Surah 10. Yunus

Say: "Had God willed it [otherwise], I would not have conveyed this [divine writ] unto you, nor would He have brought it to your knowledge. Indeed, a whole lifetime have I dwelt among you ere this [revelation came unto me]: will you not, then, use your reason?"²⁴

  - Mohammad Asad

This argument - placed in the mouth of the Prophet - has a twofold implication. Ever since his early youth, Muhammad had been renowned for his truthfulness and integrity, so much so that his Meccan compatriots applied to him the epithet Al-Amin ("The Trustworthy"). In addition to this, he had never composed a single line of poetry (and this in contrast with a tendency which was widespread among the Arabs of his time), nor had he been distinguished by particular eloquence. "How, then," goes the argument, "can you reconcile your erstwhile conviction - based on the experience of a lifetime - that Muhammad was incapable of uttering a lie, with your present contention that he himself has composed the Qur'an and now falsely attributes it to divine revelation? And how could he who, up to the age of forty, has never displayed any poetic or philosophic gifts and is known to be entirely unlettered (ummi), have composed a work as perfect in its language, as penetrating in its psychological insight and as compelling in its inner logic as the Qur'an?"

Say: "If Allah wanted otherwise, I would have not recited this (Qur'an) to you, nor would have made you aware of it. Indeed, a whole lifetime I lived among you before its revelation. Why you do not use your common-sense?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Say, 'Had Allah willed, I would not have recited it to you, nor would He have made it known to you. I had lived my whole life among you before this 'revelation'. Do you not understand?'

  - Mustafa Khattab

Say: If Allah had so willed I should not have recited it to you nor would He have made it known to you. I dwelt among you a whole lifetime before it (came to me). Have ye then no sense?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Say: "If Allah had so willed I should not have rehearsed it to you nor would He have made it known to you. A whole lifetime before this have I tarried amongst you: will ye not then understand?" ^{1403 1404}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

It is in Allah's Plan that He should reveal Himself in certain ways to His creatures, and His Messengers are the instruments that carry out His will. It is in itself gracious Mercy that He should thus make His Will known. We should be grateful for His guidance instead of carping at it.

Muhammad Al-Musafa had lived his whole life of purity and virtue amongst his people, and they knew and Mustafa acknowledged it before he received his mission. They knew he loved his nation and was loyal to it. Why should they turn against him when he had to point out under inspiration all their sins and wrong-doing? It was for their own good. And he had to plead again and again with them: "Will you not understand, and see what a glorious privilege it is for you to receive true guidance from Allah?"

And who could be more wicked than they who attribute their own lying inventions to God or give the lie to His messages? Verily, those who are lost in sin will never attain to a happy state²⁵ -

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., in the life to come. In this context, the "attributing of one's own lying inventions to God" would seem to apply specifically to the wanton accusation that Muhammad himself composed the Qur'an and then attributed it to God; and the "giving the lie to God's messages" refers to the attitude of those who make such an accusation and, consequently, reject the Qur'an (Razi)

Who can be more unjust than the one who himself forges a lie, then ascribes it to Allah or falsifies His real Revelations? Indeed, such criminals can never prosper.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Who does more wrong than those who fabricate lies against Allah or deny His revelations? Indeed, the wicked will never succeed.

  - Mustafa Khattab

Who doeth greater wrong than he who inventeth a lie concerning Allah and denieth His revelations? Lo! the guilty never are successful.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Who doth more wrong than such as forge a lie against Allah or deny His Signs? But never will prosper those who sin.

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

and [neither will] they [who] worship, side by side with God, things or beings that can neither harm nor benefit them, saying [to themselves], "These are our intercessors with God!"²⁶ Say: "Do you [think that you could] inform God of anything in the heavens or on earth that He does not know?²⁷ Limitless is He in His glory, and sublimely exalted above anything to which men may ascribe share in His divinity!"

  - Mohammad Asad

Thus the discourse returns to the problem of "intercession" touched upon in verse {3} of this surah. Literally, the beginning of the sentence reads thus: "And they worship that which neither harms them nor benefits them" - an expression alluding to both concrete representations and conceptual images. It should be noted that the "they" elliptically referred to here are not identical with the people spoken of earlier as "those who do not believe that they are destined to meet Us" (in other words, those who deny the reality of resurrection and of the Day of Judgment): for the people of whom the above verse speaks obviously do believe - albeit in a confused manner - in life after death and man's responsibility before God, as is evident from the statement that they worship imaginary "intercessors with God".

Thus, belief in the efficacy of anyone's unqualified intercession with God, or mediation between man and Him, is here equated with a denial of God's omniscience, which takes all the circumstances of the sinner and his sinning a priori into consideration. (As regards God's symbolic grant of permission to His prophets to "intercede" for their followers on the Day of Judgment, see note [7] above.)

