وَلَن يَنفَعَكُمُ ٱلْيَوْمَ إِذ ظَّلَمْتُمْ أَنَّكُمْ فِى ٱلْعَذَابِ مُشْتَرِكُونَ 39
Translations
And never will it benefit you that Day, when you have wronged, that you are [all] sharing in the punishment.
Transliteration
Wa lan yanfa'akumu al-yawma idh zallamtum annakum fi al-'adhabi mushtarikun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah conveys that on the Day of Judgment, the shared punishment of those who committed injustice will not benefit them or provide any relief. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari interpret this as emphasizing that companionship in sin offers no consolation—each soul bears its own burden of accountability. The ayah serves as a warning that collective wrongdoing does not diminish individual responsibility before Allah.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the context of Surah Az-Zukhruf, which is entirely Meccan and addresses the idolaters and their false deities. The verse is part of a broader passage discussing how polytheists will reject truth and face consequences on the Day of Judgment. The surah emphasizes the futility of worldly ornaments and false associations with Allah in the face of divine justice.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: 'Each soul shall taste death, and We will test you with evil and with good as a trial' (Quran 21:35). Additionally, the hadith in Sahih Bukhari emphasizes personal accountability: 'On the Day of Resurrection, a man will be the closest to another, yet he will turn away from him' (Bukhari 6555), illustrating the isolation of each soul before Allah's judgment.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that no earthly alliance, shared belief in falsehood, or collective action can absolve individuals of their personal responsibility before Allah on the Day of Judgment. Believers should focus on individual righteousness rather than seeking comfort in numbers or wrongdoing, as each person must answer for their own deeds.
Related Ayahs
وَلَقَدْ أَهْلَكْنَا ٱلْقُرُونَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَمَّا ظَلَمُوا۟ ۙ وَجَآءَتْهُمْ رُسُلُهُم بِٱلْبَيِّنَـٰتِ وَمَا كَانُوا۟ لِيُؤْمِنُوا۟ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِى ٱلْقَوْمَ ٱلْمُجْرِمِينَ
And We had already destroyed generations before you when they wronged, and their messengers had come to them with clear proofs, but they were not to believe. Thus do We recompense the criminal people.
ثُمَّ إِنَّهُمْ لَصَالُوا۟ ٱلْجَحِيمِ
Then indeed, they will [enter and] burn in Hellfire.
هَلْ جَزَآءُ ٱلْإِحْسَـٰنِ إِلَّا ٱلْإِحْسَـٰنُ
Is the reward for good [anything] but good?
يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا تُسِرُّونَ وَمَا تُعْلِنُونَ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌۢ بِذَاتِ ٱلصُّدُورِ
He knows what is within the heavens and earth and knows what you conceal and what you declare. And Allāh is Knowing of that within the breasts.