Surah 28 Al-Qasas — Ayah 78
قَالَ إِنَّمَآ أُوتِيتُهُۥ عَلَىٰ عِلْمٍ عِندِىٓ ۚ أَوَلَمْ يَعْلَمْ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ قَدْ أَهْلَكَ مِن قَبْلِهِۦ مِنَ ٱلْقُرُونِ مَنْ هُوَ أَشَدُّ مِنْهُ قُوَّةًۭ وَأَكْثَرُ جَمْعًۭا ۚ وَلَا يُسْـَٔلُ عَن ذُنُوبِهِمُ ٱلْمُجْرِمُونَ
Reče: "To mi je dato samo zbog mog znanja." Zar nije znao da je Allah već uništio prije njega od pokoljenja (onog) ko je od njega bio moćniji silom i veći skupom? A prestupnici neće biti pitani za svoje grijehe.
qāla innamā ūtītuhu ʿalā ʿil'min ʿindī awalam yaʿlam anna l-laha qad ahlaka min qablihi mina l-qurūni man huwa ashaddu min'hu quwwatan wa-aktharu jamʿan walā yus'alu ʿan dhunūbihimu l-muj'rimūna
Word by word
- قَالَ qāla He said
- إِنَّمَآ innamā Only
- أُوتِيتُهُۥ ūtītuhu I have been given it
- عَلَىٰ ʿalā on (account)
- عِلْمٍ ʿil'min (of) knowledge
- عِندِىٓ ۚ ʿindī I have
- أَوَلَمْ awalam Did not
- يَعْلَمْ yaʿlam he know
- أَنَّ anna that
- ٱللَّهَ l-laha Allah
- قَدْ qad indeed
- أَهْلَكَ ahlaka destroyed
- مِن min before him
- قَبْلِهِۦ qablihi before him
- مِنَ mina of
- ٱلْقُرُونِ l-qurūni the generations
- مَنْ man who
- هُوَ huwa [they]
- أَشَدُّ ashaddu (were) stronger
- مِنْهُ min'hu than him
- قُوَّةًۭ quwwatan (in) strength
- وَأَكْثَرُ wa-aktharu and greater
- جَمْعًۭا ۚ jamʿan (in) accumulation
- وَلَا walā And not
- يُسْـَٔلُ yus'alu will be questioned
- عَن ʿan about
- ذُنُوبِهِمُ dhunūbihimu their sins
- ٱلْمُجْرِمُونَ l-muj'rimūna the criminals
Tafsir · Ibn Kathir (Abridged)
Allah informs us how Qarun responded to the exhortations of his people when they sought to guide him
(He said: "This has been given to me only because of the knowledge I possess.") meaning, `I have no need of your advice; Allah has only given me this wealth because He knows that I deserve it and because He loves me. ' In other words: `He has given it to me because He knows that I am fit for this.' This is like the Ayat:
(When harm touches man, he calls upon Us; then when We have changed it into a favor from Us, he says: "Only because of knowledge I obtained it.") (39:49) An alternative interpretation of this Ayah says that the meaning is: "Only because of what Allah knows about me did I obtain this favor." This is like His saying:
(And truly, if We give him a taste of mercy from Us, after some adversity has touched him, he is sure to say: "This is from me.") (41:50) meaning, "I deserved it." Imam `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam explained this Ayah very well. Concerning the phrase,
(He said: "This has been given to me only because of the knowledge I possess.") He said: "Were it not for the fact that Allah is pleased with me and knows my virtue, He would not have given me this wealth." And He said:
(Did he not know that Allah had destroyed before him generations, men who were stronger than him in might and greater in the amount they had collected) This is what those who have little knowledge say when they see a person whom Allah has granted a lot of wealth; they say that if he did not deserve it, Allah would not have given it to him.