In the Name of Almighty Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate
56 آية
بِسۡمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
Surah Al-Muddaththir is the 74th chapter of the Quran, containing 56 verses. Revealed in Makkah among the earliest chapters, it takes its name from its opening address to the Prophet, cloaked in his garment, commanding him to arise and warn, magnify his Lord, purify his garments and shun idols. The surah recounts the arrogant plotting of a defiant disbeliever who schemed against the Quran and mocked it, describes the Hellfire named Saqar and its nineteen guardians, and portrays the guilty on Judgement Day confessing that they neglected prayer, failed to feed the needy, indulged in idle talk and denied the Day of Reckoning. Below you can read the full Surah Al-Muddaththir in Arabic with a clear English translation and a verse-by-verse tafsir (explanation of the meaning) from Aysar al-Tafaseer, with the option to jump to any specific verse.
1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “I retreated to the cave of Hira’. When my period of retreat was over, I descended and was called upon. I looked to my right and did not see anything; then I looked to my left and did not see anything. Then I looked before me and did not see anything, then I looked behind me and did not see anything. I then raised my head, and I saw something. I hurried to Khadija and said: “Wrap me up and pour cold water on me.” He said: “They wrapped me up and poured cold water on me.” He said: “Then the verse ‘O you wrapped up’ was revealed.” It means: O you wrapped up in your clothes, alarmed by the sight of the angel, when the revelation was first disclosed to you,
2. rise and prepare yourself for a serious matter. Warn the people of Makkah of the punishment (they will undergo) on a great day if they do not believe in Allah and the message you bring from Him.
4. Ibn Abbas said that the meaning of this noble verse is: “Do not wear your clothes over your disobedience or treachery.” That is: purify yourself from all sins, reform your deeds and purify your clothes with water from any impurity that may have adhered to them;
{وَٱلرُّجْزَ فَٱهْجُرْ}
(5) – [Tafsir not available in the source document for this verse; to be added.]
Surah Al-Muddaththir: Verse 5
5. abandon the worship of idols, and abstain from disobedience that will lead you to the punishment of the Fire in the Hereafter;
6. do not give any gift expecting to receive more in return. (It is said that the meaning is: Do not consider your actions a favour to your Lord; for your deeds are a favour to yourself from Allah. He granted you a way to worship Him.)
7. Be patient in your obedience to your Lord and in enduring the harm of the polytheists. Let your patience in enduring their harm be for the sake of Allah.
10. It is a terrifying day for the unbelievers, a harsh day without ease or comfort, for it will be the start of their continuous wretchedness, beginning with their judgement and leading to their eternal punishment.
11. Al-Walid ibn al-Mughira was among the lords of Quraish. He was very wealthy and greatly respected. He had ten sons. One day, he heard the Messenger of Allah recite the Quran in the sacred mosque and was touched by this. He told his people: “By Allah I recently heard Mohammad saying words unlike those of humans or jinn. They were sweet and charming words. At their best they were fruitful and at their worst abundant. Nothing could be superior to them.” Fearing that he would be won over by Islam and that the people of Quraish would then convert, Abu Jahl followed him to his house. He provoked him until he came to the people of Quraish at their gathering place and said: “Mohammad is not insane, nor is he a priest, a poet or a liar”. They said: “What is he then?” He said: “He is a sorcerer. Did not you see him divide between a man and his family, children and supporters?” Thus, Allah Almighty revealed this verse. (Al-Walid was called al-Wahid (or the one and only) because he was alone among his people because of his great wealth and honour). This verse means: Let Me deal with him whom I brought into being from his mother’s womb alone, without money or children.
12. Then I granted him blessings and gave him great wealth which was spread between Makkah and Ta’ef: camels, horses, sheep, and abundant orchards which never cease to produce fruit in either summer or winter as Ibn Abbas said.
13. And I gave him children who were always present at his side in Makkah. They neither left his side to earn a living nor to seek their fortunes; they did not need to roam the land due to their abundant riches.
16. No indeed, We will not do that! For he has been contumacious to the signs of Allah Who favoured and blessed him. Those signs are the verses of the Quran which Allah revealed to His noble Messenger. Therefore, he said what he did. To deny the truth deserves the cessation of all blessings. It was said that Al-Walid’s health worsened and declined from the moment of the revelation of these verses; he remained thus until he died.
17. We shall inflict on him a grievous punishment to wear out him out and which he will not tolerate. He will be as one who is ordered to climb a steep, thorny mountain. (It is said that on Judgement Day he will be commanded to climb a mountain of fire in Hell).
18. Allah Almighty will punish him with such severity because he thought about what to say against the Quran, when he was asked about it, and about the lies to fabricate against it. Then he pondered.
21. Then he looked into the Quran one more time with the hope of arriving at a decision relating to it that would please Quraish and preserve his status and leadership.
