Surah Al-ahqaf in english | The wind-curved sandhills

Verse 1

Hā mīm: God knows best what He means by these [letters].

Verse 2

The revelation of the Book, the Qur’ān (tanzīlu’l-kitābi, the subject) is from God (mina’Llāhi, the predicate thereof), the Mighty, in His kingdom, the Wise, in His actions.

Verse 3

We have not created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them except, as a creation, in truth, so that it may be an indication of Our power and Our Oneness, and for an appointed term, until [the point of] their annihilation on the Day of Resurrection. Yet those who disbelieve are disregardful of what they are warned, [of what] they are threatened with in the way of [impending] chastisement.

Verse 4

Say: ‘Have you considered, [say] Inform me [about], what you invoke, [what] you worship, besides God?, namely, the idols (min dūni’Llāhi, constitutes the first object [of the verb]). Show me — inform me — (arūnī, [repeated] for emphasis), what they have created (mādhā khalaqū, the second object) of the earth (mina’l-ardi, the explication of mā, ‘what [part]’). Or do they have any share, any partnership, in, the creation of, the heavens?, with God? (am, ‘or’, has the significance of the [rhetorical interrogative] hamza of denial). Bring me a scripture, [that has been] revealed, before this, Qur’ān, or some vestige, some remnant, of knowledge, transmitted from the ancients confirming the soundness of your claim that your worship of the idols brings you closer to God, if you are truthful’, in your claim.

Verse 5

And who is (man here is interrogative but meant [rhetorically] as a negation: in other words, ‘no one is’) further astray than him who invokes, [him who] worships, besides God, that is to say, other than Him, such as would not respond to him [even] until the Day of Resurrection — these are the idols, who never answer those who worship them in anything that they ask for — and who are heedless of their supplication?, their worship, because they are inanimates that possess no [faculty of] comprehension.

Verse 6

And when mankind are gathered, they, the idols, will be enemies to them, to those who had worshipped them, and they will deny, they will disavow, their worship, the worship of those who had worshipped them.

Verse 7

And when Our signs, the Qur’ān, are recited to them, namely, [to] the people of Mecca, being clear signs, manifest [signs] (bayyinātin is a circumstantial qualifier), those who disbelieve, from among them, say of the truth, that is, the Qur’ān, when it comes to them, ‘This is plain sorcery!’, clear and evident [sorcery].

Verse 8

Or (am has the significance of bal, ‘nay, but …’ and the [rhetorical interrogative] hamza of denial) do they say, ‘He has invented it?’, that is, the Qur’ān. Say: ‘If I have invented it, hypothetically [speaking], still you would have no power to avail me against God, that is to say, against His chastisement, in any way, in other words, you would not be able to ward it off from me if God chooses to chastise me. He knows best what you delve into [of gossip] concerning it, what you say about the Qur’ān. He, exalted be He, suffices as a witness between me and you. And He is the Forgiving, to the one who repents, the Merciful’, to him, and so He does not hasten to punish you.

Verse 9

Say: ‘I am not a novelty, unprecedented, among the messengers, that is to say, [I am not] the first to be sent [by God as His Messenger]. Already many of them have come before me, so how can you deny me? Nor do I know what will be done with me or with you, in this world: will I be made to leave my [native] land, or will I be slain as was done with [some] prophets before me, or will you stone me to death, or will the earth be made to swallow you as [it did] deniers before you? I only follow what is revealed to me, that is, the Qur’ān, and I do not invent anything myself. And I am only a plain warner’, one whose warning is plain.

Verse 10

Say: ‘Have you considered?, [say:] inform me, what will be your predicament, if it, the Qur’ān, is from God and you disbelieve in it (wa-kafartum bihi, the sentence is a circumstantial qualifier), and a witness from the Children of Israel has [already] testified, this was ‘Abd Allāh b. Salām, to the like of it, that is to say, to it [the Qur’ān], that it is from God, and he, the witness, has believed [in it], while you act with arrogance …’, you are disdainful of faith (the response to the conditional [‘if …’] is given [by implication] in what has been supplemented to it, in other words: ‘Would you not then be [considered] wrongdoers?’; this [understanding of the response] is indicated by [what follows]). Truly God does not guide wrongdoing folk’.

Verse 11

And those who disbelieve say of those who believe, that is, [they say] with regards to them: ‘Had it, faith, been [anything] good, they would not have attained it before us’. And since they, the ones [now] speaking, will not be guided by it, that is, [by] the Qur’ān, they say, ‘This, that is, the Qur’ān, is an ancient lie!’

Verse 12

Yet before it, that is, [before] the Qur’ān, [there was] the Book of Moses, that is, the Torah, as a guidepost and a mercy, for those who believed in it (imāman wa-rahmatan are two circumstantial qualifiers) and this, Qur’ān, is a Book that confirms, scriptures before it, in the Arabic tongue (lisānan ‘arabiyyan is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the subject of musaddiqun, ‘that confirms’) to warn those who do wrong, the idolaters of Mecca, and, it is, good tidings for the virtuous, the believers.

