وَكَأَيِّن مِّن قَرْيَةٍ أَمْلَيْتُ لَهَا وَهِىَ ظَالِمَةٌ ثُمَّ أَخَذْتُهَا وَإِلَىَّ ٱلْمَصِيرُ 48
Translations
And for how many a city did I prolong enjoyment while it was committing wrong. Then I seized it, and to Me is the [final] destination.
Transliteration
Wa-ka-ayyin min qaryatin amlaytu laha wa-hiya zalimah, thumma akhaztuha wa-ilayya al-masir
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah illustrates Allah's patience and forbearance with unjust communities by granting them respite and opportunity to repent, yet when they persist in wrongdoing, He seizes them with punishment. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir emphasize that 'Amlaytu' (I gave respite) demonstrates divine mercy, while the eventual seizure ('akhaztuha') shows that Allah's patience is not endless—all people ultimately return to Him for judgment. The ayah serves as a warning that prosperity and delay in punishment should not be mistaken for approval of injustice.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the context of Surah Al-Hajj's broader themes concerning divine judgment and accountability. While no specific asbab al-nuzul is recorded for this particular verse, it fits within the Medinan period's emphasis on warning the polytheists and hypocrites about the consequences of their transgressions, reinforcing the Quranic theme that nations are given opportunities to reform before divine punishment.
Related Hadiths
The concept relates to a hadith in Sahih Bukhari where the Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'When Allah intends good for a servant, He hastens his punishment in this world, and when He intends ill for a servant, He withholds his sins from him until he meets Him on the Day of Resurrection.' This illustrates how divine patience and punishment are intertwined with ultimate justice.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that Allah's patience with wrongdoers should inspire both hope for repentance and fear of eventual accountability—delay in punishment is not immunity from it. Believers should use periods of respite to reform themselves and their communities, understanding that all affairs ultimately return to Allah's judgment.
Related Ayahs
كُلَّمَآ أَرَادُوٓا۟ أَن يَخْرُجُوا۟ مِنْهَا مِنْ غَمٍّ أُعِيدُوا۟ فِيهَا وَذُوقُوا۟ عَذَابَ ٱلْحَرِيقِ
Every time they want to get out of it [i.e., Hellfire] from anguish, they will be returned to it, and [it will be said], "Taste the punishment of the Burning Fire!"
أَفَلَمْ يَسِيرُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَتَكُونَ لَهُمْ قُلُوبٌ يَعْقِلُونَ بِهَآ أَوْ ءَاذَانٌ يَسْمَعُونَ بِهَا ۖ فَإِنَّهَا لَا تَعْمَى ٱلْأَبْصَـٰرُ وَلَـٰكِن تَعْمَى ٱلْقُلُوبُ ٱلَّتِى فِى ٱلصُّدُورِ
So have they not traveled through the earth and have hearts by which to reason and ears by which to hear? For indeed, it is not eyes that are blinded, but blinded are the hearts which are within the breasts.
فَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ لَهُم مَّغْفِرَةٌ وَرِزْقٌ كَرِيمٌ
And those who have believed and done righteous deeds - for them is forgiveness and noble provision.
يَوْمَ تَرَوْنَهَا تَذْهَلُ كُلُّ مُرْضِعَةٍ عَمَّآ أَرْضَعَتْ وَتَضَعُ كُلُّ ذَاتِ حَمْلٍ حَمْلَهَا وَتَرَى ٱلنَّاسَ سُكَـٰرَىٰ وَمَا هُم بِسُكَـٰرَىٰ وَلَـٰكِنَّ عَذَابَ ٱللَّهِ شَدِيدٌ
On the Day you see it every nursing mother will be distracted from that [child] she was nursing, and every pregnant woman will abort her pregnancy, and you will see the people [appearing] intoxicated while they are not intoxicated; but the punishment of Allāh is severe.