Behold, around their necks We have put shackles,6 reaching up to their chins, so that their heads are forced up;7
Asad Translation Note Number :
Zamakhshari: "[This is] an allegory of their deliberate denial of the truth." See note [13] on 13:5 and note [44] on 34:33 .
Sc., "and they cannot see the right way" (Razi); their "forced-up heads" symbolize also their arrogance. On the other hand, God's "placing shackles" around the sinners' necks is a metaphor similar to His "sealing their hearts and their hearing", spoken of in 2:7 and explained in the corresponding note [7]. The same applies to the metaphor of the "barriers" and the "veiling" mentioned in the next verse.
Malik Quran Translation
Since they have chosen to neglect Our revelations, therefore, We have put yokes round their necks right up to their chins so their heads are raised up,
Yusuf Ali Quran Translation
We have put yokes round their necks right up to their chins so that their heads are forced up (and they cannot see). 3948
Yusuf Ali Translation Note Number :
Man's misdeeds inevitably call forth the operation of Allah's Law. The result of man's wilful disobedience is now described in a series of metaphors. (1) Refusal of Allah's Light means less and less freedom of action for man: the yoke of sin is fastened round man's neck, and it gets more and more tightened, right up to the chin. (2) The head is forced up and kept in a stiff position, so that the mind becomes befogged. Moral obliquity taints the intellect. According to the Sanskrit proverb, "When destruction comes near, understanding is turned upside down." According to the Latin proverb, "Whom God wishes to destroy, He first makes demented." In other words, iniquity not only is folly, but leads deeper and deeper into folly, narrowness of vision, and blindness to the finer things of life. (3) This state of deprivation of Grace leads to such a decline in spiritual vitality that the victim can neither progress nor turn back, as explained in the next verse.
Mustafa Khattab Quran Translation
˹It is as if˺ We have put shackles around their necks up to their chins, so their heads are forced up,
Mustafa Khattab Translation Note Number :
Piktal Quran Translation
Lo! we have put on their necks carcans reaching unto the chins, so that they are made stiff necked.
Quran Transliteration
Inna jaAAalna fee aAAnaqihim aghlalan fahiya ila alathqani fahum muqmahoona