Verse 13

Assuredly those who say, ‘Our Lord is God’ and then remain upright, in [their adherence to] obedience, no fear will befall them, nor will they grieve.

Verse 14

Those will be the inhabitants of Paradise, abiding therein (khālidīna fīhā is a circumstantial qualifier) as a reward (jazā’an is in the accusative as a verbal noun, because of the implied verbal action, that is to say, yujzawna, ‘they will be rewarded’) for what they used to do.

Verse 15

And We have enjoined man to be kind (husnan: a variant reading has ihsānan), that is to say, We have commanded him to act kindly towards both of them (thus ihsānan is in the accusative as a verbal noun, because of the implied verbal action; the same applies to husnan) to his parents. His mother carries him in travail, and gives birth to him in travail, that is to say, with suffering; and his gestation and his weaning, from suckling, take thirty months, six months being the minimum period for gestation, the remainder being the maximum period of suckling; it is also said that, regardless of whether she bore him for six or nine months, she should suckle him for the remainder. So that (hattā is a [particle of] purpose for an implied sentence, that is to say, wa-‘āsha hattā, ‘and he lived on so that …’) when he is mature, namely, at his prime in terms of his strength, intellect and reasoning, the minimum [age] for which is thirty or thirty three years, and reaches forty years, that is, exactly [forty years], which is the maximum for [attaining] maturity, he says, ‘My Lord!, [this] to the end [of this verse] was revealed regarding Abū Bakr al-Siddīq, when he had reached forty years of age, two years after the [beginning of the] Prophet’s Mission (s). He [Abū Bakr] believed in him, whereafter his parents believed [in the Prophet], followed by his son ‘Abd al-Rahmān, then ‘Abd al-Rahmān’s son Abū ‘Atīq [Muhammad b. ‘Abd al-Rahmān]. Inspire me to give thanks for Your favour with which You have favoured me and my parents, namely, [the grace of] affirming [God’s] Oneness, and that I may act righteously in a way that will please You, thus he [Abū Bakr] emancipated nine believers who had been enduring torture [at the hands of the idolaters] for [their belief in] God, and invest my seed with righteousness, all of them were believers. Indeed I repent to You and I am truly of those who submit [to You]’.

Verse 16

Those, that is, those who say such words, Abū Bakr and others, are they from whom We accept the best of what they do, and overlook their misdeeds, [as they stand] among the inhabitants of Paradise (fī ashābi’ll-jannati, a circumstantial qualifier, in other words, ‘being among them’) — [this is] the true promise which they were promised, by His words, God has promised the believers, both men and women, Gardens … [Q. 9:72].

Verse 17

As for him who says to his parents (li-wālidayhi: a variant reading has li-wālidihi, ‘his parent’, denoting the generic noun): ‘Fie (read uffin or uffan, as a verbal noun, meaning: ‘[something] putrid and disgusting’) on you both: I am exasperated at both of you. Do you threaten me (a-ta‘idāninī: a variant reading has a-ta‘idānnī) that I shall be raised, from the grave, when already generations, communities, have passed away before me?’, and they have not been raised from their graves. And they call on God for succour, that he [their child] repent, saying [to him]: if you do not repent, ‘Woe to you (waylaka, that is to say, halākaka, ‘you are ruined!’). Believe!, in resurrection. Surely God’s promise is true’. But he says, ‘This, belief in resurrection, is nothing but the fables of the ancients’, lies of theirs.

Verse 18

Such are the ones against whom the Word, of chastisement, is due, is necessary, concerning communities of jinn and humans that have passed away before them. Truly they are losers.

Verse 19

And for each one, of both categories, believer and disbeliever, there will be degrees [of status] , thus the degrees of the believers in Paradise are high, while the degrees of disbelievers in the Fire are despicable, according to what they have done, that is to say, [according to what] believers [have done] in the way of acts of obedience, and disbelievers, in the way of acts of disobedience, and that He may recompense them fully, namely, God (li-yuwaffiyahum: a variant reading has li-nuwaffiyahum, ‘that We may recompense them fully’) for their deeds, that is, [pay them] their deserts, and they will not be wronged, [not even] in a single thing that may be diminished for believers or increased for disbelievers.

Verse 20

And on the day when those who disbelieve are exposed to the Fire, by its being revealed for them, it will be said to them: ‘You squandered (read with one hamza, adhhabtum, or with two hamzas [as an interrogative], a-adhhabtum, ‘have you sqaundered …?’; or with one hamza, adhhabtum, or with an initial long ‘a’, ādhhabtum, with both of these [pronounced fully] or without pronouncing the second [hamza]) your good things during your life of the world, by preoccupying yourselves with sensual delights, and enjoyed them. So today you will be requited with the chastisement of humiliation in return for acting arrogantly in the earth without right and in return for that regarding which you used to act immorally’, and [for] the torture you used to inflict [upon others] therein.