They worship other deities besides Allah, who can neither harm them nor benefit them, and they say: "These are our intercessors with Allah." O Muhammad, say to them: "Are you informing Allah of what He knows to exist neither in the heavens nor on the earth? Glory to Him! He is far above from having the partners they ascribe to Him!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

They worship besides Allah others who can neither harm nor benefit them, and say, 'These are our intercessors with Allah.' Ask 'them, O Prophet', 'Are you informing Allah of something He does not know in the heavens or the earth? Glorified and Exalted is He above what they associate 'with Him'!'

  - Mustafa Khattab

They worship beside Allah that which neither hurteth them nor profiteth them, and they say: These are our intercessors with Allah. Say: Would ye inform Allah of (something) that He knoweth not in the heavens or in the earth? Praised be He and high exalted above all that ye associate (with Him)!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

They serve besides Allah things that hurt them not nor profit them and they say: "These are our intercessors with Allah." Say: "Do ye indeed inform Allah of something He knows not in the heavens or on earth? Glory to Him! and far is He above the partners they ascribe (to Him)!" ¹⁴⁰⁵

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

When we shut our eyes to Allah's glory and goodness, and go after false gods, we give some plausible excuse to ourselves, such as that they will intercede for us. But how can stocks and stones intercede for us? And how can men intercede for us, when they themselves have need of Allah's Mercy? Even the best and noblest cannot intercede as of right, but only with His permission (x. 3). To pretend that there are other powers than Allah is to invent lies and to teach Allah. There is nothing in heaven or earth that He does not know, and there is no other like unto Him.

AND [know that] all mankind were once but one single community, and only later did they begin to hold divergent views.²⁸ And had it not been for a decree that had already gone forth from thy Sustainer, all their differences would indeed have been settled [from the outset].²⁹

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "and then they disagreed [among themselves]". For an explanation of the term "one single community" (ummah wahidah), see surah {2}, note [197]. In the present context, this expression alludes not merely to mankind's one-time homogeneity, but also - by implication - to the fact, repeatedly stressed in the Qur'an (e.g., in 7:172 ), that the ability to realize God's existence, oneness and omnipotence is innate in man, and that all deviation from this basic perception is a consequence of the confusion brought about by man's progressive estrangement from his inborn instincts.

Lit., "it would indeed have been decided between them regarding all that they were differing in": i.e., had it not been for God's decree - which is the meaning, in this context, of the term kalimah (lit., "word") - that men should differ in their intellectual approach to the problems touched upon by divine revelation, "they would not have contended with one another after having received all evidence of the truth", but would all have held from the very outset, and would continue to hold, the same views (cf. 2:253 and the corresponding note [245]). Since, however, such a uniformity would have precluded men's intellectual, moral and social development, God has left it to their reason, aided by prophetic guidance, gradually to find their way to the truth. (See also surah {2}, note [198].) The above parenthetic passage must be read in conjunction with 2:213 .

Mankind was once just one nation; later on they became divided through inventing different creeds. If your Rabb had not already given His word ( specified time for the life of mankind on Earth), the matters in which they differ would have certainly been decided.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Humanity was once nothing but a single community 'of believers', but then they differed.¹ Had it not been for a prior decree from your Lord,² their differences would have been settled 'at once'.

  - Mustafa Khattab

 i.e., they split into believers and disbelievers.

 That He will delay their judgment until the Hereafter.

Mankind were but one community; then they differed; and had it not been for a word that had already gone forth from thy Lord, it had been judged between them in respect of that wherein they differ.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Mankind was but one nation but differed (later). Had it not been for a word that went forth before from thy Lord their differences would have been settled between them. ^{1406 1407}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Cf. ii 213. All mankind was created one, and Allah's Message to mankind is in essence one, the Message of Unity and Truth. But as selfishness and egotism got hold of man, certain differences sprang up between individuals, races, and nations, and in His infinite Mercy He sent them messengers and messages to suit their varying mentality, to test them by His gifts, and stir them up to emulation in virtue and piety (v. 48).

Cf. vi. 115. ix 40, and iv. 171. "Word" is the Decree of Allah, the expression of His Universal Will or Wisdom in a particular case. When men began to diverge from one another (see last note), Allah made their very differences subserve the higher ends by increasing their emulation in virtue and piety, and thus pointing back to the ultimate Unity and Reality.

NOW THEY [who deny the truth] are wont to ask, "Why has no miraculous sign ever been bestowed upon him from on high by his Sustainer?"³⁰ Say, then: "God's alone is the knowledge of that which is beyond the reach of human perception.³¹ Wait, then, [until His will becomes manifest:] verily, I shall wait with you!"

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., on Muhammad, in order to "prove" that he is truly a bearer of God's message (a sceptical objection which resumes the theme enunciated in verses {1-2} and {15-17} above); see also 6:37 and {109} and the corresponding notes, especially note [94]. The pronoun "they" refers to both categories of deniers of the truth spoken of in the preceding passages: the atheists or agnostics "who do not believe that they are destined to meet God", as well as those who, while believing in God, "ascribe a share in His divinity" to all manner of imaginary intercessors or mediators (see verse {18} above).

