فَدَلَّىٰهُمَا بِغُرُورٍ ۚ فَلَمَّا ذَاقَا ٱلشَّجَرَةَ بَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْءَٰتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ ٱلْجَنَّةِ ۖ وَنَادَىٰهُمَا رَبُّهُمَآ أَلَمْ أَنْهَكُمَا عَن تِلْكُمَا ٱلشَّجَرَةِ وَأَقُل لَّكُمَآ إِنَّ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنَ لَكُمَا عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ 22
Translations
So he made them fall, through deception. And when they tasted of the tree, their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to fasten together over themselves from the leaves of Paradise. And their Lord called to them, "Did I not forbid you from that tree and tell you that Satan is to you a clear enemy?"
Transliteration
Fa-dallāhumā bi-ghurūr. Fa-lammā dhāqā ash-shajarata badat lahuma sawʾātuhuma wa-ṭafiqā yakhṣifāni ʿalayhimā min waraq al-jannah. Wa-nādāhumā rabbuhumā alam anhakumā ʿan tilkumā ash-shajarah wa-aqul lakumā inna ash-shaytāna lakumā ʿaduwwun mubīn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes how Iblis (Satan) deceived Adam and Eve with false promises, leading them to eat from the forbidden tree. Upon tasting the fruit, their shame became apparent to them—their bodies became exposed—and they hastily began covering themselves with leaves from Paradise. Allah then called out to them, reminding them of His clear prohibition against eating from that tree and His explicit warning that Satan is their manifest enemy. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir emphasize that this moment marks humanity's first test and the origin of modesty and shame as divine consequences of disobedience.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the detailed narrative of Adam and Eve in Surah Al-A'raf (Meccan period), which recounts the creation of mankind and the fall from Paradise. The broader context establishes the eternal enmity between humanity and Satan, serving as a foundational lesson for the Meccan audience about the nature of temptation and divine justice. This narrative appears in multiple surahs (2:34-36, 18:50, 20:120-121) with varying emphases.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'When Adam committed the sin, he said: O Lord, I ask you by the right of Muhammad to forgive me.' Allah said: 'How do you know Muhammad?' Adam replied: 'When You created me with Your own hands and breathed into me of Your spirit, I raised my head and saw written on the Throne: La ilaha illallah, Muhammad Rasulullah [There is none worthy of worship but Allah, Muhammad is His Messenger].' (Tirmidhi, though with weak chain). Another relevant narration: Sahih Muslim records that the Prophet mentioned the creation of Adam and the trials that followed.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that Satan's primary tool is deception and false promises rather than force, and that succumbing to temptation inevitably brings shame and regret. For modern readers, it emphasizes the importance of heeding Allah's clear warnings, recognizing Satan as an open enemy, and understanding that accountability for our choices is immediate and inescapable, yet Allah's door to repentance remains open.
Related Ayahs
وَٱلَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا سَنَسْتَدْرِجُهُم مِّنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ
But those who deny Our signs - We will progressively lead them [to destruction] from where they do not know.
وَلَقَدْ ذَرَأْنَا لِجَهَنَّمَ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ ٱلْجِنِّ وَٱلْإِنسِ ۖ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ لَّا يَفْقَهُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ أَعْيُنٌ لَّا يُبْصِرُونَ بِهَا وَلَهُمْ ءَاذَانٌ لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَآ ۚ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ كَٱلْأَنْعَـٰمِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ ۚ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْغَـٰفِلُونَ
And We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind. They have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, and they have ears with which they do not hear. Those are like livestock; rather, they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless.
۞ وَوَٰعَدْنَا مُوسَىٰ ثَلَـٰثِينَ لَيْلَةً وَأَتْمَمْنَـٰهَا بِعَشْرٍ فَتَمَّ مِيقَـٰتُ رَبِّهِۦٓ أَرْبَعِينَ لَيْلَةً ۚ وَقَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِأَخِيهِ هَـٰرُونَ ٱخْلُفْنِى فِى قَوْمِى وَأَصْلِحْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ سَبِيلَ ٱلْمُفْسِدِينَ
And We made an appointment with Moses for thirty nights and perfected them by [the addition of] ten; so the term of his Lord was completed as forty nights. And Moses said to his brother Aaron, "Take my place among my people, do right [by them], and do not follow the way of the corrupters."
وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ ٱلْقُرَىٰٓ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَٱتَّقَوْا۟ لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَرَكَـٰتٍ مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَـٰكِن كَذَّبُوا۟ فَأَخَذْنَـٰهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ
And if only the people of the cities had believed and feared Allāh, We would have opened [i.e., bestowed] upon them blessings from the heaven and the earth; but they denied [the messengers], so We seized them for what they were earning.