Muslim99Muslim99
App
← Tafsir library

7. Al-A'raaf

The Heights · Meccan · 206 ayahs

سُورَةُ الأَعۡرَافِ

Reading Al-Mukhtasar in Interpreting the Noble Qur'an by Tafsir Center for Quranic Studies

Ayahs 171–180 of 206

171

۞ وَإِذْ نَتَقْنَا ٱلْجَبَلَ فَوْقَهُمْ كَأَنَّهُۥ ظُلَّةٌۭ وَظَنُّوٓا۟ أَنَّهُۥ وَاقِعٌۢ بِهِمْ خُذُوا۟ مَآ ءَاتَيْنَٰكُم بِقُوَّةٍۢ وَٱذْكُرُوا۟ مَا فِيهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ

And [mention] when We raised the mountain above them as if it was a dark cloud and they were certain that it would fall upon them, [and Allah said], "Take what We have given you with determination and remember what is in it that you might fear Allah."

Mention, O Muhammad, when Allah raised the mountain above the Israelites when they refused to accept what was in the Torah. Then the mountain became like a cloud, casting a shadow over them, and they were sure it would fall upon them. They were told to firmly and seriously hold onto what Allah had revealed to them, and to remember the rulings that He had made law for them, and not to forget this, so that they might be Mindful.

Al-A'raaf 7:171Listen in Qur'an →
172

وَإِذْ أَخَذَ رَبُّكَ مِنۢ بَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ مِن ظُهُورِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَأَشْهَدَهُمْ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ ۖ قَالُوا۟ بَلَىٰ ۛ شَهِدْنَآ ۛ أَن تَقُولُوا۟ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ إِنَّا كُنَّا عَنْ هَٰذَا غَٰفِلِينَ

And [mention] when your Lord took from the children of Adam - from their loins - their descendants and made them testify of themselves, [saying to them], "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes, we have testified." [This] - lest you should say on the day of Resurrection, "Indeed, we were of this unaware."

Mention, O Muhammad, when your Lord took from the loins of the children of Adam their descendants and had them acknowledge, bearing witness to His lordship, making it part of their innate nature to acknowledge that He created them and that He is their Lord. He said to them, ‘Am I not your Lord?’ and they replied, ‘Yes, we bear witness’. Allah said: 'I asked you this question so that you would not deny the proofs of Allah on the Day of Judgement, saying that you did not have any knowledge of it.

Al-A'raaf 7:172Listen in Qur'an →
173

أَوْ تَقُولُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَآ أَشْرَكَ ءَابَآؤُنَا مِن قَبْلُ وَكُنَّا ذُرِّيَّةًۭ مِّنۢ بَعْدِهِمْ ۖ أَفَتُهْلِكُنَا بِمَا فَعَلَ ٱلْمُبْطِلُونَ

Or [lest] you say, "It was only that our fathers associated [others in worship] with Allah before, and we were but descendants after them. Then would You destroy us for what the falsifiers have done?"

'Lest you might say that your ancestors were the ones who broke the promise, taking others as partners with Allah, and that you were just following them. In this way, you would say: 'O our Lord! Will You destroy us for what our ancestors did, making our actions worthless because of taking others as partners with You?! Indeed we carry no sin because we were just following our ancestors and had no knowledge.'

Al-A'raaf 7:173Listen in Qur'an →
174

وَكَذَٰلِكَ نُفَصِّلُ ٱلْءَايَٰتِ وَلَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ

And thus do We [explain in] detail the verses, and perhaps they will return.

So just as I made clear the signs and evidences for the previous nations, I make clear the lessons for these people (Quraish) so that they might repent from worshiping others as partners with Allah to believing in Him alone and worshipping Him alone, as they had agreed aforetime before they broke their promise.

Al-A'raaf 7:174Listen in Qur'an →
175

وَٱتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ ٱلَّذِىٓ ءَاتَيْنَٰهُ ءَايَٰتِنَا فَٱنسَلَخَ مِنْهَا فَأَتْبَعَهُ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنُ فَكَانَ مِنَ ٱلْغَاوِينَ

And recite to them, [O Muhammad], the news of him to whom we gave [knowledge of] Our signs, but he detached himself from them; so Satan pursued him, and he became of the deviators.

Recite to the Israelites the news of the man from among them who Allah gave His signs to, so that he knew and understood the truth which they directed him to. But he did not act according to them, leaving them and removing himself away from them, so that Satan became his close companion, and he became one of those who go astray and are ruined, after he had been one of those who were rightly-guided and on the path to being saved.

