قَدْ عَلِمْنَا مَا تَنقُصُ ٱلْأَرْضُ مِنْهُمْ ۖ وَعِندَنَا كِتَـٰبٌ حَفِيظٌۢ 4
Translations
We know what the earth diminishes [i.e., consumes] of them, and with Us is a retaining record.
Transliteration
Qad 'alimna ma tanqusu al-ardu minhum wa 'indana kitabun hafiz
Tafsir (Explanation)
Allah asserts His complete knowledge of all that the earth consumes from human bodies after death—whether through decay, decomposition, or being eaten by animals—affirming that nothing is lost or forgotten from His perspective. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari emphasize this as a response to those who doubted resurrection, illustrating that Allah's preserved record (the Preserved Tablet) contains complete knowledge of every atom of creation, making resurrection effortless for the All-Knowing. This ayah serves as a powerful refutation of skeptics who questioned how bodies scattered in the earth could be reassembled.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Qaf, a Meccan surah that comprehensively addresses the disbelievers' doubts about the Day of Judgment and bodily resurrection. It directly responds to the Meccan polytheists' rhetorical objection: 'Who will bring us back after we have become bones and dust?' (Qaf 50:3), providing theological reassurance that Allah's omniscience makes resurrection inevitable.
Related Hadiths
The hadith in Sahih Muslim states that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Every son of Adam will decay except the coccyx bone (tailbone), from which he was created and from which he will be resurrected.' This directly relates to the ayah's theme of what the earth consumes while Allah preserves knowledge of the original creation.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers that no act, thought, or physical matter escapes Allah's knowledge—providing comfort that our deeds are recorded and our resurrection is certain. For modern readers, it reinforces that awareness of Allah's all-encompassing knowledge should motivate accountability in both spiritual and ethical conduct.
Related Ayahs
وَيَقُولُونَ لَوْلَآ أُنزِلَ عَلَيْهِ ءَايَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِۦ ۖ فَقُلْ إِنَّمَا ٱلْغَيْبُ لِلَّهِ فَٱنتَظِرُوٓا۟ إِنِّى مَعَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْمُنتَظِرِينَ
And they say, "Why is a sign not sent down to him from his Lord?" So say, "The unseen is only for Allāh [to administer], so wait; indeed, I am with you among those who wait."
وَإِذْ غَدَوْتَ مِنْ أَهْلِكَ تُبَوِّئُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ مَقَـٰعِدَ لِلْقِتَالِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ
And [remember] when you, [O Muḥammad], left your family in the morning to post the believers at their stations for the battle [of Uḥud] - and Allāh is Hearing and Knowing -
فَٱعْلَمْ أَنَّهُۥ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا ٱللَّهُ وَٱسْتَغْفِرْ لِذَنۢبِكَ وَلِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنَـٰتِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مُتَقَلَّبَكُمْ وَمَثْوَىٰكُمْ
So know, [O Muḥammad], that there is no deity except Allāh and ask forgiveness for your sin and for the believing men and believing women. And Allāh knows of your movement and your resting place.
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نُحْىِ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ وَنَكْتُبُ مَا قَدَّمُوا۟ وَءَاثَـٰرَهُمْ ۚ وَكُلَّ شَىْءٍ أَحْصَيْنَـٰهُ فِىٓ إِمَامٍ مُّبِينٍ
Indeed, it is We who bring the dead to life and record what they have put forth and what they left behind, and all things We have enumerated in a clear register.