Surah 11. Hud

Now as for those who [by their deeds] will have brought wretchedness upon themselves, [they shall live] in the fire, where they will have [nothing but] moans and sobs [to relieve their pain],

  - Mohammad Asad

Those who are damned shall be in the fire; in there, they will have only sighs and sobs.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

As for those who will be wretched (on that day) they will be in the Fire; sighing and wailing will be their portion therein.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

therein to abide as long as the heavens and the earth endure - unless thy Sustainer wills it otherwise:¹³⁴ for, verily, thy Sustainer is a sovereign doer of whatever He wills.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., unless God wills to reprieve them (cf. the last paragraph of 6:128 and the corresponding note [114], as well as note [10] on 40:12 ). The phrase "as long as the heavens and the earth endure" has caused some perplexity to most of the classical commentators in view of the many Qur'anic statements to the effect that the world as we know it will come to an end on the Last Day, which is synonymous with the Day of Resurrection. This difficulty, however, can be resolved if we remember - as Tabari points out in his commentary on the above verse - that in ancient Arabic usage the expressions "as long as the heavens and the earth endure", or "as long as night and day alternate", etc., were used metonymically in the sense of "time beyond count" (abad). See also {20:105-107} and the corresponding note [90], as well as note [63] on 14:48 .

They will dwell therein as long as the heavens and the earth shall last, unless your Rabb ordain otherwise; surely your Rabb is the mighty doer of what He intends.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Abiding there so long as the heavens and the earth endure save for that which thy Lord willeth. Lo! thy Lord is Doer of what He will.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

But as for those who [by virtue of their past deeds] will have been blest with happiness, [they shall live] in paradise, therein to abide as long as the heavens and the earth endure - unless thy Sustainer wills it otherwise¹³⁵ - as a gift unceasing.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., unless God wills to bestow on them a yet greater reward (Razi; also Manar XII, 161); or - which to my mind is more probable - unless He opens up to man a new, yet higher stage of evolution.

As for those who are blessed, they shall be in paradise. They will dwell therein as long as the heavens and the earth shall last, unless your Rabb ordain otherwise; an award which shall never be taken away.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And as for those who will be glad (that day) they will be in the Garden, abiding there so long as the heavens and the earth endure save for that which thy Lord willeth: a gift unfailing.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

AND SO, [O Prophet,] be not in doubt about anything that those [misguided people] worship:¹³⁶ they but [thoughtlessly] worship as their forefathers worshipped aforetime; and, behold, We shall most certainly give them their full due [for whatever good or evil they have earned], without diminishing aught thereof.¹³⁷

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., "do not think that their beliefs are based on reason": a reference, primarily, to the pagan Arabs who - like the wrongdoers spoken of in the preceding passages - rejected God's message on the plea that it conflicted with their ancestral beliefs, and more generally, to all people who are accustomed to worship (in the widest sense of this word) false values handed down from their ancestors and who, consequently, observe false standards of morality: an attitude which must unavoidably - as the last sentence of this verse shows - result in future suffering, be it in this world or in the hereafter, or in both.

Lit., "We shall repay them their portion in full, undiminished". For an explanation of this sentence, see note [27] on verses {15-16} of this surah.

Therefore, have no doubt concerning the deities they worship, for they blindly imitate the worship of those deities whom their forefathers used to worship before them; and surely, We shall give them their share of punishment in full without any abatement.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

So be not thou in doubt concerning that which these (folk) worship. They worship only as their fathers worshipped aforetime. Lo! We shall pay them their whole due unabated.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And, indeed, [similar was the case when] We vouchsafed the divine writ unto Moses, and some of his people set their own views against it;¹³⁸ and had it not been for a decree that had already gone forth from thy Sustainer, judgment would indeed have been passed on them [then and there]:¹³⁹ for, behold, they were in grave doubt, amounting to suspicion, about him [who called them unto God].¹⁴⁰

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "and it was disagreed upon", or "discordant views came to be held about it": meaning that, like Muhammad's early contemporaries, some of Moses' people accepted the divine writ, whereas others refused to submit to its guidance.

