Surah 30 Ar-Room — Ayah 54
۞ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَكُم مِّن ضَعْفٍۢ ثُمَّ جَعَلَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ ضَعْفٍۢ قُوَّةًۭ ثُمَّ جَعَلَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ قُوَّةٍۢ ضَعْفًۭا وَشَيْبَةًۭ ۚ يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَآءُ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِيمُ ٱلْقَدِيرُ
Allah je Taj Koji vas nejakim stvara, i onda vam, poslije nejakosti, snagu daje, a poslije snage iznemoglost i sijede vlasi; On stvara što hoće, On je Sveznajući i Svemoćni.
al-lahu alladhī khalaqakum min ḍaʿfin thumma jaʿala min baʿdi ḍaʿfin quwwatan thumma jaʿala min baʿdi quwwatin ḍaʿfan washaybatan yakhluqu mā yashāu wahuwa l-ʿalīmu l-qadīru
Word by word
- ۞ ٱللَّهُ al-lahu Allah
- ٱلَّذِى alladhī (is) the One Who
- خَلَقَكُم khalaqakum created you
- مِّن min from
- ضَعْفٍۢ ḍaʿfin weakness
- ثُمَّ thumma then
- جَعَلَ jaʿala made
- مِنۢ min after
- بَعْدِ baʿdi after
- ضَعْفٍۢ ḍaʿfin weakness
- قُوَّةًۭ quwwatan strength
- ثُمَّ thumma then
- جَعَلَ jaʿala made
- مِنۢ min after
- بَعْدِ baʿdi after
- قُوَّةٍۢ quwwatin strength
- ضَعْفًۭا ḍaʿfan weakness
- وَشَيْبَةًۭ ۚ washaybatan and gray hair
- يَخْلُقُ yakhluqu He creates
- مَا mā what
- يَشَآءُ ۖ yashāu He wills
- وَهُوَ wahuwa and He
- ٱلْعَلِيمُ l-ʿalīmu (is) the All-Knower
- ٱلْقَدِيرُ l-qadīru the All-Powerful
Tafsir · Ibn Kathir (Abridged)
The Different Stages of Man
Here Allah points out how man passes through different stages of creation, one phase after another. He is originally created from dust, then from a Nutfah, then from a clot, then from a lump of flesh. Then he becomes bones, then the bones are clothed with flesh, then the soul is breathed into him. Then he emerges from his mother's womb, weak and thin and powerless. Then he grows up little by little, until he becomes a child, then he reaches the stage of puberty, then he becomes a young man, which is strength after weakness. Then he starts to get older, reaching middle age, then old age and senility, weakness after strength, so he loses his resolve, power of movement and ability to fight, his hair turns grey and his characteristics, both inward and outward, begin to change. Allah says:
(then after strength gave (you) weakness and grey hair. He creates what He wills.) He does whatsoever He wills and controls His servants in whatever way He wants.
(And He is the All-Knowing, the All-Powerful.)