English Translation and Commentary of the Holy Quran (2010)
by Maulana Muhammad Ali
Chapter 67: Al-Mulk — The Kingdom (Revealed at Makkah: 2 sections, 30 verses)
Section 2 (Verses 67:15–67:30): The Disbelievers’ Doom
Translation:
ہُوَ الَّذِیۡ جَعَلَ لَکُمُ الۡاَرۡضَ ذَلُوۡلًا فَامۡشُوۡا فِیۡ مَنَاکِبِہَا وَ کُلُوۡا مِنۡ رِّزۡقِہٖ ؕ وَ اِلَیۡہِ النُّشُوۡرُ ﴿۱۵﴾
67:15 He it is Who made the earth subservient to you, so go about in its spacious sides, and eat from His sustenance. And to Him is the rising (after death).
ءَاَمِنۡتُمۡ مَّنۡ فِی السَّمَآءِ اَنۡ یَّخۡسِفَ بِکُمُ الۡاَرۡضَ فَاِذَا ہِیَ تَمُوۡرُ ﴿ۙ۱۶﴾
67:16 Do you feel secure that He Who is in the heaven will not make the earth to swallow you up? Then lo! it will shake.1
اَمۡ اَمِنۡتُمۡ مَّنۡ فِی السَّمَآءِ اَنۡ یُّرۡسِلَ عَلَیۡکُمۡ حَاصِبًا ؕ فَسَتَعۡلَمُوۡنَ کَیۡفَ نَذِیۡرِ ﴿۱۷﴾
67:17 Or do you feel secure that He Who is in the heaven will not send on you a violent wind?2 Then shall you know how (truthful) was My warning!
وَ لَقَدۡ کَذَّبَ الَّذِیۡنَ مِنۡ قَبۡلِہِمۡ فَکَیۡفَ کَانَ نَکِیۡرِ ﴿۱۸﴾
67:18 And certainly those before them denied, then how (terrible) was My disapproval!
اَوَ لَمۡ یَرَوۡا اِلَی الطَّیۡرِ فَوۡقَہُمۡ صٰٓفّٰتٍ وَّ یَقۡبِضۡنَ ؔۘؕ مَا یُمۡسِکُہُنَّ اِلَّا الرَّحۡمٰنُ ؕ اِنَّہٗ بِکُلِّ شَیۡءٍۭ بَصِیۡرٌ ﴿۱۹﴾
67:19 Do they not see the birds above them spreading and contracting (their wings)? Nothing upholds them except the Beneficent.3 Surely He is Seer of all things.
اَمَّنۡ ہٰذَا الَّذِیۡ ہُوَ جُنۡدٌ لَّکُمۡ یَنۡصُرُکُمۡ مِّنۡ دُوۡنِ الرَّحۡمٰنِ ؕ اِنِ الۡکٰفِرُوۡنَ اِلَّا فِیۡ غُرُوۡرٍ ﴿ۚ۲۰﴾
67:20 Or who is it that will be an army for you to help you against the Beneficent? The disbelievers are only in delusion.
اَمَّنۡ ہٰذَا الَّذِیۡ یَرۡزُقُکُمۡ اِنۡ اَمۡسَکَ رِزۡقَہٗ ۚ بَلۡ لَّجُّوۡا فِیۡ عُتُوٍّ وَّ نُفُوۡرٍ ﴿۲۱﴾
67:21 Or who is it that will give you sustenance, if He should withhold His sustenance? But they persist in disdain and aversion.4
اَفَمَنۡ یَّمۡشِیۡ مُکِبًّا عَلٰی وَجۡہِہٖۤ اَہۡدٰۤی اَمَّنۡ یَّمۡشِیۡ سَوِیًّا عَلٰی صِرَاطٍ مُّسۡتَقِیۡمٍ ﴿۲۲﴾
67:22 Is, then, he who goes along falling upon his face better guided or he who walks upright on a straight path?
قُلۡ ہُوَ الَّذِیۡۤ اَنۡشَاَکُمۡ وَ جَعَلَ لَکُمُ السَّمۡعَ وَ الۡاَبۡصَارَ وَ الۡاَفۡـِٕدَۃَ ؕ قَلِیۡلًا مَّا تَشۡکُرُوۡنَ ﴿۲۳﴾
67:23 Say: He it is Who brought you into being and made for you ears and eyes and hearts. Little thanks you give!
