وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَا فِى قَرْيَةٍ مِّن نَّبِىٍّ إِلَّآ أَخَذْنَآ أَهْلَهَا بِٱلْبَأْسَآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَضَّرَّعُونَ 94
Translations
And We sent to no city a prophet [who was denied] except that We seized its people with poverty and hardship that they might humble themselves [to Allāh].
Transliteration
Wa mā arsalnā fī qaryatin min nabiyyin illā akhazhnā ahlahā bil-ba'sā'i wa-d-darrā'i la'allahum yaddarraa'ūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah establishes a divine pattern: whenever Allah sent a prophet to a community, He tested that community with hardship and adversity so that they might turn to Him in humble supplication (du'ā). Ibn Kathir notes this reflects Allah's wisdom in using trials as a means of spiritual awakening and repentance. Al-Tabari emphasizes that these afflictions are merciful interventions designed to guide people back to their Lord before more severe punishment befalls them.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the middle section of Surah Al-A'raf, which discusses the histories of various prophets and their peoples. It provides a general principle about the testing of communities throughout history, illustrating the consistent divine methodology in calling people to monotheism and righteousness. The context emphasizes that hardship is not arbitrary punishment but a means of spiritual reform.
Related Hadiths
The principle aligns with the hadith in Sahih Muslim where the Prophet ﷺ said: 'The greatest reward comes with the greatest trial. When Allah loves a people, He tests them.' Additionally, in Sunan Ibn Majah, the Prophet stated that trials purify sins and elevate ranks.
Themes
Key Lesson
Trials and difficulties in life are not signs of divine abandonment but rather opportunities for spiritual purification and drawing closer to Allah through sincere supplication. Understanding this divine pattern encourages believers to respond to life's challenges with humility, prayer, and trust in Allah's ultimate wisdom and mercy.
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."
فَغُلِبُوا۟ هُنَالِكَ وَٱنقَلَبُوا۟ صَـٰغِرِينَ
And they [i.e., Pharaoh and his people] were overcome right there and became debased.
فَلَمَّا عَتَوْا۟ عَن مَّا نُهُوا۟ عَنْهُ قُلْنَا لَهُمْ كُونُوا۟ قِرَدَةً خَـٰسِـِٔينَ
So when they were insolent about that which they had been forbidden, We said to them, "Be apes, despised."
الٓمٓصٓ
Alif, Lām, Meem, Ṣād.