كَلَّآ ۖ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَـٰهُم مِّمَّا يَعْلَمُونَ 39
Translations
No! Indeed, We have created them from that which they know.
Transliteration
Kallā, innā khalaqnāhum mimmā ya'lamūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah refutes the disbelievers' claim that they will not be resurrected, asserting that He created them from something they fully know—referring to semen (nutfah). Ibn Kathir explains this as Allah's affirmation that just as He created them initially from a despised fluid, He is certainly capable of recreating them after death. Al-Tabari emphasizes that this ayah demolishes the logical fallacy of those who deny resurrection by pointing to the undeniable reality of their own creation from humble origins.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the Meccan surah Al-Ma'arij, which addresses the disbelievers' rejection of the Day of Judgment and the resurrection. The broader context (70:36-44) presents arguments against those who deny the afterlife, with this specific verse serving as a rhetorical counter-argument based on observable creation.
Related Hadiths
The concept of creation from nutfah (semen) is referenced in Sahih Bukhari (3332) where the Prophet ﷺ describes the stages of human creation in the womb. Additionally, Surah Al-'Alaq (96:1-2) complements this with the command to 'Read! In the name of your Lord who created man from a clot.'
Themes
Key Lesson
The ayah teaches us that denying resurrection is illogical when we witness our own creation from humble beginnings, reminding believers that just as Allah created us once, His power to resurrect us is absolute and undeniable. This should strengthen our conviction in the Day of Judgment and humble us before Divine wisdom.
Related Ayahs
وَقَالُوٓا۟ أَءِذَا ضَلَلْنَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ أَءِنَّا لَفِى خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍۭ ۚ بَلْ هُم بِلِقَآءِ رَبِّهِمْ كَـٰفِرُونَ
And they say, "When we are lost [i.e., disintegrated] within the earth, will we indeed be [recreated] in a new creation?" Rather, they are, in the meeting with their Lord, disbelievers.
وَمِنْ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦٓ أَنَّكَ تَرَى ٱلْأَرْضَ خَـٰشِعَةً فَإِذَآ أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْهَا ٱلْمَآءَ ٱهْتَزَّتْ وَرَبَتْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَحْيَاهَا لَمُحْىِ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰٓ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
And of His signs is that you see the earth stilled, but when We send down upon it rain, it quivers and grows. Indeed, He who has given it life is the Giver of Life to the dead. Indeed, He is over all things competent.
يَوْمَ تَشَقَّقُ ٱلْأَرْضُ عَنْهُمْ سِرَاعًا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ حَشْرٌ عَلَيْنَا يَسِيرٌ
On the Day the earth breaks away from them [and they emerge] rapidly; that is a gathering easy for Us.
وَقَالَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ هَلْ نَدُلُّكُمْ عَلَىٰ رَجُلٍ يُنَبِّئُكُمْ إِذَا مُزِّقْتُمْ كُلَّ مُمَزَّقٍ إِنَّكُمْ لَفِى خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍ
But those who disbelieve say, "Shall we direct you to a man who will inform you [that] when you have disintegrated in complete disintegration, you will [then] be [recreated] in a new creation?