وَعَادًا وَثَمُودَا۟ وَقَد تَّبَيَّنَ لَكُم مِّن مَّسَـٰكِنِهِمْ ۖ وَزَيَّنَ لَهُمُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ أَعْمَـٰلَهُمْ فَصَدَّهُمْ عَنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِ وَكَانُوا۟ مُسْتَبْصِرِينَ 38
Translations
And [We destroyed] ʿAad and Thamūd, and it has become clear to you from their [ruined] dwellings. And Satan had made pleasing to them their deeds and averted them from the path, and they were endowed with perception.
Transliteration
Wa-'aadan wa-thamuuda wa-qad tabbayana lakum min masaakinihim wa-zayyana lahumu ash-shaytanu a'maalahum fa-saddahum 'ani as-sabili wa-kanu mustabsireen
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah refers to the destruction of the 'Ad and Thamud peoples, whose ruins were visible to the Arabs of the Prophet's time as a sign of Allah's punishment. Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari explain that despite the clear evidence of their predecessors' destruction and the remnants of their dwellings, Satan beautified the deeds of these nations in their eyes, causing them to turn away from the straight path even though they possessed insight and understanding. The ayah emphasizes the tragic reality that knowledge and awareness alone are insufficient without sincere adherence to guidance.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Al-'Ankabut, a Meccan surah that frequently references past destroyed nations as warnings to the Quraysh who rejected the Prophet Muhammad's message. The context addresses the Meccan pagans' rejection despite witnessing the physical ruins of 'Ad and Thamud in the Arabian Peninsula, which served as tangible historical evidence of divine punishment for those who rejected their prophets.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said regarding the people of 'Ad: 'They were given strength in their bodies like no other people, but they were destroyed because they rejected the signs of Allah' (referenced in Tafsir Ibn Kathir). Additionally, 'Abdullāh ibn Mas'ūd reported that the Prophet mentioned these nations as examples of those whom Allah punished for their arrogance and rejection (Sunan At-Tirmidhi).
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that possessing intellectual understanding and witnessing clear signs is insufficient without genuine spiritual conviction and obedience; believers must actively resist Satan's beautification of worldly desires and heed divine guidance. In our modern context, this reminds us that knowledge of truth carries the responsibility to act upon it, and that becoming complacent despite clear signs of consequence leads to spiritual ruin.
Related Ayahs
بَلْ هُوَ ءَايَـٰتٌۢ بَيِّنَـٰتٌ فِى صُدُورِ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمَ ۚ وَمَا يَجْحَدُ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَآ إِلَّا ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ
Rather, it [i.e., the Qur’ān] is distinct verses [preserved] within the breasts of those who have been given knowledge. And none reject Our verses except the wrongdoers.
الٓمٓ
Alif, Lām, Meem.
قُلْ كَفَىٰ بِٱللَّهِ بَيْنِى وَبَيْنَكُمْ شَهِيدًا ۖ يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ بِٱلْبَـٰطِلِ وَكَفَرُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْخَـٰسِرُونَ
Say, "Sufficient is Allāh between me and you as Witness. He knows what is in the heavens and earth. And they who have believed in falsehood and disbelieved in Allāh - it is those who are the losers."
وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ لَنُكَفِّرَنَّ عَنْهُمْ سَيِّـَٔاتِهِمْ وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَحْسَنَ ٱلَّذِى كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
And those who believe and do righteous deeds - We will surely remove from them their misdeeds and will surely reward them according to the best of what they used to do.