Surah 10. Yunus

AND CONVEY unto them the story of Noah - when he said unto his people: "O my people! If my presence [among you] and my announcement of God's messages are repugnant to you⁹⁰ - well, in God have I placed my trust. Decide, then, upon what you are going to do [against me],⁹¹ and [call to your aid] those beings to whom you ascribe a share in God's divinity;⁹² and once you have chosen your course of action, let no hesitation deflect you from it;⁹³ and then carry out against me [whatever you may have decided], and give me no respite!

  - Mohammad Asad

Sc., "because they run counter to the idolatrous beliefs which you have inherited from your ancestors". The story of Noah, briefly mentioned in verses {71-73}, is told at greater length in {11:36-48} (see also {7:59-64}). Here it connects with verse {47} above, and thus with the main theme of this surah: the truth of God's revelation of His will through His prophets, and the suffering which in the life to come is bound to befall those who give the lie to His messages.

Lit., "upon your course of action" (which is the meaning of the term amr in this context).

Lit., "your [God -]partners". For an explanation of this term, see surah {6}, note [15].

This is a free rendering of the elliptic phrase, "and let not your course of action (amrukum) be an uncertainty to you".

Quote to them the story of Nuh (Noah) when he said to his people: "O my people! If it offends you that I should live among you and preach to you the revelations of Allah, then you should know that I have put my trust in Allah. Go ahead and muster all your shoraka' (deities you worship) and come up with your united decision. Plan it well so that you may not have any doubt about its being foolproof. Then execute it against me and give me no respite.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Relate to them 'O Prophet' the story of Noah when he said to his people, 'O my People! If my presence and my reminders to you of Allah's signs are unbearable to you, then 'know that' I have put my trust in Allah. So devise a plot along with your associate-gods- and you do not have to be secretive about your plot- then carry it out against me without delay!

  - Mustafa Khattab

Recite unto them the story of Noah, when he told his people: O my people! If my sojourn (here) and my reminding you by Allah's revelations are an offence unto you, in Allah have I put my trust, so decide upon your course of action, you and your partners. Let not your course of action be in doubt, for you. Then have at me, give me no respite.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Relate to them the story of Noah. Behold! he said to his People: "O my People! if it be hard on your (mind) that I should stay (with you) and commemorate the Signs of Allah yet I put my trust in Allah. Get ye then an agreement about your plan and among your Partners so your plan be not to you dark and dubious. Then pass your sentence on me and give me no respite. ^{1456 1457}

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The reference to Noah's story here is only incidental, to illustrate a special point. The fuller story will be found in xi. 25-48, and in many other passages, e.g., vii. 59-64, xxiii 23-32, xxvi, 105-122, and xxxvii, 75-82. At each place there is a special point in the context. The special point here is that Noah's very life and preaching among his wicked people was a cause of offence to them. But he feared nothing, trusted in Allah, delivered his message, and was saved from the Flood.

Firm in his sense of Truth from Allah. Noah plainly told his people to condemn him to death if they liked, openly and in concert, so that he should at least know who would listen to his Message and who would not. He wanted them to be frank and direct, for he feared nothing.

But if you turn away [from the message which I bear, remember that] I have asked no reward whatever of you: my reward rests with none but God, for I have been bidden to be among those who have surrendered themselves unto Him."

  - Mohammad Asad

If you have turned away from my message, I did not lose any thing, for I did not ask any reward from you for my services: my reward is only with Allah, I have been commanded to become a Muslim."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And if you turn away, 'remember' I have never demanded a reward from you 'for delivering the message'. My reward is only from Allah. And I have been commanded to be one of those who submit 'to Allah'.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

But if ye are averse I have asked of you no wage. My wage is the concern of Allah only, and I am commanded to be of those who surrender (unto Him).

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

"But if ye turn back (consider): no reward have I asked of you: my reward is only due from Allah and I have been commanded to be of those who submit to Allah's Will (in Islam)." ¹⁴⁵⁸

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The Prophet of Allah preaches for the good of his people. But he claims no reward from them, but on the contrary is reviled, persecuted, banished, and often slain.

And yet they gave him the lie! And so We saved him and all who stood by him, in the ark, and made them inherit [the earth],⁹⁴ the while We caused those who gave the lie to Our messages to drown:⁹⁵ behold, then, what happened in the end to those people who had been warned [in vain]!

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., "made them outlive [the others]" (Zamakhshari). As regards the allegorical rendering of khala'if (sing. khalif or khalifah) adopted by me, see surah {2}, note [22].

See surah {7}, note [47].

