Al-Isra · Makki · ayah 8 of 111

Al-Isra 17:8

عَسَىٰ رَبُّكُمْ أَن يَرْحَمَكُمْ ۚ وَإِنْ عُدتُّمْ عُدْنَا ۘ وَجَعَلْنَا جَهَنَّمَ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ حَصِيرًا

“[Then Allāh said], "It is expected, [if you repent], that your Lord will have mercy upon you. But if you return [to sin], We will return [to punishment]. And We have made Hell, for the disbelievers, a prison-bed."”

Saheeh International

Essence

Straight after the ruin comes 'perhaps your Lord will have mercy'; then a two-word law, and a prison for whoever refuses to the end.

A reflection

When the King says 'perhaps'

The previous ayah ended with a city smashed to pieces. The very next words are these: ʿasā rabbukum an yarḥamakum, perhaps your Lord will have mercy on you.

When people say 'perhaps', it is usually a way of promising nothing. The lexicons say this word means something else when Allah says it. From people it is supposition. From Allah it is settled. Two classical commentaries state it plainly: ʿasā from Allah is binding, a promise to lift what is upon them. And so it was: their numbers grew again, and kings and prophets rose among them.

The word has a picture under it. Two lexicons describe the muʿsiya: a she-camel whose milk has dried up, kept by her owner because he hopes the milk will return. ʿAsā is the herdsman still feeding a dry camel, on expectation alone.

Now notice who is speaking, and how. He owns the armies, the city and the outcome. He owes no one anything. Yet He chooses a word of hope rather than a contract. The ego would prefer a contract. A man says he will start praying properly once he is sure his twenties are forgiven. He wants the guarantee first, signed, before he moves. That is pride wearing the clothes of caution. It treats the Lord of the worlds as a party to a negotiation.

Someone may ask: if Allah is certain, why speak in 'perhaps' at all? And isn't 'if you return, We return' the voice of a ruler who needs to be obeyed? The answer is in the ayah before. 'If you do good, you do good for yourselves.' He gains nothing from obedience. The 'perhaps' keeps the servant where a servant belongs: humble, hoping and moving, not demanding terms.

So come to Him as the herdsman comes to the dry camel. Bring the hope, and the feeding, and let Him keep the certainty.

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.