taʿlam anna Allāha ʿalā kulli shayʾin qadīr — Know that Allāh has power over all things.

وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِن بَنِي آدَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَى أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ قَالُوا بَلَى شَهِدْنَا أَن تَقُولُوا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ إِنَّا كُنَّا عَنْ هَذَا غَافِلِينَ

Wa-idh akhadha rabbuka min banī Ādama min ẓuhūrihim dhurriyyatahum wa-ashhada-hum ʿalā anfusihim a-lastu bi-rabbikum. Qālū balā shahidnā an taqūlū yawma al-qiyāmati innā kunnā ʿan hādhā ghāfilīn.

"And when your Lord took from the children of Adam — from their loins — their descendants, and made them testify concerning themselves: 'Am I not your Lord?' They said: 'Indeed, we bear witness' — so that you could not say on the Day of Resurrection: 'We were heedless of this.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:172)

Translation: And recall when your Lord drew from the children of Adam — from their very loins and lineages — all their descendants throughout time, and made them testify against themselves, asking: Am I not your Lord? And all of them declared: Yes indeed, we bear witness — You are our Lord. This primordial covenant was established so that on the Day of Resurrection no soul could claim: We were simply unaware of this, we had no knowledge of it.

Commentary: This is the famous covenant of ʿālam al-arwāḥ — the World of Souls — in which every human soul was drawn forth and made to bear witness to the divine Lordship (rubūbiyya) before its descent into this world. The broad consensus in the Ḥanafī Māturīdī tradition is that this covenant is real and literal — it took place in the realm of souls, before the creation of bodies. The fiṭra (innate human nature) of every soul carries this covenant, which is why there is a universal human sense of the divine — a sense that may be covered over by upbringing and environment but which is never fully extinguished.

The author reflects: The primordial covenant was taken from all the children of Adam before their bodies were created, from the very essence of their spiritual reality. This is what is meant by the universal testimony: balā shahidnā — Yes, we bear witness. Those who today are in spiritual light still hear this; those who are mired in darkness and materiality may not feel it. But it is there, deposited in the soul by divine decree.

أَوْ تَقُولُوا إِنَّمَا أَشْرَكَ آبَاؤُنَا مِن قَبْلُ وَكُنَّا ذُرِّيَّةً مِّن بَعْدِهِمْ أَفَتُهْلِكُنَا بِمَا فَعَلَ الْمُفْطِلُونَ

Aw taqūlū innamā ashraka ābāʾunā min qablu wa-kunnā dhurriyyatan min baʿdihim a-fa-tuhlikunā bi-mā faʿala al-mubṭilūn.

"Or lest you say: 'It was only our forefathers who associated partners with Allāh before, and we were their descendants after them; will You destroy us for what the inventors of falsehood did?'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:173)

Translation: Or lest you say — as an excuse — that our forefathers were the ones who practiced shirk before us, and we were merely the descendants who came after them: will You destroy us for what those misguided ones did? The primordial covenant removes this excuse entirely: every soul bore its own testimony, independently of its ancestry.

Commentary: The verse addresses two possible excuses that human beings might offer at the Day of Reckoning: ghafla (heedlessness — I didn't know) and taqlīd al-ābāʾ (I was merely following what my forefathers did). The primordial covenant (mīthāq al-azal) answers both: every soul testified individually. Thus no one can claim ignorance of divine Lordship as an original fact, and no one can completely transfer responsibility to their ancestors. The soul knew; the fiṭra knew. The question becomes what was done with that knowledge.

وَكَذَلِكَ نُفَصِّلُ الْآيَاتِ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ

Wa-kadhālika nufaṣṣilu al-āyāti wa-laʿallahum yarjiʿūn.

"And thus We explain the signs in detail, so that they may return." (al-Aʿrāf 7:174)

Translation: And in this way — with such clarity and detailed exposition — We make Our signs and evidences known, so that they may turn back to the truth and repent.

وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ الَّذِي آتَيْنَاهُ آيَاتِنَا فَانسَلَخَ مِنْهَا فَأَتْبَعَهُ الشَّيْطَانُ فَكَانَ مِنَ الْغَاوِينَ

Wa-utlu ʿalayhim nabaʾa alladhī ātaynāhu āyātinā fa-nsalakha minhā fa-atbaʿahu al-shayṭānu fa-kāna min al-ghāwīn.

"And recite to them the account of the one whom We gave Our signs, but he stripped himself of them, so the devil pursued him and he became one of those who are astray." (al-Aʿrāf 7:175)

Translation: And recite to them, O Prophetﷺ, the account of the one whom We granted Our signs and divine knowledge, but who then stripped himself clean of that knowledge — he shed it from himself like a snake shedding its skin — so the devil pursued him and took possession of him, and he became one of the utterly misguided.

Commentary: Insalakha — he stripped himself out of it, he peeled himself away from it — the image is powerful: like an animal shedding its skin, he divested himself of the divine signs he had been granted. The commentators identify this figure with Balʿam ibn Bāʿūrāʾ, a scholar of his time who had been granted knowledge of the divine name (al-ism al-aʿẓam), had his supplications accepted, and had been promised nearness to Allāh — but then he betrayed all of this and chose the world and its pleasures. Some say his story also finds an echo in Umayya ibn Abī al-Ṣalt, the pre-Islamic poet who had knowledge of the coming Prophet yet did not embrace faith. Whoever the specific person, the lesson is universal and terrifying: divine gifts — knowledge, nearness, the acceptance of one's prayers — can all be squandered through the choice of the world over Allāh. The devil (shayṭān) does not approach a person of genuine spiritual station from the front; he approaches from the direction of desire, comfort, and the fear of worldly loss.

The author (may Allāh have mercy on him) notes: Allāh the Most High has said that the plotting of the devil is weak (kayd al-shayṭān kāna ḍaʿīfan). The devil's strongest ropes are near him, and when the divine connection (ʿalāqa ilāhiyya) of a person is strong, those ropes cannot hold. But when that connection weakens, he comes closer.

A poet was quoted: O King, may Allāh protect you from the evil of the eye-bewitchers — for their eye-bewitching does not cease with its fear and its hidden methods.

وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَرَفَعْنَاهُ بِهَا وَلَكِنَّهُ أَخْلَدَ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ فَمَثَلُهُ كَمَثَلِ الْكَلْبِ إِن تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْهِ يَلْهَثْ أَوْ تَتْرُكْهُ يَلْهَثْ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُ الْقَوْمِ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا فَاقْصُصِ الْقَصَصَ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ

Wa-law shiʾnā la-rafaʿnāhu bihā wa-lākinnahū akhlada ilā al-arḍi wa-ttabaʿa hawāhu fa-mathaluhu ka-mathali al-kalbi in taḥmil ʿalayhi yalhaṯ aw tatrukhu yalhaṯ. Dhālika mathalu al-qawmi alladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā fa-qṣuṣ al-qaṣaṣa laʿallahum yatafakkarūn.