But they disbelieved him. As a result, We saved him and those of them who were with him in the Ark and We made them successors in the Earth and drowned those who rejected Our revelations. You see what was the end of those who were warned but did not believe!

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

But they still rejected him, so We saved him and those with him in the Ark and made them successors, and drowned those who rejected Our signs. See then what was the end of those who had been warned!

  - Mustafa Khattab

But they denied him, so We saved him and those with him in the ship, and made them viceroys (in the earth), while We drowned those who denied Our revelations. See then the nature of the consequence for those who had been warned.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

They rejected him but We delivered him and those with him in the Ark and We made them inherit (the earth) while We overwhelmed in the Flood those who rejected Our Signs. Then see what was the end of those who were warned (but heeded not)! ¹⁴⁵⁹

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Cf. vii. 64.

AND THEN, after him, We sent forth [other] apostles - each one unto his own people⁹⁶ - and they brought them all evidence of the truth; but they would not believe in anything to which they had once given the lie:⁹⁷ thus it is that We seal the hearts of such as [are wont to] transgress the bounds of what is right.⁹⁸

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "We sent apostles to their [own] people" - an allusion to the fact that each of the apostles before Muhammad was sent to one particular people or community, and that the Arabian Prophet was the first and the last to bring a universal message addressed to all mankind.

Cf. 7:101 and the corresponding note [82].

See surah {2}, note [7].

Then after him We sent Rasools to their descendants. They came to them with clear signs but they would not believe what they had rejected before. Thus, do We set seals upon the hearts of those who (intentionally) exceed the limits.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then after him We sent 'other' messengers to their 'own' people and they came to them with clear proofs. But they would not believe in what they had rejected before. This is how We seal the hearts of the transgressors.

  - Mustafa Khattab

Then, after him, We sent messengers unto their folk, and they brought them clear proofs. But they were not ready to believe in that which they before denied. Thus print We on the hearts of the transgressors.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Then after him We sent (many) apostles to their Peoples: they brought them Clear Signs but they would not believe what they had already rejected beforehand. Thus do We seal the hearts of the transgressors. ¹⁴⁶⁰

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

I understand the meaning to be that there is a sort of spiritual an influence descending from generation to generation, among the Unbelievers as among the men of Faith. In history we find the same problems in many ages,-denial of Allah's grace, defiance of Allah's law, rejection of Allah's Message. These influences cause the hearts of the contumacious to be sealed and impervious to the Truth. Cf. ii. 7 and notes. What they do is to prejudge the issues even before the Prophet explains them.

And after those [earlier prophets] We sent Moses and Aaron with Our messages unto Pharaoh and his great ones: but they gloried in their arrogance, for they were people lost in sin.

  - Mohammad Asad

Then later on We sent Musa (Moses) and Haroon (Aaron) to Fir'on (Pharaoh) and his chiefs with Our signs. But they showed arrogance, for they were a guilty nation.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Then after these 'messengers' We sent Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh and his chiefs with Our signs. But they behaved arrogantly and were a wicked people.

  - Mustafa Khattab

Then, after them, We sent Moses and Aaron unto Pharaoh and his chiefs with Our revelations, but they were arrogant and were a guilty folk.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Then after them sent We Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh and his chiefs with Our Signs. But they were arrogant: they were a people in sin. ¹⁴⁶¹

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The story of Moses, Aaron, and Pharaoh is fully told in vii. 103-137, and there are references to it in many places in the Qur-an. The incidental reference here is to illustrate a special point, viz., that the wicked are arrogant and bound up in their sin, and prefer deception to Truth: they do not hesitate to charge the men of Allah, who work unselfishly for them, with mean motives, such as would actuate them in similar circumstances!

And so, when the truth came to them from Us, they said, "Behold, this is clearly nothing but sorcery!"⁹⁹

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "this is indeed obvious sorcery": an accusation which apparently refers to the spellbinding force of the messages conveyed to them by Moses, similar to the objections raised against the Last Prophet, Muhammad. (See verse {2} of this surah and the corresponding note [5]).

When the truth did come to them from Us they said: "This is indeed sheer magic!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

When the truth came to them from Us, they said, 'This is certainly pure magic!'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And when the Truth from Our presence came unto them, they said: This is mere magic.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

When the Truth did come to them from Us they said: "This is indeed evident sorcery!"

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Said Moses: "Do you speak thus of the truth after it has been brought to you? Can this be sorcery? But sorcerers can never come to a happy end!"¹⁰⁰

  - Mohammad Asad

The implication is that what is termed "sorcery" cannot achieve more than ephemeral phenomena lacking any spiritual content, and can never prevail against the laws of nature which, in their totality, are described in the Qur'an as "the way of God". The story of Moses and the sorcerers and the latters' subsequent conversion is told in greater detail in Al-A'raf and Ta Ha, both of which were revealed before the present surah.

