إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱرْتَدُّوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَدْبَـٰرِهِم مِّنۢ بَعْدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُمُ ٱلْهُدَى ۙ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ سَوَّلَ لَهُمْ وَأَمْلَىٰ لَهُمْ 25
Translations
Indeed, those who reverted back [to disbelief] after guidance had become clear to them - Satan enticed them and prolonged hope for them.
Transliteration
Inna alladhīna artaddū 'alá adbārihim min ba'da mā tabayyana lahumu al-hudá ash-shaytānu sawwala lahum wa-amlá lahum
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes those who turn away from guidance after it has been made clear to them, explaining that Satan has made their actions seem appealing (sawwala) and has given them respite (amlá). According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this refers to apostates who reject the truth despite its clarity, with Satan beautifying their deviation and prolonging their time in ignorance. Al-Qurtubi emphasizes that the Shaytan's role is to embellish falsehood and create false hopes, while ultimate choice and accountability remain with the individual.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Muhammad (a Medinan surah), which addresses the believers regarding those who reject faith and turn back from Islam. The broader context discusses the danger of apostasy and rejection after clear knowledge, likely referencing those from the People of the Book or those who witnessed Islamic miracles yet chose disbelief.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Whoever changes his Islamic religion, then kill him' (Sahih Bukhari 6922). Additionally, in Sahih Muslim, the Prophet warned that Satan's greatest trick is making sin appear beautiful to mankind, which relates directly to the concept of 'sawwala' in this ayah.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds us that Satan's primary weapon is making evil appear attractive and creating false hope in worldly gains, but we retain full responsibility for our choices; clarity of guidance demands accountability, and turning away from known truth is among the gravest spiritual dangers. Modern readers should guard their hearts against gradual spiritual deviation by actively reinforcing their connection to Islamic knowledge and resisting the beautification of sin in contemporary contexts.
Related Ayahs
فَهَلْ عَسَيْتُمْ إِن تَوَلَّيْتُمْ أَن تُفْسِدُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَتُقَطِّعُوٓا۟ أَرْحَامَكُمْ
So would you perhaps, if you turned away, cause corruption on earth and sever your [ties of] relationship?
وَيَقُولُ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَوْلَا نُزِّلَتْ سُورَةٌ ۖ فَإِذَآ أُنزِلَتْ سُورَةٌ مُّحْكَمَةٌ وَذُكِرَ فِيهَا ٱلْقِتَالُ ۙ رَأَيْتَ ٱلَّذِينَ فِى قُلُوبِهِم مَّرَضٌ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَيْكَ نَظَرَ ٱلْمَغْشِىِّ عَلَيْهِ مِنَ ٱلْمَوْتِ ۖ فَأَوْلَىٰ لَهُمْ
Those who believe say, "Why has a sūrah not been sent down?" But when a precise sūrah is revealed and battle is mentioned therein, you see those in whose hearts is disease [i.e., hypocrisy] looking at you with a look of one overcome by death. And more appropriate for them [would have been]
ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ ٱتَّبَعُوا۟ ٱلْبَـٰطِلَ وَأَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱتَّبَعُوا۟ ٱلْحَقَّ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ ٱللَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ أَمْثَـٰلَهُمْ
That is because those who disbelieve follow falsehood, and those who believe follow the truth from their Lord. Thus does Allāh present to the people their comparisons.
إِن يَسْـَٔلْكُمُوهَا فَيُحْفِكُمْ تَبْخَلُوا۟ وَيُخْرِجْ أَضْغَـٰنَكُمْ
If He should ask you for them and press you, you would withhold, and He would expose your hatred [i.e., unwillingness].