This answer relates not merely to the question as to why God has not bestowed on Muhammad a "miraculous sign" of his prophethood, but also to the "why" of his having been chosen for his prophetic mission. See in this connection 2:105 ("God singles out for His grace whom He wills") and {3:73-74} ("God is infinite, all-knowing, singling out for His grace whom He wills").

In regards to their saying: "Why has not a sign been sent down to him (Muhammad) from his Rabb?" Tell them: " Allah Alone has the knowledge of the unseen. Wait if you will: I too shall wait with you."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

They ask, 'Why has no 'other' sign been sent down to him from his Lord?' Say, 'O Prophet,' ''The knowledge of' the unseen is with Allah alone. So wait! I too am waiting with you.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And they will say: If only a portent were sent down upon him from his Lord! Then say (O Muhammad): The Unseen belongeth to Allah. So wait! Lo, I am waiting with you.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

They say: "Why is not a Sign sent down to him from his Lord?" Say: "The Unseen is only for Allah (to know). Then wait ye: I too will wait with you." ¹⁴⁰⁸

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Their demand for a Sign is disingenuous. All nature and revelation furnishes them with incontestable Signs. What they want is the Book of the Unseen opened out to them like the physical leaves of a book. But they forget that a physical Book is on a wholly different plane from Allah's Mysteries, and that their physical natures cannot apprehend the mysteries. They must wait. Truth will also wait. But the waiting in the two cases is in quite different senses. Cf. vi. 158 and ix. 52.

And [thus it is:] whenever We let [such] people³² taste [some of Our] grace after hardship has visited them - lo! they forthwith turn to devising false arguments against Our messages.³³ Say: "God is swifter [than you] in His deep devising!" Behold, Our [heavenly] messengers are recording all that you may devise!

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., the two categories of people referred to in verses {7}, {11}, {12}, {15}, {18} and {20}.

Lit., "they have forthwith a scheme against Our messages". (The particle idha preceding this clause is meant to bring out the element of immediacy, and is best rendered as "lo! they forthwith...", etc.) Since God's messages are purely conceptual, the "scheming against them" obviously connotes the devising of fallacious arguments meant to cast doubt on the divine origin of these messages or to "disprove" the statements made in them. The above discourse on the psychology of agnosticism and half-belief is continued in the parable of the seafarers set forth in the next two verses.

When We show mercy to mankind after some calamity had afflicted them, they begin to plot against Our revelations! Tell them: "Allah is more swift in plotting than you; indeed Our angels are recording all the plots you make."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

When We give people a taste of mercy after being afflicted with a hardship, they swiftly devise plots against Our revelations! Say, 'O Prophet,' 'Allah is swifter in devising 'punishment'. Surely Our angels record whatever you devise.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And when We cause mankind to taste of mercy after some adversity which had afflicted them, behold! they have some plot against Our revelations. Say: Allah is more swift in plotting. Lo! Our messengers write down that which ye plot.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

When We make mankind taste of some mercy after adversity hath touched them Behold! they take to plotting against our Signs! Say: "Swifter to plan is Allah!" Verily Our messengers record all the plots that ye make! ¹⁴⁰⁹

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Man turns his thoughts in adversity to Allah. But as soon as the trouble is past, he not only forgets Him but actually strives against His cause. But such people are poor ignorant creatures, not realising that the Universal Plan of Allah is swifter to stop their petty plans, and that though they fail, the record of them remains eternally against them.

He it is who enables you to travel on land and sea. And [behold what happens] when you go to sea in ships:³⁴ [they go to sea in ships,] and they sail on in them in a favourable wind, and they rejoice thereat - until there comes upon them a tempest, and waves surge towards them from all sides, so that they believe themselves to be encompassed [by death; and then] they call unto God, [at that moment] sincere in their faith in Him alone, "If Thou wilt but save us from this, we shall most certainly be among the grateful!"

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "until, when you are in the ships...", etc. As has been pointed out by Zamakhshari, the particle "until" (hatta) which precedes this clause refers to the sudden rise of the storm described in the sequence, and not to the "going to sea in ships". It is to be noted that at this point the discourse changes abruptly from the direct address "you" to the third person plural ("they"): a construction which is evidently meant to bring out the allegorical character of the subsequent narrative and to turn it into a lesson of general validity.

He is the One Who enables you to travel through the land and by the sea; until when you are on board a ship, as the ship sails with a favorable wind and they feel happy about it; but when there comes a stormy wind and the waves reach them from all sides and they think they are being overwhelmed: then they pray to Allah with their sincere devotion, saying, "If You deliver us from this, we shall become your true thankful devotees!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He is the One Who enables you to travel through land and sea. And it so happens that you are on ships, sailing with a favourable wind, to the passengers' delight. Suddenly, the ships are overcome by a gale wind and those on board are overwhelmed by waves from every side, and they assume they are doomed. They cry out to Allah 'alone' in sincere devotion, 'If You save us from this, we will certainly be grateful.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

