ثُمَّ بَدَّلْنَا مَكَانَ ٱلسَّيِّئَةِ ٱلْحَسَنَةَ حَتَّىٰ عَفَوا۟ وَّقَالُوا۟ قَدْ مَسَّ ءَابَآءَنَا ٱلضَّرَّآءُ وَٱلسَّرَّآءُ فَأَخَذْنَـٰهُم بَغْتَةً وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ 95
Translations
Then We exchanged in place of the bad [condition], good, until they increased [and prospered] and said, "Our fathers [also] were touched with hardship and ease." So We seized them suddenly while they did not perceive.
Transliteration
Thumma baddalnā makāna as-sayyiʾati al-ḥasanah ḥattā ʿafaw wa-qālū qad massa ābāʾanā aḍ-ḍarrāʾu wa-as-sarrāʾu fa-akhakhdhānāhum baghtatan wa-hum lā yashaʿūrūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes how Allah replaced hardship with ease and prosperity for a people, yet they became heedless and arrogant, attributing their good fortune to cycles of fortune that affected their ancestors rather than recognizing Allah's blessings. As a result, Allah seized them suddenly with punishment while they were unaware. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi interpret this as a warning against ingratitude and forgetfulness of divine favor—that prosperity without gratitude and recognition of Allah's role leads to sudden divine retribution.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-A'raf's broader narrative of nations who received signs and blessings from Allah but turned away in arrogance and disbelief. It follows the pattern established throughout the surah of communities receiving mercy, becoming prosperous, then rejecting their messengers and facing destruction. The specific historical reference may relate to past destroyed nations, serving as a warning to the Meccan polytheists.
Related Hadiths
The concept relates to Hadith Qudsi: 'I am as My slave thinks of Me, and I am with him when he remembers Me' (Sahih Bukhari 7405), emphasizing the importance of remembering Allah during prosperity. Also relevant is the hadith about gratitude: 'Whoever is not grateful for the little, will not be grateful for the much' (Tirmidhi 3585).
Themes
Key Lesson
Material prosperity and ease are tests from Allah that require constant gratitude and remembrance of Him, not arrogant forgetfulness or attribution to mere chance; those who forget Allah's favors in times of abundance face sudden and severe consequences they never anticipate.