Fussilat: 40

Ayah

Word by Word

إِنَّ

Indeed

ٱلَّذِينَ

those who

يُلۡحِدُونَ

distort

فِيٓ

[in]

ءَايَٰتِنَا

Our Verses

لَا

(are) not

يَخۡفَوۡنَ

hidden

عَلَيۡنَآۗ

from Us

أَفَمَن

So is (he) who

يُلۡقَىٰ

is cast

فِي

ٱلنَّارِ

the Fire

خَيۡرٌ

better

أَم

مَّن

(he) who

يَأۡتِيٓ

comes

ءَامِنٗا

secure

يَوۡمَ

(on the) Day

ٱلۡقِيَٰمَةِۚ

(of) Resurrection

ٱعۡمَلُواْ

مَا

what

شِئۡتُمۡ

you will

إِنَّهُۥ

Indeed He

بِمَا

of what

تَعۡمَلُونَ

you do

بَصِيرٌ

(is) All-Seer

Translation

Those who pervert the Truth in Our Signs are not hidden from Us. Which is better?- he that is cast into the Fire, or he that comes safe through, on the Day of Judgment? Do what ye will: verily He seeth (clearly) all that ye do.

Tafsir

From among the Signs of Allah

Here Allah reminds His Creation of His power, and that He is the One Who has no equal, and He is Able to do all things. Allah's saying;

وَمِنۡ ايَاتِهِ اللَّيۡلُ وَالنَّهَارُ وَالشَّمۡسُ وَالۡقَمَرُ

And from among His signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon.

means, He created the night with its darkness and the day with its light, and they alternate without ceasing. And He created the sun with its shining light, and the moon with its reflected light, and He allotted their stages and gave them separate orbits in the heavens, so that by the variations in their movements man may know the stages of night and day, of weeks, months and years, and time periods related to people's rights, acts of worship and various transactions. Moreover, because the sun and moon are the most beautiful of the heavenly bodies that can be seen in both the upper and lower realms, Allah points out that they are created entities which are in a state of enthrallment to Him, subject to His dominion and control.

So He says:

لَاا تَسۡجُدُوا لِلشَّمۡسِ وَلَاا لِلۡقَمَرِ

وَاسۡجُدُوا لِلَّهِ الَّذِي خَلَقَهُنَّ إِن كُنتُمۡ إِيَّاهُ تَعۡبُدُونَ

Do not prostrate yourselves to the sun nor to the moon, but prostrate yourselves to Allah Who created them, if you (really) worship Him.

meaning, `do not associate anything in worship with Him, for your worship of Him will be of no benefit to you if you worship others alongside Him, because He does not forgive the association of others in worship with Him.'

He says

فَإِنِ اسۡتَكۡبَرُوا

But if they are too proud,

i.e., to worship Him Alone, and they insist on associating others with Him,

فَالَّذِينَ عِندَ رَبِّكَ

then there are those who are with your Lord (i.e., the angels),

يُسَبِّحُونَ لَهُ بِاللَّيۡلِ وَالنَّهَارِ وَهُمۡ لَا يَسۡأَمُونَ

glorify Him night and day, and never are they tired.

This is like the Ayah:

فَإِن يَكۡفُرۡ بِهَا هَـوُلاءِ فَقَدۡ وَكَّلۡنَا بِهَا قَوۡماً لَّيۡسُواۡ بِهَا بِكَـفِرِينَ

But if these disbelieve therein, then, indeed We have entrusted it to a people who are not disbelievers therein. (6:89)

وَمِنۡ ايَاتِهِ

And among His signs,

means, signs of His ability to bring the dead back to life.

أَنَّكَ تَرَى الاَۡرۡضَ خَاشِعَةً

that you see the earth barren,

means, lifeless, with nothing growing in it; it is dead.

فَإِذَا أَنزَلۡنَا عَلَيۡهَا الۡمَاء اهۡتَزَّتۡ وَرَبَتۡ

but when We send down water (rain) to it, it is stirred to life and growth.

means, it brings forth all kinds of crops and fruits.

إِنَّ الَّذِي أَحۡيَاهَا لَمُحۡيِي الۡمَوۡتَى

إِنَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيۡءٍ قَدِيرٌ

Verily, He Who gives it life, surely is able to give life to the dead. Indeed He is Able to do all things.

The Punishment of the Deniers and the Description of the Qur'an

Allah says,

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُلۡحِدُونَ فِي ايَاتِنَا لَا

Verily, Yulhiduna Fi Our Ayat,

Ibn Abbas said,

Al-Ilhad means putting words in their improper places.

Qatadah and others said,

It means disbelief and obstinate behavior.

لَاا

يَخۡفَوۡنَ عَلَيۡنَا

are not hidden from Us.

This is a stern warning and dire threat, stating that He, may He be exalted, knows who denies His signs, Names and attributes, and He will punish them for that.

He says:

أَفَمَن يُلۡقَى فِي النَّارِ خَيۡرٌ أَم مَّن يَأۡتِي امِنًا يَوۡمَ الۡقِيَامَةِ

Is he who is cast into the Fire better or he who comes secure on the Day of Resurrection?

means, are these two equal?

They are not equal.

Then Allah warns the disbelievers:

اعۡمَلُوا مَا شِيۡتُمۡ

Do what you will.

Mujahid, Ad-Dahhak and `Ata' Al-Khurasani said that

اعۡمَلُوا مَا شِيۡتُمۡ

(Do what you will), is a threat. Meaning, `do what you will of good or evil, for He knows and sees all that you do.'

He says:

إِنَّهُ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ

Verily, He is All-Seer of what you do.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِالذِّكۡرِ لَمَّا جَاءهُمۡ

Verily, those who disbelieved in the Reminder when it came to them.

Ad-Dahhak, As-Suddi and Qatadah said,

This is the Qur'an.

وَإِنَّهُ لَكِتَابٌ عَزِيزٌ

And verily, it is an honorable well-fortified respected Book.

means, it is protected and preserved, and nobody can produce anything like it

لَاا يَأۡتِيهِ الۡبَاطِلُ مِن بَيۡنِ يَدَيۡهِ وَلَاا مِنۡ خَلۡفِهِ

Falsehood cannot come to it from before it or behind it,

means, there is no way to corrupt it, because it has been sent down by the Lord of the worlds.

Allah says:

تَنزِيلٌ مِّنۡ حَكِيمٍ حَمِيدٍ

(it is) sent down by the All-Wise, Worthy of all praise.

meaning, He is Wise in all that He says and does, Praiseworthy in all that He commands and forbids; everything that He does is for praiseworthy purposes and its consequences will be good

مَا يُقَالُ لَكَ إِلاَّ مَا قَدۡ قِيلَ لِلرُّسُلِ مِن قَبۡلِكَ

Nothing is said to you except what was said to the Messengers before you.

Qatadah, As-Suddi and others said,

Nothing is said to you by way of rejection and disbelief, that was not said to the Messengers who came before you. Just as you have been rejected, they were also rejected. Just as they bore their people's insults with patience, so too you must bear your people's insults with patience.

إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لَذُو مَغۡفِرَةٍ

Verily, your Lord is the Possessor of forgiveness,

means, for those who turn to Him in repentance.

وَذُو عِقَابٍ أَلِيمٍ

and (also) the Possessor of painful punishment.

means, for those who persist in disbelief, transgression and stubborn opposition.