Lit., "it would indeed have been decided between them" - i.e., they would have been punished, like those communities of old, by utter destruction, had it not been for God's decree (kalimah, lit., "word") that their punishment should be deferred until the Day of Resurrection (cf. the last sentence of 10:93 and the corresponding note [114]).

Cf. 2:55 - "O Moses, indeed we shall not believe thee until we see God face to face!"

We certainly gave the Book to Musa (Moses), but differences arose about it; had not a Word gone forth from your Rabb, the matter would have been decided between them regarding those differences. It is a fact that they are in suspicious doubt about this,

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And We verily gave unto Moses the Scripture, and there was strife thereupon; and had it not been for a Word that had already gone forth from thy Lord, the case would have been judged between them, and Lo! they are in grave doubt concerning it.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And, verily, unto each and all will thy Sustainer give their full due for whatever [good or evil] they may have done: behold, He is aware of all that they do!

  - Mohammad Asad

and it is also a fact that your Rabb will give them full measure for their deeds, for He is fully aware of what they do.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And lo! unto each thy Lord will verily repay his works in full. Lo! He is Informed of what they do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Pursue, then, the right course, as thou hast been bidden [by God], together with all who, with thee, have turned unto Him; and let none of you behave in an overweening manner:¹⁴¹ for, verily, He sees all that you do.

  - Mohammad Asad

Explaining this injunction, expressed in the second person plural, Ibn Kathir points out that it is addressed to all believers, and that it refers to their behaviour towards everyone, be he believer or unbeliever; in this he obviously relies on the interpretation advanced by Ibn 'Abbas (and quoted by Razi): "It means, 'Be humble before God and do not behave with false pride towards anyone'." According to some later commentators (e.g., Tabari, Zamakhshari, Baghawi, Razi), the meaning is wider, namely, "do not overstep the bounds of what God has ordained", or "do not exceed the limits of equity".

Therefore, stand firm on the Right Way as you are commanded, together with those who have turned from unbelief to belief in Allah, and do not transgress; surely, He is watching all that you do.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

So tread thou the straight path as thou art commanded, and those who turn (unto Allah) with thee, and transgress not. Lo! He is Seer of what ye do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And do not incline towards, nor rely upon, those who are bent on evildoing¹⁴² lest the fire [of the hereafter] touch you: for [then] you would have none to protect you from God, nor would you ever be succoured [by Him].¹⁴³

  - Mohammad Asad

The verb rakana comprises the concepts of inclining (in one's feelings or opinions) towards, as well as of relying on, someone or something, and cannot be translated by a single word; hence my composite rendering of the phrase la tarkanu. The use of the past tense in alladhina zalamu indicates - as is often the case in the Qur'an - deliberate and persistent evildoing; this term is, therefore, suitably rendered as "those who are bent on evildoing".

According to Zamakhshari, the particle thumma at the beginning of this last clause does not signify a sequence in time ("and then" or "afterwards") but, rather, a stress on the impossibility (istib'ad) of their ever being succoured by God.

Do not be inclined to those who are unjust, lest you be seized by the fire; and you will not have any protector besides Allah, nor you shall be helped.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And incline not toward those who do wrong lest the Fire touch you, and ye have no protecting friends against Allah, and afterward ye would not be helped.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And be constant in praying at the beginning and the end¹⁴⁴ of the day, as well as during the early watches of the night:¹⁴⁵ for, verily, good deeds drive away evil deeds: this is a reminder to all who bear [God] in mind.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "at the two ends".

This injunction circumscribes all the obligatory prayers without specifying either their form or the exact times of their performance, both of which are clearly laid down in the sunnah (i.e., the authenticated sayings and the practice) of the Prophet: namely, at dawn (fajr), shortly after mid-day (zuhr), in the afternoon ('asr), immediately after sunset (maghrib), and in the first part of the night ('isha'). Inasmuch as the above verse stresses the paramount importance of prayer in general, it is safe to assume that it refers not merely to the five obligatory prayers but to a remembrance of God at all times of one's wakeful life.

Establish Salah ( prayers) at the two ends of the day and in the early part of the night. Indeed virtues remove evils. This is a reminder for the mindful.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Establish worship at the two ends of the day and in some watches of the night. Lo! good deeds annul ill deeds. This is a reminder for the mindful.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And be patient in adversity: for, verily, God does not fail to requite the doers of good!

