وَأَصْبَحَ ٱلَّذِينَ تَمَنَّوْا۟ مَكَانَهُۥ بِٱلْأَمْسِ يَقُولُونَ وَيْكَأَنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَبْسُطُ ٱلرِّزْقَ لِمَن يَشَآءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِۦ وَيَقْدِرُ ۖ لَوْلَآ أَن مَّنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا لَخَسَفَ بِنَا ۖ وَيْكَأَنَّهُۥ لَا يُفْلِحُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرُونَ 82
Translations
And those who had wished for his position the previous day began to say, "Oh, how Allāh extends provision to whom He wills of His servants and restricts it! If not that Allāh had conferred favor on us, He would have caused it to swallow us. Oh, how the disbelievers do not succeed!"
Transliteration
Wa-asbaha alladhina tamannaw makānahu bil-amsi yaqūlūna wa-yakaanna allāha yabsutu ar-rizqa liman yashā'u min 'ibādihi wa-yaqdiru. Law-lā an manna allāhu 'alaynā la-khasafa binā. Wa-yakaannahu lā yuflihu al-kāfirūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the dramatic reversal of fortune of Qārūn (Korah), whose wealth caused his people to envy him the previous day, but after his destruction by the earth swallowing him, they recognized Allah's absolute sovereignty over wealth and provision. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi, the people's sudden acknowledgment reflects their realization that neither wealth nor status guarantees success; rather, it is Allah's favor and guidance that determine one's ultimate fate. The ayah concludes with the truth that disbelievers will never attain true success, despite their worldly possessions.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of the lengthy narrative of Qārūn in Surah Al-Qasas (ayaat 76-82), which tells of a wealthy man from the people of Mūsā who became arrogant due to his riches and was ultimately destroyed. The surah's Meccan context addresses the early Muslim community regarding the trials of wealth and the consequences of arrogance, themes relevant to the pagan Quraysh's reliance on their material prosperity.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Wealth and children are adornments of life, but the everlasting good deeds are better with Allah' (Surah Al-Kahf 18:46, referenced by At-Tirmidhi). Additionally, the hadith in Sahih Bukhari states: 'The best of you are those who are best to their families, and I am the best among you to my family,' emphasizing that true success lies in character and obedience, not wealth.
Themes
Key Lesson
Worldly wealth and status are temporary blessings from Allah that can be withdrawn swiftly, and true success is not measured by material abundance but by faith, obedience, and humility before the Divine. We should guard against envy of others' possessions and remember that only righteous deeds have lasting value in Allah's sight.
Related Ayahs
وَقَالَتِ ٱمْرَأَتُ فِرْعَوْنَ قُرَّتُ عَيْنٍ لِّى وَلَكَ ۖ لَا تَقْتُلُوهُ عَسَىٰٓ أَن يَنفَعَنَآ أَوْ نَتَّخِذَهُۥ وَلَدًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ
And the wife of Pharaoh said, "[He will be] a comfort of the eye [i.e., pleasure] for me and for you. Do not kill him; perhaps he may benefit us, or we may adopt him as a son." And they perceived not.
وَٱبْتَغِ فِيمَآ ءَاتَىٰكَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلدَّارَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةَ ۖ وَلَا تَنسَ نَصِيبَكَ مِنَ ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَأَحْسِن كَمَآ أَحْسَنَ ٱللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ ۖ وَلَا تَبْغِ ٱلْفَسَادَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُفْسِدِينَ
But seek, through that which Allāh has given you, the home of the Hereafter; and [yet], do not forget your share of the world. And do good as Allāh has done good to you. And desire not corruption in the land. Indeed, Allāh does not like corrupters."
وَنُرِيدُ أَن نَّمُنَّ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ ٱسْتُضْعِفُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةً وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ ٱلْوَٰرِثِينَ
And We wanted to confer favor upon those who were oppressed in the land and make them leaders and make them inheritors
فَلَمَّا جَآءَهُمُ ٱلْحَقُّ مِنْ عِندِنَا قَالُوا۟ لَوْلَآ أُوتِىَ مِثْلَ مَآ أُوتِىَ مُوسَىٰٓ ۚ أَوَلَمْ يَكْفُرُوا۟ بِمَآ أُوتِىَ مُوسَىٰ مِن قَبْلُ ۖ قَالُوا۟ سِحْرَانِ تَظَـٰهَرَا وَقَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّا بِكُلٍّ كَـٰفِرُونَ
But when the truth came to them from Us, they said, "Why was he not given like that which was given to Moses?" Did they not disbelieve in that which was given to Moses before? They said, "[They are but] two works of magic supporting each other, and indeed we are, in both, disbelievers."