Maryam · Makki · ayah 79 of 98

Maryam 19:79

كَلَّا ۚ سَنَكْتُبُ مَا يَقُولُ وَنَمُدُّ لَهُۥ مِنَ ٱلْعَذَابِ مَدًّا

“No! We will record what he says and extend [i.e., increase] for him from the punishment extensively.”

Saheeh International

Essence

The first No in the Qur'an answers a man's oath about his future, and promises that his own words will be kept and read back.

A reflection

The first No in the Qur'an

A man had just sworn an oath about his own future. The reply begins with one word: kallā. No.

That word has a history worth knowing. A commentary on this passage notes that kallā never appears in the first half of the Qur'an. Another adds the detail: this is its first appearance anywhere in the Book, and it recurs thirty-three times, all in the second half. The corpus confirms both counts. The first No in the Mushaf is spoken to a human ego.

The commentaries define it as a word of deterrence and rebuke. Stop, and know that you are wrong. It is not an argument. It does not weigh his case. The man had sworn, and the answer simply closes the matter.

Follow the word forward and a pattern shows. Later uses answer the man who thinks his wealth has made him immortal. They answer the man who says his Lord has humiliated him when his provision is tightened. The first No in the Qur'an met a boast about wealth and children. Many that follow meet the same illusion in new clothes.

Set the two speakers side by side. One is a man of Makka with property, sons and a seat in the council, swearing about the next world. The other is the Lord of that world, who answers in one word. There is nothing for pride to stand on in that exchange. A human oath about the unseen is a child's promise about the weather.

That is the humbling thing. We are allowed our hopes. We are not given the power to swear them into being. When an ego starts dictating terms to its Creator, the reply is short.

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.