Al-A'raaf 7:175Listen in Qur'an →
176

وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَرَفَعْنَٰهُ بِهَا وَلَٰكِنَّهُۥٓ أَخْلَدَ إِلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَٱتَّبَعَ هَوَىٰهُ ۚ فَمَثَلُهُۥ كَمَثَلِ ٱلْكَلْبِ إِن تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْهِ يَلْهَثْ أَوْ تَتْرُكْهُ يَلْهَث ۚ ذَّٰلِكَ مَثَلُ ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا ۚ فَٱقْصُصِ ٱلْقَصَصَ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ

And if We had willed, we could have elevated him thereby, but he adhered [instead] to the earth and followed his own desire. So his example is like that of the dog: if you chase him, he pants, or if you leave him, he [still] pants. That is the example of the people who denied Our signs. So relate the stories that perhaps they will give thought.

If Allah had desired, He would have made this person benefit through these signs, enabling him to act according to them, so that he would be raised up in this world and in the next. But he chose what led to his failure, being attracted to the desires of the worldly life, and preferring them to the Afterlife. His example in his extreme greed for this world is like the example of a dog, which pants with its tongue constantly, whether it is resting or whether it is chased away. This example is the example of the people who are astray because of rejecting Allah’s signs. So relate the stories to them O Messenger so that they may think and reject their denial of the truth and their misguidance.

Al-A'raaf 7:176Listen in Qur'an →
177

سَآءَ مَثَلًا ٱلْقَوْمُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا وَأَنفُسَهُمْ كَانُوا۟ يَظْلِمُونَ

How evil an example [is that of] the people who denied Our signs and used to wrong themselves.

Is there anything worse than a people who reject Allah’s signs and proofs, not believing them, wronging themselves through doing so and only gaining their own ruin.

Al-A'raaf 7:177Listen in Qur'an →
178

مَن يَهْدِ ٱللَّهُ فَهُوَ ٱلْمُهْتَدِى ۖ وَمَن يُضْلِلْ فَأُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْخَٰسِرُونَ

Whoever Allah guides - he is the [rightly] guided; and whoever He sends astray - it is those who are the losers.

Whoever Allah allows to be guided to the right path is truly guided, because they chose the path of their Lord; and whoever Allah does not lead to His path, sending them away from it because of their deviation and bad actions, those are the true losers, who lose themselves and their families on the Day of Judgment – is that not complete loss?

Al-A'raaf 7:178Listen in Qur'an →
179

وَلَقَدْ ذَرَأْنَا لِجَهَنَّمَ كَثِيرًۭا مِّنَ ٱلْجِنِّ وَٱلْإِنسِ ۖ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌۭ لَّا يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌۭ لَّا يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ ءَاذَانٌۭ لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَآ ۚ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ كَٱلْأَنْعَٰمِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ ۚ أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْغَٰفِلُونَ

And We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind. They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Those are like livestock; rather, they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless.

And I made for the Hellfire, many people from Humankind and the Jinn, because of My Knowledge that they would do the actions of the people of Hell. They have hearts by which they do not understand what will benefit them and what will harm them; eyes which they do not use to see the signs of Allah within themselves and upon the horizons, so that they can learn from them; and they have ears which they do not use to listen to the verses of Allah, so that they might reflect over them. Such people resemble cattle in their lack of sense – rather, they are even more astray. They are oblivious to faith in Allah and the Last day.

Al-A'raaf 7:179Listen in Qur'an →
180

وَلِلَّهِ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ فَٱدْعُوهُ بِهَا ۖ وَذَرُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُلْحِدُونَ فِىٓ أَسْمَٰٓئِهِۦ ۚ سَيُجْزَوْنَ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ

And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them. And leave [the company of] those who practice deviation concerning His names. They will be recompensed for what they have been doing.

To Allah, glory be to Him, belongs the most beautiful names which show His majesty and perfection. So use them to call on Allah when you ask for whatever you wish for. Also leave those who turn away from the truth of these names by assigning them to false dieties, or denying them, or distorting their meanings. Allah will repay those who do this with a painful punishment.

Al-A'raaf 7:180Listen in Qur'an →

Commentary: Al-Mukhtasar in Interpreting the Noble Qur'an by Tafsir Center for Quranic Studies. Qur'an text and translation via AlQuran Cloud.