بَلْ هُوَ ءَايَـٰتٌۢ بَيِّنَـٰتٌ فِى صُدُورِ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمَ ۚ وَمَا يَجْحَدُ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَآ إِلَّا ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ 49
Translations
Rather, it [i.e., the Qur’ān] is distinct verses [preserved] within the breasts of those who have been given knowledge. And none reject Our verses except the wrongdoers.
Transliteration
Bal huwa ayatun bayyinatun fi suduri alladhina ootoo al-'ilma wa ma yajhadu bi-ayatina illa al-zalimun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah refutes the disbelievers' claim that the Qur'an is unclear or ambiguous by asserting that its signs (ayat) are manifest and clear within the hearts of those who possess knowledge ('ilm). Al-Qurtubi explains that the ayat are 'clear' not merely in their textual presentation, but in how they illuminate the hearts of the knowledgeable, while only the wrongdoers (zalimun) reject these signs—a rejection rooted in spiritual arrogance rather than intellectual inability. Ibn Kathir emphasizes that true understanding of the Qur'an comes to those who purify their hearts and seek knowledge sincerely.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Al-'Ankabut, a Meccan surah addressing early objections from polytheists who claimed the Qur'an was unclear, unclear in its message, or difficult to understand. The broader context of 29:47-49 deals with the clarity of the Qur'an and that denial stems from arrogance and injustice, not from lack of evidence.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'The best of you are those who learn the Qur'an and teach it' (Sahih Bukhari 5027). Also relevant: 'Whoever Allah intends good for, He gives them understanding of the religion' (Sahih Bukhari 71), connecting knowledge to divine grace and sincere hearts.
Themes
Key Lesson
True comprehension of divine revelation is not a matter of textual obscurity but of the receptivity of one's heart; those who reject the signs of God do so out of deliberate wrongdoing and spiritual disease, not legitimate intellectual doubt. For believers today, this teaches that deepening one's Islamic knowledge ('ilm) is a means of spiritual illumination and a protection against doubt and deviation.