(وَرُوِيَ فِي سَبَبِ نُزُولِ هَذِهِ الآيَةِ أَنَّ نَفَراً مِنَ اليَهُودِ سَأَلُوا رَجُلاً مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَنْ خَزَنَةِ جَهَنَّمَ، فَقَالَ: اللهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ. فَجَاءَ رَجُلٌ فَأَخْبَرَ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَأَنْزَلَ اللهُ تَعَالَى هَذِهِ الآيَةَ).
Surah Al-Muddaththir: Verse 30
30. A group of nineteen angels is appointed to guard Hell. (It was said that the reason for the revelation of this verse is that a party of Jews asked one of the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him) about the keepers of Hell. He said: “Allah and His Messenger know best about them.” A man came to the Prophet and informed him of this, so Allah Almighty revealed this verse.)
31. When Allah Almighty revealed the previous verse, Abu Jahl said in mockery: “Are ten of you incapable of defeating one of them?” So Allah Almighty revealed this verse in answer to those mockers among the polytheists. He says that He appointed angels as guardians of the Fire, and who can defeat the angels of Allah Almighty? He made them nineteen in number so that the unbelievers would say what they did and thus increase the wrath of Allah against them. They disparaged their number and said: “How could so few (angels) be charged with punishing Allah’s creatures in Hellfire?” Allah Almighty informs His Messenger of their number so that the Jews and Christians would know that Mohammad was truthful in his prophecy, and that the Quran that was revealed to him by Allah was in agreement with what their Books said; and so that the faith of the believers might increase when they saw that the Jews and Christians had submitted to and believed in the Quran. There would be no doubt left in their hearts that the Quran was indeed from Allah. Also, so that those who believed in the Torah and Bible as well as the believers among Mohammad’s people would have no doubt about the truth of their number. Thus, those who doubted the truth of Mohammad’s message among the hypocrites and the unbelievers in his message would say: “What does Allah intend by mentioning this unlikely modest number? And what is his wisdom in that?” And just as Allah led astray the hypocrites and the polytheists by mentioning this number, He leads astray those whom He chooses among His creatures and turns them away from the truth, and He guides those whom He chooses among them to the right path, to the good and to the truth. None knows the number of Allah’s creatures or His forces among which are the angels, except Allah. So one should not think that they are only nineteen. The Fire and its description is only a reminder to those who are admonished, to intimidate them.
37. to him who wants to accept the warning, or turn away from it and repulse it. (Or the meaning could be: It is a warning to mankind: whoever wishes can proceed to good, or he can lag behind).
39. Except for the believers among the companions of the right, those who will be given their books of deeds on the Day of Account and who will receive them in their right hand; they freed themselves from their pledge by doing righteous deeds in life.
45. They would cooperate with the people of sin, plunge with them in their disbelief, mockery and falsehood and would speak of what they had no knowledge.
47. Until death came to them and they returned to Allah in the Hereafter; only then did they know that what the Messenger had brought to them had been the truth.
48. He who has those qualities, no intercession will be of benefit to him. For, whoever dies without faith will be punished in the Fire and will dwell in it forever.
52. Admonition will be of no benefit to them for they have reached such a point of intractability that each of them desires that an open book from the sky should descend upon him, in which Allah informs him that Mohammad is truthful in the message that he carries to them. (It was narrated that Abu Jahl and a party from Quraish said: “O Mohammad. We will not believe in you until you have sent to each a letter from heaven, addressed by the Lord of the universe to so-and-so son of so-and-so, in which we are ordered to follow you.”)
53. Allah Almighty censures them and condemns them for their suggestion that unrolled sheets should be sent to them. He says: “They will not be given these unrolled scrolls. The reason for their suggestion is that they do not believe in the Hereafter, nor do they fear its terrors; therefore they turn away from contemplating these miracles.”
56. None will remember it or be admonished by it except those whom Allah chooses. For no one can do anything unless Allah gives him the power to do so. Allah Almighty is worthy of His servants’ fear, piety, and belief in Him. He is capable of forgiving them for their previous sins if they believe in Him, obey Him, act according to His commands and avoid what He forbade.
Tafsir by Dr. Assaad Homad (1917–2011), Syrian scholar and jurist, author of Aysar al-Tafaseer, an accessible interpretation of the Quran reviewed by Sheikh Muhammad Mutwally Al-Shaarawi and certified by the Ministries of Awqaf in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. English translation by the Homad family. Read more about the author and this tafsir →
Source: This series of Tafsir books has been made available online by the family of Dr. Assaad Homad (may Allah have mercy on him). These volumes were entirely digitized to provide an accessible and easy format for todays digital age. Please keep Dr. Assaad and his family in your sincere prayers.
تم إتاحة هذه السلسلة من كتب التفسير عبر الإنترنت من قبل عائلة الدكتور أسعد حومد (رحمه الله). لقد قمنا برقمنة هذه المجلدات بالكامل لتوفير تنسيق يسهل الوصول إليه واستخدامه في عصرنا الرقمي الحالي. نرجو منكم ألا تنسوا الدكتور أسعد وعائلته من صالح دعائكم.