Al-Isra · Makki · ayah 38 of 111

Al-Isra 17:38

كُلُّ ذَٰلِكَ كَانَ سَيِّئُهُۥ عِندَ رَبِّكَ مَكْرُوهًا

“All that [i.e., the aforementioned] - its evil is ever, in the sight of your Lord, detested.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Of everything in this passage, the bad part is disliked by your Lord, and for one who loves Him, His dislike is reason enough.

A reflection

Its bad part, not all of it

Kullu dhālika kāna sayyiʾuhu ʿinda rabbika makrūhā: all of that, its bad part is disliked by your Lord. The word sayyiʾuhu, 'its bad part', is doing careful work.

The passage this ayah sums up is not a list of sins. It mixes commands and prohibitions. Be good to your parents. Give the relative his due. Speak gently to the one you cannot help. Then: do not kill, do not approach adultery, do not cheat the orphan. Had the ayah said 'all of that is evil', it would have called kindness to parents evil too.

So the readers of Kufa and Syria recited sayyiʾuhu: of all that, its bad part is disliked. One commentator who preferred this reading explained it in exactly that way.

The readers of Madina, Makkah and Basra recited sayyiʾatan, 'an evil deed'. On their reading, 'all of that' points only to the prohibitions, from killing children onwards. Both readings are established, and both arrive at the same place. What is forbidden is disliked by Allah; what is commanded is not.

A commentator adds a subtle point. By naming only what He dislikes, the ayah implies that the rest is pleasing to Him, without needing to say so. Others explain the silence differently. Clearing away the bad comes before adorning with the good. Warding off harm is more urgent than gaining benefit.

A woman takes over her late father's corner bakery. She has plans: new loaves, a café table, Saturday pastries. In her first week she finds the counter scale weighs thirty grams light. She replaces it before she bakes a single new recipe. Everything else can wait for a straight balance.

The ayah's order is the same, and it is a strategy as much as a moral. First stop what He dislikes. Then build.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.