ٱلْمُنَـٰفِقُونَ وَٱلْمُنَـٰفِقَـٰتُ بَعْضُهُم مِّنۢ بَعْضٍ ۚ يَأْمُرُونَ بِٱلْمُنكَرِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ ٱلْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَقْبِضُونَ أَيْدِيَهُمْ ۚ نَسُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ فَنَسِيَهُمْ ۗ إِنَّ ٱلْمُنَـٰفِقِينَ هُمُ ٱلْفَـٰسِقُونَ 67
Translations
The hypocrite men and hypocrite women are of one another. They enjoin what is wrong and forbid what is right and close their hands. They have forgotten Allāh, so He has forgotten them [accordingly]. Indeed, the hypocrites - it is they who are the defiantly disobedient.
Transliteration
Al-munafiqun wa-al-munafiqatu ba'duhum min ba'd. Ya'murun bi-al-munkar wa-yanhawna 'an al-ma'ruf wa-yaqbidun aydiyahum. Nasullaha fa-nasiyahum. Inna al-munafiqin hum al-fasiqun.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the characteristics of hypocrites (munafiqun) of both genders, portraying them as a unified group in their corruption: they command evil and forbid good—a complete reversal of the believer's duty—and withhold their wealth from charitable causes. The phrase 'they forgot Allah, so He forgot them' is interpreted by classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi to mean that Allah withdraws His guidance and mercy from them as a consequence of their willful abandonment of His remembrance and obedience. The conclusion equates hypocrisy with transgression (fisq), emphasizing that outward profession of faith combined with inward rejection and immoral conduct constitutes the gravest spiritual corruption.
Revelation Context
Surah At-Tawbah (Chapter 9) was revealed in the Medinan period and addresses the issue of hypocrites who posed a significant challenge to the Muslim community. This particular ayah appears in a section dealing with the characteristics of hypocrites and their inevitable punishment. The context reflects the practical reality of the Islamic state in Medina, where certain individuals made false claims of belief while secretly undermining the community's moral and religious foundations.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The signs of a hypocrite are three: when he speaks, he lies; when he promises, he breaks his promise; and when he is entrusted, he betrays' (Sahih Bukhari). Additionally, the Prophet warned: 'There is a group of people in my ummah who will not enter Paradise until the believers enter it, just as the last iron implement enters the furnace' (referring to those who delay repentance from hypocrisy).
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah warns believers to examine their own hearts for traces of hypocrisy—the contradiction between public faith and private actions—and to remain vigilant in promoting good and forbidding evil. It teaches that true remembrance of Allah (dhikr) leads to moral consistency and generosity, while forgetting Allah inevitably results in spiritual desolation and divine abandonment.
Related Ayahs
يَحْلِفُونَ بِٱللَّهِ لَكُمْ لِيُرْضُوكُمْ وَٱللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُۥٓ أَحَقُّ أَن يُرْضُوهُ إِن كَانُوا۟ مُؤْمِنِينَ
They swear by Allāh to you [Muslims] to satisfy you. But Allāh and His Messenger are more worthy for them to satisfy, if they were to be believers.
أَلَمْ يَأْتِهِمْ نَبَأُ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ قَوْمِ نُوحٍ وَعَادٍ وَثَمُودَ وَقَوْمِ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ وَأَصْحَـٰبِ مَدْيَنَ وَٱلْمُؤْتَفِكَـٰتِ ۚ أَتَتْهُمْ رُسُلُهُم بِٱلْبَيِّنَـٰتِ ۖ فَمَا كَانَ ٱللَّهُ لِيَظْلِمَهُمْ وَلَـٰكِن كَانُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ
Has there not reached them the news of those before them - the people of Noah and [the tribes of] ʿAad and Thamūd and the people of Abraham and the companions [i.e., dwellers] of Madyan and the towns overturned? Their messengers came to them with clear proofs. And Allāh would never have wronged them, but they were wronging themselves.
وَإِن نَّكَثُوٓا۟ أَيْمَـٰنَهُم مِّنۢ بَعْدِ عَهْدِهِمْ وَطَعَنُوا۟ فِى دِينِكُمْ فَقَـٰتِلُوٓا۟ أَئِمَّةَ ٱلْكُفْرِ ۙ إِنَّهُمْ لَآ أَيْمَـٰنَ لَهُمْ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَنتَهُونَ
And if they break their oaths after their treaty and defame your religion, then combat the leaders of disbelief, for indeed, there are no oaths [sacred] to them; [fight them that] they might cease.
۞ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ إِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ ٱلْأَحْبَارِ وَٱلرُّهْبَانِ لَيَأْكُلُونَ أَمْوَٰلَ ٱلنَّاسِ بِٱلْبَـٰطِلِ وَيَصُدُّونَ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَٱلَّذِينَ يَكْنِزُونَ ٱلذَّهَبَ وَٱلْفِضَّةَ وَلَا يُنفِقُونَهَا فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ فَبَشِّرْهُم بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ
O you who have believed, indeed many of the scholars and the monks devour the wealth of people unjustly and avert [them] from the way of Allāh. And those who hoard gold and silver and spend it not in the way of Allāh - give them tidings of a painful punishment.