وَٱلَّذِينَ كَسَبُوا۟ ٱلسَّيِّـَٔاتِ جَزَآءُ سَيِّئَةٍۭ بِمِثْلِهَا وَتَرْهَقُهُمْ ذِلَّةٌ ۖ مَّا لَهُم مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ مِنْ عَاصِمٍ ۖ كَأَنَّمَآ أُغْشِيَتْ وُجُوهُهُمْ قِطَعًا مِّنَ ٱلَّيْلِ مُظْلِمًا ۚ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلنَّارِ ۖ هُمْ فِيهَا خَـٰلِدُونَ 27
Translations
But they who have earned [blame for] evil doings - the recompense of an evil deed is its equivalent, and humiliation will cover them. They will have from Allāh no protector. It will be as if their faces are covered with pieces of the night - so dark [are they]. Those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide therein eternally.
Transliteration
Wallathīna kasabū al-sayyiāt jazāu sayyiatin bimithliha wa tarahaquhum dhillah, mā lahum min Allāh min ʿāṣim, ka-annama ughshiyat wujūhuhum qiṭaʿan min al-layl muẓlimah, ulāika aṣḥāb al-nār, hum fīhā khālidūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the recompense of those who commit evil deeds: they receive punishment equal to their sins, covered in humiliation and disgrace with no protector from Allah. Ibn Kathir explains that their faces will be covered with darkness in the afterlife as a metaphor for their spiritual blindness and rejection of truth in this life. The ayah concludes that such people are the inhabitants of Hell, dwelling therein eternally, emphasizing the just and proportionate nature of divine punishment.
Revelation Context
Surah Yunus is a Meccan surah revealed during the early period of Islam when the Quraysh were actively rejecting the Prophet's message. This ayah appears in a passage contrasting the reward of the righteous with the punishment of the wicked, serving as a warning to those who deliberately choose sinfulness and rejection of Allah's guidance.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'Every soul will taste death, and you will only be given your full compensation on the Day of Resurrection' (Quran 3:185, related to themes of just recompense). Also relevant: 'The best of you are those with the best character' (Tirmidhi 1162), implying that evil deeds stem from corrupted character.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds believers that every action has proportionate consequences and that no one can evade Allah's justice; it should inspire mindfulness of our deeds and encourage repentance before it is too late. For modern readers, it emphasizes that moral choices have real, eternal significance and that living righteously is not merely about external compliance but reflects the state of one's heart and soul.
Related Ayahs
وَأَصْحَـٰبُ مَدْيَنَ ۖ وَكُذِّبَ مُوسَىٰ فَأَمْلَيْتُ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ ثُمَّ أَخَذْتُهُمْ ۖ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ نَكِيرِ
And the inhabitants of Madyan. And Moses was denied, so I prolonged enjoyment for the disbelievers; then I seized them, and how [terrible] was My reproach.
لِّلْكَـٰفِرِينَ لَيْسَ لَهُۥ دَافِعٌ
To the disbelievers; of it there is no preventer.
إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا سَوْفَ نُصْلِيهِمْ نَارًا كُلَّمَا نَضِجَتْ جُلُودُهُم بَدَّلْنَـٰهُمْ جُلُودًا غَيْرَهَا لِيَذُوقُوا۟ ٱلْعَذَابَ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَزِيزًا حَكِيمًا
Indeed, those who disbelieve in Our verses - We will drive them into a fire. Every time their skins are roasted through, We will replace them with other skins so they may taste the punishment. Indeed, Allāh is ever Exalted in Might and Wise.
ٱلنَّارُ يُعْرَضُونَ عَلَيْهَا غُدُوًّا وَعَشِيًّا ۖ وَيَوْمَ تَقُومُ ٱلسَّاعَةُ أَدْخِلُوٓا۟ ءَالَ فِرْعَوْنَ أَشَدَّ ٱلْعَذَابِ
The Fire; they are exposed to it morning and evening. And the Day the Hour appears [it will be said], "Make the people of Pharaoh enter the severest punishment."