وَقَالُوا۟ قُلُوبُنَا فِىٓ أَكِنَّةٍ مِّمَّا تَدْعُونَآ إِلَيْهِ وَفِىٓ ءَاذَانِنَا وَقْرٌ وَمِنۢ بَيْنِنَا وَبَيْنِكَ حِجَابٌ فَٱعْمَلْ إِنَّنَا عَـٰمِلُونَ 5
Translations
And they say, "Our hearts are within coverings [i.e., screened] from that to which you invite us, and in our ears is deafness, and between us and you is a partition, so work; indeed, we are working."
Transliteration
Wa qāloo qulūbunā fī akinnatin mimmā tad'ūnā ilayhi wa fī ādhāninnā waqrun wa min bayninā wa baynaka hijāb, fa'mal innānā 'āmilūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
The disbelievers are describing their obstinate rejection of the Prophet's message, claiming their hearts are veiled (wrapped in coverings) from understanding his call, their ears are heavy (deaf) to it, and a barrier exists between them and him. According to classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir, this ayah illustrates the spiritual blindness and willful rejection of the Meccan polytheists—their hearts were not naturally incapable but rather hardened through their own pride and arrogance. Their defiant challenge 'fa'mal innānā 'āmilūn' (so do your work, indeed we are doing our work) represents their stubborn determination to persist in disbelief and opposition to the divine message.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Fussilat, a Meccan chapter revealed during the early period of Da'wah when the Prophet ﷺ faced intense opposition from the Quraysh. The context addresses the escalating rejection and mockery of the disbelievers despite the clarity of the Quranic message, reflecting the spiritual state of those who heard the revelations but refused to accept them.
Related Hadiths
The concept is reflected in Sahih Bukhari where the Prophet ﷺ stated that 'whoever Allah wills to misguide, He leaves their heart in confusion.' Additionally, Surah Al-Baqarah 2:7 is often cited alongside this ayah: 'Allah has sealed their hearts and their hearing, and over their eyes is a veil.'
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds us that rejection of divine guidance is often not due to lack of clarity in the message, but rather to the spiritual condition of the heart—our own pride, arrogance, and preconceptions can become barriers to understanding truth. Modern readers should reflect on whether their hearts remain open to divine guidance or if they have allowed worldly attachments and ego to seal their hearts from receiving wisdom.
Related Ayahs
فَأَمَّا عَادٌ فَٱسْتَكْبَرُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ بِغَيْرِ ٱلْحَقِّ وَقَالُوا۟ مَنْ أَشَدُّ مِنَّا قُوَّةً ۖ أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَهُمْ هُوَ أَشَدُّ مِنْهُمْ قُوَّةً ۖ وَكَانُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا يَجْحَدُونَ
As for ʿAad, they were arrogant upon the earth without right and said, "Who is greater than us in strength?" Did they not consider that Allāh who created them was greater than them in strength? But they were rejecting Our signs.
إِذْ جَآءَتْهُمُ ٱلرُّسُلُ مِنۢ بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ أَلَّا تَعْبُدُوٓا۟ إِلَّا ٱللَّهَ ۖ قَالُوا۟ لَوْ شَآءَ رَبُّنَا لَأَنزَلَ مَلَـٰٓئِكَةً فَإِنَّا بِمَآ أُرْسِلْتُم بِهِۦ كَـٰفِرُونَ
[That occurred] when the messengers had come to them before them and after them, [saying], "Worship not except Allāh." They said, "If our Lord had willed, He would have sent down the angels, so indeed we, in that with which you have been sent, are disbelievers."
۞ وَقَيَّضْنَا لَهُمْ قُرَنَآءَ فَزَيَّنُوا۟ لَهُم مَّا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ وَحَقَّ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلْقَوْلُ فِىٓ أُمَمٍ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِهِم مِّنَ ٱلْجِنِّ وَٱلْإِنسِ ۖ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا۟ خَـٰسِرِينَ
And We appointed for them companions who made attractive to them what was before them and what was behind them [of sin], and the word [i.e., decree] has come into effect upon them among nations which had passed on before them of jinn and men. Indeed, they [all] were losers.
فَلَنُذِيقَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ عَذَابًا شَدِيدًا وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَسْوَأَ ٱلَّذِى كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
But We will surely cause those who disbelieve to taste a severe punishment, and We will surely recompense them for the worst of what they had been doing.