"And had We willed, We would have elevated him by means of them, but he clung to the earth and followed his desire. His likeness is that of a dog: if you chase it away it pants, or if you leave it alone it pants. That is the likeness of the people who denied Our signs. So relate the accounts, perhaps they will reflect." (al-Aʿrāf 7:176)

Translation: Had We willed, We could have elevated him through those very signs and gifts We had given him — raised him to the highest spiritual station. But he chose to cling to the earth — akhlada ilā al-arḍ — he inclined permanently and heavily toward the ground, toward the material, toward his own desires and comfort. His likeness is that of a dog: whether you drive it away and burden it, it pants with its tongue out; or whether you leave it in peace, it still pants. Perpetual craving — the tongue always out — whether distressed or comfortable, whether pressed or released. This is the likeness of those people who denied Our signs. So relate these accounts to them, that perhaps they may reflect and think deeply.

Commentary: Akhlada ilā al-arḍ — a profound phrase. Khulūd means eternal remaining; he settled into the earth with permanence, as if the earth were his permanent home and the spiritual world had nothing to offer him. The nafs ammāra (the soul that commands toward evil) is always panting — always craving more, whether things go well or badly. The dog's panting is a perfect simile for this condition: it is not a response to external conditions but a constitutional orientation. In contrast, the soul that has been elevated by divine knowledge and practice — the nafs muṭmaʾinna (the soul at peace) — is no longer subject to this driven craving.

سَاءَ مَثَلًا الْقَوْمُ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَأَنفُسَهُمْ كَانُوا يَظْلِمُونَ

Sāʾa mathalan al-qawmu alladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā wa-anfusahum kānū yaẓlimūn.

"How evil is the likeness of the people who denied Our signs, and they wronged themselves." (al-Aʿrāf 7:177)

Translation: What a wretched condition and evil likeness belongs to those people who denied Our signs — how low is their state — and it was only themselves they wronged.

مَن يَهْدِ اللَّهُ فَهُوَ الْمُهْتَدِي وَمَن يُضْلِلْ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ

Man yahdi Allāhu fa-huwa al-muhtadī wa-man yuḍlil fa-ulāʾika hum al-khāsirūn.

"Whoever Allāh guides is the guided one, and whoever He leaves to stray — those are the losers." (al-Aʿrāf 7:178)

Translation: Whoever Allāh guides is the truly guided one — guidance from Allāh is genuine guidance. And whoever He leaves to stray — those are the ones who have incurred the ultimate loss and ruin.

Commentary: From a Māturīdī perspective, divine guidance (hidāya) does not negate human choice; rather, it is the divine grace that responds to and crowns human turning toward Allāh. Allāh does not guide the one who has closed his heart without any rational ground — but when a person genuinely turns, Allāh responds with His guidance. The verse does not mean that Allāh guides and misguides arbitrarily. Rather, His guidance is given in accordance with the person's orientation, and His leaving a person to stray is in accordance with their own prior choices. The khāsirūn — the losers — are those who trade eternal felicity for transient gain.

The author notes: The disbelievers would ask the Prophetﷺprovocative questions about the Hour. Their questions were not sincere inquiries but attempts to confound and expose him. But such questions come from hearts immersed in bad character and false belief. Those of bad conduct have bad beliefs, and then bad questions arise from those beliefs. The answer to all such questions: rectify your conduct (akhlāq), and the questions will resolve themselves.

وَلَقَدْ ذَرَأْنَا لِجَهَنَّمَ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ الْجِنِّ وَالْإِنسِ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ لَّا يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ لَّا يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ آذَانٌ لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا أُولَئِكَ كَالْأَنْعَامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْغَافِلُونَ

Wa-laqad dharaʾnā li-jahannama kathīran min al-jinni wa-l-insi lahum qulūbun lā yafqahūna bihā wa-lahum aʿyunun lā yubṣirūna bihā wa-lahum ādhānun lā yasmaʿūna bihā. Ulāʾika ka-l-anʿāmi bal hum aḍallu ulāʾika hum al-ghāfilūn.

"And We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind — they have hearts with which they do not understand, and eyes with which they do not see, and ears with which they do not hear. They are like livestock, rather they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless." (al-Aʿrāf 7:179)

Translation: And We have indeed created for Hell a great multitude among jinn and humankind — these are people who possess hearts but do not use them to comprehend the truth; who have eyes but do not use them to perceive the divine signs; and who have ears but do not use them to hear the divine message. These are like livestock — indeed they are even more deeply astray than animals — for animals act according to their nature, while these people were given reason and the capacity for faith and then chose wilful blindness. These are the truly heedless ones (al-ghāfilūn).

Commentary: Dharaʾnā li-jahannama — We have created and prepared for Hell — this does not mean they were created to go to Hell by divine compulsion. In Māturīdī theology, this means that Allāh's foreknowledge encompasses those who, through their own persistent choices, will end in Hell. Their organs of understanding were given to them but they chose not to use them for their intended purpose. They had hearts (qulūb) but refused to comprehend (lā yafqahūna); eyes (aʿyun) but refused to see (lā yubṣirūna); ears (ādhān) but refused to hear (lā yasmaʿūna). The faculties were present; the will to use them for divine truth was absent. This is the spiritual death that precedes the physical death.

Bal hum aḍall — they are even more astray than animals. Livestock (anʿām) act according to their nature; they eat what Allāh made for them to eat and move as their nature dictates. These human beings received the amāna of reason and free will — a trust greater than the earth and the mountains were able to bear (al-Aḥzāb 33:72) — and they squandered it through heedlessness. Hence their state is worse than that of animals. Ulāʾika hum al-ghāfilūn — they are the truly heedless; ghafla here is not mere forgetfulness but an entrenched, systemic absence of spiritual awareness.

وَلِلَّهِ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَى فَادْعُوهُ بِهَا وَذَرُوا الَّذِينَ يُلْحِدُونَ فِي أَسْمَائِهِ سَيُجْزَوْنَ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ

Wa-li-llāhi al-asmāʾu al-ḥusnā fa-dʿūhu bihā wa-dharū alladhīna yulḥidūna fī asmāʾihi sa-yujzawna mā kānū yaʿmalūn.

"And to Allāh belong the Most Beautiful Names (al-Asmāʾ al-Ḥusnā), so call upon Him by them, and leave those who deviate (yulḥidūna) in His names — they will be recompensed for what they used to do." (al-Aʿrāf 7:180)

Translation: And to Allāh belong the Most Beautiful Names. So call upon Him and invoke Him by means of those names. And abandon — pay no heed to — those who commit deviation and distortion (ilḥād) in His names. They shall be recompensed in full for what they have been doing.