قُلۡ ہُوَ الَّذِیۡ ذَرَاَکُمۡ فِی الۡاَرۡضِ وَ اِلَیۡہِ تُحۡشَرُوۡنَ ﴿۲۴﴾
67:24 Say: He it is Who multiplies you in the earth and to Him you will be gathered.
وَ یَقُوۡلُوۡنَ مَتٰی ہٰذَا الۡوَعۡدُ اِنۡ کُنۡتُمۡ صٰدِقِیۡنَ ﴿۲۵﴾
67:25 And they say: When will this promise come to pass, if you are truthful?
قُلۡ اِنَّمَا الۡعِلۡمُ عِنۡدَ اللّٰہِ ۪ وَ اِنَّمَاۤ اَنَا نَذِیۡرٌ مُّبِیۡنٌ ﴿۲۶﴾
67:26 Say: The knowledge is with Allah only, and I am only a plain warner.
فَلَمَّا رَاَوۡہُ زُلۡفَۃً سِیۡٓـَٔتۡ وُجُوۡہُ الَّذِیۡنَ کَفَرُوۡا وَ قِیۡلَ ہٰذَا الَّذِیۡ کُنۡتُمۡ بِہٖ تَدَّعُوۡنَ ﴿۲۷﴾
67:27 But when they see it near at hand, the faces of those who disbelieve will be grieved, and it will be said: This is what you used to call for.
قُلۡ اَرَءَیۡتُمۡ اِنۡ اَہۡلَکَنِیَ اللّٰہُ وَ مَنۡ مَّعِیَ اَوۡ رَحِمَنَا ۙ فَمَنۡ یُّجِیۡرُ الۡکٰفِرِیۡنَ مِنۡ عَذَابٍ اَلِیۡمٍ ﴿۲۸﴾
67:28 Say: Have you considered if Allah should destroy me and those with me — rather He will have mercy on us — yet who will protect the disbelievers from a painful punishment?5
قُلۡ ہُوَ الرَّحۡمٰنُ اٰمَنَّا بِہٖ وَ عَلَیۡہِ تَوَکَّلۡنَا ۚ فَسَتَعۡلَمُوۡنَ مَنۡ ہُوَ فِیۡ ضَلٰلٍ مُّبِیۡنٍ ﴿۲۹﴾
67:29 Say: He is the Beneficent — we believe in Him and on Him do we rely. So you will come to know who it is that is in clear error.
قُلۡ اَرَءَیۡتُمۡ اِنۡ اَصۡبَحَ مَآؤُکُمۡ غَوۡرًا فَمَنۡ یَّاۡتِیۡکُمۡ بِمَآءٍ مَّعِیۡنٍ ﴿٪۳۰﴾
67:30 Say: Have you considered if your water should subside, who is it then that will bring you flowing water?
Commentary:
- God is spoken of here as being in heaven; elsewhere He is spoken of as being in heaven and earth alike (43:84); and again He is spoken of as being “with you wherever you are” (57:4). The one thing certain is that God is not in one particular place to the exclusion of other places. Punishment sent by God is often described as coming from heaven, and thus He is spoken of here as being in heaven, or above all, so that none can avert the punishment sent by Him. ↩
- In the well-known Battle of the Allies in 4 A.H., when an army of twenty thousand was besieging Madinah and the Muslims were almost helpless against this mighty force, it was a violent wind which put all the armies to flight; see 33:9. ↩
- The withholding of the birds signifies the delay of the punishment, for birds are spoken of as following a victorious army; see 16:79 footnote. The question in the next verse as to who will help them corroborates this significance. ↩
- This is also a prophecy. Their sustenance was withheld in the great famine which prevailed at Makkah, prophecies regarding which are met with in the Quran in early as well as later revelation; see 44:10. ↩
- The meaning is that the guilty will by all means be called to account and suffer the evil consequences of what they have done, whether the Prophet and his companions live or die, but the uncertainty as to the reward of the righteous is at once removed by the words rather He will have mercy on us. The particle au (usually meaning ‘or’) can mean rather as well. ↩