Surah 4 An-Nisaa — Ayah 136
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓا۟ ءَامِنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ وَٱلْكِتَٰبِ ٱلَّذِى نَزَّلَ عَلَىٰ رَسُولِهِۦ وَٱلْكِتَٰبِ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنزَلَ مِن قَبْلُ ۚ وَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِٱللَّهِ وَمَلَٰٓئِكَتِهِۦ وَكُتُبِهِۦ وَرُسُلِهِۦ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْءَاخِرِ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَٰلًۢا بَعِيدًا
O you who have believed, believe in Allah and His Messenger and the Book that He sent down upon His Messenger and the Scripture which He sent down before. And whoever disbelieves in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day has certainly gone far astray.
yāayyuhā alladhīna āmanū āminū bil-lahi warasūlihi wal-kitābi alladhī nazzala ʿalā rasūlihi wal-kitābi alladhī anzala min qablu waman yakfur bil-lahi wamalāikatihi wakutubihi warusulihi wal-yawmi l-ākhiri faqad ḍalla ḍalālan baʿīdan
Word by word
- يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا yāayyuhā O you
- ٱلَّذِينَ alladhīna who
- ءَامَنُوٓا۟ āmanū believe[d]
- ءَامِنُوا۟ āminū Believe
- بِٱللَّهِ bil-lahi in Allah
- وَرَسُولِهِۦ warasūlihi and His Messenger
- وَٱلْكِتَـٰبِ wal-kitābi and the Book
- ٱلَّذِى alladhī which
- نَزَّلَ nazzala He revealed
- عَلَىٰ ʿalā upon
- رَسُولِهِۦ rasūlihi His Messenger
- وَٱلْكِتَـٰبِ wal-kitābi and the Book
- ٱلَّذِىٓ alladhī which
- أَنزَلَ anzala He revealed
- مِن min from
- قَبْلُ ۚ qablu before
- وَمَن waman And whoever
- يَكْفُرْ yakfur disbelieves
- بِٱللَّهِ bil-lahi in Allah
- وَمَلَـٰٓئِكَتِهِۦ wamalāikatihi and His Angels
- وَكُتُبِهِۦ wakutubihi and His Books
- وَرُسُلِهِۦ warusulihi and His Messengers
- وَٱلْيَوْمِ wal-yawmi and the Day
- ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ l-ākhiri the Last
- فَقَدْ faqad then surely
- ضَلَّ ḍalla he (has) lost (the) way
- ضَلَـٰلًۢا ḍalālan straying
- بَعِيدًا baʿīdan far away
Tafsir · Ibn Kathir (Abridged)
The Order to Have Faith after Believing
Allah commands His faithful servants to adhere to all the elements of faith, its branches, pillars and cornerstones. This is not stated as mere redundancy, but from the view of completing faith and the continual maintenence of it. For instance, the believer proclaims in every prayer,
(Guide us to the straight way.) which means, make us aware of the straight path and increase us in guidance and strengthen us on it. In this Ayah 4:136, Allah commands the believers to believe in Him and in His Messenger, just as He said elsewhere,
(O you who believe! Have Taqwa of Allah, and believe in His Messenger, ). Allah's statement,
(and the Book which He has sent down to His Messenger,) refers to the Qur'an, while,
(and the Scripture which He sent down to those before (him);) refers to the previously revealed divine Books. Allah then said,
(and whosoever disbelieves in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, then indeed he has strayed far away.) meaning, he will have deviated from the correct guidance and strayed far away from its path.