Commentary: Al-Asmāʾ al-Ḥusnā — the Most Beautiful Names. Allāh's names are tawqīfiyya: they are fixed by divine revelation and cannot be augmented or changed by human invention. The standard hadīth establishes ninety-nine of the Most Beautiful Names in particular, but this does not mean that Allāh has only ninety-nine names — it means these are the ninety-nine names established with definitive authority. The Qurʾān contains many other divine names and attributes.

The use of the superlative ḥusnā (most beautiful, most excellent) indicates that every one of Allāh's names refers to a perfection without any deficiency. Even names that describe divine action in response to human sin — such as al-Muntaqim (the Avenger) or al-Qāhir (the Subduer) — describe absolute justice and are wholly excellent.

Yulḥidūna fī asmāʾihi — those who commit ilḥād in His names: this includes those who apply names properly belonging to Allāh to other than Allāh (as the pre-Islamic Arabs derived Lāt from Allāh and ʿUzzā from al-ʿAzīz); and those who apply names inappropriate to Allāh's transcendence. The author notes: There are also those in every age who claim that invoking a saint or a spiritual master as mushkil-kushā (solver of difficulties) and mujtabā (the chosen) constitutes shirk. But the careful Muslim knows the difference between bāl-dhāt (intrinsically, in one's own essence) and bāl-ʿaraḍ (instrumentally, through divine bestowal). Those who are awake to the realities of divine transcendence do not confuse the two. Those who reduce all mention of the awliyāʾ to shirk have not grasped the nuance of Islamic theology.

وَمِمَّنْ خَلَقْنَا أُمَّةٌ يَهْدُونَ بِالْحَقِّ وَبِهِ يَعْدِلُونَ

Wa-mimman khalaqnā ummatun yahdūna bi-l-ḥaqqi wa-bihi yaʿdilūn.

"And among those We have created is a community who guide by truth and by it establish justice." (al-Aʿrāf 7:181)

Translation: And among all those whom We have created there is a community (umma) — a group — who guide others by truth and who act with equity and justice in accordance with that truth.

Commentary: The scholars of tafsīr generally understand this community to be the umma of the Prophet Muḥammadﷺ— or the righteous within it. After the description of the heedless and misguided, Allāh points to the living embodiment of true guidance: a community whose very function is to guide by truth and to manifest justice. This is the vocation of the Muslim community in the world. Yahdūna bi-l-ḥaqq — they guide by means of truth itself, not by worldly power or coercion — and bihi yaʿdilūn — and by truth they establish justice in every sphere.

وَالَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا سَنَسْتَدْرِجُهُم مِّنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

Wa-alladhīna kadhdhabū bi-āyātinā sa-nastadriju-hum min ḥaythu lā yaʿlamūn.

"And those who denied Our signs — We shall gradually lead them on from where they do not know." (al-Aʿrāf 7:182)

Translation: And those who denied Our signs — We shall draw them on gradually, step by step, in a way they do not perceive or understand, until they arrive at their punishment.

Commentary: Istidrāj — gradual leading on, incremental drawing toward ruin. This is among the most fearsome aspects of divine operation with those who deny the signs. Allāh does not immediately punish; He gives respite, and during that respite the denier continues to sin, imagining that all is well — while in reality each act of denial draws them one step closer to the ultimate reckoning. The divine patience with the sinful is not approval; it is preparation. The believer understands this and is warned by it: apparent worldly ease is no guarantee of divine approval.

وَأُمْلِي لَهُمْ إِنَّ كَيْدِي مَتِينٌ

Wa-umlī lahum inna kaydī matīn.

"And I grant them respite. Indeed, My scheme is firm." (al-Aʿrāf 7:183)

Translation: And I shall grant them extended respite. Indeed, My design and my plan — My operation with those who persist in denial — is firm, powerful, and unassailable.

Commentary: Kaydī matīn — My plan is firm, solid, unbreakable. The word kayd in relation to Allāh carries the sense of a plan that appears from the outside to be proceeding slowly but is in reality moving with absolute precision toward its intended destination. No force in creation can derail the divine plan. The extended respite is itself part of the plan: it allows the full extent of transgression to be recorded and accounted for.

أَوَلَمْ يَتَفَكَّرُوا مَا بِصَاحِبِهِم مِّن جِنَّةٍ إِن هُوَ إِلَّا نَذِيرٌ مُّبِينٌ

A-wa-lam yatafakkarū mā bi-ṣāḥibihim min jinnatin in huwa illā nadhīrun mubīn.

"Have they not reflected? There is no madness in their companion. He is only a clear warner." (al-Aʿrāf 7:184)

Translation: Have they not thought and reflected? There is not the slightest trace of madness or mental disturbance in their companion — the Prophet Muḥammadﷺ— the one who walks among them and whom they know well. He is nothing but a clear and manifest warner.

Commentary: Ṣāḥibihim — their companion, the one who has lived among them, whom they know personally — this is a powerful attestation. The Makkans who accused the Prophetﷺof madness had known him for decades as the most rational, trustworthy, and clear-minded person among them. Their accusation was not a genuine assessment but a desperate rhetorical device. In huwa illā nadhīrun mubīn — he is nothing but a clear warner. Warning (indhār) and giving glad tidings (bishāra) are the dual functions of the Prophetic office. He does not claim to hold the keys to all hidden knowledge; he brings what he has been sent to bring.

أَوَلَمْ يَنظُرُوا فِي مَلَكُوتِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا خَلَقَ اللَّهُ مِن شَيْءٍ وَأَنْ عَسَى أَن يَكُونَ قَدِ اقْتَرَبَ أَجَلُهُمْ فَبِأَيِّ حَدِيثٍ بَعْدَهُ يُؤْمِنُونَ

A-wa-lam yanẓurū fī malakūti al-samāwāti wa-l-arḍi wa-mā khalaqa Allāhu min shayʾin wa-an ʿasā an yakūna qad iqtaraba ajaluhum fa-bi-ayyi ḥadīthin baʿdahu yuʾminūn.

"Have they not looked at the dominion of the heavens and the earth and what Allāh has created of all things? And that perhaps their appointed time has drawn near? Then in what discourse, after this, will they believe?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:185)

Translation: Have they not contemplated and looked with the eye of reflection at the dominion (malakūt) of the heavens and the earth — at the perfect and orderly governance of all that exists — and at every single thing Allāh has created? And have they not considered that perhaps their appointed term of death has drawn very near? If they will not believe in the Qurʾān — in this profound and clear discourse — then in what speech, what message, what word after it would they ever believe?

