وَإِذْ صَرَفْنَآ إِلَيْكَ نَفَرًا مِّنَ ٱلْجِنِّ يَسْتَمِعُونَ ٱلْقُرْءَانَ فَلَمَّا حَضَرُوهُ قَالُوٓا۟ أَنصِتُوا۟ ۖ فَلَمَّا قُضِىَ وَلَّوْا۟ إِلَىٰ قَوْمِهِم مُّنذِرِينَ 29
Translations
And [mention, O Muḥammad], when We directed to you a few of the jinn, listening to the Qur’ān. And when they attended it, they said, "Listen attentively." And when it was concluded, they went back to their people as warners.
Transliteration
Wa-idh sarafnā ilayka nafaran min al-jinn yastamiʿūn al-Qurʾān falammā ḥaḍarūhu qālū anṣitū falammā quḍiya wa-llaww ilā qawmihim mundhirīn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes how Allah directed a group of jinn to listen to the Prophet Muhammad reciting the Qur'an. When they arrived at the recitation, they commanded each other to listen attentively, and upon its completion, they returned to their people as warners. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this event demonstrates the universal appeal of the Qur'an and that the jinn, despite their different nature, recognized its truth and became obligated to convey its message, paralleling the Prophet's mission among humans.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the broader narrative in Surah Al-Ahqaf (46:29-32) which details the encounter between the jinn and the Qur'an. While the exact occasion of revelation is not definitively documented in classical sources, it is thematically connected to Allah's statement that the Qur'an is a guidance for both humans and jinn, establishing the universal nature of the Prophet's message and the accountability of both communities.
Related Hadiths
The event alluded to in this ayah is supported by Tafsir al-Tabari's narrations from Ibn Abbas regarding the night the jinn listened to the Prophet reciting Qur'an. Additionally, Surah Al-Jinn (72:1-2) contains the jinn's own testimony: 'Say, [O Muhammad], it has been revealed to me that a group of jinn listened [to the Qur'an],' which provides complementary prophetic context.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that the Qur'an's message transcends earthly boundaries and speaks to the hearts of all creation, inspiring us to listen to it with the same attentiveness and respect the jinn demonstrated, and to share its transformative wisdom with others as warners and guides. It reminds us that conveying the message of truth is a shared responsibility among all believers, regardless of their background or station.
Related Ayahs
وَلِكُلٍّ دَرَجَـٰتٌ مِّمَّا عَمِلُوا۟ ۖ وَلِيُوَفِّيَهُمْ أَعْمَـٰلَهُمْ وَهُمْ لَا يُظْلَمُونَ
And for all there are degrees [of reward and punishment] for what they have done, and [it is] so that He may fully compensate them for their deeds, and they will not be wronged.
وَوَصَّيْنَا ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ بِوَٰلِدَيْهِ إِحْسَـٰنًا ۖ حَمَلَتْهُ أُمُّهُۥ كُرْهًا وَوَضَعَتْهُ كُرْهًا ۖ وَحَمْلُهُۥ وَفِصَـٰلُهُۥ ثَلَـٰثُونَ شَهْرًا ۚ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا بَلَغَ أَشُدَّهُۥ وَبَلَغَ أَرْبَعِينَ سَنَةً قَالَ رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِىٓ أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ ٱلَّتِىٓ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَىَّ وَعَلَىٰ وَٰلِدَىَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَـٰلِحًا تَرْضَىٰهُ وَأَصْلِحْ لِى فِى ذُرِّيَّتِىٓ ۖ إِنِّى تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَإِنِّى مِنَ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ
And We have enjoined upon man, to his parents, good treatment. His mother carried him with hardship and gave birth to him with hardship, and his gestation and weaning [period] is thirty months. [He grows] until, when he reaches maturity and reaches [the age of] forty years, he says, "My Lord, enable me to be grateful for Your favor which You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents and to work righteousness of which You will approve and make righteous for me my offspring. Indeed, I have repented to You, and indeed, I am of the Muslims."
أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلْجَنَّةِ خَـٰلِدِينَ فِيهَا جَزَآءًۢ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
Those are the companions of Paradise, abiding eternally therein as reward for what they used to do.
وَمَن لَّا يُجِبْ دَاعِىَ ٱللَّهِ فَلَيْسَ بِمُعْجِزٍ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَيْسَ لَهُۥ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءُ ۚ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ فِى ضَلَـٰلٍ مُّبِينٍ
But he who does not respond to the Caller of Allāh will not cause failure [to Him] upon earth, and he will not have besides Him any protectors. Those are in manifest error."