  - Mohammad Asad

Be patient; for sure Allah does not let the reward of the righteous be wasted.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And have patience, (O Muhammad), for lo! Allah loseth not the wages of the good.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

BUT, ALAS, among those generations [whom We destroyed] before your time there were no people endowed with any virtue¹⁴⁶ - [people] who would speak out against the [spread of] corruption on earth - except the few of them whom We saved [because of their righteousness], whereas those who were bent on evildoing only pursued pleasures which corrupted their whole being,¹⁴⁷ and so lost themselves in sinning.

  - Mohammad Asad

For my rendering of the particle law-la, at the beginning of this sentence, as "alas", see surah {10}, note [119]. The present passage connects with the statement in the preceding verse, "God does not fail to requite the doers of good", as well as with verse {111} above, "unto each and all will thy Sustainer give their due for whatever [good or evil] they may have done". - For the wider implications of the term qarn ("generation"), see surah {6}, note [5].

The verb tarifa means "he enjoyed a life of ease and plenty", while the participle mutraf denotes "one who enjoys a life of ease and plenty" or "indulges in the pleasures of life", i.e., to the exclusion of moral considerations. The form mutarraf has an additional significance, namely, "one whom a life of softness and ease has caused to behave insolently", or "one whom the [exclusive] pursuit of the pleasures of life has corrupted" (Mughni). Hence my above rendering of the phrase ma utrifu fihi.

Why were there not among the generations before you, good persons who could forbid the people from making mischief in the land, except a few of those whom We delivered from among them? The wrongdoers, however, pursued the worldly pleasure they were provided, and became confirmed criminals.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

If only there had been among the generations before you men possessing a remnant (of good sense ) to warn (their people) from corruption in the earth, as did a few of those whom We saved from them! The wrong-doers followed that by which they were made sapless, and were guilty.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

For, never would thy Sustainer destroy a community¹⁴⁸ for wrong [beliefs alone] so long as its people behave righteously [towards one another].¹⁴⁹

  - Mohammad Asad

See surah {6}, note [116].

This passage connects with the concluding clause of the preceding verse, "and lost themselves in sinning". According to most of the classical commentators, the term zulm (lit., "wrong" or "evildoing") is in this context synonymous with "wrong beliefs" amounting to a denial of the truths revealed by God through His prophets, a refusal to acknowledge His existence, or the ascribing of divine powers or qualities to anyone or anything beside Him. Explaining the above verse in this sense, Razi says: "God's chastisement does not afflict any people merely on account of their holding beliefs amounting to shirk and kufr, but afflicts them only if they persistently commit evil in their mutual dealings, and deliberately hurt [other human beings] and act tyranically [towards them]. Hence, those who are learned in Islamic Law (al-fuqaha') hold that men's obligations towards God rest on the principle of [His] forgiveness and liberality, whereas the rights of man are of a stringent nature and must always be strictly observed" - the obvious reason being that God is almighty and needs no defender, whereas man is weak and needs protection. (Cf. the last sentence of 28:59 and the corresponding note [61].)

It is not possible that your Rabb would destroy the towns unjustly while their habitants were to mend their ways.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

In truth thy Lord destroyed not the townships tyrannously while their folk were doing right.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And had thy Sustainer so willed, He could surely have made all mankind one single community: but [He willed it otherwise, and so] they continue to hold divergent views¹⁵⁰ -

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., about everything, even about the truths revealed to them by God. - For a discussion of the term ummah wahidah ("one single community") and its wider implications, see surah {2}, notes [197] and [198]; the second part of 2:253 and the corresponding note [245]; and the second part of 5:48 and the corresponding notes [66] and [67]. Thus, the Qur'an stresses once again that the unceasing differentiation in men's views and ideas is not incidental but represents a God-willed, basic factor of human existence. If God had willed that all human beings should be of one persuasion, all intellectual progress would have been ruled out, and "they would have been similar in their social life to the bees and the ants, while in their spiritual life they would have been like the angels, constrained by their nature always to believe in what is true and always to obey God" (Manar XII, 193) - that is to say, devoid of that relative free will which enables man to choose between right and wrong and thus endows his life - in distinction from all other sentient beings - with a moral meaning and a unique spiritual potential.

