فَلَا تُعْجِبْكَ أَمْوَٰلُهُمْ وَلَآ أَوْلَـٰدُهُمْ ۚ إِنَّمَا يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُم بِهَا فِى ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا وَتَزْهَقَ أَنفُسُهُمْ وَهُمْ كَـٰفِرُونَ 55
Translations
So let not their wealth or their children impress you. Allāh only intends to punish them through them in worldly life and that their souls should depart [at death] while they are disbelievers.
Transliteration
Fa-lā tu'jibka amwāluhum wa-lā awlāduhum. Innamā yurīdu Allāhu li-yu'ażżibahum bihā fī al-ḥayāti ad-dunyā wa-tazhaqu anfusuhum wa-hum kāfirūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah instructs the Prophet (ﷺ) not to be impressed by the wealth and children of those who reject Allah's message, as these material blessings are actually a means of divine punishment in this life. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi, Allah allows the disbelievers to accumulate wealth and offspring, yet these blessings become a source of torment and preoccupation that distances them further from faith, ultimately leading to their death while they remain in disbelief. The ayah emphasizes that worldly abundance without faith is meaningless and becomes an instrument of Allah's judgment.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah At-Tawbah (Chapter 9), which was revealed in the 9th year of Hijrah and addresses hypocrites and disbelievers in Medina. The surah's broader context concerns those who were wealthy yet refused to support the Islamic state and the Prophet's mission, serving as a comfort to believers not to envy the material prosperity of those who reject Allah's guidance.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'The best of you are those of the best character' (Jāmi' At-Tirmidhī), emphasizing that true excellence is not measured by wealth. Additionally, the hadith 'Wealth and children are adornments of life, but the everlasting good deeds are better' (Surah Al-Kahf 46) relates thematically to the transient nature of material possessions.
Themes
Key Lesson
Believers should not covet the material wealth of those who reject Allah, recognizing that abundance without faith becomes a source of torment rather than blessing. True success lies in spiritual conviction and righteous deeds, not in the accumulation of wealth and offspring.
Related Ayahs
ٱلْأَعْرَابُ أَشَدُّ كُفْرًا وَنِفَاقًا وَأَجْدَرُ أَلَّا يَعْلَمُوا۟ حُدُودَ مَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ رَسُولِهِۦ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
The bedouins are stronger in disbelief and hypocrisy and more likely not to know the limits of what [laws] Allāh has revealed to His Messenger. And Allāh is Knowing and Wise.
فَإِذَا ٱنسَلَخَ ٱلْأَشْهُرُ ٱلْحُرُمُ فَٱقْتُلُوا۟ ٱلْمُشْرِكِينَ حَيْثُ وَجَدتُّمُوهُمْ وَخُذُوهُمْ وَٱحْصُرُوهُمْ وَٱقْعُدُوا۟ لَهُمْ كُلَّ مَرْصَدٍ ۚ فَإِن تَابُوا۟ وَأَقَامُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتَوُا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ فَخَلُّوا۟ سَبِيلَهُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
And when the inviolable months have passed, then kill the polytheists wherever you find them and capture them and besiege them and sit in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they should repent, establish prayer, and give zakāh, let them [go] on their way. Indeed, Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful.
فَإِن تَوَلَّوْا۟ فَقُلْ حَسْبِىَ ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ عَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْتُ ۖ وَهُوَ رَبُّ ٱلْعَرْشِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ
But if they turn away, [O Muḥammad], say, "Sufficient for me is Allāh; there is no deity except Him. On Him I have relied, and He is the Lord of the Great Throne."
يَحْلِفُونَ لَكُمْ لِتَرْضَوْا۟ عَنْهُمْ ۖ فَإِن تَرْضَوْا۟ عَنْهُمْ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يَرْضَىٰ عَنِ ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلْفَـٰسِقِينَ
They swear to you so that you might be satisfied with them. But if you should be satisfied with them - indeed, Allāh is not satisfied with a defiantly disobedient people.