Surah 4. An-Nisa

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Verses [Section]: 1-10[1], 11-14 [2], 15-22 [3], 23-25 [4], 26-33 [5], 34-42 [6], 43-50 [7], 51-56 [8], 57-70 [9], 71-76 [10], 77-87 [11], 88-91 [12], 92-96 [13], 97-100 [14], 101-104 [15], 105-112 [16], 113-115 [17], 116-126 [18], 127-134 [19], 135-141 [20], 142-152 [21], 153-162 [22], 163-171 [23], 172-176 [24]

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Quran Text of Verse 116-126اِنَّIndeedاللّٰهَAllahلَاdoes notیَغْفِرُforgiveاَنْthatیُّشْرَكَpartners be associatedبِهٖwith Himوَ یَغْفِرُbut He forgivesمَا[what]دُوْنَother thanذٰلِكَthatلِمَنْfor whomیَّشَآءُ ؕHe willsوَ مَنْAnd whoeverیُّشْرِكْassociates partnersبِاللّٰهِwith Allahفَقَدْthen surelyضَلَّhe lost (the) wayضَلٰلًۢاstrayingبَعِیْدًا far away اِنْNotیَّدْعُوْنَthey invokeمِنْfromدُوْنِهٖۤbesides Himاِلَّاۤbutاِنٰثًا ۚfemale (deities)وَ اِنْand notیَّدْعُوْنَthey invokeاِلَّاexceptشَیْطٰنًاShaitaanمَّرِیْدًاۙrebellious لَّعَنَهُHe was cursedاللّٰهُ ۘby Allahوَ قَالَand he saidلَاَتَّخِذَنَّI will surely takeمِنْfromعِبَادِكَyour slavesنَصِیْبًاa portionمَّفْرُوْضًاۙappointed وَّ لَاُضِلَّنَّهُمْAnd I will surely mislead themوَ لَاُمَنِّیَنَّهُمْand surely arouse desires in themوَ لَاٰمُرَنَّهُمْand surely I will order themفَلَیُبَتِّكُنَّso they will surely cut offاٰذَانَ(the) earsالْاَنْعَامِ(of) the cattleوَ لَاٰمُرَنَّهُمْand surely I will order themفَلَیُغَیِّرُنَّso they will surely changeخَلْقَ(the) creationاللّٰهِ ؕ(of) Allahوَ مَنْAnd whoeverیَّتَّخِذِtakesالشَّیْطٰنَthe Shaitaanوَلِیًّا(as) a friendمِّنْfromدُوْنِbesidesاللّٰهِAllahفَقَدْthen surelyخَسِرَhe (has) lostخُسْرَانًاa lossمُّبِیْنًاؕmanifest یَعِدُهُمْHe promises themوَ یُمَنِّیْهِمْ ؕand arouses desires in themوَ مَاand notیَعِدُهُمُpromises themالشَّیْطٰنُthe Shaitaanاِلَّاexceptغُرُوْرًا deception اُولٰٓىِٕكَThoseمَاْوٰىهُمْtheir abodeجَهَنَّمُ ؗ(is) Hellوَ لَاand notیَجِدُوْنَthey will findعَنْهَاfrom itمَحِیْصًا any escape 4. An-Nisa Page 98وَ الَّذِیْنَAnd those whoاٰمَنُوْاbelieve[d]وَ عَمِلُواand doالصّٰلِحٰتِ[the] righteous deedsسَنُدْخِلُهُمْWe will admit themجَنّٰتٍ(in) Gardensتَجْرِیْflowمِنْfromتَحْتِهَاunderneath itالْاَنْهٰرُthe riversخٰلِدِیْنَwill abideفِیْهَاۤin itاَبَدًا ؕforeverوَعْدَA Promiseاللّٰهِ(of) Allahحَقًّا ؕ(in) truthوَ مَنْand whoاَصْدَقُ(is) truerمِنَthanاللّٰهِAllahقِیْلًا (in) statement لَیْسَNotبِاَمَانِیِّكُمْby your desireوَ لَاۤand notاَمَانِیِّ(by the) desireاَهْلِ(of the) Peopleالْكِتٰبِ ؕ(of) the BookمَنْWhoeverیَّعْمَلْdoesسُوْٓءًاevilیُّجْزَwill be recompensedبِهٖ ۙfor itوَ لَاand notیَجِدْhe will findلَهٗfor himمِنْfromدُوْنِbesidesاللّٰهِAllahوَلِیًّاany protectorوَّ لَاand notنَصِیْرًا any helper وَ مَنْAnd whoeverیَّعْمَلْdoesمِنَ[of]الصّٰلِحٰتِ[the] righteous deedsمِنْfromذَكَرٍ(the) maleاَوْorاُنْثٰیfemaleوَ هُوَand heمُؤْمِنٌ(is) a believerفَاُولٰٓىِٕكَthen thoseیَدْخُلُوْنَwill enterالْجَنَّةَParadiseوَ لَاand notیُظْلَمُوْنَthey will be wrongedنَقِیْرًا (even as much as) the speck on a date-seed وَ مَنْAnd whoاَحْسَنُ(is) betterدِیْنًا(in) religionمِّمَّنْthan (one) whoاَسْلَمَsubmitsوَجْهَهٗhis faceلِلّٰهِto Allahوَ هُوَand heمُحْسِنٌ(is) a good-doerوَّ اتَّبَعَand followsمِلَّةَ(the) religionاِبْرٰهِیْمَ(of) Ibrahimحَنِیْفًا ؕ(the) uprightوَ اتَّخَذَAnd was takenاللّٰهُ(by) AllahاِبْرٰهِیْمَIbrahimخَلِیْلًا (as) a friend وَ لِلّٰهِAnd for Allahمَا(is) whatفِی(is) inالسَّمٰوٰتِthe heavensوَ مَاand whatفِی(is) inالْاَرْضِ ؕthe earthوَ كَانَand isاللّٰهُAllahبِكُلِّof everyشَیْءٍthingمُّحِیْطًا۠All-Encompassing