Verse 21

And mention the brother of ‘Ād, namely, Hūd, peace be upon him, when (idh … [from here] to the end [of the verse] constitutes an inclusive substitution) he warned his people, he threatened them, at Ahqāf, [‘the Sand dunes’ is the name of] a valley in Yemen, where their dwellings were located — and already warners, messengers, had passed away before him and after him, that is to say, before Hūd [came to them] and after him, to their peoples — saying, ‘Do not worship anyone but God (the statement [beginning with] wa-qad khalat, ‘and already [warners] had passed away’, is a parenthetical one). Truly I fear for you — should you worship other than God — the chastisement of a dreadful day’.

Verse 22

They said, ‘Have you come to divert us from our gods?, to turn us away from worship of them. Then bring us what you threaten us with, of chastisement for worshipping them, if you are of the truthful’, in [saying] that it will befall us.

Verse 23

He, Hūd, said, ‘The knowledge is with God only, He is the One Who knows when chastisement will befall you, and I am [merely] conveying to you what I have been sent with, to you. But I see that you are an ignorant lot’, given your hastening on of the chastisement.

Verse 24

Then, when they saw it, that is, [when they saw] what chastisement [really] was, as a sudden cloud, a cloud that appeared [out of nowhere] on the horizon, heading towards their valleys, they said, ‘This is a cloud that will bring us rain!’. God, exalted be He, says: Nay, but it is what you sought to hasten, of the chastisement — a hurricane (rīhun substitutes for mā, ‘what’) containing a painful chastisement,

Verse 25

destroying, ruining, everything, it passes through, by the command of its Lord, by His will, that is to say, [destroying] everything that He wants to destroy with it. And so it destroyed their men, women, children and properties by flinging them up into the air high above the ground and tearing them to pieces. Only Hūd and those who believed with him remained [unscathed]. So they became such that nothing could be seen except their dwellings. Thus, in the way that We requited them, do We requite guilty folk, besides them.

Verse 26

And verily We had empowered them in ways in which We have not (in is either for negation or extra) empowered you, O people of Mecca, in the way of strength and means, and We had vested them with ears and eyes and hearts. But their ears and their eyes and their hearts did not avail them in any way (min shay’in: min is extra) since (idh, is operated by aghnā, ‘avail’, and imbued with the sense of [a particle introducing a] reason) they used to deny the signs of God, His clear proofs, and they were besieged by, there befell them, what they used to deride, of chastisement.

Verse 27

And We certainly destroyed the towns [that were] around you, that is, [We destroyed] their inhabitants, the likes of Thamūd, ‘Ād and the people of Lot, and We dispensed the signs, We repeated the clear proofs, so that perhaps they might return.

Verse 28

So why did they not help them, by averting from them the chastisement, those whom they had chosen besides God, that is to say, other than Him, as [a means of] nearness, through whom they may secure nearness to God, to be gods?, alongside Him, and these are the idols (the first object of ittakhadhū, ‘they had chosen’, is the omitted pronoun referred to by the relative clause [alladhīna, ‘those who …’], and it is hum, ‘they’; qurbānan, ‘nearness’, is the second [object], with ālihatan, ‘gods’, as its substitution). Nay, but they forsook them, when the chastisement came down [on them], and that, that is to say, [that] choosing of theirs of idols as gods as a means of nearness [to God], was their lie and what they used to invent — the lies they used to speak (mā, ‘what’, either relates to the verbal action [‘their lying’], or it indicates a relative clause with the referential pronoun omitted, this being fīhi, ‘about’).

Verse 29

And, mention, when We sent a company of jinn your way — the jinn of Nasībīn in Yemen, or the jinn of Nineveh, who were seven or nine, [and this was] while the Prophet (s) was leading the dawn prayer with some of his Companions at Batn Nakhla, as reported by the two Shaykhs [al-Bukhārī and Muslim] — to listen to the Qur’ān and, when they were in its presence, they said, that is, they said to one another: ‘Listen carefully!’, concentrate in order to hear it [carefully]. Then, when it was finished, [when] he was finished reciting it, they went back to their people to warn [them], to threaten their people with the chastisement [from God] if they do not believe — they had been Jews, but then become Muslims.

Verse 30

They said, ‘O our people! Indeed we have heard a Book, namely, the Qur’ān, which has been revealed after Moses, confirming what was before it, what preceded it, such as the Torah. It guides to the truth, submission [to God] (islām), and to a straight way, that is, the way thereto [to Islam].

Verse 31

O our people! Respond to God’s summoner, Muhammad (s), by embracing faith, and believe in him, and He, God, will forgive you some of your sins, because some of these [sins] are wrongs [done to others] and which [therefore] can only be forgiven after those wronged are reconciled — and shelter you from a painful chastisement.

Verse 32

And whoever does not respond to God’s summoner cannot thwart God on earth, that is to say, he will not be able to thwart God by escaping from Him and eluding Him, and he, the one who does not respond, will not have, besides Him, that is, [besides] God, any protectors, any helpers to ward off the chastisement from him — those, who do not respond, are in manifest error’, plain and evident [error].

