قُلِ ٱللَّهُ يُنَجِّيكُم مِّنْهَا وَمِن كُلِّ كَرْبٍ ثُمَّ أَنتُمْ تُشْرِكُونَ 64
Translations
Say, "It is Allāh who saves you from it and from every distress; then you [still] associate others with Him."
Transliteration
Qul Allahu yunajjikum minha wa min kulli karbin thumma antum tushrikun
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah commands the Prophet (ﷺ) to tell the people that Allah alone is the One who delivers them from distress and every hardship, yet despite this clear manifestation of His power and mercy, they persist in associating partners with Him. Ibn Kathir explains this as highlighting the contradiction of human nature—recognizing Allah's exclusive power in times of crisis while reverting to shirk in times of ease—demonstrating both Allah's patience with His creation and the ingratitude of those who forget their Lord's favors.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the Meccan surah Al-An'am, which emphasizes monotheism and refutes polytheistic practices of the Quraysh. The ayah is part of a broader passage addressing the hypocrisy of the idolaters who called upon Allah alone in times of danger but returned to idol worship when safe. This reflects the common Meccan pattern of calling out such contradictions.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Muslim reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'When a man is afflicted with a calamity and says, "Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un" (Indeed we belong to Allah and to Him we shall return), Allah will compensate him with reward and a better replacement.' This hadith complements the ayah's theme of turning to Allah in times of distress.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that true faith requires consistency in recognizing Allah's sovereignty in both hardship and ease, rather than selectively calling upon Him only in times of crisis. It encourages believers to maintain gratitude and monotheistic devotion regardless of circumstances, avoiding the trap of compartmentalizing our reliance on Allah.
Related Ayahs
وَكَذَٰلِكَ فَتَنَّا بَعْضَهُم بِبَعْضٍ لِّيَقُولُوٓا۟ أَهَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ مَنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْهِم مِّنۢ بَيْنِنَآ ۗ أَلَيْسَ ٱللَّهُ بِأَعْلَمَ بِٱلشَّـٰكِرِينَ
And thus We have tried some of them through others that they [i.e., the disbelievers] might say, "Is it these whom Allāh has favored among us?" Is not Allāh most knowing of those who are grateful?
۞ لَهُمْ دَارُ ٱلسَّلَـٰمِ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ ۖ وَهُوَ وَلِيُّهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
For them will be the Home of Peace [i.e., Paradise] with their Lord. And He will be their protecting friend because of what they used to do.
وَمَا تَأْتِيهِم مِّنْ ءَايَةٍ مِّنْ ءَايَـٰتِ رَبِّهِمْ إِلَّا كَانُوا۟ عَنْهَا مُعْرِضِينَ
And no sign comes to them from the signs of their Lord except that they turn away therefrom.
سَيَقُولُ ٱلَّذِينَ أَشْرَكُوا۟ لَوْ شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ مَآ أَشْرَكْنَا وَلَآ ءَابَآؤُنَا وَلَا حَرَّمْنَا مِن شَىْءٍ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ كَذَّبَ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ حَتَّىٰ ذَاقُوا۟ بَأْسَنَا ۗ قُلْ هَلْ عِندَكُم مِّنْ عِلْمٍ فَتُخْرِجُوهُ لَنَآ ۖ إِن تَتَّبِعُونَ إِلَّا ٱلظَّنَّ وَإِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلَّا تَخْرُصُونَ
Those who associated [others] with Allāh will say, "If Allāh had willed, we would not have associated [anything] and neither would our fathers, nor would we have prohibited anything." Likewise did those before deny until they tasted Our punishment. Say, "Do you have any knowledge that you can produce for us? You follow not except assumption, and you are not but misjudging."