أَفَمَن كَانَ مُؤْمِنًا كَمَن كَانَ فَاسِقًا ۚ لَّا يَسْتَوُۥنَ 18
Translations
Then is one who was a believer like one who was defiantly disobedient? They are not equal.
Transliteration
Afaman kana mu'minan kaman kana fasiqan; la yastawun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah poses a rhetorical question asserting that a believer (mu'min) and a transgressor/disobedient person (fasiq) are absolutely not equal. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this verse emphasizes the fundamental distinction between those who obey Allah and those who rebel against His commandments. The ayah serves as a powerful rebuttal to the notion that faith and disbelief, obedience and disobedience, carry the same value or consequence.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the context of Surah As-Sajdah, which addresses the signs of Allah's creation and the Day of Judgment. The verse comes after descriptions of the believers who remember Allah and prostrate before Him, contrasting their state with those who turn away from His guidance. It emphasizes the moral and spiritual inequality between the righteous and the wicked.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The example of the believer who recites the Quran is like the citron, its smell is good and its taste is good. And the believer who does not recite the Quran is like the date, it has no smell but its taste is sweet.' (Sahih Bukhari 5427). This demonstrates the distinction between believers of different degrees and non-believers.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that our choices and beliefs have real, meaningful consequences—the faithful and the disobedient are not equivalent in the sight of Allah. For modern believers, this serves as a reminder that sincere faith and righteous conduct matter profoundly and that striving to be among the believers is a worthwhile pursuit with eternal significance.
Related Ayahs
أَوَلَمْ يَهْدِ لَهُمْ كَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا مِن قَبْلِهِم مِّنَ ٱلْقُرُونِ يَمْشُونَ فِى مَسَـٰكِنِهِمْ ۚ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَـَٔايَـٰتٍ ۖ أَفَلَا يَسْمَعُونَ
Has it not become clear to them how many generations We destroyed before them, [as] they walk among their dwellings? Indeed in that are signs; then do they not hear?
وَجَعَلْنَا مِنْهُمْ أَئِمَّةً يَهْدُونَ بِأَمْرِنَا لَمَّا صَبَرُوا۟ ۖ وَكَانُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا يُوقِنُونَ
And We made from among them leaders guiding by Our command when they were patient and [when] they were certain of Our signs.
إِنَّمَا يُؤْمِنُ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا ٱلَّذِينَ إِذَا ذُكِّرُوا۟ بِهَا خَرُّوا۟ سُجَّدًا وَسَبَّحُوا۟ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّهِمْ وَهُمْ لَا يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ ۩
Only those believe in Our verses who, when they are reminded by them, fall down in prostration and exalt [Allāh] with praise of their Lord, and they are not arrogant.
۞ قُلْ يَتَوَفَّىٰكُم مَّلَكُ ٱلْمَوْتِ ٱلَّذِى وُكِّلَ بِكُمْ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكُمْ تُرْجَعُونَ
Say, "The angel of death who has been entrusted with you will take you. Then to your Lord you will be returned."