Verse 33

Have they not seen, [have they not] realised, that is, the deniers of resurrection, that God, Who created the heavens and the earth and [Who] was not wearied by their creation, [Who] did not fail therein, is able to give life to the dead? (bi-qādirin is the predicate of anna, ‘that’, the bi- having been added to it because the statement has the same force as [the construction]: a-laysa’Llāhu bi-qādirin, ‘Is God not able …?’). Yes, indeed, He is able to give life to the dead. Indeed He has is able to do all things.

Verse 34

And on the day when those who disbelieve are exposed to the Fire, when they are being chastised in it, it will be said to them: ‘Is not this, chastisement, the truth?’ They will say, ‘Yes, by our Lord!’ He will say, ‘Then taste the chastisement for what you used to disbelieve [in]’.

Verse 35

So endure [with patience], the harm done [to you] by your people, just as the resolute, those of constancy and [power of] endurance during hardships, from among the messengers endured [with patience], before you, so that you may be one of resolve [like them] (min [of mina’l-rusuli] is explicative, as all of them were men of resolve; but some say that this [particle min] is [actually] meant to be partitive, since excluded from their number are: Adam, on the basis of God’s saying, exalted be He: And We did not find in him any constancy [Q. 20:115]; and Jonah, on the basis of His words: And do not be like the One of the fish [Q. 68:48]). And do not seek to hasten [it] for them, for your people, the sending down of the chastisement on them. Some say that he [the Prophet] seemed [by this stage] to have become exasperated because of them and desired that chastisement be sent down on them, which is why he was enjoined to [exercise] patience and to refrain from hastening the chastisement [for them] — for it would befall them [eventually] without doubt. It shall seem for them, on the day when they see what they are promised, of chastisement in the Hereafter, given its long duration, as though they had tarried, in this world, by their reckoning, only an hour of a day. This Qur’ān is, a communication, a proclamation from God to you. So shall any be destroyed, that is to say, none [shall be destroyed] upon seeing the chastisement, but the immoral folk?, that is to say, the disbelieving [folk].

Verse 1

Those who disbelieve, from among the people of Mecca, and bar, others, from the way of God, that is to say, [from] faith, He will leave their works to waste, such as giving food [to the poor] or being kind to kin, and so they will find no reward for these [works of theirs] in the Hereafter; [but] they are requited for them in this world [purely] out of His bounty, exalted be He.

Verse 2

But those who believe, namely, the Helpers (al-Ansār) and others [like them], and perform righteous deeds and believe in what has been revealed to Muhammad, namely, the Qur’ān — and it is the truth from their Lord — He will absolve them of, He will forgive them, their misdeeds and rightly dispose their mind, their state, so that they do not disobey Him.

Verse 3

That, rendering void of their works and the absolution of evil deeds, is because those who disbelieve follow falsehood, Satan, and because those who believe follow the truth, the Qur’ān, from their Lord. Thus, in the same manner of clarification, does God strike for mankind similitudes of themselves, [that is how] He clarifies for them their states, in other words, the disbeliever has his work rendered void while the believer is forgiven.

Verse 4

So when you encounter [in battle] those who disbelieve, then [attack them with] a striking of the necks (fa-darba’l-riqābi is a verbal noun in place of the [full] verbal construction, that is to say, fa’dribū riqābahum, ‘then strike their necks’), in other words, slay them — reference is made to the ‘striking of the necks’ because the predominant cause of being slayed is to be struck in the neck. Then, when you have made thoroughly decimated them, bind, spare them, take them captive and bind firmly, the bonds (al-wathāq is what is used to bind [yūthaqu] a captive). Thereafter either [set them free] by grace (mannan is a verbal noun in place of the [full] verbal construction), that is to say, either show them grace by setting them free unconditionally; or by ransom, ransoming them with payment or with Muslim captives, until the war, that is to say, its participants, lay down its burdens, its heavy loads of weaponry and other things, so that either the disbelievers surrender or enter into a treaty. This [last clause] constitutes the ‘purpose’ of [enjoining the Muslims to] slaying and taking captive. So [shall it be] (dhālika is the predicate of an implied subject, [such as] al-amr, ‘the ordinance’, in other words, ‘the ordinance [of God] regarding them is as mentioned’). And had God willed, He could have [Himself] taken vengeance on them, without any fighting, but, He has commanded you to [do] it, that He may test some of you by means of others, from among them, by way of battle, so that the slain among you will end up in Paradise, while those [slain] among them [will end up] in the Fire. And those who are slain (qutilū: a variant reading has qātalū, ‘those who fight’) — this verse was revealed on the day of [the battle of] Uhud, after the dead and the wounded had become numerous among the Muslims — in the way of God, He will not let their works go to waste, He will [not] render [them] void.

Verse 5

He will guide them, in this world and in the Hereafter to what benefits them, and rightly dispose their minds, their condition in both, with that [guidance and disposal] in this world being for those who were not slain, but who have been included in [the statement] ‘and those who were slain’ (qutilū) because of [the] predominance therein [of those who were slain].

