فَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ ٱفْتَرَىٰ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ كَذِبًا أَوْ كَذَّبَ بِـَٔايَـٰتِهِۦٓ ۚ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ يَنَالُهُمْ نَصِيبُهُم مِّنَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ ۖ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا جَآءَتْهُمْ رُسُلُنَا يَتَوَفَّوْنَهُمْ قَالُوٓا۟ أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ ۖ قَالُوا۟ ضَلُّوا۟ عَنَّا وَشَهِدُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ أَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا۟ كَـٰفِرِينَ 37
Translations
And who is more unjust than one who invents about Allāh a lie or denies His verses? Those will attain their portion of the decree until, when Our messengers [i.e., angels] come to them to take them in death, they will say, "Where are those you used to invoke besides Allāh?" They will say, "They have departed from us," and will bear witness against themselves that they were disbelievers.
Transliteration
Faman azlamu mimman iftara alallahi kathiban aw kadhdhaba bi-ayatihi. Ulaa'ika yanaluhum nasibuhum mina al-kitabi hatta idha jaa'at-hum rusuluna yatawaffawnahum qaluu ayna ma kuntum tad'uun min duni-Allah. Qaluu dallu anna wa shahidu ala anfusihim annahum kanuu kafirin.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah identifies those who commit the gravest injustice: fabricating lies against Allah or rejecting His signs. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir emphasize that such people receive their designated portion from the Divine decree until the angels of death arrive, at which point they desperately call upon their false deities, only to find them abandoned. The idols and false gods they worshipped in life disown them, and the disbelievers themselves testify to their own kufr (disbelief), sealing their fate.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Al-A'raf, a Meccan surah addressing the polytheists of Makkah. It forms part of a broader passage (verses 36-41) describing the fate of those who reject Allah's signs and turn away from His guidance. The context reflects the Qur'an's repeated challenge to the idolaters regarding the futility of their false beliefs and the consequence awaiting them.
Related Hadiths
The hadith in Sahih Muslim (2800) where the Prophet (peace be upon him) warned against lies and fabrications is thematically related: 'The worst lie is for a man to claim to be the son of another man, or to attribute false stories to the Qur'an.' Additionally, the hadith in Tirmidhi (2319) emphasizes that the greatest sin after shirk is fabricating lies against Allah.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a stern reminder that spreading falsehood about Allah's religion is among the gravest injustices, and that relying on false gods and invented doctrines offers no refuge. For believers, it reinforces the importance of adhering to authentic revelation and warning others against the spiritual peril of fabricating religious claims.