The Tafsir of Surat Al-Mutaffifin

(Chapter – 83, Ayah 29-36)

Which was revealed in Al-Madinah



[بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ ]

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Tafsir Ibn Kathir

[إِنَّ الَّذِينَ أَجْرَمُواْ كَانُواْ مِنَ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ يَضْحَكُونَ - وَإِذَا مَرُّواْ بِهِمْ يَتَغَامَزُونَ - وَإِذَا انقَلَبُواْ إِلَى أَهْلِهِمْ انقَلَبُواْ فَكِهِينَ - وَإِذَا رَأَوْهُمْ قَالُواْ إِنَّ هَـؤُلاَءِ لَضَآلُّونَ - وَمَآ أُرْسِلُواْ عَلَيْهِمْ حَـفِظِينَ - فَالْيَوْمَ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مِنَ الْكُفَّارِ يَضْحَكُونَ عَلَى الاٌّرَآئِكِ يَنظُرُونَ هَلْ ثُوِّبَ الْكُفَّارُ مَا كَانُواْ يَفْعَلُونَ ]

(29. Verily, those who committed crimes used to laugh at those who believed.) (30. And, whenever they passed by them, used to wink one to another.) (31. And when they returned to their own people, they would return jesting;) (32. And when they saw them, they said: "Verily, these have indeed gone astray!'') (33. But they were not sent as watchers over them.) (34. But this Day those who believe will laugh at the disbelievers) (35. On thrones, looking.) (36. Are not the disbelievers paid for what they used to do)



The Wicked Behavior of the Criminals and Their mocking of the Believers

Allah informs that the criminals used to laugh at the believers in the worldly life. In other words, they would mock them and despise them. Whenever they would pass by the believers, they would wink at each other about them, meaning in contempt of them.

[وَإِذَا انقَلَبُواْ إِلَى أَهْلِهِمْ انقَلَبُواْ فَكِهِينَ ]

(And when they returned to their own people, they would return jesting.)

meaning, when these criminals turn back, or return to their homes, they go back pleased. This means that whatever they request, they find it. Yet, with this, they still are not grateful for Allah's favor upon them. Rather they busy themselves with despising and envying the believers.

[وَإِذَا رَأَوْهُمْ قَالُواْ إِنَّ هَـؤُلاَءِ لَضَآلُّونَ ]

(And when they saw them, they said: "Verily, these have indeed gone astray!'')

meaning, `because they are upon a religion other than their own religion.' Allah then says,

[وَمَآ أُرْسِلُواْ عَلَيْهِمْ حَـفِظِينَ ]

(But they were not sent as watchers over them.)

meaning, these criminals have not been sent as guardians over the deeds and statements of these believers. These wrongdoers have not been made responsible for them. So, why are they so concerned with them, and why have they made them the focus of their attention This is as Allah says,

[قَالَ اخْسَئُواْ فِيهَا وَلاَ تُكَلِّمُونِ - إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَرِيقٌ مِّنْ عِبَادِى يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَآ ءَامَنَّا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَا وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الرَحِمِينَ - فَاتَّخَذْتُمُوهُمْ سِخْرِيّاً حَتَّى أَنسَوْكُمْ ذِكْرِى وَكُنْتُمْ مِّنْهُمْ تَضْحَكُونَ - إِنِّى جَزَيْتُهُمُ الْيَوْمَ بِمَا صَبَرُواْ أَنَّهُمْ هُمُ الْفَآئِزُونَ ]

(He (Allah) will say: "Remain you in it with ignominy! And speak you not to Me!'' Verily there was a party of My servants, who used to say: "Our Lord! We believe, so forgive us, and have mercy on us, for You are the Best of all who show mercy!'' But you took them for a laughing stock, so much so that they made you forget My remembrance while you used to laugh at them! Verily, I have rewarded them this Day for their patience: they are indeed the ones that are successful.) (23:108-111)

Thus, Allah says here,

[فَالْيَوْمَ]

(But this Day) meaning, the Day of Judgement.

[الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مِنَ الْكُفَّارِ يَضْحَكُونَ]

(those who believe will laugh at the disbelievers)

meaning, as retribution for how those people laughed at them.