He it is Who maketh you to go on the land and the sea till, when ye are in the ships and they sail with them with a fair breeze and they are glad therein, a storm wind reacheth them and the wave cometh unto them from every side and they deem that they are overwhelmed therein; (then) they cry unto Allah, making their faith pure for Him only; If Thou deliver us from this, we truly will be of the thankful.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

He it is Who enableth you to traverse through land and sea; so that ye even board ships they sail with them with a favorable wind and they rejoice thereat; then comes a stormy wind and the waves come to them from all sides and they think they are being overwhelmed: they cry unto Allah sincerely offering (their) duty unto Him saying "If Thou dost deliver us from this we shall truly show our gratitude!" ¹⁴¹⁰

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

All the great inventions and discoveries on which man prides himself are the fruit of that genius and talent which Allah has freely given of His grace. But the spirit of man remains petty, as is illustrated by the parable from the sea. How the heart of man rejoices when the ship goes smoothly with favourable winds! How in adversity it turns, in terror and helplessness, to Allah, and makes vows for deliverance! and how those vows are disregarded as soon as the danger is past! Cf. vi. 63.

Yet as soon as He has saved them from this [danger], lo! they behave outrageously on earth, offending against all right!³⁵ O men! All your outrageous deeds are bound to fall back upon your own selves!³⁶ [You care only for] the enjoyment of life in this world: [but remember that] in the end unto Us you must return, whereupon We shall make you truly understand all that you were doing [in life].

  - Mohammad Asad

See verse {12} (of which the above passage is a parabolic illustration) and the corresponding notes.

Lit., "your outrageousness (baghy) is only against your own selves". Cf. the oft-recurring Qur'anic expression, "they have sinned against themselves" (zalamu anfusahum, lit., "they have wronged themselves"), indicating the inevitability with which every evil deed damages its perpetrator spiritually.

Yet, when He does deliver them, behold! The same people become unjustly rebellious in the land. O mankind! Your rebellion is against your own souls - (you may enjoy) the transitory pleasure of this world - in the end you have to return to Us, then We shall inform you of what you have done.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

But as soon as He rescues them, they transgress in the land unjustly. O humanity! Your transgression is only against your own souls. 'There is only' brief enjoyment in this worldly life, then to Us is your return, and then We will inform you of what you used to do.

  - Mustafa Khattab

Yet when He hath delivered them, behold! they rebel in the earth wrongfully. O mankind! Your rebellion is only against yourselves. (Ye have) enjoyment of the life of the world; then unto Us is your return and We shall proclaim unto you what ye used to do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

But when He delivereth them Behold! they transgress insolently through the earth in defiance of right! O mankind! your insolence is against your own souls an enjoyment of the life of the Present: in the end to Us is your return and We shall show you the truth of all that ye did. ¹⁴¹¹

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

In our insolence and pride we do not see how small and ephemeral is that part of us which is mortal. We shall see it at last when we appear before our Judge. In the meantime our ridiculous pretensions only hurt ourselves.

The parable of the life of this world is but that of rain which We send down from the sky, and which is absorbed by the plants of the earth³⁷ whereof men and animals draw nourishment, until - when the earth has assumed its artful adornment and has been embellished, and they who dwell on it believe that they have gained mastery over it³⁸ - there comes down upon it Our judgment, by night or by day, and We cause it to become [like] a field mown down, as if there had been no yesterday.³⁹ Thus clearly do We spell out these messages unto people who think!

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "with which the plants of the earth mingle".

I.e., they come to believe that they have gained "mastery over nature", with no conceivable limits to what they may yet achieve. It is to be borne in mind that the term zukhruf bears almost invariably a connotation of artificiality - a connotation which in this case is communicated to the subsequent verb izzayyanat. Thus, the whole of the above parabolic sentence may be understood as alluding to the artificial, illusory "adornment" brought about by man's technological efforts, not in collaboration with nature but, rather, in hostile "confrontation" with it.

Lit., "as if it had not been in existence yesterday": a phrase used in classical Arabic to describe something that has entirely disappeared or perished (Taj al-'Arus).

The example of this worldly life (which you love so much that you have even become neglectful of Our signs) is like the water which We send down from the sky; it mingles with the soil and produces vegetation which becomes the food for men and animals. Then, at the very time when the crops are ripened and the land looks attractive, the people to whom it belongs think that they are able to cultivate it, and there comes Our scourge upon it, by night or in broad day, and We mow it down thoroughly as if nothing existed there yesterday! Thus do We spell out Our signs for those who are thoughtful.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

The life of this world is just like rain We send down from the sky, producing a mixture of plants which humans and animals consume. Then just as the earth looks its best, perfectly beautified, and its people think they have full control over it, there comes to it Our command by night or by day, so We mow it down as if it never flourished yesterday! This is how We make the signs clear for people who reflect.

