إِنَّآ أَعْتَدْنَا لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ سَلَـٰسِلَا۟ وَأَغْلَـٰلًا وَسَعِيرًا 4
Translations
Indeed, We have prepared for the disbelievers chains and shackles and a blaze.
Transliteration
Inna a'tadna lilkafireena salasila wa aghlalan wa sa'eera
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah declares that He has prepared chains, shackles, and a blazing fire for the disbelievers as punishment in the Hereafter. The mention of these three punishments together emphasizes the severity and totality of their torment—physical restraint through chains and shackles, combined with the agony of the hellfire itself. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir note that these punishments are specifically for those who reject Allah's signs and persist in disbelief, serving as both a warning and a reaffirmation of divine justice.
Revelation Context
Surah Al-Insan was revealed in Madinah and discusses the contrasting fates of the righteous and the disbelievers. This ayah appears in the latter portion of the surah where Allah explicitly outlines the severe punishment awaiting those who reject faith, providing a powerful counterpoint to the descriptions of Paradise given earlier for the believers.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said regarding the hellfire: 'The least punished person in Hell will have two shoes and two shoelaces of fire that will boil his brain' (Sahih Bukhari 6562). Additionally, the Quran frequently pairs descriptions of chains with hellfire, as in Surah Ghafir 40:71: 'Those who disbelieve will be driven to Hell in groups.'
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a solemn reminder that rejection of Allah's truth carries severe eternal consequences, encouraging believers to remain steadfast in faith and to reflect on the importance of sincere belief and obedience. For modern readers, it underscores that accountability is real and that the choices made in this life regarding faith have profound and lasting implications.
Related Ayahs
وَوُفِّيَتْ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ مَّا عَمِلَتْ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَفْعَلُونَ
And every soul will be fully compensated [for] what it did; and He is most knowing of what they do.
قُل لِّلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ يَغْفِرُوا۟ لِلَّذِينَ لَا يَرْجُونَ أَيَّامَ ٱللَّهِ لِيَجْزِىَ قَوْمًۢا بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ
Say, [O Muḥammad], to those who have believed that they [should] forgive those who expect not the days of Allāh [i.e., of His retribution] so that He may recompense a people for what they used to earn.
ثُمَّ يُقَالُ هَـٰذَا ٱلَّذِى كُنتُم بِهِۦ تُكَذِّبُونَ
Then it will be said [to them], "This is what you used to deny."
تَرَى ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ مُشْفِقِينَ مِمَّا كَسَبُوا۟ وَهُوَ وَاقِعٌۢ بِهِمْ ۗ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ فِى رَوْضَاتِ ٱلْجَنَّاتِ ۖ لَهُم مَّا يَشَآءُونَ عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ هُوَ ٱلْفَضْلُ ٱلْكَبِيرُ
You will see the wrongdoers fearful of what they have earned, and it will [certainly] befall them. And those who have believed and done righteous deeds will be in lush regions of the gardens [in Paradise] having whatever they will in the presence of their Lord. That is what is the great bounty.