وَٱلْبَلَدُ ٱلطَّيِّبُ يَخْرُجُ نَبَاتُهُۥ بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِۦ ۖ وَٱلَّذِى خَبُثَ لَا يَخْرُجُ إِلَّا نَكِدًا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نُصَرِّفُ ٱلْـَٔايَـٰتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَشْكُرُونَ 58
Translations
And the good land - its vegetation emerges by permission of its Lord; but that which is bad - nothing emerges except sparsely, with difficulty. Thus do We diversify the signs for a people who are grateful.
Transliteration
Wal-baladu at-tayyibu yakhruju nabaatuhu bi-idhni rabbih, wal-ladhi khabutha laa yakhruju illaa nakidan, kadhalika nusarrifu al-ayati li-qawmin yashkurun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah uses the metaphor of fertile and barren land to illustrate the difference between receptive and unreceptive hearts. The good land (tayyib) produces abundant vegetation by Allah's permission, while corrupt land (khabith) yields only sparse, difficult growth—paralleling how sincere believers benefit from divine signs while those with hardened hearts derive little benefit. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi interpret this as both a literal agricultural lesson and a spiritual allegory for the human soul's capacity to receive divine guidance.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the Meccan surah Al-A'raf, which emphasizes divine signs and human responsibility. It contextualizes the broader theme of the surah: just as Allah's signs in nature are evident to all, yet only the grateful and thoughtful benefit from them, so too does divine revelation affect hearts differently based on their spiritual condition and receptivity.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The example of the one who recites the Qur'an is like the citron, whose fragrance is pleasant and taste is good; and the one who does not recite the Qur'an is like the date-palm tree which has no fragrance but has a good taste.' (Sahih Bukhari 5059). This hadith similarly illustrates differential spiritual fruit from receptive versus unreceptive conditions.
Themes
Key Lesson
Our spiritual growth depends not merely on exposure to divine guidance, but on the condition of our hearts—we must cultivate receptivity, sincerity, and gratitude to truly benefit from Allah's signs. Like fertile soil requires proper preparation, the human heart must be cleansed of arrogance and pride to flourish spiritually.
Related Ayahs
قَالَ ٱدْخُلُوا۟ فِىٓ أُمَمٍ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِكُم مِّنَ ٱلْجِنِّ وَٱلْإِنسِ فِى ٱلنَّارِ ۖ كُلَّمَا دَخَلَتْ أُمَّةٌ لَّعَنَتْ أُخْتَهَا ۖ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا ٱدَّارَكُوا۟ فِيهَا جَمِيعًا قَالَتْ أُخْرَىٰهُمْ لِأُولَىٰهُمْ رَبَّنَا هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ أَضَلُّونَا فَـَٔاتِهِمْ عَذَابًا ضِعْفًا مِّنَ ٱلنَّارِ ۖ قَالَ لِكُلٍّ ضِعْفٌ وَلَـٰكِن لَّا تَعْلَمُونَ
[Allāh] will say, "Enter among nations which had passed on before you of jinn and mankind into the Fire." Every time a nation enters, it will curse its sister until, when they have all overtaken one another therein, the last of them will say about the first of them, "Our Lord, these had misled us, so give them a double punishment of the Fire." He will say, "For each is double, but you do not know."
قَالَ فِيهَا تَحْيَوْنَ وَفِيهَا تَمُوتُونَ وَمِنْهَا تُخْرَجُونَ
He said, "Therein you will live, and therein you will die, and from it you will be brought forth."
وَإِخْوَٰنُهُمْ يَمُدُّونَهُمْ فِى ٱلْغَىِّ ثُمَّ لَا يُقْصِرُونَ
But their brothers - they [i.e., the devils] increase them in error; then they do not stop short.
ٱلَّذِينَ يَصُدُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَيَبْغُونَهَا عِوَجًا وَهُم بِٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ كَـٰفِرُونَ
Who averted [people] from the way of Allāh and sought to make it [seem] deviant while they were, concerning the Hereafter, disbelievers."