Verse 6

And He will admit them into Paradise, which He has made known, [which] He has pointed out, to them, so that they are guided to their dwellings in it, and to their spouses and servants without asking to be shown the way.

Verse 7

O you who believe! If you help God, that is to say, His religion and His Messenger, He will help you, against your enemy, and make your foothold firm, He will make you stand firm [while you fight] on the battleground.

Verse 8

And as for those who disbelieve, from among the people of Mecca (wa’lladhīna kafarū is the subject, the predicate of which is [an implicit] ta‘isū, ‘they shall be wretched’, as indicated [by what follows]) wretchedness shall be their lot, that is, destruction and defeat from God. And He will make their works go to waste (wa-adalla a‘mālahum is a supplement to [the implied] ta‘isū, ‘they shall be wretched’).

Verse 9

That, wretchedness and wasting [of their works], is because they are averse to what God has revealed, of the Qur’ān with all that it includes of religious obligations (takālīf), so He has made their works fail.

Verse 10

Have they not travelled in the land to see the nature of the consequence for those who were before them? God destroyed them — He destroyed them, their children and their possessions; and [a fate] the like thereof will be for the disbelievers, that is to say, the like of the fate of those before them.

Verse 11

That, granting of victory to the believers and the vanquishing of the disbelievers, is because God is Patron, Ally and Helper, of those who believe and because the disbelievers have no patron.

Verse 12

God will surely admit those who believe and perform righteous deeds into gardens underneath which rivers flow. As for those who disbelieve, they take their enjoyment, in this world, and eat as the cattle eat, that is to say, they are only concerned with [filling] their bellies and [satisfying] their private parts, without giving any thought to the Hereafter; and the Fire will be their habitation, their home, their station and their [final] destination.

Verse 13

And how many (ka-ayyin means kam) a town, by which is meant the inhabitants thereof, mightier in power than your town, Mecca, that is to say, its inhabitants, which expelled you (akhrajatka [is feminine despite the plural sense of inhabitants meant is because it] takes into account the [feminine] form of qarya, ‘town’), have We destroyed (ahlaknāhum takes into account the former [plural] import of qarya, ‘town’), and they had none to help them, against Our destruction [of them].

Verse 14

Is he who follows a clear sign, a definitive argument and proof, from his Lord, and these are the believers, like those whose evil deeds have been adorned for them, so that they see them as fair [deeds], and these are the disbelievers of Mecca, and who follow their desires?, by worshipping graven images. In other words, there is no similarity between the two.

Verse 15

A similitude, a description, of the Garden promised to the God-fearing: [the Garden] that is shared equally by all those who enter it (this first clause is the subject, of which the predicate [follows:]) therein are rivers of unstaling water (read āsin or asin, similar [in form] to dārib, ‘striker’, and hadhir, ‘cautious’), that is to say, one that does not change, in contrast to the water of this world, which may change due to some factor; and rivers of milk unchanging in flavour, in contrast to the milk of this world, on account of its issuing from udders, and rivers of wine delicious to the drinkers, in contrast to the wine of this world, which is distasteful to drink; and [also] rivers of purified honey, in contrast to the honey of this world, which when it issues out of the bellies of bees becomes mixed with wax and other elements; and there will be for them therein, varieties [of], every fruit and forgiveness from their Lord, for He is pleased with them, in addition to His beneficence towards them in the way mentioned, in contrast to one who is a master of servants in this world, who while being kind to them may at the same time be wrathful with them. [Is such a one] like him who abides in the Fire? (ka-man huwa khālidun fī’l-nāri, the predicate of an implied subject, which is a-man huwa fī hādha’l-na‘īm, ‘Is one who is amidst such bliss [as him who abides in the Fire]?’). And they will be given to drink boiling water which rips apart their bowels, that is, their entrails, so that these will be excreted from their rears. (Am‘ā’, ‘bowels’, is the plural of mi‘an, its alif being derived from the yā’ of their saying mi‘yān [as an alternative singular to mi‘an]).

Verse 16

And there are some among them, namely, the disbelievers, who listen to you, during the Friday sermon — and these are the hypocrites; until, when they go forth from you, they say to those who have been given knowledge, that is to say, to the knowledgeable ones among the Companions [of the Prophet], such as [‘Abd Allāh] Ibn Mas‘ūd and [‘Abd Allāh] Ibn ‘Abbās, in derision and mockery: ‘What was he saying just now?’ (read ānifan or anifan, meaning al-sā‘a, ‘just now’). In other words, [they mean to say] ‘we will not go back to [listen to] him again’. Those are the ones on whose hearts God has set a seal, of disbelief, and who follow their own desires, in [acting with] hypocrisy.

Verse 17

But those who are [rightly] guided, namely, the believers, He, God, enhances their guidance and invests them with fear [of Him], He inspires them to [do] that by which they can be wary of [ending up in] the Fire.