If your Rabb had so willed, He would have certainly made mankind one single nation but that is not what He wants, so they will continue to differ

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And if thy Lord had willed, He verily would have made mankind one nation, yet they cease not differing,

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

[all of them,] save those upon whom thy Sustainer has bestowed His grace.¹⁵¹ And to this end has He created them [all].¹⁵² But [as for those who refuse to avail themselves of divine guidance,] that word of thy Sustainer shall be fulfilled: "Most certainly will I fill hell with invisible beings as well as with humans, all together!"¹⁵³

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., those who avail themselves of His grace, consisting of the God-given ability to realize His existence (cf. 7:172 and the corresponding note [139]) and the guidance which He offers to mankind through His prophets (Razi).

Some of the earliest commentators (e.g., Mujahid and 'Ikrimah) are of the opinion that the expression li-dhalika (rendered by me as "to this end") refers to God's bestowal of His grace upon man, while others (e.g., Al-Hasan and 'Ata') relate it to men's ability to differ intellectually from one another. According to Zamakhshari, it refers to the freedom of moral choice which characterizes man and is spoken of in the preceding passages: and since it is this freedom which constitutes God's special gift to man and raises him above all other created beings (cf. the parable of Adam and the angels in {2:30-34}), Zamakhshari's interpretation is, in my opinion, the most comprehensive of all.

The "word of God" reiterated here as well as in 32:13 has originally been pronounced in 7:18 with reference to the "followers of Satan", i.e., those who reject the guidance offered them by God; hence my interpolation at the beginning of the paragraph. As regards the meaning of jinn (rendered by me in this and similar instances as "invisible beings"), see Appendix III.

except those on whom He has bestowed His mercy; and that very freedom of choice and action is the whole purpose of their creation. That is how the Word of your Rabb, that He will fill Hell with jinns and human beings all together, will be fulfilled.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Save him on whom thy Lord hath mercy; and for that He did create them. And the Word of thy Lord hath been fulfilled: Verily I shall fill hell with the jinn and mankind together.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

AND [remember:] out of all the accounts relating to the [earlier] apostles We convey unto thee [only] that wherewith We [aim to] make firm thy heart:¹⁵⁴ for through these [accounts] comes the truth unto thee, as well as an admonition and a reminder unto all believers.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., the Qur'an does not intend to present those stories as such, but uses them (or, rather, relevant parts of them) as illustrations of moral truths and as a means to strengthen the faith of the believer (see the second part of note [73] as well as note [131] above).

All these stories of the prior Rasools that We relate to you (O Muhammad) are to strengthen your heart therewith; through these you have received the knowledge of reality and the believers have gotten admonition and a reminder.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And all that We relate unto thee of the story of the messengers is in order that thereby We may make firm thy heart. And herein hath come unto thee the Truth and an exhortation and a reminder for believers.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And say unto those who will not believe: "Do anything that may be within your power, [while] we, behold, shall labour [in God's way];

  - Mohammad Asad

As for those who are unbelievers, say to them: "Do whatever you want, and so shall we.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And say unto those who believe not: Act according to your power. Lo! we (too) are acting.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

and wait [for what is coming]: behold, we too are waiting!"

  - Mohammad Asad

Wait if you will! Sure, we too shall wait."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And wait! Lo! we (too) are waiting.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And God alone comprehends the hidden reality of the heavens and the earth:¹⁵⁵ for, all that exists goes back to Him [as its source]. Worship Him, then, and place thy trust in Him alone: for thy Sustainer is not unaware of what you do.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "God's is [the knowledge of] the hidden reality of...", etc. For this meaning of the term al-ghayb, see note [3] on 2:3 .

Allah Alone has the knowledge of what is hidden in the heavens and the earth, and everything shall ultimately return to Him for decision; Therefore, worship Him and put your trust in Him, and your Rabb is not unmindful of what you do.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And Allah's is the Invisible of the heavens and the earth, and unto Him the whole matter will be returned. So worship Him and put thy trust in Him. Lo! thy Lord is not unaware of what ye (mortals) do.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall