English Translation and Commentary of the Holy Quran (2010)

by Maulana Muhammad Ali

Chapter 14: Ibrahim — Abraham (Revealed at Makkah: 7 sections, 52 verses)

Section 4 (Verses 14:22–14:27): Truth is Confirmed

Translation:

وَ قَالَ الشَّیۡطٰنُ لَمَّا قُضِیَ الۡاَمۡرُ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ وَعَدَکُمۡ وَعۡدَ الۡحَقِّ وَ وَعَدۡتُّکُمۡ فَاَخۡلَفۡتُکُمۡ ؕ وَ مَا کَانَ لِیَ عَلَیۡکُمۡ مِّنۡ سُلۡطٰنٍ اِلَّاۤ اَنۡ دَعَوۡتُکُمۡ فَاسۡتَجَبۡتُمۡ لِیۡ ۚ فَلَا تَلُوۡمُوۡنِیۡ وَ لُوۡمُوۡۤا اَنۡفُسَکُمۡ ؕ مَاۤ اَنَا بِمُصۡرِخِکُمۡ وَ مَاۤ اَنۡتُمۡ بِمُصۡرِخِیَّ ؕ اِنِّیۡ کَفَرۡتُ بِمَاۤ اَشۡرَکۡتُمُوۡنِ مِنۡ قَبۡلُ ؕ اِنَّ الظّٰلِمِیۡنَ لَہُمۡ عَذَابٌ اَلِیۡمٌ ﴿۲۲﴾

14:22 And the devil will say,1 when the matter is decided: Surely Allah promised you a promise of truth, and I promised you, then failed you.2 And I had no authority over you, except that I called you and you obeyed me; so do not blame me but blame yourselves. I cannot come to your help, nor can you come to my help. I deny your taking me as partner with Allah before.3 Surely for the unjust is a painful punishment.

وَ اُدۡخِلَ الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا وَ عَمِلُوا الصّٰلِحٰتِ جَنّٰتٍ تَجۡرِیۡ مِنۡ تَحۡتِہَا الۡاَنۡہٰرُ خٰلِدِیۡنَ فِیۡہَا بِاِذۡنِ رَبِّہِمۡ ؕ تَحِیَّتُہُمۡ فِیۡہَا سَلٰمٌ ﴿۲۳﴾

14:23 And those who believe and do good are made to enter Gardens, in which rivers flow, abiding in them by their Lord’s permission. Their greeting therein is, Peace!

اَلَمۡ تَرَ کَیۡفَ ضَرَبَ اللّٰہُ مَثَلًا کَلِمَۃً طَیِّبَۃً کَشَجَرَۃٍ طَیِّبَۃٍ اَصۡلُہَا ثَابِتٌ وَّ فَرۡعُہَا فِی السَّمَآءِ ﴿ۙ۲۴﴾

14:24 Do you not see how Allah sets forth a parable of a good word as a good tree, whose root is firm and whose branches are high,4

تُؤۡتِیۡۤ اُکُلَہَا کُلَّ حِیۡنٍۭ بِاِذۡنِ رَبِّہَا ؕ وَ یَضۡرِبُ اللّٰہُ الۡاَمۡثَالَ لِلنَّاسِ لَعَلَّہُمۡ یَتَذَکَّرُوۡنَ ﴿۲۵﴾

14:25 yielding its fruit in every season by the permission of its Lord? And Allah sets forth parables for people that they may be mindful.

وَ مَثَلُ کَلِمَۃٍ خَبِیۡثَۃٍ کَشَجَرَۃٍ خَبِیۡثَۃِۣ اجۡتُثَّتۡ مِنۡ فَوۡقِ الۡاَرۡضِ مَا لَہَا مِنۡ قَرَارٍ ﴿۲۶﴾

14:26 And the parable of an evil word is as an evil tree pulled up from the earth’s surface; it has no stability.5

یُثَبِّتُ اللّٰہُ الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا بِالۡقَوۡلِ الثَّابِتِ فِی الۡحَیٰوۃِ الدُّنۡیَا وَ فِی الۡاٰخِرَۃِ ۚ وَ یُضِلُّ اللّٰہُ الظّٰلِمِیۡنَ ۟ۙ وَ یَفۡعَلُ اللّٰہُ مَا یَشَآءُ ﴿٪۲۷﴾

14:27 Allah confirms those who believe with the sure word in this world’s life and in the Hereafter; and Allah leaves the wrongdoers in error; and Allah does what He pleases.6

Commentary:

  1. The devil mentioned in this verse is none other than the proud mis­leader of the preceding one. Compare also 37:30, where the very words we had no authority over you are put into the mouth of the leaders of evil from among man­kind. ↩
  2. Whenever a person is misled into an evil deed, he finds in the end that the promise of a good consequence for an evil deed was only a deception. Compare 4:120 and 17:64. ↩
  3. An alternative meaning: is I disbelieved because you took me as partner with Allah. In other words, the leaders disbelieve because their followers make them think by their flattery that they are worthy of being obeyed and followed. ↩
  4. The parable likening a good word to a good tree follows immediately a description of the final abode of those who do good — Gardens in which rivers flow. A good word is like a good tree which gives its fruit in every season, and therefore the fruits which a man will find in paradise are only the fruits of his own good deeds. The trees of paradise are in fact man’s own good deeds, which have grown into trees, bearing a fruit which is an embodiment of the spiritual fruits of the good deeds of this life. As good deeds are likened to fruit-bearing trees, faith is likened to water repeatedly in the Quran, being the source of physical life. It is for this reason that, just as the righteous are always spoken of as being those who believe and do good, paradise is always described as being a Garden in which rivers flow, the rivers corresponding to faith and the trees of the Garden corres­ponding to the good which a person does. ↩
  5. The evil deed is likened to a tree whose roots do not go down into the earth, and in whose case, therefore, the process of nutrition must stop. Therefore an evil deed does not prosper and cannot bear any fruit. ↩
  6. Allah does what He pleases, but it is the wrongdoers only, whom He leaves in error. The immediate cause of their going astray is their own iniquity. ↩

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