Musa replied: "Is this what you say of the Truth when it has come to you? Is this a magic? Magicians do not prosper."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Moses responded, 'Is this what you say about the truth when it has come to you? Is this magic? Magicians will never succeed.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

Moses said: Speak ye (so) of the Truth when it hath come unto you? Is this magic? Now magicians thrive not.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Said Moses: "Say ye (this) about the Truth when it hath (actually) reached you? In sorcery (like) this? But sorcerers will not prosper." ¹⁴⁶²

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Sorcery is the very opposite of Truth,-being deception of plausible shows by the powers of evil. But these cannot succeed or last permanently, and Truth must ultimately prevail.

[The great ones] replied: "Hast thou come to turn us away from what we found our forefathers believing in and doing, so that the two of you might become supreme in this land? However, we do not believe in you two!"¹⁰¹

  - Mohammad Asad

The dual address "you two" relates to Moses and his brother Aaron.

They said: "Have you come to turn us away from the faith of our forefathers in order that you two (Musa and Haroon) may become the leaders in the land? We will never believe in you!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

They argued, 'Have you come to turn us away from the faith of our forefathers so that the two of you may become supreme in the land? We will never believe in you!'

  - Mustafa Khattab

They said: Hast thou come unto us to pervert us from that (faith) in which we found our fathers, and that you two may own the place of greatness in the land? We will not believe you two.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

They said: "Hast thou come to us to turn us a way from the ways We found our fathers following in order that thou and thy brother may have greatness in the land? But not we shall believe in you!" ¹⁴⁶³

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Notice how they attribute evil motives to the men of Allah, motives of ambition and lust of power, which the men of Allah had been sent expressly to put down. The same device was used against Al-Mustafa.

And Pharaoh commanded: "Bring before me every sorcerer of great knowledge!"

  - Mohammad Asad

Fir'on said: "Bring me every skillful magician."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Pharaoh demanded, 'Bring me every skilled magician.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And Pharaoh said: Bring every cunning wizard unto me.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Said Pharaoh: "Bring me every sorcerer well-versed."

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

And when the sorcerers came, Moses said unto them: "Throw whatever you may [wish to] throw!"

  - Mohammad Asad

When the magicians came, Musa said to them: "Throw what you wish to throw!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

When the magicians came, Moses said to them, 'Cast whatever you wish to cast!'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And when the wizards came, Moses said unto them: Cast your cast!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

When the sorcerers came Moses said to them: "Throw ye what ye (wish) to throw!"

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

And when they threw down [their staffs and cast a spell upon the people's eyes¹⁰² ], Moses said unto them: "What you have contrived is [but] sorcery which, verily, God will bring to nought! Verily, God does not further the works of spreaders of corruption -

  - Mohammad Asad

The above interpolation is based on 7:116 ; see also the second paragraph of 20:66 .

So when they had thrown, Musa said: "The magic that you have brought, Allah will surely prove it wrong: for Allah does not promote the work of mischief makers.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

When they did, Moses said, 'What you have produced is mere magic, Allah will surely make it useless, for Allah certainly does not set right the work of the corruptors.

  - Mustafa Khattab

And when they had cast, Moses said: That which ye have brought is magic. Lo! Allah will make it vain. Lo! Allah upholdeth not the work of mischief makers.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

When they had their throw Moses said: "What ye have brought is sorcery: Allah will surely make it of no effect: for Allah prospereth not the work of those who make mischief. ¹⁴⁶⁴

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

When they threw their rods, the rods became snakes by a trick of sorcery, but Moses's miracles were greater than any tricks of sorcery, and had real Truth behind them.

whereas by His words God proves the truth to be true,¹⁰³ however hateful this may be to those who are lost in sin!"

  - Mohammad Asad

By "God's words" is meant here His creative will, manifested in the laws of nature instituted by Him as well as in the revelations granted by Him to His prophets (Manar XI, 468). A similar phrase occurs also in 8:7 and 42:24 .

By His Words Allah vindicates the truth, much as the criminals may dislike it!"

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And Allah establishes the truth by His Words- even to the dismay of the wicked.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And Allah will vindicate the Truth by His words, however much the guilty be averse.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

"And Allah by His Words doth prove and establish his truth however much the Sinners may hate it!" ¹⁴⁶⁵

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Allah's Words or Commands have real power, while Sorcerers' tricks only seem wonderful by deceiving the eye.

