كَلَّآ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ لِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا عَنِيدًا 16
Translations
No! Indeed, he has been toward Our verses obstinate.
Transliteration
Kallā, innahu kāna li-āyātinā 'anīdā
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah emphatically rejects the excuses of those who turn away from Allah's signs out of stubbornness and enmity. The word 'anīdā (عنيدا) means a persistent denier who opposes the truth with deliberate hostility and arrogance. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir note that this ayah refers to those who witnessed Allah's clear signs yet refused to believe, their rejection stemming not from ignorance but from willful defiance and pride.
Revelation Context
Surah Al-Muddaththir is an early Meccan revelation addressing the Prophet's mission and warning disbelievers about the consequences of rejecting divine guidance. This particular ayah appears in the context of descriptions of the inhabitants of Hell, emphasizing that their punishment is just recompense for their intentional rejection of Allah's clear proofs.
Related Hadiths
The hadith in Sahih Muslim (2797) where the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'Everyone will find easy for him the deeds which lead him to his destiny,' relates to how those destined for Hell through their own obstinacy and denial find their rejection of truth increasingly easy. Additionally, the hadith in Sunan Ibn Majah about hardening of hearts relates to the concept of 'anād (stubborn opposition).
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that Allah's punishment is not arbitrary but reserved for those who knowingly and deliberately reject His clear signs with arrogance; modern believers should guard against the spiritual disease of stubbornness and remain humble before divine truth, recognizing that sincere seeking of guidance is far different from willful denial.
Related Ayahs
أَوْ تَقُولُوا۟ لَوْ أَنَّآ أُنزِلَ عَلَيْنَا ٱلْكِتَـٰبُ لَكُنَّآ أَهْدَىٰ مِنْهُمْ ۚ فَقَدْ جَآءَكُم بَيِّنَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ وَهُدًى وَرَحْمَةٌ ۚ فَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّن كَذَّبَ بِـَٔايَـٰتِ ٱللَّهِ وَصَدَفَ عَنْهَا ۗ سَنَجْزِى ٱلَّذِينَ يَصْدِفُونَ عَنْ ءَايَـٰتِنَا سُوٓءَ ٱلْعَذَابِ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَصْدِفُونَ
Or lest you say, "If only the Scripture had been revealed to us, we would have been better guided than they." So there has [now] come to you a clear evidence from your Lord and a guidance and mercy. Then who is more unjust than one who denies the verses of Allāh and turns away from them? We will recompense those who turn away from Our verses with the worst of punishment for their having turned away.
إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا فِىٓ أَعْنَـٰقِهِمْ أَغْلَـٰلًا فَهِىَ إِلَى ٱلْأَذْقَانِ فَهُم مُّقْمَحُونَ
Indeed, We have put shackles on their necks, and they are to their chins, so they are with heads [kept] aloft.
وَإِن يَرَوْا۟ ءَايَةً يُعْرِضُوا۟ وَيَقُولُوا۟ سِحْرٌ مُّسْتَمِرٌّ
And if they see a sign [i.e., miracle], they turn away and say, "Passing magic."
وَإِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـٰتُنَا بَيِّنَـٰتٍ مَّا كَانَ حُجَّتَهُمْ إِلَّآ أَن قَالُوا۟ ٱئْتُوا۟ بِـَٔابَآئِنَآ إِن كُنتُمْ صَـٰدِقِينَ
And when Our verses are recited to them as clear evidences, their argument is only that they say, "Bring [back] our forefathers, if you should be truthful."