Verse 18

Do they, then, await, they do not await, namely, the disbelievers of Mecca, anything except that the Hour should come upon them (an ta’tiyahum is an inclusive substitution for al-sā‘ata, ‘the Hour’; in other words, it cannot be other than that it will come upon them […]) suddenly? For already its portents, the signs thereof, have come, among which are the sending of the Prophet (s), the splitting of the Moon [Q. 54:1] and the Smoke [Q. 44:10]. So, when it, the Hour, has come upon them, for what [benefit] will their reminder be?, their remembering; in other words, it will be of no benefit to them.

Verse 19

Know, then, that there is no god except God, that is to say, adhere, O Muhammad (s), to knowledge of this [fact] that will benefit you at the Resurrection, and ask forgiveness for your sin — this was said to him, despite his infallibility (‘isma), so that his community might emulate him [in this respect]. Indeed he did do this. The Prophet (s) said, ‘Verily I do ask God for forgiveness a hundred times every day’ — and for the believing men and believing women — herein is an honouring for them, by having their Prophet enjoined to ask forgiveness for them. And God knows your going to and fro, your bustle during the day in pursuit of your business, and your place of rest, when you retire to where you sleep at night. In other words, He has knowledge of all your states, nothing of which can be hidden from Him, so be mindful of Him — the address [in this verse] is meant for believers as well as others.

Verse 20

And those who believe say, seeking to take part in the struggle: ‘Why has a sūra not been revealed?’, [one] in which there is mention of the [command to participate in the] struggle. But when a definitive sūra is revealed, one in which nothing is abrogated (naskh), and fighting, that is to say, requirement for it, is mentioned in it, you see those in whose hearts is a sickness, that is, doubt — and they are the hypocrites — looking at you with the look of someone fainting at [the point of] death, because of [their] fear of it and [their] aversion to it; in other words, they fear fighting and are averse to it. Yet more fitting for them (fa-awlā lahum is a subject, the predicate of which [is the following, tā‘atun wa-qawlun ma‘rūfun])

Verse 21

would be [to offer] obedience and honourable words, that is, [words] that are kind to you. Then, when the matter has been resolved upon, that is to say, [when] fighting has been prescribed, if they are loyal to God, in faith and obedience, it will be better for them (the sentence beginning with law, ‘if’, constitutes the response to idhā, ‘when’).

Verse 22

May it not be [the case] with you, (read ‘asītum or ‘asaytum; there is a shift here from the third person to the second person address), that if you were to turn away, [if] you were to shun faith, you would then cause corruption in the land and sever your kinship ties?, in other words, [that] you would then return to the ways of pagandom such as belligerence and fighting.

Verse 23

Those, that is, the agents of corruption, are the ones whom God has cursed, so made them deaf, to hearing the truth, and blinded their eyes, to the path of guidance.

Verse 24

Do they not contemplate the Qur’ān?, and so recognise the truth. Or (am here is like bal, ‘nay, but’) is it that there are locks on, their, hearts?, so they are unable to comprehend it.

Verse 25

Truly those who have turned, by way of hypocrisy, their backs after the guidance has become clear to them, Satan has seduced, he has adorned [disbelief for], them and has given them [false] hopes (read wa-umliya lahum, ‘[false] hopes have been given to them’, or wa-amlā lahum, where the one who gives the [false] hopes is Satan, [but only] by God’s will, exalted be He, for he [Satan] is the one who leads them astray).

Verse 26

That, leading of them astray, is because they said to those who were averse to what God revealed, namely, to the idolaters: ‘We will obey you in some matters’, that is to say, by cooperating to maintain enmity against the Prophet (s) and preventing people from participating in the struggle alongside him: they had said as much secretly, but God, exalted be He, exposed it; and God knows their secrets (read asrārahum, as the plural of sirr, ‘a secret’, or isrārahum, ‘their keeping [of things] secret’, as the verbal noun).

Verse 27

Then how will it be, their predicament, when the angels take them away, beating (yadribūna is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the angels) their faces and their backs?, with hooked iron rods.

Verse 28

That, taking of them away in the state mentioned, is because they followed what angers God, and [because] they were averse to what pleases Him, that is to say, [they were averse to] doing what pleases Him. Therefore He has made their works fail.

Verse 29

Or did those in whose hearts is a sickness suppose that God would not expose their rancour?, [that] He would [not] bring to light their spite against the Prophet (s) and the believers.

Verse 30

And if We will, We could show them to you, We could have pointed them out to you (the lām is repeated in [the following, fa-la-‘araftahum]), then you would recognise them by their mark. And you will certainly recognise them (wa-la-ta‘rifannahum: the wāw is for an omitted oath, and what follows it [fī lahni’l-qawl] is its response) by [their] tone of speech, that is to say, [by] the meaning thereof when they speak in your presence, alluding [as they do] to what amounts to a scathing attack upon the Muslims; and God knows your deeds.

