ٱلَّذِينَ يُوفُونَ بِعَهْدِ ٱللَّهِ وَلَا يَنقُضُونَ ٱلْمِيثَـٰقَ 20
Translations
Those who fulfill the covenant of Allāh and do not break the contract,
Transliteration
Alladhīna yūfūna bi-'ahdi Allāhi wa-lā yanqudūna al-mīthāq
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the believers as those who fulfill the covenant with Allah and do not break their pledges or contracts. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret this as referring to those who honor their promises with Allah—including obedience to His commands and avoidance of His prohibitions—and who maintain integrity in their oaths and agreements with others. This verse emphasizes that fulfilling covenants is a defining characteristic of the righteous and a fundamental principle of Islamic ethics.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Ar-Ra'd, a Medinan surah that addresses various aspects of faith and righteousness. It comes within a passage (verses 19-24) that contrasts those who believe and act righteously with those who reject faith, providing guidance to the Muslim community during the formative period in Madinah regarding proper conduct and moral integrity.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The signs of a hypocrite are three: when he speaks, he lies; when he makes a promise, he breaks it; and when he is entrusted with something, he betrays it' (Sahih Bukhari 33). Additionally, the Prophet emphasized covenant-keeping: 'Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should keep his promise' (Sahih Bukhari 2821).
Themes
Key Lesson
Believers are called to maintain unwavering integrity in all their commitments—whether in their relationship with Allah through obedience or with others through honesty and promise-keeping. In our modern era, this ayah reminds us that trustworthiness and fulfilling our obligations, both spiritual and practical, are not optional but core expressions of Islamic faith.
Related Ayahs
قُلْ مَن رَّبُّ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ قُلِ ٱللَّهُ ۚ قُلْ أَفَٱتَّخَذْتُم مِّن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءَ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنفُسِهِمْ نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا ۚ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِى ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ وَٱلْبَصِيرُ أَمْ هَلْ تَسْتَوِى ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتُ وَٱلنُّورُ ۗ أَمْ جَعَلُوا۟ لِلَّهِ شُرَكَآءَ خَلَقُوا۟ كَخَلْقِهِۦ فَتَشَـٰبَهَ ٱلْخَلْقُ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ قُلِ ٱللَّهُ خَـٰلِقُ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ وَهُوَ ٱلْوَٰحِدُ ٱلْقَهَّـٰرُ
Say, "Who is Lord of the heavens and earth?" Say, "Allāh." Say, "Have you then taken besides Him allies not possessing [even] for themselves any benefit or any harm?" Say, "Is the blind equivalent to the seeing? Or is darkness equivalent to light? Or have they attributed to Allāh partners who created like His creation so that the creation [of each] seemed similar to them?" Say, "Allāh is the Creator of all things, and He is the One, the Prevailing."
وَفِى ٱلْأَرْضِ قِطَعٌ مُّتَجَـٰوِرَٰتٌ وَجَنَّـٰتٌ مِّنْ أَعْنَـٰبٍ وَزَرْعٌ وَنَخِيلٌ صِنْوَانٌ وَغَيْرُ صِنْوَانٍ يُسْقَىٰ بِمَآءٍ وَٰحِدٍ وَنُفَضِّلُ بَعْضَهَا عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ فِى ٱلْأُكُلِ ۚ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَـَٔايَـٰتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْقِلُونَ
And within the land are neighboring plots and gardens of grapevines and crops and palm trees, [growing] several from a root or otherwise, watered with one water; but We make some of them exceed others in [quality of] fruit. Indeed in that are signs for a people who reason.
عَـٰلِمُ ٱلْغَيْبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ ٱلْكَبِيرُ ٱلْمُتَعَالِ
[He is] Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, the Grand, the Exalted.
وَلَوْ أَنَّ قُرْءَانًا سُيِّرَتْ بِهِ ٱلْجِبَالُ أَوْ قُطِّعَتْ بِهِ ٱلْأَرْضُ أَوْ كُلِّمَ بِهِ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ ۗ بَل لِّلَّهِ ٱلْأَمْرُ جَمِيعًا ۗ أَفَلَمْ يَا۟يْـَٔسِ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ أَن لَّوْ يَشَآءُ ٱللَّهُ لَهَدَى ٱلنَّاسَ جَمِيعًا ۗ وَلَا يَزَالُ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ تُصِيبُهُم بِمَا صَنَعُوا۟ قَارِعَةٌ أَوْ تَحُلُّ قَرِيبًا مِّن دَارِهِمْ حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِىَ وَعْدُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُخْلِفُ ٱلْمِيعَادَ
And if there was any Qur’ān [i.e., recitation] by which the mountains would be removed or the earth would be broken apart or the dead would be made to speak, [it would be this Qur’ān], but to Allāh belongs the affair entirely. Then have those who believed not accepted that had Allāh willed, He would have guided the people, all of them? And those who disbelieve do not cease to be struck, for what they have done, by calamity - or it will descend near their home - until there comes the promise of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh does not fail in [His] promise.