Ash-Shu'ara · Makki · ayah 96 of 227

Ash-Shu'ara 26:96

قَالُوا۟ وَهُمْ فِيهَا يَخْتَصِمُونَ

“They will say while they dispute therein,”

Saheeh International

Essence

Inside the Fire they finally speak the truth, yet even while confessing they are still quarrelling with those around them.

A reflection

Confessing and quarrelling in the same breath

The ayah is built in an unusual way. 'They said', and then a small clause slipped in: wa hum fīhā yakhtaṣimūn, while they were quarrelling in it. The grammar makes the quarrel the setting of the speech. They speak in the middle of a fight.

And what they say, in the next ayat, is a confession. 'By Allah, we were in clear error.' One commentator draws out the picture. They admit their mistake, full of regret, blaming themselves, and at the same time they are disputing with those beside them. The confession and the quarrel come out together.

That is a very human mixture. Picture a man who has forgotten his wife's birthday. He apologises sincerely and says he should have remembered. Within a minute he adds that she did change the calendar on the fridge. Then he mentions that last year she forgot his mother's. By the end of the conversation they are arguing, and the apology has been lost inside it.

We all know the 'sorry, but' apology. Part of us wants to own the wrong. Another part cannot bear to stand there without a defence. So we confess with one hand and push back with the other.

The ayah shows where that habit ends: an admission that comes too late to heal anything, still tangled with blame.

So practise the clean apology now. Say what you did wrong. Stop. Do not add the 'but'. If there is a fair point to make about the other person, it can wait for another day. The same goes for repentance before Allah. Admit, without the explanation, and let Him be the one to excuse.

There is a mercy hidden in how this ayah is placed. It shows us the 'sorry, but' at its very worst, so that we can recognise its small beginnings at home. A clean apology is a small thing. It may be one of the habits that keeps a heart soft enough to repent fully when it matters.

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.