But none save a few of his people declared their faith in Moses,¹⁰⁴ [while others held back] for fear of Pharaoh and their great ones, lest they persecute them:¹⁰⁵ for, verily, Pharaoh was mighty on earth and was, verily, of those who are given to excesses.

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "believed in Moses"; however, since the sequence shows that not belief as such but its open profession is referred to here, I have rendered the above phrase accordingly. As for the term dhurriyyah (lit., "offspring"), we have several authoritative statements to the effect that it often denotes "a small group [or "a few"] of one's people" (Ibn 'Abbas, as quoted by Tabari, Baghawi, Razi and Ibn Kathir, as well as Ad-Dahhak and Qatadah, as quoted by Tabari and Ibn Kathir); hence my rendering. Since the Qur'an mentions (e.g., in {7:120-126}) that some Egyptians, too, came to believe in Moses' message and openly proclaimed their belief, it is reasonable to assume that by "his people" are meant not merely the Israelites but, more generally, the people among whom Moses was living: that is, both Israelites and Egyptians. This assumption is strengthened by the reference, in the next clause of this sentence, to "their great ones" - an expression obviously relating to the Egyptian "great ones".

If the expression 'ala khawf is taken to mean "despite [their] fear" (referring to those who did declare their faith openly), the above sentence would read thus: "...a few of his people declared their faith in Moses despite their fear that Pharaoh and their great ones would persecute them" - implying, as does the rendering adopted by me, that, because of their fear, the majority did not declare their faith openly.

None but a few youth from his own people believed in Musa (Moses), because of the fear of Fir'on (Pharaoh) and his chiefs, lest they should persecute them; and certainly Fir'on was mighty in the land and the one who did not hesitate to transgress any limit.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

But no one believed in Moses except a few youths of his people, while fearing that Pharaoh and their own chiefs might persecute them. And certainly Pharaoh was a tyrant in the land, and he was truly a transgressor.

  - Mustafa Khattab

But none trusted Moses, save some scions of his people, (and they were) in fear of Pharaoh and their chiefs, that they would persecute them. Lo! Pharaoh was verily a tyrant in the land, and Lo! he verily was of the wanton.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

But none believed in Moses except some children of his People because of the fear of Pharaoh and his chiefs lest they should persecute them; and certainly Pharaoh was mighty on the earth and one who transgressed all bounds. ¹⁴⁶⁶

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

The pronoun "his" in "his People" is taken by some Commentators to refer to Pharaoh. The Majority Of Pharaoh's people refused to believe at the time, but the sorcerers believed (vii. 120), and so did Pharaoh's wife (lxvi. 11), and ultimately Pharaoh himself, though too late (x. 90). If we took "his" to refer to Moses, it would mean that the Israelites were hard-hearted and grumbled (vii. 129) even when they were being delivered from Egypt, and only a few of them had any real faith in Allah's providence and the working of His Law, and they feared Pharaoh even more than they feared Allah.

And Moses said: "O my people! If you believe in God, place your trust in Him - if you have [truly] surrendered yourselves unto Him!"

  - Mohammad Asad

Musa said: "O my people! If you sincerely believe in Allah, then put your trust in Him, if you are really Muslims."

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Moses said, 'O my people! If you do believe in Allah and submit 'to His Will', then put your trust in Him.'

  - Mustafa Khattab

And Moses said: O my people! If ye have believed in Allah then put trust in Him, if ye have indeed surrendered (unto Him)!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

Moses said: "O my People! if ye do (really) believe in Allah then in Him put your trust if ye submit (your will to His)."

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Whereupon they answered: "In God have we placed our trust! O our Sustainer, make us not a plaything¹⁰⁶ for evildoing folk,

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "temptation to evil" (fitnah).

They replied: "In Allah do we put our trust. Our Rabb! Do not let us suffer at the hands of unjust people,

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

They replied, 'In Allah we trust. Our Lord! Do not subject us to the persecution of the oppressive people,

  - Mustafa Khattab

They said: In Allah we put trust. Our Lord! Oh, make us not a lure for the wrongdoing folk;

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

They said: "In Allah do we put our trust. Our Lord! make us not a trial for those who practice oppression; ¹⁴⁶⁷

  - Abdullah Yusuf Ali

A trial for those who practise oppression: the various meanings of Fitnat have been explained in n. 1198 to viii. 25. The prayer is that the righteous people, being weak, should be saved from being used as objects of oppression or punishment at the hands of powerful enemies. Weakness tempts Power to practise oppression, and is thus an occasion of trial for the oppressors.