نَحْنُ قَدَّرْنَا بَيْنَكُمُ ٱلْمَوْتَ وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمَسْبُوقِينَ 60
Translations
We have decreed death among you, and We are not to be outdone
Transliteration
Nahnu qaddarna baynakum al-mawta wa-ma nahnu bi-masbūqīn
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah declares that He has ordained and apportioned death among humanity according to His divine wisdom and predetermined measure, and none can escape or outrun His decree. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi emphasize that this ayah establishes Allah's absolute control over the timing and occurrence of death, which is neither delayed nor hastened except by His will. The phrase 'we are not overcome' (ma nahnu bi-masbūqīn) affirms that Allah's plan is inescapable and that no human effort can prevent or delay the appointed time of death.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Al-Waqi'ah, a Meccan surah focused on the inevitability of the Day of Judgment and resurrection. It serves as part of Allah's reminder to the disbelievers of Mecca about the certainty of divine justice and the futility of denying the resurrection, emphasizing that if death itself is certain and predetermined, then the Day of Judgment is equally inevitable.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said: 'Each soul shall taste death, and We test you with evil and with good as trial; then unto Us you will be returned' (Quran 21:35). Additionally, in Sahih Bukhari, the Prophet stated: 'No soul knows in what land it will die' (hadith regarding the knowledge of unseen matters), illustrating that while death is certain, its details remain with Allah alone.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers to accept death as an unavoidable reality decreed by Allah and to prepare for it through righteous deeds rather than futile resistance. It provides comfort in understanding that death's timing is in Allah's hands alone, freeing us from anxiety about when we will die and redirecting our focus toward living meaningfully according to Islamic principles.