لِكُلِّ ٱمْرِئٍ مِّنْهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ شَأْنٌ يُغْنِيهِ 37
Translations
For every man, that Day, will be a matter adequate for him.
Transliteration
Likulli imri'in minhum yawma'idhin sha'nun yughnīh
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah refers to the Day of Judgment when each person will be preoccupied with their own state of accountability before Allah, too consumed by their personal circumstances to concern themselves with others. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari explain that on that Day, the concerns of family, wealth, and worldly relationships will become insignificant as individuals face the reality of their deeds, making each person's affair sufficient to occupy them entirely.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah 'Abasa, a Meccan chapter revealed during the early Islamic period. It is part of a passage describing the scenes of the Day of Judgment (verses 33-42), emphasizing the isolation and personal accountability each soul will experience when the trumpet is blown and people are raised from their graves.
Related Hadiths
The concept is reinforced in hadith collections regarding the Day of Judgment. For example, in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, there are hadiths describing how on the Day of Resurrection, a person's only concern will be their own deeds and status before Allah. Also relevant is the hadith in which the Prophet ﷺ described the despair of family members unable to help one another on that Day.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a powerful reminder that worldly relationships and material possessions cannot aid us in the Afterlife—each soul stands alone before Allah responsible only for its own deeds. It encourages believers to focus on righteous actions and spiritual preparation in this life, as no one can intercede or assist us except through Allah's mercy on that decisive Day.
Related Ayahs
وَيَوْمَ يَقُولُ نَادُوا۟ شُرَكَآءِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ زَعَمْتُمْ فَدَعَوْهُمْ فَلَمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا۟ لَهُمْ وَجَعَلْنَا بَيْنَهُم مَّوْبِقًا
And [warn of] the Day when He will say, "Call My 'partners' whom you claimed," and they will invoke them, but they will not respond to them. And We will put between them [a valley of] destruction.
قَالُوا۟ وَهُمْ فِيهَا يَخْتَصِمُونَ
They will say while they dispute therein,
إِن تَكْفُرُوا۟ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَنِىٌّ عَنكُمْ ۖ وَلَا يَرْضَىٰ لِعِبَادِهِ ٱلْكُفْرَ ۖ وَإِن تَشْكُرُوا۟ يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ ۗ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَىٰ ۗ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكُم مَّرْجِعُكُمْ فَيُنَبِّئُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ عَلِيمٌۢ بِذَاتِ ٱلصُّدُورِ
If you disbelieve - indeed, Allāh is Free from need of you. And He does not approve for His servants disbelief. And if you are grateful, He approves [i.e., likes] it for you; and no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another. Then to your Lord is your return, and He will inform you about what you used to do. Indeed, He is Knowing of that within the breasts.
ٱقْتَرَبَتِ ٱلسَّاعَةُ وَٱنشَقَّ ٱلْقَمَرُ
The Hour has come near, and the moon has split [in two].