Az-Zumar · Makki · ayah 13 of 75

Az-Zumar 39:13

قُلْ إِنِّىٓ أَخَافُ إِنْ عَصَيْتُ رَبِّى عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ

“Say, "Indeed I fear, if I should disobey my Lord, the punishment of a tremendous Day."”

Saheeh International

Essence

The one man certain of his message is told to say aloud that he fears his Lord's punishment if he disobeys; no one stands beyond that fear.

A reflection

If he fears, who is safe?

The Prophet ﷺ is told to say: I fear, if I disobey my Lord, the punishment of a tremendous Day. It is a startling sentence from the one person in his community least likely to disobey.

The commentaries agree on its purpose. One calls it a condition whose real aim is to point at others, by the stronger reason. Another spells it out. If he, with all his greatness and the honour of prophethood, could not feel safe from punishment were he to disobey, how much less can they? A third adds that he said it when his people were calling him back to the religion of his fathers. It was his answer: I will not go back, because I fear.

That turns fear into an argument against pressure. The idolaters offered him comfort, status and peace with his tribe. His reply was not 'your offer is unattractive'. It was 'I fear my Lord more than I want your approval'.

One commentary also notices a careful detail. The ayah links disobedience to fear of punishment, not to punishment itself. That leaves room for pardon, which belongs to Allah alone.

The full entry has 2 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.