Commentary: Malakūt — the inner dominion, the divine sovereignty and organisation underlying all of creation — more than just mulk (outward kingship). To look at the malakūt is to perceive the divine intelligence and care behind every aspect of created existence. The verse urges the critical faculty — contemplation, reflection, tafakkur — as the natural path to recognising divine truth. And it adds the urgency of mortality: ʿasā an yakūna qad iqtaraba ajaluhum — perhaps your appointed time is even now near. A person who will not be moved by divine signs and who dismisses the greatest of all books — what could ever reach them?

مَن يُضْلِلِ اللَّهُ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ وَيَذَرُهُمْ فِي طُغْيَانِهِمْ يَعْمَهُونَ

Man yuḍlili Allāhu fa-lā hādiya lahu wa-yadharu-hum fī ṭughyānihim yaʿmahūn.

"Whoever Allāh allows to go astray — there is no guide for them, and He leaves them in their transgression, wandering blindly." (al-Aʿrāf 7:186)

Translation: Those whom Allāh leaves to go astray — because of their own persistent rejection — there is no guide for them, and He leaves them stumbling blindly in their rebelliousness and arrogance.

Commentary: Yaʿmahūn — they wander blindly, reel about in confusion, cannot find direction. Ṭughyān — rebellion, transgression, exceeding all bounds. The one who has chosen the path of persistent transgression finds that divine guidance is withheld — not as arbitrary punishment but as a natural consequence of the heart's own orientation. This is the principle that the Māturīdī school articulates: the withdrawal of guidance (salb al-tawfīq) follows upon the persistent rejection of it; it does not precede it.

يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ السَّاعَةِ أَيَّانَ مُرْسَاهَا قُل إِنَّمَا عِلْمُهَا عِندَ رَبِّي لَا يُجَلِّيهَا لِوَقْتِهَا إِلَّا هُوَ ثَقُلَتْ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ لَا تَأْتِيكُمْ إِلَّا بَغْتَةً يَسْأَلُونَكَ كَأَنَّكَ حَفِيٌّ عَنْهَا قُلْ إِنَّمَا عِلْمُهَا عِندَ اللَّهِ وَلَكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

Yasʾalūnaka ʿan al-sāʿati ayyāna mursāhā. Qul innamā ʿilmuhā ʿinda rabbī lā yujallīhā li-waqtihā illā huwa thaqulat fī al-samāwāti wa-l-arḍi lā taʾtīkum illā baghtan. Yasʾalūnaka ka-annaka ḥafiyyun ʿanhā qul innamā ʿilmuhā ʿinda Allāhi wa-lākinna akthara al-nāsi lā yaʿlamūn.

"They ask you about the Hour — when will it anchor? Say: Its knowledge is only with my Lord; none will reveal it at its time except Him. It is heavy in the heavens and the earth. It will not come to you except suddenly. They ask you as if you are well-acquainted with it. Say: Its knowledge is only with Allāh, but most people do not know." (al-Aʿrāf 7:187)

Translation: They ask you, O Prophetﷺ, about the Hour — ayyāna mursāhā — when will it come to rest, when will it land? Say: Its knowledge belongs solely to my Lord. None but He will reveal it at its appointed time. It is weighty and momentous — immense in its implications — in the heavens and the earth. It will come to you only suddenly and without warning. They press you with these questions as if you are intimately privy to that knowledge. Say: Its knowledge belongs to Allāh alone, but most people do not know this.

Commentary: Ayyāna mursāhā — when will it anchor/settle — the image is of a ship coming to port. The disbelievers used to ask about the Hour as a challenge and a taunt. The Prophetﷺwas instructed to respond with complete honesty: this belongs to Allāh alone; even the greatest of Prophets does not hold the timing of the Hour. Thaqulat fī al-samāwāti wa-l-arḍ — it is heavy (thaqīla) in the heavens and the earth — meaning its weight and significance is such that all of creation trembles before its certainty, and none can bear the knowledge of its exact time except Allāh.

The author reflects: There are two kinds of Resurrection (qiyāma): the lesser, which is the death of each individual — idhā muttum fa-qiyāmatukum (when you die, your resurrection has come); and the greater (al-qiyāma al-kubrā) in which the entirety of existence is transformed. The signs of the greater Resurrection are described in detail in the hadīth literature: wars among the believers, the emergence of the dajjāl (Antichrist), the return of ʿĪsā (upon him be peace), Gog and Magog (Yaʾjūj wa-Maʾjūj), earthquakes, upheavals, the sun rising from the West. All of these are established realities in the Islamic tradition. But the exact Hour — that belongs to Allāh alone.

قُل لَّا أَمْلِكُ لِنَفْسِي نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا إِلَّا مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ وَلَوْ كُنتُ أَعْلَمُ الْغَيْبَ لَاسْتَكْثَرْتُ مِنَ الْخَيْرِ وَمَا مَسَّنِيَ السُّوءُ إِنْ أَنَا إِلَّا نَذِيرٌ وَبَشِيرٌ لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ

Qul lā amliku li-nafsī nafʿan wa-lā ḍarran illā mā shāʾa Allāhu wa-law kuntu aʿlamu al-ghayba la-stakthatu min al-khayri wa-mā massaniya al-sūʾu in anā illā nadhīrun wa-bashīrun li-qawmin yuʾminūn.

"Say: I have no power to bring benefit or harm for myself except what Allāh wills. And if I knew the unseen, I would have acquired much good and no evil would have touched me. I am only a warner and a bearer of glad tidings to a people who believe." (al-Aʿrāf 7:188)

Translation: Say, O Prophetﷺ: I have no independent power over benefit or harm for even my own self, except what Allāh wills and grants. And if I possessed knowledge of the unseen (ʿilm al-ghayb) in the unrestricted sense, I would certainly have secured for myself far more good and no harm would ever have touched me. I am only a warner and a bearer of glad tidings — a nadhīr and a bashīr — for those who choose to believe.

Commentary: This is a definitive declaration of the nature of Prophetic authority in Sunnī Islamic theology. The Prophetﷺis the greatest of all creation, the most beloved to Allāh, the seal of all Prophethood (khātam al-nabiyyīn) — yet even he does not possess independent benefit or harm for his own self except through divine permission. Allāh the Most High said of him: We taught you what you did not know (al-Nisāʾ 4:113). The divine knowledge given to the Prophetﷺis vast and extraordinary — the hadīth says: I have been given the knowledge of the first and the last — but it is bestowed knowledge, not intrinsic ownership of the unseen.

In anā illā nadhīrun wa-bashīrun — I am only a warner and a bearer of glad tidings. This is the essential Prophetic self-description: to warn against what leads to ruin and to give glad tidings of what leads to salvation — for those who are ready to believe. The author adds: Frightening the heedless and giving good news to the believers — this is the noble work of the Prophetﷺ. For those who have no īmān, neither warning nor glad tidings lands on fertile ground.

