فَقُلْتُ ٱسْتَغْفِرُوا۟ رَبَّكُمْ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ غَفَّارًا 10
Translations
And said, 'Ask forgiveness of your Lord. Indeed, He is ever a Perpetual Forgiver.
Transliteration
Faqulta astaghfiroo rabbakum innahu kaana ghaffaara
Tafsir (Explanation)
Prophet Noah calls his people to seek forgiveness (istighfar) from their Lord, emphasizing that Allah is Al-Ghaffar (The Oft-Forgiving), possessing infinite capacity to pardon sins. Ibn Kathir notes this was Noah's primary message to his people—an invitation to repentance before divine punishment—and it reflects the universal divine attribute of forgiveness extended to all who genuinely turn back to Allah. This ayah illustrates that no sin is too great for Allah's mercy, provided sincere repentance is sought.
Revelation Context
This ayah occurs within Noah's account of his preaching to his people over 950 years. The surah contextualizes Noah's message as centered on tawhid (monotheism) and istighfar, the two fundamental pillars of prophetic call. This particular ayah exemplifies the core exhortation Noah repeatedly made before his people rejected him and were destroyed in the flood.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said, 'Whoever frequently seeks forgiveness, Allah will grant him relief from every distress and a way out from every hardship' (Sunan Abu Dawud 1521). Additionally, 'The best of supplications is seeking forgiveness' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3571).
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that repentance is always accessible and that recognizing Allah's attribute of forgiveness should motivate believers to turn away from sin with hope rather than despair. Modern readers are reminded that no matter how distant one has strayed, sincere istighfar opens the door to reconciliation with the Divine.
Related Ayahs
إِن تَجْتَنِبُوا۟ كَبَآئِرَ مَا تُنْهَوْنَ عَنْهُ نُكَفِّرْ عَنكُمْ سَيِّـَٔاتِكُمْ وَنُدْخِلْكُم مُّدْخَلًا كَرِيمًا
If you avoid the major sins which you are forbidden, We will remove from you your lesser sins and admit you to a noble entrance [into Paradise].
إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ تَابُوا۟ وَأَصْلَحُوا۟ وَٱعْتَصَمُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَأَخْلَصُوا۟ دِينَهُمْ لِلَّهِ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ مَعَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۖ وَسَوْفَ يُؤْتِ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا
Except for those who repent, correct themselves, hold fast to Allāh, and are sincere in their religion for Allāh, for those will be with the believers. And Allāh is going to give the believers a great reward.
وَذَا ٱلنُّونِ إِذ ذَّهَبَ مُغَـٰضِبًا فَظَنَّ أَن لَّن نَّقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ فَنَادَىٰ فِى ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ أَن لَّآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّآ أَنتَ سُبْحَـٰنَكَ إِنِّى كُنتُ مِنَ ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ
And [mention] the man of the fish [i.e., Jonah], when he went off in anger and thought that We would not decree [anything] upon him. And he called out within the darknesses, "There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers."
فَأَكَلَا مِنْهَا فَبَدَتْ لَهُمَا سَوْءَٰتُهُمَا وَطَفِقَا يَخْصِفَانِ عَلَيْهِمَا مِن وَرَقِ ٱلْجَنَّةِ ۚ وَعَصَىٰٓ ءَادَمُ رَبَّهُۥ فَغَوَىٰ
And they [i.e., Adam and his wife] ate of it, and their private parts became apparent to them, and they began to fasten over themselves from the leaves of Paradise. And Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred.