Al-Hajj · Madani · ayah 44 of 78

Al-Hajj 22:44

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.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Madyan and Musa's deniers were given a long rope, then taken hold of, and you are asked to see how complete His reversal was.

A reflection

'How was My reproach?' A question for the proud

Listen to the voice change. Three ayat earlier the surah spoke of what 'We' do. Now, at the end of the list of deniers, Allah speaks in the first person singular. I gave them respite. Then I seized them. So how was My reproach?

The nations in this list were not small. ʿĀd asked who was mightier than them. Pharaoh called himself his people's highest lord (79:24). Each believed it was the author of its own permanence. And each is now a single name in a short list.

A waxworks museum keeps a figure of a famous ruler in its main hall for decades. Crowds queue to be photographed beside him. Then, one winter, the figure quietly disappears. Its wax is melted down to make next season's pop star. Nobody announces it, and few visitors notice. That is the true size of most human greatness: one season's wax.

The ego does not like being measured against that. Pride assumes that what it has built will stand, and that delay means safety. The ayah answers with a question it does not need to answer. Look at them. How was it?

Is that boastful? A boaster wants admiration for his strength. Allah gains nothing from anyone's admiration, and He loses nothing from anyone's denial. One classical commentator explains the word nakīr by its purpose. It deters others from doing what brought it on. A warning given in advance, to people still inside the respite, is not vanity. It is mercy spoken firmly.

The question is still open for every reader. You are not yet in this list. The rope is still long. 'How was My reproach?' is asked so that you never need to find out.

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.