تَبَارَكَ ٱلَّذِى نَزَّلَ ٱلْفُرْقَانَ عَلَىٰ عَبْدِهِۦ لِيَكُونَ لِلْعَـٰلَمِينَ نَذِيرًا 1
Translations
Blessed is He who sent down the Criterion upon His Servant that he may be to the worlds a warner -
Transliteration
Tabaraka allathee nazzala al-Furqana ala abdihi liyakuna li-al-alameen natheeran
Tafsir (Explanation)
This opening ayah of Surah Al-Furqan glorifies Allah (Exalted is He) for revealing the Qur'an—called 'Al-Furqan' (The Criterion) because it distinguishes between truth and falsehood—upon His servant Muhammad (peace be upon him). The phrase 'Tabaraka' (Blessed/Exalted) emphasizes Allah's infinite blessing and majesty. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir explain that the purpose of this revelation is to make the Qur'an a universal warning (natheer) for all mankind, calling them away from idolatry and toward monotheism.
Revelation Context
This ayah opens Surah Al-Furqan, a Meccan surah revealed during the early Meccan period. It establishes the foundational theme of the surah: the Qur'an as a divine criterion and warning for humanity. The opening serves to introduce the surah's emphasis on the Qur'an's miraculous nature and its universal mission to warn all peoples.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'I have been sent as a warner and a bringer of glad tidings' (Sahih Bukhari 4:1). Additionally, the hadith emphasizing the Qur'an's role as a guide: 'Indeed, this Qur'an guides to that which is most upright' (Surah Al-Isra 17:9)—a related Quranic principle affirming the Qur'an's guiding function.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds believers that the Qur'an is not merely a religious text for a specific community, but a universal guidance and warning meant for all humanity. For modern readers, it emphasizes the responsibility to understand, internalize, and convey the Qur'anic message as a criterion for distinguishing right from wrong in all aspects of life.
Related Ayahs
۞ وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِى مَرَجَ ٱلْبَحْرَيْنِ هَـٰذَا عَذْبٌ فُرَاتٌ وَهَـٰذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌ وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَهُمَا بَرْزَخًا وَحِجْرًا مَّحْجُورًا
And it is He who has released [simultaneously] the two seas [i.e., bodies of water], one fresh and sweet and one salty and bitter, and He placed between them a barrier and prohibiting partition.
يَـٰوَيْلَتَىٰ لَيْتَنِى لَمْ أَتَّخِذْ فُلَانًا خَلِيلًا
Oh, woe to me! I wish I had not taken that one as a friend.
فَقَدْ كَذَّبُوكُم بِمَا تَقُولُونَ فَمَا تَسْتَطِيعُونَ صَرْفًا وَلَا نَصْرًا ۚ وَمَن يَظْلِم مِّنكُمْ نُذِقْهُ عَذَابًا كَبِيرًا
So they will deny you, [disbelievers], in what you say, and you cannot avert [punishment] or [find] help. And whoever commits injustice among you - We will make him taste a great punishment.
يَوْمَ يَرَوْنَ ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةَ لَا بُشْرَىٰ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلْمُجْرِمِينَ وَيَقُولُونَ حِجْرًا مَّحْجُورًا
The day they see the angels - no good tidings will there be that day for the criminals, and [the angels] will say, "Prevented and inaccessible."