Tazkirul Quran · Tafsir · in English
An-Najm 53:32–62
53:32Page 527
ٱلَّذِينَ يَجۡتَنِبُونَ كَبَٰٓئِرَ ٱلۡإِثۡمِ وَٱلۡفَوَٰحِشَ إِلَّا ٱللَّمَمَۚ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ وَٰسِعُ ٱلۡمَغۡفِرَةِۚ هُوَ أَعۡلَمُ بِكُمۡ إِذۡ أَنشَأَكُم مِّنَ ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَإِذۡ أَنتُمۡ أَجِنَّةٞ فِي بُطُونِ أُمَّهَٰتِكُمۡۖ فَلَا تُزَكُّوٓاْ أَنفُسَكُمۡۖ هُوَ أَعۡلَمُ بِمَنِ ٱتَّقَىٰٓ ٣٢
Those who avoid the major sins and immoralities, only [committing] slight ones. Indeed, your Lord is vast in forgiveness. He was most knowing of you when He produced you from the earth and when you were fetuses in the wombs of your mothers. So do not claim yourselves to be pure; He is most knowing of who fears Him.
Man has been created with human weaknesses. So, it is not required that he be as pure as the angels. Almighty God has given full guidance to man as to what he should do and what he should not. However, man may be pardoned in the case of lesser offences (lamam), i.e. indulging in some mischief because of fleeting emotion, on the condition that he should immediately realise his lapse and, being ashamed of it, seek pardon of his Lord.
53:33–35Page 527
أَفَرَءَيۡتَ ٱلَّذِي تَوَلَّىٰ ٣٣
Have you seen the one who turned away
وَأَعۡطَىٰ قَلِيلٗا وَأَكۡدَىٰٓ ٣٤
And gave a little and [then] refrained?
أَعِندَهُۥ عِلۡمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ فَهُوَ يَرَىٰٓ ٣٥
Does he have knowledge of the unseen, so he sees?1
There are many who become inclined towards the Truth, but only to a certain extent. Then the compulsions of their interests become too strong for them and they revert to their original position. In order to justify and explain their wrong behaviour, such people devise different types of engaging ‘beliefs’. But this only increases their guilt because this amounts to adding insult to injury.
53:36–42Page 527
أَمۡ لَمۡ يُنَبَّأۡ بِمَا فِي صُحُفِ مُوسَىٰ ٣٦
Or has he not been informed of what was in the scriptures of Moses
وَإِبۡرَٰهِيمَ ٱلَّذِي وَفَّىٰٓ ٣٧
And [of] Abraham, who fulfilled [his obligations] -
أَلَّا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٞ وِزۡرَ أُخۡرَىٰ ٣٨
That no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another
وَأَن لَّيۡسَ لِلۡإِنسَٰنِ إِلَّا مَا سَعَىٰ ٣٩
And that there is not for man except that [good] for which he strives
وَأَنَّ سَعۡيَهُۥ سَوۡفَ يُرَىٰ ٤٠
And that his effort is going to be seen -
ثُمَّ يُجۡزَىٰهُ ٱلۡجَزَآءَ ٱلۡأَوۡفَىٰ ٤١
Then he will be recompensed for it with the fullest recompense -
وَأَنَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ ٱلۡمُنتَهَىٰ ٤٢
And that to your Lord is the finality
The sum and substance of the reality revealed by Almighty God through His prophets is that every man has to receive the reward befitting his deeds. Nobody can save himself from the fate attending his deeds and nobody else can be his saviour. There is nobody more foolish in this world of God than those who are not affected by this prophetic warning.
53:43–49Page 527
وَأَنَّهُۥ هُوَ أَضۡحَكَ وَأَبۡكَىٰ ٤٣
And that it is He who makes [one] laugh and weep
وَأَنَّهُۥ هُوَ أَمَاتَ وَأَحۡيَا ٤٤
And that it is He who causes death and gives life
وَأَنَّهُۥ خَلَقَ ٱلزَّوۡجَيۡنِ ٱلذَّكَرَ وَٱلۡأُنثَىٰ ٤٥
And that He creates the two mates - the male and female -
مِن نُّطۡفَةٍ إِذَا تُمۡنَىٰ ٤٦
From a sperm-drop when it is emitted
وَأَنَّ عَلَيۡهِ ٱلنَّشۡأَةَ ٱلۡأُخۡرَىٰ ٤٧
And that [incumbent] upon Him is the other [i.e., next] creation.
