يَوْمَ تُقَلَّبُ وُجُوهُهُمْ فِى ٱلنَّارِ يَقُولُونَ يَـٰلَيْتَنَآ أَطَعْنَا ٱللَّهَ وَأَطَعْنَا ٱلرَّسُولَا۠ 66
Translations
The Day their faces will be turned about in the Fire, they will say, "How we wish we had obeyed Allāh and obeyed the Messenger."
Transliteration
Yawma tuqallabu wujuhuhum fi al-nari yaqulun ya laytana ata'na al-laha wa ata'na al-rasul.
Tafsir (Explanation)
On the Day of Judgment, the faces of the disbelievers will be turned and twisted in the Fire, and they will express their regret saying, 'O, how we wish we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger!' According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi, this ayah depicts the intense remorse of those who rejected divine guidance in the worldly life. The turning of faces in the fire symbolizes both physical torment and the anguish of recognizing their fatal error too late.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-Ahzab, a Medinan surah primarily addressing the events of the Battle of the Trench (Ghazwat al-Ahzab) and broader matters of Islamic conduct and belief. The surah uses the consequences of the Hereafter to reinforce obedience to Allah and His Messenger during the believer's earthly life. This particular ayah emphasizes the gravity of rejecting prophetic guidance.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The most regretful person on the Day of Judgment will be he who saw two paths in this world—one leading to the Fire and one to Paradise—and chose the path to the Fire' (related by Ahmad and At-Tirmidhi). Additionally, the theme of regret in the Hereafter is reinforced in Surah Az-Zumar 39:56-57 regarding those who wish they could return to correct their deeds.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a powerful reminder that obedience to Allah and His Messenger in this life is not merely a religious obligation but a matter of eternal consequence. For modern believers, it underscores the urgency of heeding divine guidance while opportunity remains, for regret after death is eternal and irreversible.
Related Ayahs
قُلْ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَعْصِمُكُم مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ إِنْ أَرَادَ بِكُمْ سُوٓءًا أَوْ أَرَادَ بِكُمْ رَحْمَةً ۚ وَلَا يَجِدُونَ لَهُم مِّن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ وَلِيًّا وَلَا نَصِيرًا
Say, "Who is it that can protect you from Allāh if He intends for you an ill or intends for you a mercy?" And they will not find for themselves besides Allāh any protector or any helper.
وَدَاعِيًا إِلَى ٱللَّهِ بِإِذْنِهِۦ وَسِرَاجًا مُّنِيرًا
And one who invites to Allāh, by His permission, and an illuminating lamp.
وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلَا مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥٓ أَمْرًا أَن يَكُونَ لَهُمُ ٱلْخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ ۗ وَمَن يَعْصِ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَـٰلًا مُّبِينًا
It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allāh and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair. And whoever disobeys Allāh and His Messenger has certainly strayed into clear error.
وَلَمَّا رَءَا ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ ٱلْأَحْزَابَ قَالُوا۟ هَـٰذَا مَا وَعَدَنَا ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥ وَصَدَقَ ٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥ ۚ وَمَا زَادَهُمْ إِلَّآ إِيمَـٰنًا وَتَسْلِيمًا
And when the believers saw the companies, they said, "This is what Allāh and His Messenger had promised us, and Allāh and His Messenger spoke the truth." And it increased them only in faith and acceptance.