لَّا يَأْكُلُهُۥٓ إِلَّا ٱلْخَـٰطِـُٔونَ 37
Translations
None will eat it except the sinners.
Transliteration
Lā ya'kuluhu illā al-khāṭi'ūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah refers to the food (Zaqqūm tree) of the inhabitants of Hell, which only the sinners and wrongdoers will eat. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi explain that this bitter, foul tree is a punishment specific to those who rejected truth and committed grave sins. The restriction emphasizes that this punishment is reserved exclusively for those who deserve it, highlighting divine justice.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the context of Surah Al-Haqqah's vivid description of the Day of Judgment and the realities of the Hereafter. The surah graphically depicts the punishments awaiting disbelievers, with the Zaqqūm tree serving as a specific example of their torment in Hell.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ṣallallāhu 'alayhi wa sallam) mentioned the Zaqqūm tree in several contexts. See At-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah regarding descriptions of Hell's punishments. Additionally, hadiths in Sahih Muslim describe the bitterness and horror of the tree as a warning against disobedience.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah serves as a powerful warning that sinful deeds have real, eternal consequences in the Hereafter, encouraging believers to maintain righteousness and fear Allah. It reminds us that justice is perfectly administered by Allah, and no wrongdoer will escape accountability.
Related Ayahs
هَلْ يَنظُرُونَ إِلَّآ أَن تَأْتِيَهُمُ ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةُ أَوْ يَأْتِىَ رَبُّكَ أَوْ يَأْتِىَ بَعْضُ ءَايَـٰتِ رَبِّكَ ۗ يَوْمَ يَأْتِى بَعْضُ ءَايَـٰتِ رَبِّكَ لَا يَنفَعُ نَفْسًا إِيمَـٰنُهَا لَمْ تَكُنْ ءَامَنَتْ مِن قَبْلُ أَوْ كَسَبَتْ فِىٓ إِيمَـٰنِهَا خَيْرًا ۗ قُلِ ٱنتَظِرُوٓا۟ إِنَّا مُنتَظِرُونَ
Do they [then] wait for anything except that the angels should come to them or your Lord should come or that there come some of the signs of your Lord? The Day that some of the signs of your Lord will come no soul will benefit from its faith as long as it had not believed before or had earned through its faith some good. Say, "Wait. Indeed, we [also] are waiting."
ثُمَّ لَا يَمُوتُ فِيهَا وَلَا يَحْيَىٰ
Neither dying therein nor living.
فَأَمَّا ٱلَّذِينَ شَقُوا۟ فَفِى ٱلنَّارِ لَهُمْ فِيهَا زَفِيرٌ وَشَهِيقٌ
As for those who were [destined to be] wretched, they will be in the Fire. For them therein is [violent] exhaling and inhaling.
إِنَّا مُنزِلُونَ عَلَىٰٓ أَهْلِ هَـٰذِهِ ٱلْقَرْيَةِ رِجْزًا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْسُقُونَ
Indeed, we will bring down on the people of this city punishment from the sky because they have been defiantly disobedient."