وَلَوْ تَرَىٰٓ إِذْ يَتَوَفَّى ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ ۙ ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةُ يَضْرِبُونَ وُجُوهَهُمْ وَأَدْبَـٰرَهُمْ وَذُوقُوا۟ عَذَابَ ٱلْحَرِيقِ 50
Translations
And if you could but see when the angels take the souls of those who disbelieved... They are striking their faces and their backs and [saying], "Taste the punishment of the Burning Fire.
Transliteration
Wa-law tarā idhā yatawaffā alladhīna kafarū al-malāʾikatu yaḍribūna wujūhahum wa-adbārahum wa-dhūqū ʿadhāba al-ḥarīq
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah vividly depicts the moment when angels seize the souls of disbelievers at death, striking their faces and backs while commanding them to taste the punishment of the Fire. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi explain that this describes the humiliation and torment the disbelievers experience at the moment of death, as a prelude to their eternal punishment in Hell. The ayah emphasizes both the physical aspect of their punishment and the shame they endure as they are forcefully taken by the angels.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-Anfal (revealed in Medina), which discusses the Battle of Badr and its lessons. It appears within a passage (8:50-52) that contrasts the fate of believers and disbelievers, serving to warn the disbelievers of Quraysh and strengthen the resolve of the Muslim community during early Medinan struggles.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) mentioned in various hadiths the severity of death for disbelievers. Muslim reported that the Prophet described how the angels of death come to the disbeliever with a black cloth, emphasizing the difficulty and humiliation of their departure from this life.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a sobering reminder that rejection of faith carries severe consequences not only in the afterlife but even at the moment of death itself, encouraging believers to steadfast in faith and warning against arrogance and disbelief. It underscores the importance of preparing for death through righteous deeds and sincere belief in Allah.
Related Ayahs
مِّن وَرَآئِهِمْ جَهَنَّمُ ۖ وَلَا يُغْنِى عَنْهُم مَّا كَسَبُوا۟ شَيْـًٔا وَلَا مَا ٱتَّخَذُوا۟ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ أَوْلِيَآءَ ۖ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
Before them is Hell, and what they had earned will not avail them at all nor what they had taken besides Allāh as allies. And they will have a great punishment.
لَّا تَدْعُوا۟ ٱلْيَوْمَ ثُبُورًا وَٰحِدًا وَٱدْعُوا۟ ثُبُورًا كَثِيرًا
[They will be told], "Do not cry this Day for one destruction but cry for much destruction."
وَلَوْ أَنَّ قُرْءَانًا سُيِّرَتْ بِهِ ٱلْجِبَالُ أَوْ قُطِّعَتْ بِهِ ٱلْأَرْضُ أَوْ كُلِّمَ بِهِ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ ۗ بَل لِّلَّهِ ٱلْأَمْرُ جَمِيعًا ۗ أَفَلَمْ يَا۟يْـَٔسِ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَن لَّوْ يَشَآءُ ٱللَّهُ لَهَدَى ٱلنَّاسَ جَمِيعًا ۗ وَلَا يَزَالُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ تُصِيبُهُم بِمَا صَنَعُوا۟ قَارِعَةٌ أَوْ تَحُلُّ قَرِيبًا مِّن دَارِهِمْ حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِىَ وَعْدُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُخْلِفُ ٱلْمِيعَادَ
And if there was any Qur’ān [i.e., recitation] by which the mountains would be removed or the earth would be broken apart or the dead would be made to speak, [it would be this Qur’ān], but to Allāh belongs the affair entirely. Then have those who believed not accepted that had Allāh willed, He would have guided the people, all of them? And those who disbelieve do not cease to be struck, for what they have done, by calamity - or it will descend near their home - until there comes the promise of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh does not fail in [His] promise.
ٱلَّذِى يَصْلَى ٱلنَّارَ ٱلْكُبْرَىٰ
[He] who will [enter and] burn in the greatest Fire,