As-Saffat · Makki · ayah 167 of 182

As-Saffat 37:167

وَإِن كَانُوا۟ لَيَقُولُونَ

“And indeed, they [i.e., the disbelievers] used to say,[1312]”

Saheeh International

Essence

Before the Prophet came, the Makkans said it often and said it firmly: give us a scripture and see how devout we become.

A reflection

Firm promises about a future self

The grammar of this short ayah is built for emphasis. In here is a lightened form of the emphatic inna. The la- attached to the verb, the commentators explain, marks it as an affirmation rather than a denial. One classical commentator draws out what the emphasis shows: they used to say it firmly, seriously, meaning it. Then he adds a quiet, devastating line: how far apart were the first of their affair and the last.

The Makkans were not joking. Before the Prophet ﷺ came, they would say it with conviction. If only we had a scripture like the earlier peoples, we would be Allah's sincere servants. They believed it about themselves.

Most of us know this feeling from the inside. A man in his forties says, every Ramadan, that when he retires he will finally learn Arabic properly. He says it to his wife, his brother, the imam. He means it. He can picture it: the morning lessons, the grammar books, reading the Quran without a translation. The picture is so vivid that saying it feels like half of doing it.

This is one of the oldest traps in the human mind. We make firm promises on behalf of a future self who does not yet exist. That future self is always more disciplined, more devout and less tired than we are. The present self gets the warm feeling of the promise. The future self gets the bill.

The Makkans' future self arrived. The scripture came. And the commentators say that when it came, they rejected it.

The ayah is not only about them. It holds up a mirror to every 'when'. When I retire. When the children are older. When I have more time. When things settle down. Firmness in the saying is not the same as firmness in the self.

The remedy is small and immediate. Take one 'when' and do ten minutes of it today, before the future self is asked to carry it all.

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.