هُوَ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَجَعَلَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا لِيَسْكُنَ إِلَيْهَا فَلَمَّا تَغَشَّاهَا حَمَلَتْ حَمْلًا خَفِيفًا فَمَرَّتْ بِهِ فَلَمَّا أَثْقَلَت دَّعَوَا اللَّهَ رَبَّهُمَا لَئِنْ آتَيْتَنَا صَالِحًا لَّنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الشَّاكِرِينَ

Huwa alladhī khalaqakum min nafsin wāḥidatin wa-jaʿala minhā zawjahā li-yaskuna ilayhā fa-lammā taghashshāhā ḥamalat ḥamlan khafīfan fa-marrat bihi fa-lammā athqalat daʿawā Allāha rabbahumā la-in ātaytanā ṣāliḥan la-nakūnanna min al-shākirīn.

"He is the One who created you from a single soul and made from it its mate, that he might find tranquility in her. And when he covered her, she carried a light burden and continued with it. And when she became heavy, they called upon Allāh, their Lord: 'If You give us a good child, we will surely be among the grateful.'" (al-Aʿrāf 7:189)

Translation: He — Allāh the Most High — is the One who created you all from a single soul (nafsin wāḥida) — that is, Adam (upon him be peace) — and created from that same soul his mate, Ḥawwāʾ (upon her be peace), so that he might find peace, tranquillity, and comfort with her. And when he joined with her, she carried a light burden at first — the early stage of pregnancy — and continued about her life with ease. When the burden grew heavy, they both turned together to Allāh their Lord, calling upon Him: If You grant us a wholesome, healthy child, we shall certainly be among the grateful ones.

Commentary: Li-yaskuna ilayhā — so that he might find sukūn (tranquillity, peace, rest) with her. The institution of marriage is founded in this divine purpose: the mutual peace and comfort that the spouses find in each other. This is the sakinā of the marital bond. The narrative then shows the arc of human dependence on Allāh: in joy (the early easy stage) the tendency is to turn less frequently; in difficulty (the heavy stage of pregnancy and anxiety) the couple turned together to Allāh. Their prayer was beautiful: la-in ātaytanā ṣāliḥan la-nakūnanna min al-shākirīn — if You give us a wholesome child, we shall be of the grateful. The promise of gratitude was sincere. The subsequent verse shows what happened instead.

The author notes here: When a child is born, remember! Do not let the name of those through whom you sought intercession or made spiritual appeal obscure the gratitude that belongs to Allāh alone. The asbāb (means) are taken through the permission of Allāh; the ultimate Cause (al-Qādir al-Dhātī) is Allāh alone. Never forget: la-in ātaytanā ṣāliḥan la-nakūnanna min al-shākirīn — if You give us a wholesome child, we will be grateful to You.

فَلَمَّا آتَاهُمَا صَالِحًا جَعَلَا لَهُ شُرَكَاءَ فِيمَا آتَاهُمَا فَتَعَالَى اللَّهُ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ

Fa-lammā ātāhumā ṣāliḥan jaʿalā lahu shurakāʾa fīmā ātāhumā fa-taʿālā Allāhu ʿammā yushrikūn.

"But when He gave them a good child, they made partners for Him in what He gave them. But Allāh is exalted above what they associate with Him." (al-Aʿrāf 7:190)

Translation: But when Allāh granted them a wholesome and healthy child, they began to make others partners with Allāh in the gift He had bestowed upon them. But Allāh is utterly transcendent and exalted above all that they associate with Him.

Commentary: The classical commentators differ on the precise identification of who "they" refers to here: some say this is about Ādam and Ḥawwāʾ and the Sāmirī's influence; others understand it as a broader reference to later human generations who, upon the birth of a child, would ascribe it to the intercession of an idol or a false deity. The point of the verse is clear regardless of the specific identification: the tendency to name a child after a false deity, to attribute the blessing to something other than Allāh, or to dedicate the child to a false power — all of this is the shirk that human beings slip into most easily, precisely in the moment when gratitude to Allāh alone is most demanded. Fa-taʿālā Allāhu ʿammā yushrikūn — and Allāh is transcendently above all of this.

The author counsels: Always keep this in mind: the child you hold is an absolute gift from Allāh. The supplication and the spiritual means (asbāb) you employed were the channel, but Allāh is the sole Giver. A verse has come down: wa-huwa wāhib Allāha ghulāman zakkiyā — in the way that extraordinary divine gifts manifest. But the connection always runs back to Allāh. Exalted is Allāh above what they associate with Him.

أَيُشْرِكُونَ مَا لَا يَخْلُقُ شَيْئًا وَهُمْ يُخْلَقُونَ

A-yushrikūna mā lā yakhluqu shayʾan wa-hum yukhlaqūn.

"Do they associate with Him those who create nothing and are themselves created?" (al-Aʿrāf 7:191)

Translation: Can they really associate with Allāh those things that create absolutely nothing, while they themselves are created and brought into existence from non-existence?

Commentary: This is the devastating logical refutation of all idol-worship: the idol creates nothing; it was itself created or fashioned. How can the created be a partner of the Creator? How can what is brought from non-existence to existence be an equal or associate of the One who exists from eternity and by Himself? The question is rhetorical; the answer is self-evident.

وَلَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ لَهُمْ نَصْرًا وَلَا أَنفُسَهُمْ يَنصُرُونَ

Wa-lā yastaṭīʿūna lahum naṣran wa-lā anfusahum yanṣurūn.

"They cannot help them, nor can they help themselves." (al-Aʿrāf 7:192)

Translation: These idols cannot render any help to their worshippers, nor can they even help themselves.

Commentary: This pair of incapacities — inability to help others and inability to help oneself — is the complete refutation of divinity attributed to any created being. The divine Being is self-sufficient (ghanī) and source of all assistance. That which cannot even protect or sustain itself is unfit to be an object of worship or an independent source of intercession.

وَإِن تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَى الْهُدَى لَا يَتَّبِعُوكُمْ سَوَاءٌ عَلَيْكُمْ أَدَعَوْتُمُوهُمْ أَمْ أَنتُمْ صَامِتُونَ

Wa-in tadʿūhum ilā al-hudā lā yattabiʿūkum sawāʾun ʿalaykum a-daʿawtumūhum am antum ṣāmitūn.

"And if you call them to guidance, they do not follow you. It is the same for you whether you call them or you are silent." (al-Aʿrāf 7:193)

Translation: And if you call these idols toward guidance — if you ask them for direction — they will not follow you. It is equal for you whether you call upon them or remain completely silent. They hear nothing, respond to nothing, and guide to nothing.