  - Mustafa Khattab

The similitude of the life of the world is only as water which We send down from the sky, then the earth's growth of that which men and cattle eat mingleth with it till, when the earth hath taken on her ornaments and is embellished, and her people deem that they are masters of her, Our commandment cometh by night or by day and we make it as reaped corn as if it had not flourished yesterday. Thus do We expound the revelations for people who reflect.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

The likeness of the life of the present is as the rain which We send down from the skies: by its mingling arises the produce of the earth which provides food for men and animals: (it grows) till the earth is clad with its golden ornaments and is decked out (in beauty): the people to whom it belongs think they have all powers of disposal over it: there reaches it Our command by night or by day and We make it like a harvest clean-mown as if it had not flourished only the day before! Thus do We explain the Signs in detail for those who reflect. ¹⁴¹²

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Another beautiful Parable, explaining the nature of our present life. The rain comes down in drops and mingles with the earth. Through it, by Allah's matchless artistry, the womb of the earth is made fruitful. All kinds of good, useful, and beautiful grains, vegetables, and fruits are produced for men and animals. The earth is covered in its bravery of green and gold and all kinds of colours. Perhaps the "owner" takes all the credit to himself, and thinks that this will last eternally. A hailstorm or a blast, a frost or a volcanic eruption, comes and destroys it, or it may be even normally, that the time of harvest comes, and the fields and orchards are stripped bare by some blight or disease. Where is the beauty and bravery of yesterday? All that is left is dust and ashes! What more can we get from this physical material life?

AND [know that] God invites [man] unto the abode of peace, and guides him that wills [to be guided] onto a straight way.⁴⁰

  - Mohammad Asad

Or: "guides whom He wills onto a straight way". As regards the expression salam, rendered here and in many other places as "peace" and elsewhere as "salvation", see surah {5}, note [29]. It is obvious that the term dar as-salam ("abode of peace") denotes not only the condition of ultimate happiness in the hereafter - alluded to in the allegory of paradise - but also the spiritual condition of a true believer in this world: namely, a state of inner security, of peace with God, with one's natural environment, and within oneself.

Allah invites you to the Home of Peace and guides whom He pleases to the Right Way.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And Allah invites 'all' to the Home of Peace and guides whoever He wills to the Straight Path.

  - Mustafa Khattab

And Allah summoneth to the abode of peace, and leadeth whom He will to a straight path.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

But Allah doth call to the Home of Peace: He doth guide whom He pleaseth to a way that is straight. ¹⁴¹³

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

In contrast with the ephemeral and uncertain pleasures of this material life, there is a higher life to which Allah is always calling. It is called the Home of Peace. For there is no fear, nor disappointment nor sorrow there. And all are called, and those will be chosen who have sought, not material advantages, but the Good Pleasure of Allah. Salam, Peace, is from the same root as Islam, the Religion of Unity and Harmony.

For those who persevere in doing good there is the ultimate good in store, and more [than that].⁴¹ No darkness and no ignominy will overshadow their faces [on Resurrection Day]: it is they who are destined for paradise, therein to abide.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., more than their actual merits may warrant (cf. 6:160 - "Whoever shall come [before God] with a good deed will gain ten times the like thereof"). See also note [79] on 27:89 .

Those who do good deeds shall have a good reward and even more than they deserve! Neither blackness nor disgrace shall cover their faces. They will be the inhabitants of paradise; they will live therein forever.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Those who do good will have the finest reward¹ and 'even' more.² Neither gloom nor disgrace will cover their faces. It is they who will be the residents of Paradise. They will be there forever.

  - Mustafa Khattab

 Paradise.

 Seeing Almighty Allah in the Hereafter.

For those who do good is the best (reward) and more (thereto). Neither dust nor ignominy cometh near their faces. Such are rightful owners of the Garden; they will abide therein.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

To those who do right is a goodly (reward) yea more (than in measure)! No darkness nor shame shall cover their faces! They are Companions of the Garden; they will abide therein (for aye)! ^{1414 1415}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The reward of the righteous will be far more than in proportion to their merits. For they will have the supreme bliss of being near to Allah, and "seeing His face".

The face is the symbol of the Personality, the inner and real Self, which is the antithesis of the outer and ephemeral Self. It will be illuminated with Allah's Light, behind which is no shadow or darkness. All its old shortcomings will be blotted out, with their sense of shame, for there will be Perfection, as in Allah's sight.

But as for those who have done evil deeds - the recompense of an evil deed shall be the like thereof;⁴² and - since they will have none to defend them against God - ignominy will overshadow them as though their faces were veiled by the night's own darkness:⁴³ it is they who are destined for the fire, therein to abide.

  - Mohammad Asad

In contrast with the multiple "rewards" for good deeds, the recompense of evil will be only commensurate with the deed itself. (See also note [46] on the last sentence of 41:50 .)

Lit., "by a piece of the night, densely dark".

As for those who have done evil deeds, they will be rewarded with like evil: disgrace will cover them - they shall have none to protect them from Allah - as if their faces have been covered with patches of the dense darkness of night. They will become the inmates of the Fire; they will live therein forever.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

As for those who commit evil, the reward of an evil deed is its equivalent. Humiliation will cover them- with no one to protect them from Allah- as if their faces were covered with patches of the night's deep darkness. It is they who will be the residents of the Fire. They will be there forever.

