وَٱتَّقُوا۟ فِتْنَةً لَّا تُصِيبَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ مِنكُمْ خَآصَّةً ۖ وَٱعْلَمُوٓا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ شَدِيدُ ٱلْعِقَابِ 25
Translations
And fear a trial which will not strike those who have wronged among you exclusively, and know that Allāh is severe in penalty.
Transliteration
Wa-ttaqū fitnatun lā tuṣībanna alladhīna ẓalamū minkum khāṣṣatan wa-a'lamū anna Allāha shadīdu al-'iqāb
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah commands the believers to guard against fitnah (tribulation/discord) that does not exclusively affect the wrongdoers among them, but affects the righteous as well. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret this as a warning that societal corruption and disobedience can bring divine punishment upon entire communities, not just the transgressors themselves. The verse emphasizes collective responsibility and warns that Allah's punishment is severe for those who fail to prevent or oppose injustice within their society.
Revelation Context
Revealed in Medina during the period of early Islamic warfare and community consolidation. This surah addresses the believers following the Battle of Badr, and this particular ayah contextualizes the importance of maintaining social cohesion and moral standards within the Muslim community to avoid collective punishment.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa-sallam) said: 'When the people see an evil and do not change it, Allah will soon include them all in His punishment' (Sunan Ibn Majah and Sunan al-Tirmidhi). Additionally, 'Whoever among you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; if he is not able, then with his tongue; if he is not able, then with his heart, and that is the weakest of faith' (Sahih Muslim).
Themes
Key Lesson
Muslims have a collective duty to prevent wrongdoing in their society, as inaction can bring divine punishment upon the entire community, not just the wrongdoers themselves. This emphasizes the importance of enjoining good and forbidding evil (al-amr bi-l-ma'rūf wa-n-nahy 'an al-munkar) as a foundational Islamic principle for maintaining societal righteousness.
Related Ayahs
وَإِن يُرِيدُوا۟ خِيَانَتَكَ فَقَدْ خَانُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ مِن قَبْلُ فَأَمْكَنَ مِنْهُمْ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
But if they intend to betray you - then they have already betrayed Allāh before, and He empowered [you] over them. And Allāh is Knowing and Wise.
كَدَأْبِ ءَالِ فِرْعَوْنَ ۙ وَٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ ۚ كَذَّبُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِ رَبِّهِمْ فَأَهْلَكْنَـٰهُم بِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَأَغْرَقْنَآ ءَالَ فِرْعَوْنَ ۚ وَكُلٌّ كَانُوا۟ ظَـٰلِمِينَ
[Theirs is] like the custom of the people of Pharaoh and of those before them. They denied the signs of their Lord, so We destroyed them for their sins, and We drowned the people of Pharaoh. And all [of them] were wrongdoers.
ٱلْـَٔـٰنَ خَفَّفَ ٱللَّهُ عَنكُمْ وَعَلِمَ أَنَّ فِيكُمْ ضَعْفًا ۚ فَإِن يَكُن مِّنكُم مِّا۟ئَةٌ صَابِرَةٌ يَغْلِبُوا۟ مِا۟ئَتَيْنِ ۚ وَإِن يَكُن مِّنكُمْ أَلْفٌ يَغْلِبُوٓا۟ أَلْفَيْنِ بِإِذْنِ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ مَعَ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ
Now, Allāh has lightened [the hardship] for you, and He knows that among you is weakness. So if there are from you one hundred [who are] steadfast, they will overcome two hundred. And if there are among you a thousand, they will overcome two thousand by permission of Allāh. And Allāh is with the steadfast.
وَإِذْ قَالُوا۟ ٱللَّهُمَّ إِن كَانَ هَـٰذَا هُوَ ٱلْحَقَّ مِنْ عِندِكَ فَأَمْطِرْ عَلَيْنَا حِجَارَةً مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ أَوِ ٱئْتِنَا بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ
And [remember] when they said, "O Allāh, if this should be the truth from You, then rain down upon us stones from the sky or bring us a painful punishment."