Commentary: The total uselessness of idols as objects of petition is expressed here with the definitive logic of sawāʾun — it is equal, it makes no difference. For a true object of worship and petition, the response must be real, the hearing must be actual. Allāh hears, responds, and guides. The idol does none of these things.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ عِبَادٌ أَمْثَالُكُمْ فَادْعُوهُمْ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا لَكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ

Inna alladhīna tadʿūna min dūni Allāhi ʿibādun amthalukum fa-dʿūhum fa-l-yastajībū lakum in kuntum ṣādiqīn.

"Indeed, those you call upon besides Allāh are servants like you. So call upon them and let them respond to you, if you are truthful." (al-Aʿrāf 7:194)

Translation: Indeed, those that you invoke besides Allāh are servants — created beings — just like you. Go ahead then: call upon them, and let them answer your call, if you are telling the truth about their divinity.

Commentary: The challenge is unambiguous: if these are truly divine, if they truly hear and respond, let them demonstrate it. The challenge has never been met, cannot be met. All that is worshipped besides Allāh — whether idol, star, human being elevated to divinity, or any other created thing — is a ʿabd (servant/slave) like any other created being.

أَلَهُمْ أَرْجُلٌ يَمْشُونَ بِهَا أَمْ لَهُمْ أَيْدٍ يَبْطِشُونَ بِهَا أَمْ لَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا أَمْ لَهُمْ آذَانٌ يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا قُلِ ادْعُوا شُرَكَاءَكُمْ ثُمَّ كِيدُونِ فَلَا تُنظِرُونِ

A-lahum arjulun yamshūna bihā am lahum aydun yabṭishūna bihā am lahum aʿyunun yubṣirūna bihā am lahum ādhānun yasmaʿūna bihā. Quli udʿū shurakāʾakum thumma kīdūni fa-lā tunẓirūn.

"Do they have feet with which they walk? Or hands with which they seize? Or eyes with which they see? Or ears with which they hear? Say: Call upon your partners, then conspire against me, and give me no respite." (al-Aʿrāf 7:195)

Translation: Do these idols have feet to walk with? Do they have hands to grasp with? Do they have eyes to see with? Do they have ears to hear with? Say, O Prophetﷺ: Gather together all your partner-gods, all your associates, and then plot and plan against me — and give me no delay, no respite whatsoever.

Commentary: The rhetorical series of questions dismantles the idol's claim to the most basic capacities of living beings. Even ordinary animals surpass idols in these capacities. Then comes the ultimate challenge of the Prophet of Allāh: assemble all your forces and all your gods and do your worst against me — I have no fear, for my Protector is Allāh who sent down the Book and who is the Patron of the righteous.

إِنَّ وَلِيِّيَ اللَّهُ الَّذِي نَزَّلَ الْكِتَابَ وَهُوَ يَتَوَلَّى الصَّالِحِينَ

Inna waliyyiya Allāhu alladhī nazzala al-kitāba wa-huwa yatawallā al-ṣāliḥīn.

"Indeed, my Patron is Allāh who sent down the Book, and He is the Patron of the righteous." (al-Aʿrāf 7:196)

Translation: My Protector, my Patron, my Guardian (walī) is Allāh — the One who sent down the Book — and He is the Patron and Guardian of all the righteous.

Commentary: Walī — the one who is close, who protects, who supports. The Prophetﷺ's declaration is absolute: his walī is Allāh alone, who sent down this Book. And this walāya is not restricted to the Prophetﷺ— wa-huwa yatawallā al-ṣāliḥīn — it is extended to all the righteous. Every ṣāliḥ (righteous person) has Allāh as his patron. This is the source of courage and confidence for every believer: not in one's own power but in divine patronage.

وَالَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِ لَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ نَصْرَكُمْ وَلَا أَنفُسَهُمْ يَنصُرُونَ

Wa-alladhīna tadʿūna min dūnihi lā yastaṭīʿūna naṣrakum wa-lā anfusahum yanṣurūn.

"And those you call upon besides Him cannot help you, nor can they help themselves." (al-Aʿrāf 7:197)

Translation: And those you invoke besides Allāh — these false deities — they are incapable of helping you in any way, and they cannot even help themselves.

وَإِن تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَى الْهُدَى لَا يَسْمَعُوا وَتَرَاهُمْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَيْكَ وَهُمْ لَا يُبْصِرُونَ

Wa-in tadʿūhum ilā al-hudā lā yasmaʿū wa-tarāhum yanẓurūna ilayka wa-hum lā yubṣirūn.

"And if you call them to guidance, they do not hear; and you see them looking toward you while they do not see." (al-Aʿrāf 7:198)

Translation: And if you call these idols toward guidance, they cannot hear. You may see them with eyes carved and gazing in your direction, yet they see nothing whatsoever.

Commentary: The verse combines the two great deficiencies of the idol: deafness and blindness, both complete and utter. The appearance of vision — eyes carved into stone or metal — is the cruelest deception; there is no seeing behind them. This is the spiritual condition of those who worship what cannot hear, see, or respond. May Allāh protect us.

خُذِ الْعَفْوَ وَأْمُرْ بِالْعُرْفِ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ الْجَاهِلِينَ

Khudhi al-ʿafwa wa-mur bi-l-ʿurfi wa-aʿriḍ ʿani al-jāhilīn.

"Take the way of forbearance, command what is right, and turn away from the ignorant." (al-Aʿrāf 7:199)

Translation: O Prophetﷺ: adopt the way of forgiveness and clemency, enjoin what is customarily good and right (maʿrūf), and turn away from those who are ignorant — do not engage with them.\

Commentary: This is one of the most comprehensive instructions for conduct ever given: three commands that encompass an entire moral and social philosophy. Al-ʿafw — forgiveness, forbearance, taking the easier course, overlooking the faults of others. Al-ʿurf — the good that is commonly recognised, the beneficent and just; commanding it means actively promoting goodness. Al-iʿrāḍ ʿan al-jāhilīn — turning away from the ignorant: not descending to the level of those who abuse, insult, or engage in vain dispute, but rising above it in dignity. These three together constitute the Islamic character at its highest: generous, active in goodness, and serene in the face of provocation.

وَإِمَّا يَنزَغَنَّكَ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ نَزْغٌ فَاسْتَعِذْ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ

Wa-immā yanzaghannaka mina al-shayṭāni nazghun fa-staʿidh billāhi innahu samīʿun ʿalīm.

"And if an instigation from Satan provokes you, seek refuge in Allāh; indeed, He is All-Hearing, All-Knowing." (al-Aʿrāf 7:200)

Translation: And if an evil prompting or whispering (nazgh) from Satan reaches you and stirs disturbance within you — seek Allāh's refuge and protection immediately, for He is All-Hearing, All-Knowing.

