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Tafsir of Surah Qaf - Verse 27

Surah 50
Verse 27
45 verses
27

۞ قَالَ قَرِینُهُۥ رَبَّنَا مَاۤ أَطۡغَیۡتُهُۥ وَلَـٰكِن كَانَ فِی ضَلَـٰلِۭ بَعِیدࣲ

His [devil] companion will say, "Our Lord, I did not make him transgress, but he [himself] was in extreme error."

Scholarly Interpretations(3)

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You are reading a tafsir for the group of verses 50:23 to 50:29

The Angel will bear Witness; Allah commands that the Disbeliever be thrown into the Fire

Allah the Exalted states that the scribe angel, who is entrusted with recording the deeds of mankind, will testify against him or her about the deeds he or she did on the Day of Resurrection. He will say,

هَـذَا مَا لَدَىَّ عَتِيدٌ

("Here is (his record) ready with me!"), here it is prepared and completed without addition or deletion. This is when Allah the Exalted will judge the creation with fairness, saying,

أَلْقِيَا فِى جَهَنَّمَ كُلَّ كَفَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ

(Both of you throw into Hell every stubborn disbeliever.) It appears that Allah will say these words to the Sa'iq and Shahid angels; the Sa'iq drove him to the grounds where Reckoning is held and the Shahid testified. Allah the Exalted will order them to throw him in the fire of Jahannam, and worse it is as a destination,

أَلْقِيَا فِى جَهَنَّمَ كُلَّ كَفَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ

(Both of you throw into Hell every stubborn disbeliever.) meaning, whose disbelief and denial of truth was horrendous, who used to stubbornly reject the truth, knowingly contradicting it with falsehood,

مَّنَّـعٍ لِّلْخَيْرِ

(Hinderer of good,) meaning for he did not fulfill the duties he was ordered, nor was he dutiful, keeping ties to kith and kin nor giving charity,

مُعْتَدٍ

(transgressor,) meaning, he transgresses the limits in spending. Qatadah commented, "He is a transgressor in his speech, behavior and affairs." Allah said,

مُرِيبٍ

(doubter,) meaning, he doubts and raises doubts in those who scrutinize his behavior,

الَّذِى جَعَلَ مَعَ اللَّهِ إِلَـهاً ءَاخَرَ

(who set up another god with Allah.) meaning, he associated others with Allah and worshipped others besides Him,

فَأَلْقِيَـهُ فِى الْعَذَابِ الشَّدِيدِ

(Then both of you cast him in the severe torment.) Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri said that the Prophet said,

«يَخْرُجُ عُنُقٌ مِنَ النَّارِ يَتَكَلَّمُ يَقُولُ: وُكِّلْتُ الْيَوْمَ بِثَلَاثَةٍ: بِكُلِّ جَبَّارٍ عَنِيدٍ، وَمَنْ جَعَلَ مَعَ اللهِ إِلهًا آخَرَ، وَمَنْ قَتَلَ نَفْسًا بِغَيْرِ نَفْسٍ، فَتَنْطَوِي عَلَيْهِمْ فَتَقْذِفُهُمْ فِي غَمَرَاتِ جَهَنَّم»

(A neck from the Fire will appear and will speak saying, "Today, I have been entrusted with three: Every obstinate tyrant, everyone who ascribed another god with Allah, and he who took a life without right." The neck will then close in on them and throw them in the midst of Jahannam.)"

Man and Devil dispute before Allah

Allah's saying;

قَالَ قرِينُهُ

(His companion will say), refers to the devil who is entrusted to every man, according to `Abdullah bin `Abbas, Mujahid, Qatadah and several othes. He will say,

رَبَّنَا مَآ أَطْغَيْتُهُ

(Our Lord! I did not push him to transgression,) meaning, the devil will say this about the human who came on the Day of Resurrection as a disbeliever. The devil will disown him, saying,

رَبَّنَا مَآ أَطْغَيْتُهُ

(Our Lord! I did not push him to transgression) meaning, "I did not lead him astray,"