وَأَنَّهُۥ هُوَ أَغۡنَىٰ وَأَقۡنَىٰ ٤٨
And that it is He who enriches and suffices
وَأَنَّهُۥ هُوَ رَبُّ ٱلشِّعۡرَىٰ ٤٩
And that it is He who is the Lord of Sirius1
Every event in this world arises from supernatural causes and nobody but God is capable of causing them to occur. Happiness and sorrow, life and death, the pro-creative system, riches and poverty—all these are the feats of a superpower. Ancient man used to consider the stars as the determining factors in life, while in the present age natural law is considered to govern all happenings. But the fact is that there is a Cause over and above these causes and factors and that is God, the Lord of the universe. Then, how is it legitimate for a man to make anything other than Him the centre of his attention?
53:50–55Page 528
وَأَنَّهُۥٓ أَهۡلَكَ عَادًا ٱلۡأُولَىٰ ٥٠
And that He destroyed the first [people of] ʿAad
وَثَمُودَاْ فَمَآ أَبۡقَىٰ ٥١
And Thamūd - and He did not spare [them] -
وَقَوۡمَ نُوحٖ مِّن قَبۡلُۖ إِنَّهُمۡ كَانُواْ هُمۡ أَظۡلَمَ وَأَطۡغَىٰ ٥٢
And the people of Noah before. Indeed, it was they who were [even] more unjust and oppressing.
وَٱلۡمُؤۡتَفِكَةَ أَهۡوَىٰ ٥٣
And the overturned towns1 He hurled down
فَغَشَّىٰهَا مَا غَشَّىٰ ٥٤
And covered them by that which He covered.1
فَبِأَيِّ ءَالَآءِ رَبِّكَ تَتَمَارَىٰ ٥٥
Then which of the favors of your Lord do you doubt?
A nation makes superb progress and surpasses other nations. It is apparently impossible for it to be overpowered. Thereafter, certain factors come into play and that nation is destroyed or faces decline and fades into oblivion. This indicates that there is a Super Power over human beings that decides about the future of nations. If even such events of history do not impart a lesson to a human being, what will?
53:56–62Page 528
هَٰذَا نَذِيرٞ مِّنَ ٱلنُّذُرِ ٱلۡأُولَىٰٓ ٥٦
This [Prophet (ﷺ)] is a warner from [i.e., like] the former warners.
أَزِفَتِ ٱلۡأٓزِفَةُ ٥٧
The Approaching Day has approached.
لَيۡسَ لَهَا مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ كَاشِفَةٌ ٥٨
Of it, [from those] besides Allāh, there is no remover.
أَفَمِنۡ هَٰذَا ٱلۡحَدِيثِ تَعۡجَبُونَ ٥٩
Then at this statement do you wonder?
وَتَضۡحَكُونَ وَلَا تَبۡكُونَ ٦٠
And you laugh and do not weep
وَأَنتُمۡ سَٰمِدُونَ ٦١
While you are proudly sporting?1
فَٱسۡجُدُواْۤ لِلَّهِۤ وَٱعۡبُدُواْ۩ ٦٢
So prostrate to Allāh and worship [Him].
The history of the prophets as related in the Quran shows that the denial of Truth and its fatal result are as close to each other as two fingers of the same hand. If a man has the ability to comprehend, as soon as he indulges in denial of the Truth and becomes arrogant, he will sense that God’s wrath is about to descend on him; he will consequently give up the way of arrogance and adopt the way of obedience. But man is so intoxicated that he is unable to see things which are right in front of him.
Text: through the Quran Foundation. The ayahs: Quran Foundation. Sources and licences