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
فَإِن رَّجَعَكَ ٱللَّهُ إِلَىٰ طَآئِفَةٍ مِّنْهُمْ فَٱسْتَـْٔذَنُوكَ لِلْخُرُوجِ فَقُل لَّن تَخْرُجُوا۟ مَعِىَ أَبَدًا وَلَن تُقَـٰتِلُوا۟ مَعِىَ عَدُوًّا ۖ إِنَّكُمْ رَضِيتُم بِٱلْقُعُودِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ فَٱقْعُدُوا۟ مَعَ ٱلْخَـٰلِفِينَ
If Allāh should return you to a faction of them [after the expedition] and then they ask your permission to go out [to battle], say, "You will not go out with me, ever, and you will never fight with me an enemy. Indeed, you were satisfied with sitting [at home] the first time, so sit [now] with those who stay behind."
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مَا لَكُمْ إِذَا قِيلَ لَكُمُ ٱنفِرُوا۟ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ٱثَّاقَلْتُمْ إِلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ أَرَضِيتُم بِٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا مِنَ ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ ۚ فَمَا مَتَـٰعُ ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا فِى ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ إِلَّا قَلِيلٌ
O you who have believed, what is [the matter] with you that, when you are told to go forth in the cause of Allāh, you adhere heavily to the earth? Are you satisfied with the life of this world rather than the Hereafter? But what is the enjoyment of worldly life compared to the Hereafter except a [very] little.
إِلَّا تَنفِرُوا۟ يُعَذِّبْكُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا وَيَسْتَبْدِلْ قَوْمًا غَيْرَكُمْ وَلَا تَضُرُّوهُ شَيْـًٔا ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
If you do not go forth, He will punish you with a painful punishment and will replace you with another people, and you will not harm Him at all. And Allāh is over all things competent.
عَفَا ٱللَّهُ عَنكَ لِمَ أَذِنتَ لَهُمْ حَتَّىٰ يَتَبَيَّنَ لَكَ ٱلَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا۟ وَتَعْلَمَ ٱلْكَـٰذِبِينَ
Allāh has pardoned you, [O Muḥammad, but] why did you give them permission [to remain behind]? [You should not have] until it was evident to you who were truthful and you knew [who were] the liars.