وَلَـكِن كَانَ فِى ضَلَـلٍ بَعِيدٍ

(but he was himself in error far astray.) meaning, he himself was misguided, accepting falsehood and stubborn to the truth. Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said in another Ayah,

وَقَالَ الشَّيْطَـنُ لَمَّا قُضِىَ الاٌّمْرُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَعَدَكُمْ وَعْدَ الْحَقِّ وَوَعَدتُّكُمْ فَأَخْلَفْتُكُمْ وَمَا كَانَ لِىَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِّن سُلْطَـنٍ إِلاَّ أَن دَعَوْتُكُمْ فَاسْتَجَبْتُمْ لِى فَلاَ تَلُومُونِى وَلُومُواْ أَنفُسَكُمْ مَّآ أَنَاْ بِمُصْرِخِكُمْ وَمَآ أَنتُمْ بِمُصْرِخِىَّ إِنِّى كَفَرْتُ بِمَآ أَشْرَكْتُمُونِ مِن قَبْلُ إِنَّ الظَّـلِمِينَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

(And Shaytan will say when the matter has been decided: "Verily, Allah promised you a promise of truth. And I too promised you, but I betrayed you. I had no authority over you except that I called you, and you responded to me. So blame me not, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can you help me. I deny your former act in associating me as a partner with Allah. Verily, there is a painful torment for the wrongdoers.") (14:22) Allah the Exalted said,

قَالَ لاَ تَخْتَصِمُواْ لَدَىَّ

((Allah) will say: "Dispute not in front of Me.") The Lord, the Exalted and Most Honored will say this to the man and his devil companion, who will be disputing before Him. The man will say, "O, Lord! This devil has misguided me away from the Remembrance after it came to me," while the devil will declare,

رَبَّنَا مَآ أَطْغَيْتُهُ وَلَـكِن كَانَ فِى ضَلَـلٍ بَعِيدٍ

(Our Lord! I did not push him to transgression, but he was himself in error far astray.) from the path of truth. The Lord, the Exalted and Most Honored will say to them,

لاَ تَخْتَصِمُواْ لَدَىَّ

(Dispute not in front of Me,) or `before Me,'

وَقَدْ قَدَّمْتُ إِلَيْكُم بِالْوَعِيدِ

(I had already in advance sent you the threat.) `I have given you sufficient proof by the words of the Messengers, and I have sent down the Divine Books; the evidences, signs and proofs have thus been established against you,'

مَا يُبَدَّلُ الْقَوْلُ لَدَىَّ

(The Sentence that comes from Me cannot be changed, ) "I have made My decision," according to the explanation of Mujahid,

وَمَآ أَنَاْ بِظَلَّـمٍ لِّلْعَبِيدِ

(And I am not unjust to the servants.) `I will not punish anyone, except on account of their sins after the proof has been established against them.'

Man and Devil Dispute before Allah

قَالَ قَرِ‌ينُهُ رَ‌بَّنَا مَا أَطْغَيْتُهُ (His (evil) companion (i.e. the Shaitan) will say, "0 our Lord, I did not cause him to rebel,...50:27). The word qarin literally denotes a companion, that is, one who accompanies or associates with another. From this point of view, qarin in the preceding verse referred to the two angels that accompany human beings and record their deeds. Just as there are two angels in the company of man, there is a devil entrusted to every man, who calls him towards commission of sins, and thus leads him astray. In this verse qarin refers to that devil. When it will be ordered that the person be thrown into Hell, it seems that he will say that the devil had led him astray, otherwise he would have done righteous deeds. In response, the devil will disown him and say about the human who came on the Day of Resurrection as an unbeliever that "I did not lead him astray. In fact he himself was misguided, paying no heed to the truth". In response Allah will say what follows in the next verse.

You are reading a tafsir for the group of verses 50:19 to 50:28

A picture of death and Doomsday thereafter has been drawn in these verses. It shows what will happen to those who, finding themselves free in this world, became arrogant. This pictorial description is so terrible as to cause extreme unease in the minds of all living beings.