Verse 31

And We will assuredly try you, We will assuredly test you by way of [commanding you to participate in] the struggle and in other ways, until We know, with knowledge outwardly manifested, those of you who struggle [for God’s cause] and those who are steadfast, in [adhering to] the struggle and in other ways, and We will appraise, We will reveal, your record, in terms of [whether you acted with] obedience or disobedience in what concerns the struggle (all three verbs may be read with the [third person singular] yā’ or with the [first person plural] nūn).

Verse 32

Indeed those who disbelieve and bar from the way of God, the path of truth, and defy the Messenger, opposing him, after the guidance (this is the meaning of ‘the way of God’) has become clear to them, they will not hurt God in any way, and He will make their works fail, He will invalidate them, [good works] such as voluntary alms and the like, and so they will not find any reward for it in the Hereafter — this was revealed either regarding those [Meccan] participants at [the battle of] Badr who provided food [for the needy], or regarding [the Jewish tribes of] Qurayza and al-Nadīr.

Verse 33

O you who believe! Obey God and obey the Messenger, and do not render your own works void, by [engaging in] acts of disobedience, for example.

Verse 34

Indeed those who disbelieve and bar from the way of God, His path, namely, guidance, and then die as disbelievers, God will never forgive them — this was revealed regarding the men of the Well (al-qalīb).

Verse 35

So do not falter, [do not] be weak, and [do not] call for peace (read salm or silm), that is to say, a truce with the disbelievers should you encounter them, when you have the upper hand (al-a‘lawna: the third letter of the triliteral root, wāw, has been omitted), [when you are] the victors, the vanquishers, and God is with you, helping and assisting, and He will not stint you, diminish you, in [the reward for] your works, that is to say, of the reward for them.

Verse 36

The life of this world, that is to say, preoccupation [solely] with it, is merely play and diversion; but if you believe and are wary, of God, [both of] which pertain to [the goal of] the Hereafter, He will give you your rewards, and will not ask you your wealth [in return], all of it, rather, only the alms that are required from it.

Verse 37

If He were to ask you for it, and press you, demand it persistently, you would be niggardly, and this, niggardliness, would expose your rancour, towards the religion of Islam.

Verse 38

Lo! there you are, O, those who are being called to expend in the way of God, that which has been prescribed for you; yet among you there are those who are niggardly; and whoever is niggardly is niggardly only to his own soul (one may say bakhila ‘alayhi or [bakhila] ‘anhu [to mean, ‘he was niggardly to someone’]). For God is the Independent One, [without need] of your expending; while you are the needy, of Him. And if you turn away, from obedience to Him, He will replace you with another people, that is to say, He will bring them in your place, and they will not be the likes of you, in turning away from obedience to Him, but [they will be] obedient to Him, Mighty and Majestic [is He].

Verse 1

Verily We have given you, We have ordained [for you] the conquest (fath) of Mecca, and other places in the future by force, as a result of your struggle, a clear victory, [one that is] plain and manifest;

Verse 2

that God may forgive you, by virtue of your struggle, what is past of your sin and what is to come, of it, so that your community might then desire to struggle [like you] — this [verse] also constitutes a justification of the [concept of the] infallibility (‘isma) of prophets, peace be upon them, against sin, by way of a definitive rational proof (the lām [in li-yaghfira, ‘that He may forgive’] is for [indicating] the ultimate reason [for the conquest], so that the content [of this latter statement] constitutes an effect and not the cause), and that He may perfect, by way of the mentioned victory, His favour to you and guide you, thereby, to a straight path, upon which He will confirm you — and this [straight path] is the religion of Islam;

Verse 3

and that God may grant you, therein, a mighty victory, one of glory, involving no humiliation.

Verse 4

He it is Who sent down the spirit of Peace, [Divine] reassurance, into the hearts of the believers, that they might add faith to their faith, by way of [their embracing of] the legal stipulations of religion: for every time He revealed one [of these], they would believe in it — including the [command to] struggle. And to God belong the hosts of the heavens and the earth, and so if He wanted to bring victory to His religion by means of others, He would have done so. And God is ever Knower, of His creatures, Wise, in His actions, in other words, He is ever possessed of such attributes;

Verse 5

so that He may admit (li-yudkhila is semantically connected to an omitted clause, that is to say, amara bi’l-jihād, ‘He has enjoined the struggle [so that He may admit]’) the believing men and believing women into gardens underneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide, and that He may absolve them of their misdeeds; for that, in God’s sight, is a supreme triumph;

Verse 6

and so that He may chastise the hypocrites, men and women, and the idolaters, men and women, and those who make evil assumptions about God (read al-saw’ or al-sū’, ‘evil’, in all three places); they assumed that He will not assist Muhammad (s) and the believers. For them will be an evil turn of fortune, by way of abasement and chastisement; and God is wroth with them, and He has cursed them, He has banished them [far from His mercy], and has prepared for them Hell — and it is an evil destination!, [an evil] place to return to.

Verse 7

And to God belong the hosts of the heavens and the earth; and God is ever Mighty, in His kingdom, Wise, in His actions, in other words, He is ever possessed of such attributes.