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Translation of Verse 116-126

(4:116) Truly it is only associating others with Allah in His divinity that Allah does not forgive,¹⁴⁴ and forgives anything besides that to whomsoever He wills. Whoever associates others with Allah in His divinity has indeed strayed far away.

(4:117) Rather than call upon Him, they call upon goddesses, and call upon a rebellious Satan¹⁴⁵

(4:118) upon whom Allah has laid His curse. He said (to Allah): 'I will take to myself an appointed portion of Your servants¹⁴⁶

(4:119) and shall lead them astray, and shall engross them in vain desires, and I shall command them and they will cut off the ears of the cattle,¹⁴⁷ and I shall command them and they will disfigure Allah's creation.'¹⁴⁸ He who took Satan rather than Allah for his guardian has indeed suffered a man-ifest loss.

(4:120) Satan makes promises to them and fills them with vain hopes,¹⁴⁹ but whatever he promises them is merely delusion.

(4:121) For these people, their abode shall be Hell and from there they shall find no way of escape.

(4:122) But those who believe and do good, We shall cause them to enter the Gardens beneath which rivers flow. Here they will abide for ever. This is Allah's promise in truth and whose word is truer than Allah's?

(4:123) It is neither your fancies nor the fancies of the People of the Book which matter. Whoever does evil shall reap its consequence and will find none to be his protector and helper against Allah.

(4:124) Whoever does good and believes -whether he is male or female - such shall enter the Garden, and they shall not be wronged in the slightest.

(4:125) And whose way of life could be better than that of he who submits his whole being to Allah, does good, and follows exclusively the way of Abraham whom Allah took for a friend?

(4:126) Whatever is in the heavens and in the earth belongs to Allah;¹⁵⁰ Allah en-compasses everything.¹⁵¹

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Commentary

144. In this and the following verses we are asked to consider coolly, the end result of obsession with rage and anger, and what kind of people one chooses to identify with in place of the righteous people from whom one foolishly dissociates oneself.

145. No one sets up Satan as his 'god' in the sense that he makes him the object of his ritual worship and declares him to be God in so many words. The way to make Satan one's god is to entrust one's reins to him and let oneself be drawn helplessly in whichever direction he wants; the relationship between the two is, then, that of worshipper and worshipped. This shows that either absolute, unreserved obedience to or blind following of anybody is tantamount to 'worshipping' him, so that whoever indulges in this kind of absolute obedience is guilty of worshipping a 'god' other than the One True God.

146. This shows that Satan is determined to lay his claim to a portion of men's time, to their effort and labour, to their energies and capacities, to their material belongings, and to their offspring, and would somehow trick them into devoting a sizeable portion of all these in his cause.

147. The reference here is to a superstitious Arabian custom. It was customary among the Arabs that after a camel had given birth to five or ten young to slit her ears and let her go in the name of their deity; they considered it forbidden to put her to any work. Likewise, the male camel that had caused the birth of ten camels was consecrated to some deity. The slitting of ears symbolized this consecration.

148. To alter God's creation in some respect does not mean changing its original form. If that was meant, human civilization would have to be considered Satanic in its entirety. For civilization consists essentially of man's putting to use the resources endowed by God. Hence the alteration of God's creation, which is characterized as Satanic, consists in using a thing not for the purpose for which it was created by God. In other words, all acts performed in violation either of one's true nature or of the intrinsic nature of other things are the result of the misleading promptings of Satan. These include, for instance, sodomy, birth control, monasticism, celibacy, sterilization of either men or women, turning males into eunuchs, diverting females from the functions entrusted to them by nature and driving them to perform the functions for which men were created. These and numerous similar measures are enacted by Satan's disciples in this world, which amounts on their part, to saying that the laws of the Creator were faulty and that they would like to 'reform' them.

149. Satanic operations are based on making attractive promises and raising high hopes. Whenever Satan wants to mislead men, whether individually or collectively, he tries to inspire them with Utopian expectations. In some he inspires expectations of ecstatic pleasure and outstanding success in their individual lives. He inspires others with prospects for achieving national glory. To still others he promises the well-being of mankind. He makes people feel confident that they can arrive at the ultimate truth without the aid of revealed knowledge. He deludes others into believing that God neither exists nor that there is any Life-after-Death. He comforts others with the belief that even if there is an After-life, they will be able to escape punishment through the intercession of certain persons. In short, Satan extends to different groups of people different promises and expectations with a view to seducing them.

150. To submit to God is the best course for man, for it conforms fully to ultimate reality. Since God is the Lord of the heavens and the earth and all that lies therein, the only right attitude for man is to give up his unlimited freedom and willingly commit himself to serve and obey God.

151. If man will neither submit to God nor stop acting in defiance of Him, he should bear in mind that he can never escape from God's grip,for His power encompasses him completely.