[عَلَى الاٌّرَآئِكِ يَنظُرُونَ ]

(On thrones, looking.)

meaning, looking at Allah as reward for bearing the false claims against them that they were misguided. They were not misguided at all. Rather they were the close Awliya' of Allah, who will be looking at their Lord in the place of His honor. Concerning Allah's statement,

[هَلْ ثُوِّبَ الْكُفَّارُ مَا كَانُواْ يَفْعَلُونَ ]

(Are not the disbelievers paid for what they used to do)

meaning, `will the disbelievers be recompensed for their mockery and belittlement against the believers, or not' This means that they surely will be paid in full, completely and perfectly (for their behavior).



Tafheem-ul-Quran

(83:29) The culprits used to laugh at the believers in the world.

(83:30) They would wink at one another when they passed by them.

(83:31) When they returned to their kinsfolk they returned jesting, *12

*12 That is, they returned home rejoicing, thinking that they had made fun of such and such a Muslim, had passed evil remarks against him and subjected him to ridicule among the people.

(83:32) and when they saw them, they would say, "These are the people gone astray", *13

*13 That is, they have lost their reason: they have deprived themselves of the gains and enjoyments of the world and have experienced dangers and undergone hardships only for the reason that Muhammad (upon whom be Allah's peace and blessings) has deluded them with the Hereafter, Heaven and Hell. They are giving up whatever is present and here on the false hope that the promise of some Paradise has been held out to them after death, and they are enduring the hardships in the present life only for the reason that they have been threatened with some Hell in the next world.

(83:33) although they had not been sent to be guardians over them. *14

*14 In this brief sentence the mockers and jesters have been given an instructive warning to the effect: "Even if what the Muslims have believed in, is false, they are not harming you at all They regard something as we and are accordingly adopting a certain moral attitude for themselves, for their own good. AIIah has not appointed you to be keepers over them so that you may be free to criticise and persecute those who are not harming you in any way."

(83:34) Today the believers are laughing at the disbelievers,

(83:35) as they recline on couches and gaze at them.

(83:36) Have not the disbelievers been duly rewarded for what they used to do? *15

*15 There is a subtle satire in this sentence. In the world, the disbelievers used to persecute the believers, thinking it was an act of virtue. In the Hereafter, the believers will be enjoying life in Paradise, and watching the disbelievers being punished in Hell, will say to themselves what a reward they have earned for their acts of virtue!





Fi Zilal al Quran

The evil-doers scoff at the faithful and wink at one another as they pass by them. When they go back to their folk they speak of them with jests, and when they see them they say: "These are erring men!" Yet they have not been assigned the mission of being their guardians. So on that day the faithful will mock the disbelievers, as they recline upon their couches and look around them. Shall not the disbelievers be rewarded according to their deeds.

The last part of the surah describes what the transgressors mete out to the righteous in this world of conceit and hollow vanity: harsh treatment, ridicule and bad manners. Juxtaposed are descriptions of the ultimate situation of each group, the transgressors and the righteous, in the world of truth and immortality:

The final comment of the surah taunts the disbelievers as they behold the righteous enjoying their heavenly bliss:

The evil-doers used to deride the faithful, and wink at one another as they pass by them. When they go back to their own folk they would speak of them with jests, and when they see them they would say: 'These are certainly erring men! ' Yet they have not been assigned the mission of being their guardians. So on that day the faithful will mock the disbelievers as they recline upon their couches and look around them. Shall not the disbelievers be rewarded according to their deeds.

The images portrayed by the Qur'an of the evil-doers' derision of the faithful, their rudeness and insolence, and their description of the faithful, as "erring men" are taken directly from the real life of Makka at the time. But the same actions happen over and over again in all ages and places. Many people in our own age have witnessed similar actions, as though this surah was revealed to describe what these contemporary people have seen with their own eyes.' This proves that the attitude of the transgressors and the evil-doers to the believers hardly ever changes from one country to another or from one period of time to another.

"The evil-doers used to deride the faithful." Notice here the use of the term "used to"! The surah takes us away from this world to the hereafter to see the righteous in their bliss while we hear what used to happen to them in this world. The believers were made to suffer ridicule and derision by the transgressors, either because they were poor or weak or because their self-respect would not allow them to return the abuse of the base evil-doers. What a contrast of attitudes: the evil doers persecute the believers and laugh at them shamelessly while the believers stick to their attitude of dignified perseverance and self respect.

"And wink at one another as they pass by them ". They wink at one another or make certain actions intended as mockery and derision. Such behaviour betrays their baseness and bad manners. They try to make the believers feel embarrassed and helpless. "When they back to their folk they would speak of them with jests". When they have nourished their little, evil minds with such mockery and injurious actions aimed at the believers they would go back to their folk to "speak of them with jests". They feel satisfied with what they have done. Although they have sunk to the lowest depths in their behaviour, they cannot imagine how contentible they are.

