يَـٰقَوْمِ لَكُمُ ٱلْمُلْكُ ٱلْيَوْمَ ظَـٰهِرِينَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَمَن يَنصُرُنَا مِنۢ بَأْسِ ٱللَّهِ إِن جَآءَنَا ۚ قَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ مَآ أُرِيكُمْ إِلَّا مَآ أَرَىٰ وَمَآ أَهْدِيكُمْ إِلَّا سَبِيلَ ٱلرَّشَادِ 29
Translations
O my people, sovereignty is yours today, [your being] dominant in the land. But who would protect us from the punishment of Allāh if it came to us?" Pharaoh said, "I do not show you except what I see, and I do not guide you except to the way of right conduct."
Transliteration
Ya qawmi lakumul-mulku al-yawma zahirina fil-ardi faman yansuruna min ba'si-llahi in ja'ana. Qala fir'awnu ma urika-kum illa ma ara wa ma ahdikum illa sabila ar-rashad.
Tafsir (Explanation)
A believing man from Pharaoh's family addresses his people, reminding them that despite their current earthly dominance, they are powerless against Allah's punishment if it comes upon them. Pharaoh responds arrogantly, claiming he only shows them what he sees and guides them only to the path of rectitude—a statement reflecting his spiritual blindness and rejection of truth. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir note this exchange illustrates the contrast between sincere advice rooted in faith and tyrannical self-deception rooted in pride.
Revelation Context
This ayah occurs within the narrative of Pharaoh and the believing man (mu'min Al Fir'awn) in Surah Ghafir, a Meccan surah revealed to comfort the Prophet (ﷺ) and believers facing persecution. The dialogue exemplifies the recurring Quranic theme of the clash between divine guidance and human arrogance, serving as a warning to the Quraysh who similarly rejected the Prophet's message despite Allah's signs.
Related Hadiths
While no hadith directly quotes this verse, Surah Ghafir's themes relate to the hadith in Sahih Muslim where the Prophet said, 'The most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you,' emphasizing that true honor comes from piety, not worldly power—a principle the believing man embodied.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that material wealth and political power offer no refuge from Allah's justice, and warns against the dangerous delusion of self-sufficiency that blinds leaders to truth. For believers today, it emphasizes the courage required to speak truth to power and the futility of relying on anything but Allah's favor.
Related Ayahs
إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ يَصِلُونَ إِلَىٰ قَوْمٍۭ بَيْنَكُمْ وَبَيْنَهُم مِّيثَـٰقٌ أَوْ جَآءُوكُمْ حَصِرَتْ صُدُورُهُمْ أَن يُقَـٰتِلُوكُمْ أَوْ يُقَـٰتِلُوا۟ قَوْمَهُمْ ۚ وَلَوْ شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ لَسَلَّطَهُمْ عَلَيْكُمْ فَلَقَـٰتَلُوكُمْ ۚ فَإِنِ ٱعْتَزَلُوكُمْ فَلَمْ يُقَـٰتِلُوكُمْ وَأَلْقَوْا۟ إِلَيْكُمُ ٱلسَّلَمَ فَمَا جَعَلَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ عَلَيْهِمْ سَبِيلًا
Except for those who take refuge with a people between yourselves and whom is a treaty or those who come to you, their hearts strained at [the prospect of] fighting you or fighting their own people. And if Allāh had willed, He could have given them power over you, and they would have fought you. So if they remove themselves from you and do not fight you and offer you peace, then Allāh has not made for you a cause [for fighting] against them.
قَالُوا۟ بَلَىٰ قَدْ جَآءَنَا نَذِيرٌ فَكَذَّبْنَا وَقُلْنَا مَا نَزَّلَ ٱللَّهُ مِن شَىْءٍ إِنْ أَنتُمْ إِلَّا فِى ضَلَـٰلٍ كَبِيرٍ
They will say, "Yes, a warner had come to us, but we denied and said, 'Allāh has not sent down anything. You are not but in great error.'"
أَمْ لَكُمْ أَيْمَـٰنٌ عَلَيْنَا بَـٰلِغَةٌ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ ۙ إِنَّ لَكُمْ لَمَا تَحْكُمُونَ
Or do you have oaths [binding] upon Us, extending until the Day of Resurrection, that indeed for you is whatever you judge?
إِنَّمَا مَثَلُ ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا كَمَآءٍ أَنزَلْنَـٰهُ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ فَٱخْتَلَطَ بِهِۦ نَبَاتُ ٱلْأَرْضِ مِمَّا يَأْكُلُ ٱلنَّاسُ وَٱلْأَنْعَـٰمُ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَخَذَتِ ٱلْأَرْضُ زُخْرُفَهَا وَٱزَّيَّنَتْ وَظَنَّ أَهْلُهَآ أَنَّهُمْ قَـٰدِرُونَ عَلَيْهَآ أَتَىٰهَآ أَمْرُنَا لَيْلًا أَوْ نَهَارًا فَجَعَلْنَـٰهَا حَصِيدًا كَأَن لَّمْ تَغْنَ بِٱلْأَمْسِ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نُفَصِّلُ ٱلْـَٔايَـٰتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
The example of [this] worldly life is but like rain which We have sent down from the sky that the plants of the earth absorb - [those] from which men and livestock eat - until, when the earth has taken on its adornment and is beautified and its people suppose that they have capability over it, there comes to it Our command by night or by day, and We make it as a harvest, as if it had not flourished yesterday. Thus do We explain in detail the signs for a people who give thought.