Commentary: Nazgh — the sudden sharp sting or poke of Satan; a goading, an instigation toward anger, heedlessness, or sin. The remedy prescribed is immediate: fa-staʿidh billāh — seek Allāh's protection. The formula aʿūdhu billāhi mina al-shayṭāni al-rajīm is a divine prescription against all inner disturbance stirred by the accursed. Samīʿun ʿalīm — He hears every word and knows every inner state; your refuge-seeking does not go unheard.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ اتَّقَوا إِذَا مَسَّهُمْ طَائِفٌ مِّنَ الشَّيْطَانِ تَذَكَّرُوا فَإِذَا هُم مُّبْصِرُونَ

Inna alladhīna ittaqaw idhā massahum ṭāʾifun mina al-shayṭāni tadhakkarū fa-idhā hum mubṣirūn.

"Indeed, those who have God-consciousness (taqwā): when a passing suggestion from Satan touches them, they remember Allāh and at once they see clearly." (al-Aʿrāf 7:201)

Translation: Indeed, those who have taqwā (God-consciousness and piety): whenever a touch or a passing whisper (ṭāʾif) from Satan comes upon them, they immediately call Allāh to mind — and at once they are restored to clear-sightedness.

Commentary: Ṭāʾif — that which passes by, a circling presence; a momentary touch of Satanic suggestion. The muttaqī (one possessing taqwā) is not immune from Satanic prompting, but his response is immediate: tadhakkarū — they remember, they recall, they turn to Allāh in that very instant. And the result: fa-idhā hum mubṣirūn — they at once regain clarity of vision and perception. Taqwā is thus not the absence of temptation but the speed and decisiveness of return to Allāh.

وَإِخْوَانُهُمْ يَمُدُّونَهُمْ فِي الْغَيِّ ثُمَّ لَا يُقْصِرُونَ

Wa-ikhwānuhum yamuddūnahum fī al-ghayyi thumma lā yuqṣirūn.

"But their brothers — the devils — draw them deeper into error and do not cease." (al-Aʿrāf 7:202)

Translation: As for the brothers of the disbelievers — their Satanic companions — they drag them ever deeper into misguidance (ghayy) and never relent, never fall short in their efforts to lead them astray.

Commentary: Those who lack taqwā have, instead of Allāh as their walī, the devils as their brothers (ikhwān). These Satanic companions do not whisper once and withdraw; they are ceaselessly active in extending and deepening misguidance. Thumma lā yuqṣirūn — and they do not fall short, they do not tire, they persist relentlessly. The contrast with the muttaqī in the previous verse is total: that one remembers and is restored; this one is dragged ever deeper and has no protector.

وَإِذَا لَمْ تَأْتِهِم بِآيَةٍ قَالُوا لَوْلَا اجْتَبَيْتَهَا قُلْ إِنَّمَا أَتَّبِعُ مَا يُوحَى إِلَيَّ مِن رَّبِّي هَذَا بَصَائِرُ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ

Wa-idhā lam taʾtihim bi-āyatin qālū lawlā ajtabaytahā. Qul innamā attabiʿu mā yūḥā ilayya min rabbī. Hādhā baṣāʾiru min rabbikum wa-hudā wa-raḥmatun li-qawmin yuʾminūn.

"And when you do not bring them a sign, they say: 'Why have you not chosen one?' Say: I only follow what is revealed to me from my Lord. This is insights (baṣāʾir) from your Lord, and a guidance and a mercy for a people who believe." (al-Aʿrāf 7:203)

Translation: And when you, O Prophetﷺ, do not bring them a miraculous sign on demand, they say: Why have you not produced one? Why have you not selected one? Say to them: I only and entirely follow what is revealed to me from my Lord. I am not a deviser of miracles on order; I am a follower of divine revelation. This Qurʾān itself is baṣāʾir — illuminating insights, lights of inner vision from your Lord — and it is guidance and mercy for those who believe.

Commentary: Baṣāʾir (plural of baṣīra) — inner sights, spiritual illuminations; the Qurʾān awakens in the believer a capacity for inner perception that transcends ordinary sense. The demand for arbitrary signs was a ploy to discredit the Prophetﷺ; his response was to redirect attention to the supreme sign already given: the Qurʾān itself, which is hudā (guidance) and raḥma (mercy) for those whose hearts are open.

وَإِذَا قُرِئَ الْقُرْآنُ فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ وَأَنصِتُوا لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ

Wa-idhā quriʾa al-Qurʾānu fa-stamiʿū lahu wa-anṣitū laʿallakum turḥamūn.

"And when the Qurʾān is recited, listen to it attentively and be silent, so that you may receive mercy." (al-Aʿrāf 7:204)

Translation: And when the Qurʾān is being recited — in prayer or otherwise — listen to it with full attention and maintain silence, so that the mercy of Allāh may descend upon you.

Commentary: The scholars of the Ḥanafī school derive from this verse the legal ruling that when the imām recites the Qurʾān in the congregational prayer, those praying behind him must listen and remain silent; they are not to recite aloud themselves. Fa-stamiʿū — the listening must be genuine, engaged, attentive; not the mere physical act of hearing but an active turning of the heart toward the words. Wa-anṣitū — and maintain silence. Laʿallakum turḥamūn — in this attentive listening and silence lies the avenue through which divine mercy reaches the heart. The author notes that when the Qurʾān is being recited, it is not appropriate to engage in conversation, make noise, or cause distraction to others. Even one reciting quietly to himself should be mindful that he does not disturb others.

Commentary (continued — on proper recitation and dhikr): The author provides guidance on how to recite the Qurʾān and engage in the remembrance of Allāh (dhikr). He notes that in general, a moderate voice is appropriate for dhikr — neither so loud as to disturb those sleeping or worshipping around one, nor so low that the heart itself is not engaged. From a narration attributed to Sayyidunā ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās (may Allāh be pleased with both of them): in the early period, it was observed that after prayers people would raise their voices in dhikr so loudly that it could be heard at a distance; the Prophetﷺdid not approve of this level of loudness. The author further counsels: when performing dhikr, keep the clothing pure and clean; apply fragrance; burn ʿūd or other incense; face the qibla; adopt a posture of humility; if distracting thoughts arise (khawāṭir), engage the breath with the ḍarba of Allāh Allāh upon the heart. Different practitioners apply the ḍarba upon different subtle centres (laṭāʾif). Keep both hands on the thighs during dhikr; keep the fingertips lightly separated to count. If distracting thoughts are strong, use Allāhu Hū or a prolonged Hū to create a resonance (ṣawt) that cuts through interior noise. The author advises: regardless of the method, remember Allāh at all times. Heedlessness (ghafla) in dhikr is akin to spiritual death — one may physically pronounce the words, but without the heart it is empty. [reconstructed]

وَاذْكُر رَّبَّكَ فِي نَفْسِكَ تَضَرُّعًا وَخِيفَةً وَدُونَ الْجَهْرِ مِنَ الْقَوْلِ بِالْغُدُوِّ وَالْآصَالِ وَلَا تَكُن مِّنَ الْغَافِلِينَ

Wa-udhkur rabbaka fī nafsika taḍarruʿan wa-khīfatan wa-dūna al-jahri mina al-qawli bi-l-ghuduwwi wa-l-āṣāli wa-lā takun mina al-ghāfilīn.

