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
وَلُوطًا إِذْ قَالَ لِقَوْمِهِۦٓ أَتَأْتُونَ ٱلْفَـٰحِشَةَ مَا سَبَقَكُم بِهَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّنَ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
And [We had sent] Lot when he said to his people, "Do you commit such immorality as no one has preceded you with from among the worlds [i.e., peoples]?
خُذِ ٱلْعَفْوَ وَأْمُرْ بِٱلْعُرْفِ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ ٱلْجَـٰهِلِينَ
Take what is given freely, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the ignorant.
وَلِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلٌ ۖ فَإِذَا جَآءَ أَجَلُهُمْ لَا يَسْتَأْخِرُونَ سَاعَةً ۖ وَلَا يَسْتَقْدِمُونَ
And for every nation is a [specified] term. So when their time has come, they will not remain behind an hour, nor will they precede [it].
وَقَالَتْ أُولَىٰهُمْ لِأُخْرَىٰهُمْ فَمَا كَانَ لَكُمْ عَلَيْنَا مِن فَضْلٍ فَذُوقُوا۟ ٱلْعَذَابَ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَكْسِبُونَ
And the first of them will say to the last of them, "Then you had not any favor over us, so taste the punishment for what you used to earn."