يُرْسَلُ عَلَيْكُمَا شُوَاظٌ مِّن نَّارٍ وَنُحَاسٌ فَلَا تَنتَصِرَانِ 35
Translations
There will be sent upon you a flame of fire and smoke, and you will not defend yourselves.
Transliteration
Yursalu alaikuma shuwaazun min narin wa nuhasun fala tantasiran
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the punishment awaiting the inhabitants of Hell, specifically the jinn and humans who rejected faith. The verse mentions that flames of fire and molten brass (or smoke) will be sent upon them, and they will have no ability to defend themselves or escape. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret 'shuwaaz' (شُوَاظ) as sparks or flames of fire, while 'nuhas' (نُحَاس) refers to molten copper or brass, emphasizing the severity and inevitability of divine punishment for those who deny their Lord.
Revelation Context
Surah Ar-Rahman is Medinan and addresses both jinn and humans throughout its discourse. This particular ayah falls within the section detailing the punishment of the deniers in the afterlife, serving as a warning to those who reject Allah's signs and His bounties mentioned earlier in the surah. The context emphasizes that despite Allah's countless mercies, those who persist in disbelief will face inescapable consequences.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said in Sahih Muslim: 'The fire of the children of Adam which you kindle is one-seventieth of the fire of Hell.' This hadith contextualizes the incomparable intensity of hellfire mentioned in this ayah. Additionally, various hadiths in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim describe the torments of the afterlife as warnings against disbelief.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a profound reminder that rejecting Allah's signs and His mercy carries serious eternal consequences that are inescapable. For modern readers, it emphasizes the importance of reflection upon Allah's blessings and sincere submission to Him, while inspiring fear of Allah and motivating righteous action in this life.
Related Ayahs
ذَٰلِكَ جَزَآؤُهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ بِمَا كَفَرُوا۟ وَٱتَّخَذُوٓا۟ ءَايَـٰتِى وَرُسُلِى هُزُوًا
That is their recompense - Hell - for what they denied and [because] they took My signs and My messengers in ridicule.
ذَٰلِكَ جَزَيْنَـٰهُم بِمَا كَفَرُوا۟ ۖ وَهَلْ نُجَـٰزِىٓ إِلَّا ٱلْكَفُورَ
[By] that We repaid them because they disbelieved. And do We [thus] repay except the ungrateful?
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
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!"
أَفَأَمِنَ ٱلَّذِينَ مَكَرُوا۟ ٱلسَّيِّـَٔاتِ أَن يَخْسِفَ ٱللَّهُ بِهِمُ ٱلْأَرْضَ أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ ٱلْعَذَابُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ
Then, do those who have planned evil deeds feel secure that Allāh will not cause the earth to swallow them or that the punishment will not come upon them from where they do not perceive?