وَيَخِرُّونَ لِلْأَذْقَانِ يَبْكُونَ وَيَزِيدُهُمْ خُشُوعًا ۩ 109
Translations
And they fall upon their faces weeping, and it [i.e., the Qur’ān] increases them in humble submission.
Transliteration
Wa-yakhirrun lil-adhqani yabkun wa-yaziduhum khushu'a
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the believers' emotional and spiritual response upon hearing the Qur'an recited—they fall prostrate to the ground weeping out of reverence and awe for Allah's words. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this verse illustrates the profound impact the Qur'an has on those with sincere hearts, as they are moved to tears and increased humility (khushu') in submission to Allah. Al-Qurtubi emphasizes that this reaction represents the peak of spiritual consciousness and demonstrates how the divine words penetrate the hearts of the faithful.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the context of Surah Al-Isra's discussion of the Qur'an's miraculous nature and its effects on believers. It is part of a broader passage (17:107-109) describing how those who believe respond to the Qur'an with tears and prostration, contrasting them with those who turn away. The surah addresses the spiritual transformation that occurs when sincere hearts encounter Allah's revelation.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'The best of you are those who learn the Qur'an and teach it' (Sahih Bukhari 5027). Additionally, 'When the verses of the Most Merciful were recited to them, they fell down in prostration and weeping' is referenced in the context of Surah Maryam 58, showing a parallel spiritual state of believers.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that true faith involves an emotional and spiritual responsiveness to Allah's words—believers should seek to develop sincere hearts that are moved by the Qur'an's message. In our modern distracted age, this verse encourages us to recite and listen to the Qur'an with presence of heart and genuine reverence, allowing its words to penetrate our souls and increase our humility before Allah.
Related Ayahs
قُل لَّئِنِ ٱجْتَمَعَتِ ٱلْإِنسُ وَٱلْجِنُّ عَلَىٰٓ أَن يَأْتُوا۟ بِمِثْلِ هَـٰذَا ٱلْقُرْءَانِ لَا يَأْتُونَ بِمِثْلِهِۦ وَلَوْ كَانَ بَعْضُهُمْ لِبَعْضٍ ظَهِيرًا
Say, "If mankind and the jinn gathered in order to produce the like of this Qur’ān, they could not produce the like of it, even if they were to each other assistants."
وَيَدْعُ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنُ بِٱلشَّرِّ دُعَآءَهُۥ بِٱلْخَيْرِ ۖ وَكَانَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنُ عَجُولًا
And man supplicates for evil [when angry] as he supplicates for good, and man is ever hasty.
وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لَكَ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ أَحَاطَ بِٱلنَّاسِ ۚ وَمَا جَعَلْنَا ٱلرُّءْيَا ٱلَّتِىٓ أَرَيْنَـٰكَ إِلَّا فِتْنَةً لِّلنَّاسِ وَٱلشَّجَرَةَ ٱلْمَلْعُونَةَ فِى ٱلْقُرْءَانِ ۚ وَنُخَوِّفُهُمْ فَمَا يَزِيدُهُمْ إِلَّا طُغْيَـٰنًا كَبِيرًا
And [remember, O Muḥammad], when We told you, "Indeed, your Lord has encompassed the people." And We did not make the sight which We showed you except as a trial for the people, as was the accursed tree [mentioned] in the Qur’ān. And We threaten [i.e., warn] them, but it increases them not except in great transgression.
إِنَّ عِبَادِى لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَـٰنٌ ۚ وَكَفَىٰ بِرَبِّكَ وَكِيلًا
Indeed, over My [believing] servants there is for you no authority. And sufficient is your Lord as Disposer of affairs.