"And remember your Lord within yourself, in humble supplication and in awe (khīfa), without loudness of speech, in the mornings and the evenings, and do not be of the heedless." (al-Aʿrāf 7:205)

Translation: Remember your Lord within the privacy of your own self (fī nafsika) — with taḍarruʿ (humble entreaty, earnest supplication) and khīfa (awe and reverential fear) — and without raising the voice loudly, in the mornings and in the evenings. And do not be among the heedless (ghāfilūn).

Commentary: This verse sets out the inner quality and temporal regularity of dhikr. Fī nafsika — within yourself: the most essential dhikr is interior, it is the remembrance of the heart, though the tongue accompanies it at an appropriate level. Taḍarruʿan — with the humility and yearning of one who is genuinely in need. Khīfatan — with the awe of one who recognises His Majesty. Dūna al-jahr — without making it an occasion for display or disturbance. Bi-l-ghuduwwi wa-l-āṣāl — in the early morning and in the evenings: the two times that bracket the day, the two times most traditionally associated with remembrance and supplication. And the final prohibition: wa-lā takun mina al-ghāfilīn — do not be among the heedless. Heedlessness of Allāh is the root disease; dhikr is its cure.

Commentary (continued — on the etiquette and stations of dhikr): The author elaborates on the spiritual dimensions of dhikr. He observes that the one who abandons dhikr is like a tree without fruit — externally present, internally barren. He cites the principle: dhikr al-lisān bi-lā dhikr al-qalb (remembrance of the tongue without remembrance of the heart) is of lower benefit than remembrance of both together. When both tongue and heart are engaged, the dhikr ascends to its highest form — the continuous interior awareness of the Divine Presence. The author cautions: loud dhikr (dhikr-i jahrī) can stir the warmth of spiritual love (maḥabba) and is of benefit in samāʿ (spiritual audition assemblies). Silent dhikr (dhikr-i khafī) cultivates presence and nearness. The one who abandons dhikr entirely is compared to a waking person who behaves as though asleep. The one who engages in dhikr continuously is the one truly alive. [reconstructed]

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ عِندَ رَبِّكَ لَا يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِهِ وَيُسَبِّحُونَهُ وَلَهُ يَسْجُدُونَ

Inna alladhīna ʿinda rabbika lā yastakbirūna ʿan ʿibādatihi wa-yusabbiḥūnahū wa-lahu yasjudūn.

"Indeed, those who are with your Lord do not disdain His worship; they glorify Him, and to Him they prostrate." (al-Aʿrāf 7:206)۩

Translation: Verily, those who are in the presence of your Lord (ʿinda rabbika) — whether the noble angels or the awliyāʾ Allāh who have attained nearness — they do not consider themselves too great for His worship. They glorify Him (yusabbiḥūnahū) incessantly, and to Him alone they prostrate themselves.

Commentary: This is a verse of sajda tilāwa (obligatory prostration upon recitation), and upon its recitation one performs a prostration. The author reminds: prostration is the supreme act of ʿubūdiyya (servanthood) — it is the placement of the most honoured part of the human body, the forehead, upon the ground before the Lord of all existence. Those who are truly near to Allāh — the angels, the highest awliyāʾ, those described as ʿinda rabbika — they are the furthest from self-exaltation and the most constant in glorification and prostration. The verse is a rebuke to the arrogant and an exhortation to every believer: if the greatest of creation bow and prostrate, how much more should we? In prostration, the seven bodily members are placed upon the earth — the forehead, both palms, both knees, and both feet — and in this lies the realisation of complete surrender. The author cautions against performing this prostration carelessly or ostentatiously; it is an act of intimate sincerity between the servant and his Lord. Let no one consider prostration trivial; the foolish regard it as a simple physical act, but the wise know it as the station in which the servant is closest to his Lord, as the Prophetﷺdeclared:«أَقْرَبُ مَا يَكُونُ الْعَبْدُ مِنْ رَبِّهِ وَهُوَ سَاجِدٌ»Aqrabu mā yakūnu al-ʿabdu min rabbihi wa-huwa sājid — "The servant is nearest to his Lord when he is in prostration." (Muslim)

Sūrat al-Anfāl (8) — Madanī · 75 Verses · 10 Sections

(The text notes: Sūrat al-Anfāl is a Madanī sūra; it comprises seventy-five (75) verses and ten (10) sections of rukūʿ. The name derives from anfāl (sing. nafl), meaning surplus/extra gains; here specifically the spoils of war obtained after the Battle of Badr. The connection to the preceding Sūrat al-Aʿrāf is clear: that sūra established that whoever contends against Allāh's truth will be ruined; this sūra, which opens with the Battle of Badr, demonstrates that the disbelievers — despite their numbers and resources — were destroyed. The people of that battle are its opening subject.)

يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَنفَالِ قُلِ الْأَنفَالُ لِلَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَأَصْلِحُوا ذَاتَ بَيْنِكُمْ وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

Yasʾalūnaka ʿani al-anfāli quli al-anfālu lillāhi wa-l-rasūl. Fa-ittaqū Allāha wa-aṣliḥū dhāta baynikum wa-aṭīʿū Allāha wa-rasūlahū in kuntum muʾminīn.

"They ask you about the spoils of war. Say: The spoils of war belong to Allāh and the Messenger. So fear Allāh, set right the matters between you, and obey Allāh and His Messenger, if you are believers." (al-Anfāl 8:1)

Translation: They ask you, O Prophetﷺ, about the anfāl — the spoils of war and their distribution. Say to them: The spoils belong to Allāh and to His Messengerﷺ; their disposal rests with Allāh and the Messenger. Therefore: exercise taqwā, set right the relations and affairs between yourselves, and obey Allāh and His Messengerﷺ— if you are truly among the believers.

Commentary: The occasion for this verse was the dispute among the Companions (may Allāh be pleased with them all) after the Battle of Badr over the distribution of the spoils of war. Some who had pursued the enemy, some who had guarded the Prophetﷺ, and some who had collected the spoils each believed their group deserved precedence. Allāh the Most High resolved the matter by declaring that all spoils belong ultimately to Allāh and to His Messengerﷺ— their proper distribution is determined by divine wisdom and the Messenger's judgment, not by individual claims. The three commands that follow define the believer's response to any internal dispute: taqwā (God-consciousness), iṣlāḥ dhāt al-bayn (rectification of mutual relations), and ṭāʿa (obedience to Allāh and His Messengerﷺ). These three are the pillars of community health.

Sūrat al-Anfāl