وَمَن يَعْصِ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ وَيَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَهُۥ يُدْخِلْهُ نَارًا خَـٰلِدًا فِيهَا وَلَهُۥ عَذَابٌ مُّهِينٌ 14
Translations
And whoever disobeys Allāh and His Messenger and transgresses His limits - He will put him into the Fire to abide eternally therein, and he will have a humiliating punishment.
Transliteration
Wa man ya'si Allaha wa rasoolahu wa yata'adda hudoodehu yudkhilhu naran khalidan fiha wa lahu adhabun muheen
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah warns against disobedience to Allah and His Messenger and transgression of His established boundaries (hudud), stating that those who do so will enter Hell as an eternal punishment with a humiliating torment. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi emphasize that this severe warning encompasses all forms of rebellion against divine guidance and violation of the limits Allah has set for lawful and unlawful matters. The ayah underscores the gravity of disobedience and the certainty of divine justice.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah An-Nisa (Medinan chapter), which extensively addresses legal matters, inheritance, women's rights, and social conduct. The ayah serves as a concluding warning to the detailed rulings about marriage and inheritance discussed in the preceding verses (4:11-13), emphasizing that adherence to these divine commandments is obligatory and violations carry severe consequences.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Whoever obeys me, obeys Allah, and whoever disobeys me, disobeys Allah' (Sahih Bukhari, 2957). Additionally, the hadith 'The best of you are those who learn the Quran and teach it' (Sahih Bukhari, 5027) relates to understanding and following divine boundaries.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds believers that obedience to Allah and His Messenger is not merely a recommendation but a binding obligation with grave consequences for transgression. The warning calls modern Muslims to mindfully observe Islamic boundaries in all aspects of life—personal, social, and financial—recognizing that true freedom lies within the framework of divine guidance, not outside it.
Related Ayahs
إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَكْفُرُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهِۦ وَيُرِيدُونَ أَن يُفَرِّقُوا۟ بَيْنَ ٱللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهِۦ وَيَقُولُونَ نُؤْمِنُ بِبَعْضٍ وَنَكْفُرُ بِبَعْضٍ وَيُرِيدُونَ أَن يَتَّخِذُوا۟ بَيْنَ ذَٰلِكَ سَبِيلًا
Indeed, those who disbelieve in Allāh and His messengers and wish to discriminate between Allāh and His messengers and say, "We believe in some and disbelieve in others," and wish to adopt a way in between -
إِلَّا ٱلْمُسْتَضْعَفِينَ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ وَٱلنِّسَآءِ وَٱلْوِلْدَٰنِ لَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ حِيلَةً وَلَا يَهْتَدُونَ سَبِيلًا
Except for the oppressed among men, women, and children who cannot devise a plan nor are they directed to a way -
إِن تَجْتَنِبُوا۟ كَبَآئِرَ مَا تُنْهَوْنَ عَنْهُ نُكَفِّرْ عَنكُمْ سَيِّـَٔاتِكُمْ وَنُدْخِلْكُم مُّدْخَلًا كَرِيمًا
If you avoid the major sins which you are forbidden, We will remove from you your lesser sins and admit you to a noble entrance [into Paradise].
وَدُّوا۟ لَوْ تَكْفُرُونَ كَمَا كَفَرُوا۟ فَتَكُونُونَ سَوَآءً ۖ فَلَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ أَوْلِيَآءَ حَتَّىٰ يُهَاجِرُوا۟ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا۟ فَخُذُوهُمْ وَٱقْتُلُوهُمْ حَيْثُ وَجَدتُّمُوهُمْ ۖ وَلَا تَتَّخِذُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ وَلِيًّا وَلَا نَصِيرًا
They wish you would disbelieve as they disbelieved so you would be alike. So do not take from among them allies until they emigrate for the cause of Allāh. But if they turn away [i.e., refuse], then seize them and kill them [for their betrayal] wherever you find them and take not from among them any ally or helper,