أَفْتَرَىٰ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ كَذِبًا أَم بِهِۦ جِنَّةٌۢ ۗ بَلِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ فِى ٱلْعَذَابِ وَٱلضَّلَـٰلِ ٱلْبَعِيدِ 8
Translations
Has he invented about Allāh a lie or is there in him madness?" Rather, they who do not believe in the Hereafter will be in the punishment and [are in] extreme error.
Transliteration
Aftará alá Allahi kathiban am bihi jinnah? Bal alladhina lá yu'minuna bi-al-ákhirati fi al-adhabi wa-al-dhalál al-baíd.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah addresses the disbelievers' accusations against the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), asking whether he fabricated lies against Allah or suffers from madness. The ayah refutes both accusations, clarifying that those who truly err are those who deny the Hereafter, for they are the ones in severe punishment and profound misguidance. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir note that this verse defends the Prophet's integrity while emphasizing that the real delusion belongs to those who reject accountability in the afterlife.
Revelation Context
Surah Saba is a Meccan surah revealed during the period of intense opposition to the Prophet's message. This ayah responds to the Quraysh's attempts to discredit the Prophet by accusing him of fabrication or mental illness—common tactics used by the disbelievers to undermine his credibility and discourage followers from accepting the Message of Tawhid.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The most truthful of you in speech and the most trustworthy among you in fulfilling trusts' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi, 3641), referring to how even his enemies acknowledged his honesty before revelation. This contrasts sharply with accusations of lying in 34:8.
Themes
Key Lesson
True misguidance is not intellectual disagreement but the willful rejection of accountability to Allah and the reality of the Hereafter; believers should remain steadfast when facing accusations and slander, knowing that Allah's truth ultimately prevails over human fabrications.
Related Ayahs
وَٱلَّذِينَ سَعَوْ فِىٓ ءَايَـٰتِنَا مُعَـٰجِزِينَ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ مِّن رِّجْزٍ أَلِيمٌ
But those who strive against Our verses [seeking] to cause failure - for them will be a painful punishment of foul nature.
قُلْ مَا سَأَلْتُكُم مِّنْ أَجْرٍ فَهُوَ لَكُمْ ۖ إِنْ أَجْرِىَ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱللَّهِ ۖ وَهُوَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ شَهِيدٌ
Say, "Whatever payment I might have asked of you - it is yours. My payment is only from Allāh, and He is, over all things, Witness."
قُلِ ٱدْعُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ زَعَمْتُم مِّن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ ۖ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَلَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَمَا لَهُمْ فِيهِمَا مِن شِرْكٍ وَمَا لَهُۥ مِنْهُم مِّن ظَهِيرٍ
Say, [O Muḥammad], "Invoke those you claim [as deities] besides Allāh." They do not possess an atom's weight [of ability] in the heavens or on the earth, and they do not have therein any partnership [with Him], nor is there for Him from among them any assistant.
وَقَالَ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱسْتُضْعِفُوا۟ لِلَّذِينَ ٱسْتَكْبَرُوا۟ بَلْ مَكْرُ ٱلَّيْلِ وَٱلنَّهَارِ إِذْ تَأْمُرُونَنَآ أَن نَّكْفُرَ بِٱللَّهِ وَنَجْعَلَ لَهُۥٓ أَندَادًا ۚ وَأَسَرُّوا۟ ٱلنَّدَامَةَ لَمَّا رَأَوُا۟ ٱلْعَذَابَ وَجَعَلْنَا ٱلْأَغْلَـٰلَ فِىٓ أَعْنَاقِ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ ۚ هَلْ يُجْزَوْنَ إِلَّا مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
Those who were oppressed will say to those who were arrogant, "Rather, [it was your] conspiracy of night and day when you were ordering us to disbelieve in Allāh and attribute to Him equals." But they will [all] confide regret when they see the punishment; and We will put shackles on the necks of those who disbelieved. Will they be recompensed except for what they used to do?