قُل لَّآ أَمْلِكُ لِنَفْسِى نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا إِلَّا مَا شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ ۚ وَلَوْ كُنتُ أَعْلَمُ ٱلْغَيْبَ لَٱسْتَكْثَرْتُ مِنَ ٱلْخَيْرِ وَمَا مَسَّنِىَ ٱلسُّوٓءُ ۚ إِنْ أَنَا۠ إِلَّا نَذِيرٌ وَبَشِيرٌ لِّقَوْمٍ يُؤْمِنُونَ 188
Translations
Say, "I hold not for myself [the power of] benefit or harm, except what Allāh has willed. And if I knew the unseen, I could have acquired much wealth, and no harm would have touched me. I am not except a warner and a bringer of good tidings to a people who believe."
Transliteration
Qul lā amliku li-nafsī naf'an wa-lā darran illā mā shā'a Allāh. Wa-law kuntu a'lamu al-ghayba la-staktharta min al-khayri wa-mā massanī al-sū'. In anā illā nadhīrun wa-bashīrun li-qawmin yu'minūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah presents a profound declaration by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) affirming his complete dependence on Allah and refuting any claims to supernatural knowledge or independent power. The Prophet clarifies that he cannot benefit or harm himself except by Allah's will, and denies knowledge of the unseen (ghayb)—had he possessed such knowledge, he would have accumulated all good and avoided all harm. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this verse emphasizes the Prophet's human limitations while establishing his authentic role: he is merely a warner (nadhīr) and bearer of glad tidings (bashīr) for those who believe, not a worker of miracles or holder of divine secrets.
Revelation Context
This ayah was revealed in Mecca during the early Meccan period when polytheists were demanding that the Prophet perform miracles or demonstrate supernatural knowledge to prove his prophethood. The broader context of Surah Al-A'raf (which deals with signs, trials, and the stories of previous prophets) emphasizes that prophets are human messengers bound by divine law, not autonomous miracle-workers.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari: The Prophet said, 'I am only a human being like you; it is revealed to me that your God is one God' (Hadith on the Prophet's humanity). Sahih Muslim: The Prophet stated that he does not know what will happen to him or to the believers, emphasizing his lack of knowledge of the unseen except what Allah has informed him.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches Muslims that true faith means acknowledging Allah's ultimate control over all affairs while recognizing that even the Prophet possessed no supernatural powers—our trust should be in Allah alone, not in human intermediaries. For believers today, it serves as a reminder to rely entirely on divine guidance and to be cautious of those who claim hidden knowledge or divine authority beyond what the Quran and Sunnah establish.
Related Ayahs
وَٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا وَٱسْتَكْبَرُوا۟ عَنْهَآ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلنَّارِ ۖ هُمْ فِيهَا خَـٰلِدُونَ
But the ones who deny Our verses and are arrogant toward them - those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide therein eternally.
يَسْـَٔلُونَكَ عَنِ ٱلسَّاعَةِ أَيَّانَ مُرْسَىٰهَا ۖ قُلْ إِنَّمَا عِلْمُهَا عِندَ رَبِّى ۖ لَا يُجَلِّيهَا لِوَقْتِهَآ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ ثَقُلَتْ فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ لَا تَأْتِيكُمْ إِلَّا بَغْتَةً ۗ يَسْـَٔلُونَكَ كَأَنَّكَ حَفِىٌّ عَنْهَا ۖ قُلْ إِنَّمَا عِلْمُهَا عِندَ ٱللَّهِ وَلَـٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ ٱلنَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ
They ask you, [O Muḥammad], about the Hour: when is its arrival? Say, "Its knowledge is only with my Lord. None will reveal its time except Him. It lays heavily upon the heavens and the earth. It will not come upon you except unexpectedly." They ask you as if you are familiar with it. Say, "Its knowledge is only with Allāh, but most of the people do not know."
فَخَلَفَ مِنۢ بَعْدِهِمْ خَلْفٌ وَرِثُوا۟ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ يَأْخُذُونَ عَرَضَ هَـٰذَا ٱلْأَدْنَىٰ وَيَقُولُونَ سَيُغْفَرُ لَنَا وَإِن يَأْتِهِمْ عَرَضٌ مِّثْلُهُۥ يَأْخُذُوهُ ۚ أَلَمْ يُؤْخَذْ عَلَيْهِم مِّيثَـٰقُ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ أَن لَّا يَقُولُوا۟ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ إِلَّا ٱلْحَقَّ وَدَرَسُوا۟ مَا فِيهِ ۗ وَٱلدَّارُ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ لِّلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ ۗ أَفَلَا تَعْقِلُونَ
And there followed them successors who inherited the Scripture [while] taking the commodities of this lower life and saying, "It will be forgiven for us." And if an offer like it comes to them, they will [again] take it. Was not the covenant of the Scripture [i.e., the Torah] taken from them that they would not say about Allāh except the truth, and they studied what was in it? And the home of the Hereafter is better for those who fear Allāh, so will you not use reason?
أُبَلِّغُكُمْ رِسَـٰلَـٰتِ رَبِّى وَأَنَا۠ لَكُمْ نَاصِحٌ أَمِينٌ
I convey to you the messages of my Lord, and I am to you a trustworthy adviser.