  - Mustafa Khattab

And those who earn ill deeds, (for them) requital of each ill deed by the like thereof; and ignominy overtaketh them. They have no protector from Allah. As if their faces had been covered with a cloak of darkest night. Such are rightful owners of the Fire; they will abide therein.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

But those who have earned evil will have a reward of like evil: ignominy will cover their (faces): no defender will they have from (the wrath of) Allah: their faces will be covered as it were with pieces from the depth of the darkness of Night: they are Companions of the Fire: they will abide therein (for aye)! ^{1416 1417}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Note that the evil reward is for those who have "earned" evil, i.e., brought it on themselves by the deliberate choice of evil. Further, in the justice of Allah, they will be requited with evil similar to, and not greater in quantity or intensity, than the evil they had done,-unlike the good, who, in Allah's generosity, get a reward far greater than anything they have earned or could possibly earn.

Night is the negation of Light and metaphorically of joy and felicity. The intensive is indicated by "the depth of the darkness of Night."

For, one Day We shall gather them all together, and then We shall say unto those who [in their lifetime] ascribed divinity to aught but God, "Stand where you are, you and those [beings and powers] to whom you were wont to ascribe a share in God's divinity!"⁴⁴ - for by then We shall have [visibly] separated them from one another.⁴⁵ And the beings to whom they had ascribed a share in God's divinity will say [to those who had worshipped them], "It was not us that you were wont to worship;⁴⁶

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "you and those [God -]partners of yours"; cf. surah {6}, note [15]. The expression makanakum (lit., "your place", i.e., "keep to your place") bears a connotation of contempt and an implied threat.

I.e., separated those who ascribed divinity to beings other than God from the objects of their one-time adoration (Tabari, Baghawi): a metonymical phrase denoting a realization on the part of the former that there has never been any existential link between them and those false objects of worship (cf. 6:24 , 10:30 , 11:21 , 16:87 and 28:75 - "and all their false imagery has [or "will have"] forsaken them"). See also the next two notes.

I.e., "it was only your own fancies and desires that you worshipped, clothing them in the garb of extraneous beings": in other words, the worship of idols, forces of nature, saints, prophets, angels, etc., is shown here to be nothing but a projection of the worshipper's own subconscious desires. (Cf. also 34:41 and the corresponding note [52].)

On the Day when We shall gather them all together, We shall say to those who committed shirk (associated other deities with Us): "Stay where you are, you and those whom you set as partners with Us." We will separate them from one another, then the shoraka' (partners they had set up with Us) will say: "It was not us that you worshipped!

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

'Consider' the Day We will gather them all together then say to those who associated others 'with Allah in worship', 'Stay in your places- you and your associate-gods.' We will separate them from each other, and their associate-gods will say, 'It was not us that you worshipped!

  - Mustafa Khattab

On the day when We gather them all together, then We say unto those who ascribed partners (unto Us): Stand back, ye and your (pretended) partners (of Allah)! And We separate them, the one from the other, and their (pretended) partners say: It was not us ye worshipped.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

One Day shall We gather them all together. Then shall We say to those who joined gods (with Us): "To your place! ye and those ye joined as `partners.'" We shall separate them and their "partners" shall say: "It was not us that ye worshipped!" ¹⁴¹⁸

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The false gods are not real: they are only the figments of the imaginations of those who indulged in the false worship. But the prophets or great or good men whose names were vainly taken in competition with the name of Allah, and the personified Ideas or Idols treated in the same way would themselves protest against their names being used in that way, and show that the worship was paid not to them, but to the ignorance or superstition or selfish lusts of the false worshippers.

and none can bear witness between us and you as God does: we were, for certain, unaware of your worshipping [us]."⁴⁷

  - Mohammad Asad

Thus the Qur'an makes it clear that the saints and prophets who, after their death, have been unwarrantably deified by their followers shall not be held accountable for the blasphemous worship accorded to them (cf. {5:116-117}); furthermore, even the inanimate objects of false worship will symbolically deny any connection between themselves and their worshippers.

Allah is an all-sufficient witness between you and us, (even if you worshipped us) we were quite unaware of your worship."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Allah is sufficient as a Witness between each of us that we were totally unaware of your worship.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

Allah sufficeth as a witness between us and you, that we were unaware of your worship.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

"Enough is Allah for a witness between us and you: we certainly knew nothing of your worship of us! ¹⁴¹⁹

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

See last note. They did not even know that they were being falsely worshipped in that way.

There and then will every human being clearly apprehend what he has done in the past, and all will be brought back unto God,⁴⁸ their true Lord Supreme, and all their false imagery will have forsaken them.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., will be brought back to the realization of God's oneness, uniqueness and almightiness - that instinctive cognition which has been implanted in human nature as such (see 7:172 ).

Thereupon, every soul shall know what it had sent forth, as they will be brought in the Court of Allah, their true Patron, and their invented falsehoods will leave them in the lurch.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then and there every soul will face 'the consequences of' what it had done. They all will be returned to Allah- their True Master. And whatever 'gods' they fabricated will fail them.