Verse 8

Indeed We have sent you as a witness, against your community at the Resurrection, and a bearer of good tidings, to them in this world, and a warner, to threaten those in it who do evil with [the punishment of] the Fire;

Verse 9

that you may believe (li-tu’minū, may also here be read li-yu’minū, ‘that they may believe’; and similarly read either the second person plural or the third person plural in the next three instances) in God and His Messenger, and that you may support Him (tu‘azzirūhu: a variant reading has tu‘azzizūhu) and revere Him (the [third person suffixed] pronoun [-hu, ‘him’] may refer either to God or to His Messenger) and glorify Him, that is, God, morning and evening.

Verse 10

Truly those who pledge allegiance to you, the ‘Pledge of Beatitude’ (bay‘at al-ridwān) given at al-Hudaybiyya, in fact pledge allegiance to God — this [statement] is akin to: Whoever obeys the Messenger, verily obeys God [Q. 4:80]. The Hand of God is above their hands, [the hands] with which they pledged allegiance to the Prophet, in other words, God, exalted be He, has observed their pledge of allegiance and will requite them in accordance with [their adherence to] it. So whoever reneges, [whoever] breaches the pledge, reneges — [that is] the evil consequences of his breach will eventually be — against his own soul; and whoever fulfils the covenant which he has made with God, He will give him (fa-sa-yu’tīhi; or read fa-sa-nu’tīhi, ‘We will give him’) a great reward.

Verse 11

Those of the Bedouins who were left behind, around Medina — that is to say, those whom God made to stay behind and not to accompany you when you had asked them to set out with you for Mecca, fearing that Quraysh would attack you upon your return, in the year of al-Hudaybiyya — will say to you, ‘Our possessions and our families kept us occupied, [preventing us] from going forth with you. So ask forgiveness for us!’, of God, for our failure to go forth with you. God, exalted be He, exposes their mendacity by saying: They say with their tongues, that is to say, in asking forgiveness, and in the preceding statement [of theirs], what is not in their hearts, and so they are lying in the excuse which they give. Say: ‘Who can (an interrogative meant [rhetorically] as a negation, that is to say, ‘none [can]’) avail you anything against God should He desire to cause you harm (read darran or durran) or desire to bring you benefit? Nay, but God is ever Aware of what you do, in other words, He is ever possessed of such an attribute.

Verse 12

Nay (bal in both instances marks a transition from one subject to another), but you thought that the Messenger and the believers would never return to their families, and that [thought] was adorned in your hearts, that is to say, [you thought] that they would be annihilated by being slain and would not return, and you thought evil thoughts, that [just mentioned], and other things, and you were a ruined lot’ (būr is the plural of bā’ir), in other words, [a lot to be] destroyed according to God for [having entertained] such [evil] thoughts.

Verse 13

And whoever does not believe in God and His Messenger, We have prepared for the disbelievers a blaze, a severe fire.

Verse 14

And to God belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth: He forgives whomever He will and chastises whomever He will; and God is ever Forgiving, Merciful, that is to say, He is ever possessed of the attributes mentioned.

Verse 15

Those, mentioned, who were left behind will say, when you set forth after spoils, namely, the spoils of Khaybar, in order to capture them, ‘Let us follow you’, that we might [also] take a share of it. They desire, thereby, to change the words of God (kalāma’Llāhi: a variant reading has kalima’Llāhi), in other words, His promising of the spoils of Khaybar exclusively for those who were at al-Hudaybiyya. Say: ‘You shall never follow us! Thus has God said beforehand’, that is, prior to our return. Then they will say, ‘Nay, but you are envious of us’, lest we might acquire a share of the spoils, and therefore you say this [that you say]. Nay, but they never understood, anything of religion, [all] except a few, of them.

Verse 16

Say to those of the Bedouins, mentioned, who were left behind, to test them: ‘You shall be called against a people possessed of great might — these are said to have been the [tribe of] Banū Hanīfa, the inhabitants of [the region of] al-Yamāma; but it is also said that these were the Persians and the Byzantines — you shall fight them (tuqātilūnahum is a circumstancial qualifier referring to an implied [future] situation, which constitutes that to which the ‘call’ will be made); or they will submit, so that you will not [have to] fight. So if you obey, [the command] to fight them, God will give you a good reward; but if you turn away like you turned away before, He will chastise you with a painful chastisement’.

Verse 17

There is no blame on the blind, nor [is there] blame on the lame, nor [is there] blame on the sick, to refrain from [participating in] the struggle. And whoever obeys God and His Messenger, He will admit him (read yudkhilhu, or nudkhilhu, ‘We will admit him’) into gardens underneath which rivers flow; and whoever turns away, him He will chastise (read yu‘adhdhibhu, or nu‘adhdhibhu, ‘him We will chastise’) with a painful chastisement.

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Hizb 51 | AL-AHQAF 46:1 -> AL-FATH 48:17

Surah 46 AL-AHQAF

Surah 47 MUHAMMAD

Surah 48 AL-FATH

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