"And when they see them they would say: 'These are certainly erring men!'" This is even more singular! Nothing is more absurd than that those transgressors should speak about the right ways and the erring ways, or that they should say that the believers are erring. Transgression knows no limits. The transgressors never feel ashamed of what they do or say. Their description of the believers as "erring men" is a clear manifestation of this fact. The Qur'an does not try to defend the believers or refute this evil accusation leveled at them, because it is not worth refuting. It laughs loudly, however, at those who involve themselves impudently in something which does not concern them, "Yet they have not been assigned the mission of being their guardians!"

No one has asked them to look after the believers, or to watch over them, or to assess their situation. So why do they give their unsolicited opinion?

This sarcasm concludes the narration of what the transgressors do in this life. The surah relates it as if it is something of the past, and gives an image of the present, i.e. in the hereafter, when the believers rejoice in their heavenly bliss: "So, on that day the Faithful will mock the disbelievers, as they recline upon their couches and look around them". On that day the disbelievers are shut out from their Lord, suffering this isolation combined with the torture of Hell when they are told: "This is (the reality) which you denied!" At the other end the believers recline on their couches, in total beatitude, partaking of their pure drink which is secured with a seal of musk and mixed with the waters of Tassneem. As the surah gives the two images, it shows how the tables are turned; for then it is the believers who laugh at the disbelievers.

The surah concludes with another loud, ironic question: "Shall not the disbelievers be rewarded according to their deeds? " Their "reward" is not a good one, as the term used here connotes in ordinary usage. We have just been given an image of their doom, which is described here sarcastically, as their "reward ".

The scene of the evil-doers' ridicule of the believers merits further discussion. It is portrayed in considerable detail, in the same way as the earlier scene of the righteous in their heavenly bliss. The detailed description is highly artistic. It also has a marked psychological effect which is soothing. The Muslim minority in Makka was facing a sustained, demoralising onslaught by the polytheists, but Allah did not leave the Muslims on their own: He comforted them and urged them to persevere.

They feel comforted by the very fact that their sufferings as a result of the harsh treatment they receive from the polytheists are outlined by Allah in detail. He sees what the believers suffer and does not ignore what He sees, although He may let the disbelievers do as they wish, only for a while. He also sees how the transgressors laugh unrepentantly at the sufferings of the faithful. Since He describes all this in the Qur'an then He must take it into account. This, in itself, is enough consolation for the believers.

There are also those ironic remarks about the evil-doers. They may go unnoticed by the disbelievers because their indulgence in their sinful practices have made them insensitive. The highly sensitive hearts of the believers, however, are touched and comforted by them. It must be noted that the only consolation offered by Allah to the believers who were subjected to harsh treatment and painful ridicule was Heaven for the believers and Hell for the disbelievers. This, again, was the only promise the Prophet (peace be on him) made to the believers when they pledged their wealth and their lives for the cause of Islam. Victory in this life was never mentioned in the Makkan chapters of the Qur'an as a consolation or as an incentive to persevere. The Qur'an was cultivating the hearts of the believers, and preparing them to fulfil the task with which they have been entrusted.

It was necessary that these hearts should attain a high standard of strength and self-denial so that they would give everything and suffer all hardships without looking for anything in this life. They seek only the Hereafter and to win the pleasure of Allah. They should be prepared to go through the whole journey of life suffering all sorts of hardships and deprivations without the promise of any reward in this life, not even victory for the cause of Islam .

Such a group of people must be first established. When this happens and Allah knows that they are sincere and determined in what they have pledged themselves to do, then He will give them victory in this life. Victory will not be theirs as a personal reward. They will be given power as trustees appointed for the implementation of the Islamic way of life. They will be worthy trustees because they were neither promised nor did they look for any worldly gain. They pledged themselves truly for Allah at a time when they were unaware of any benefit that may befall them except that they would win Allah's pleasure.

All the Qur'anic verses which speak of victory were revealed later in Medina when this was no longer an issue. Victory was given because Allah willed that successive human generations should have an actual, definite and practical example of the Islamic way of life. It was not a reward for sacrifices made or hardships suffered.

This is the end of the Tafsir of Surat Al-Mutaffifin, and all praise and thanks are due to Allah.

Wassalam