  - Mustafa Khattab

There doth every soul experience that which it did aforetime, and they are returned unto Allah, their rightful Lord, and that which they used to invent hath failed them.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

There will every soul prove (the fruits of) the deeds it sent before: they will be brought back to Allah their rightful Lord and their invented falsehoods will leave them in the lurch. ^{1420 1421}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Cf. ii. 95, where the verb used is qaddama. The verb aslafa, used here, is nearly synonymous.

Instead of their false ideas helping them, they will desert them and leave them in the lurch. Cf. vi. 24.

SAY: "Who is it that provides you with sustenance out of heaven and earth,⁴⁹ or who is it that has full power over [your] hearing and sight? And who is it that brings forth the living out of that which is dead, and brings forth the dead out of that which is alive? And who is it that governs all that exists?" And they will [surely] answer: "[It is] God."⁵⁰ Say, then: "Will you not, then, become [fully] conscious of Him -

  - Mohammad Asad

The term rizq ("provision of sustenance") is used here in both the physical and spiritual connotations of this word, which explains the reference to "heaven and earth" and, subsequently, "[man's] hearing and sight".

The people referred to here are those who believe, firstly, that there are beings endowed with certain divine or semi-divine qualities, thus having, as it were, a "share" in God's divinity; and, secondly, that by worshipping such beings men can come closer to God. This idea obviously presupposes belief in God's existence, as is brought out in the "answer" of the people thus addressed (cf. 7:172 and the corresponding note [139]); but inasmuch as it offends against the concept of God's oneness and uniqueness, it deprives those people's belief in God of its true meaning and spiritual value.

Ask them: "Who provides your sustenance from the heaven and from the earth? Who has control over hearing and sight? Who brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living? Who regulates the universe?" They will soon reply: "Allah." Say: "Why do you not then fear Him for you going against the truth?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Ask 'them, O Prophet', 'Who provides for you from heaven and earth? Who owns 'your' hearing and sight? Who brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living? And who conducts every affair?' They will 'surely' say, 'Allah.' Say, 'Will you not then fear 'Him'?

  - Mustafa Khattab

Say (unto them, O Muhammad): Who provideth for you from the sky and the earth, or Who owneth hearing and sight; and Who bringeth forth the living from the dead and bringeth forth the dead from the living; and Who directeth the course? They will say: Allah. Then say: Will ye not then keep your duty (unto Him)?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Say: "Who is it that sustains you (in life) from the sky and from the earth? Or who is it that has power over hearing and sight? And who is it that brings out the living from the dead and the dead from the living? And who is it that rules and regulates all affairs?" They will soon say "Allah." Say "Will ye not then show piety (to Him)?" ^{1422 1423 1424 1425}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Sustenance may be understood in the sense of all the provision necessary for maintaining physical life as well as mental and spiritual development and well-being. Examples of the former are light and rain from heaven and the produce of the earth and facilities of movement on land and sea and in air. Examples of the latter are the moral and spiritual influences that come from our fellow-men, and from the great Teachers and Prophets.

Just two of our ordinary faculties, hearing and sight, are mentioned, as examples of the rest. All the gifts of Allah, physical and spiritual, are enjoyed and incorporated by us by means of the faculties and capacities with which He has endowed us.

Cf. iii. 27 and n. 371; vi. 95 and n. 920; and xxx. 19.

This is the general summing-up of the argument. The government of the whole Creation and its maintenance and sustenance is in the hands of Allah. How futile then would it be to neglect His true worship and go after false gods?

seeing that He is God, your Sustainer, the Ultimate Truth?⁵¹ For, after the truth [has been forsaken], what is there [left] but error? How, then, can you lose sight of the truth?"⁵²

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "this [or "such"], then, being God, your Sustainer, the Ultimate Truth" - i.e., "seeing that, on your own admission, He is the One who creates and governs all things and is the Ultimate Reality behind all that exists" (see surah {20}, note [99]): which implies a categorical denial of the possibility that any other being could have a share, however small, in His divinity.

Lit., "How, then, are you turned away?" - i.e., from the truth.

The same Allah is your real Rabb: What is left after the truth except falsehood? How then can you turn away?

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

That is Allah- your True Lord. So what is beyond the truth except falsehood? How can you then be turned away?'

  - Mustafa Khattab

Such then is Allah, your rightful Lord. After the Truth what is there saving error? How then are ye turned away!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Such is Allah your real Cherisher and Sustainer: apart from Truth what (remains) but error? How then are ye turned away? ¹⁴²⁶

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The wonderful handiwork and wisdom of Allah having been referred to, as the real Truth, as against the false worship and false gods that men set up, it follows that to disregard the Truth must lead us into woeful wrong, not only in our beliefs but in our conduct. We shall err and stray and be lost. How then can we turn away from the Truth?

