وَٱلَّذِينَ سَعَوْا۟ فِىٓ ءَايَـٰتِنَا مُعَـٰجِزِينَ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلْجَحِيمِ 51
Translations
But the ones who strove against Our verses, [seeking] to cause failure - those are the companions of Hellfire.
Transliteration
Wa alladhīna sa'aw fī āyātinā mu'ājizīn, ulā'ika aṣḥābu al-jahīm
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah condemns those who strive to render Allah's signs ineffective or to obstruct them, declaring that such people are the companions of Hell. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret 'mu'ājizīn' (striving to obstruct/render powerless) as referring to those who actively resist, deny, or attempt to nullify Allah's clear signs and miracles. The ayah emphasizes that deliberate opposition to divine truth carries severe consequences in the Hereafter.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Al-Hajj, a Medinan chapter that addresses both believers and disbelievers. The broader context discusses various categories of people—the believers who obey, those who are in doubt, and those who actively oppose Allah's signs. This particular verse is part of a series addressing the stubborn rejection of disbelievers in Medina and Mecca who witnessed Allah's signs yet persisted in denial.
Related Hadiths
Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said: 'The most hated of people to Allah is the most stubborn in disbelief' (related to concepts in Tirmidhi and other collections). Additionally, the hadith in Sahih Bukhari reminds that 'Whoever conceals knowledge which Allah has revealed, Allah will gag him with a bridle of fire on the Day of Judgment,' which relates thematically to the active suppression of Allah's signs.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah warns against not merely disbelieving, but actively working to undermine or suppress truth and divine guidance. For modern readers, it encourages honest engagement with divine signs and truth, cautioning against allowing pride, arrogance, or ulterior motives to lead one into deliberate rejection and obstruction of what one knows to be right.
Related Ayahs
ٱللَّهُ يَصْطَفِى مِنَ ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ رُسُلًا وَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ سَمِيعٌۢ بَصِيرٌ
Allāh chooses from the angels messengers and from the people. Indeed, Allāh is Hearing and Seeing.
وَمِنَ ٱلنَّاسِ مَن يُجَـٰدِلُ فِى ٱللَّهِ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ وَلَا هُدًى وَلَا كِتَـٰبٍ مُّنِيرٍ
And of the people is he who disputes about Allāh without knowledge or guidance or an enlightening book [from Him],
إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُدْخِلُ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ جَنَّـٰتٍ تَجْرِى مِن تَحْتِهَا ٱلْأَنْهَـٰرُ يُحَلَّوْنَ فِيهَا مِنْ أَسَاوِرَ مِن ذَهَبٍ وَلُؤْلُؤًا ۖ وَلِبَاسُهُمْ فِيهَا حَرِيرٌ
Indeed, Allāh will admit those who believe and do righteous deeds to gardens beneath which rivers flow. They will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearl, and their garments therein will be silk.
وَيَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ مَا لَمْ يُنَزِّلْ بِهِۦ سُلْطَـٰنًا وَمَا لَيْسَ لَهُم بِهِۦ عِلْمٌ ۗ وَمَا لِلظَّـٰلِمِينَ مِن نَّصِيرٍ
And they worship besides Allāh that for which He has not sent down authority and that of which they have no knowledge. And there will not be for the wrongdoers any helper.