Thus is thy Sustainer's word proved true with regard to such as are bent on sinful doings: they will not believe.⁵³

  - Mohammad Asad

See surah {2}, note [7], as well as 8:55 and the corresponding note [58]. In this particular context, "the Sustainer's word" seems to be synonymous with "the way of God" (sunnat Allah) concerning deliberate sinners and deniers of the truth (Manar XI, 359). The particle anna in annahum (lit., "that they") is, thus, indicative of the purport of the divine "word" referred to, and is best expressed by a colon.

Thus has the Word of your Rabb proved true in regards to the transgressors that they do not believe.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And so your Lord's decree has been proven true against the rebellious- that they will never believe.

  - Mustafa Khattab

Thus is the Word of thy Lord justified concerning those who do wrong: that they believe not.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Thus is the Word of thy Lord proved true against those who rebel: verily they will not believe. ¹⁴²⁷

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Disobedience to Allah brings its own terrible consequences on ourselves. The Law, the Word, the Decree, of Allah must be fulfilled. If we go to false gods, our Faith will be dimmed, and then extinguished. Our spiritual faculties will be dead.

Say: "Can any of those beings to whom you ascribe a share in God's divinity create [life] in the first instance, and then bring it forth anew?"⁵⁴ Say: "It is God [alone] who creates [all life] in the first instance, and then brings it forth anew. How perverted, then, are your minds!"⁵⁵

  - Mohammad Asad

This rhetorical question is connected with the false belief that those idolatrously worshipped beings are no more than "intercessors" between their followers and God (see verse {18} above): and so, even their misguided votaries cannot possibly attribute to them the power to create and to resurrect. See also note [8] on verse {4} of this surah. In its wider sense, this question (and the subsequent answer) relates to the God-willed, cyclic process of birth, death and regeneration evident in all organic nature.

See surah {5}, note [90].

Ask them: "Can any of your shoraka' (the deities you worship besides Allah) create anything and then repeat its process?" If they do not answer, then tell them: "Well, Allah creates and then repeats the process. Then how is that you are so misled?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Ask 'them, O Prophet', 'Can any of your associate-gods originate creation and then resurrect it?' Say, ''Only' Allah originates creation and then resurrects it. How can you then be deluded 'from the truth'?'

  - Mustafa Khattab

Say : Is there of your partners (whom ye ascribe unto Allah) one that produceth Creation and then reproduceth it? Say: Allah produceth creation, then reproduceth it. How then, are ye misled!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Say: "Of your `partners' can any originate creation and repeat it?" Say: "It is Allah Who originates Creation and repeats it: then how are ye deluded away (from the truth)?" ¹⁴²⁸

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The argument is now turned in another direction. The false gods can neither create out of nothing nor sustain the creative energy which maintains the world. Nor can they give any guidance which can be of use for the future destiny of mankind: on the contrary they themselves (assuming they were men who were deified) stand in need of such guidance. Why then follow vain fancies, instead of going to the source of all knowledge, truth, and guidance, and worship, serve, and obey Allah, the One True God?

Say: "Does any of those beings to whom you ascribe a share in God's divinity guide unto the truth?" Say: "It is God [alone] who guides unto the truth. Which, then, is more worthy to be followed - He who guides unto the truth, or he who cannot find the right way unless he is guided?⁵⁶ What, then, is amiss with you and your judgment?"⁵⁷

  - Mohammad Asad

Since the concept of "finding the right way" cannot apply to lifeless idols and idolatrous images, the above passage obviously relates to animate beings - whether dead or alive - to whom "a share in God's divinity" is falsely attributed: that is, to saintly personalities, prophets or angels whom popular fancy blasphemously endows with some or all of God's qualities, sometimes even to the extent that they are regarded as a manifestation or incarnation of God on earth. As for the act of God's guidance, it is displayed, primarily, in the power of conscious reasoning as well as of instinctive insight with which He has graced man, thus enabling him to follow the divine laws of right conduct (Zamakhshari).

Lit., "[and] how do you judge?"

Again ask them: "Is there any of your shoraka' who can guide you to the truth?" If they do not answer, then tell them: "Well, Allah can guides you to the truth. Then who is more worthy to be followed: He that can guide to the truth, or he that cannot and is himself in need of guidance? What is the matter with you? What kind of judgement do you make?"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Ask 'them, O Prophet', 'Can any of your associate-gods guide to the truth?' Say, ''Only' Allah guides to the truth.' Who then is more worthy to be followed: the One Who guides to the truth or those who cannot find the way unless guided? What is the matter with you? How do you judge?

  - Mustafa Khattab

Say: Is there of your partners (whom ye ascribe unto Allah) one that leadeth to the Truth? Say: Allah leadeth to the Truth. Is He Who leadeth to the Truth more deserving that He should be followed, or he who findeth not the way unless he (himself) be guided. What aileth you? How judge ye?

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Say: "Of your `partners' is there any that can give any guidance towards Truth?" Say: "It is Allah Who gives guidance towards Truth. Is then He Who gives guidance to Truth more worthy to be followed or he who finds not guidance (himself) unless he is guided? What then is the matter with you? How judge ye?"

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali