لَا تَحْسَبَنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مُعْجِزِينَ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَمَأْوَاهُمُ النَّارُ وَلَبِئْسَ الْمَصِيرُ
Do not suppose that those who are faithless can thwart [Allah] on the earth. Their refuge shall be the fire, and it is surely an evil destination.
EXEGESIS
Muʿjizīn (can thwart) comes from iʿjāz, a transitive form of the verb ʿajaza, and means to make something incapable. It means they cannot thwart God to execute His plan. It also means that they cannot escape from God.[1] A person may attempt to seize someone else but the one being seized can thwart their attempts, therefore the word is used to express escaping from someone’s clutches,[2] like in the verse, We know that we cannot thwart (nuʿjiza) Allah on the earth, nor can we thwart (nuʿjiza) Him by fleeing (72:12).
EXPOSITION
This verse emphasises that the promise of God will always eventually manifest itself and no one can ever thwart it. It is a call to the believers to be patient and a warning to the disbelievers.
Do not suppose: this is a general address to the reader of the Quran. Some have said that the address is to the Prophet, who was mentioned in the previous verse.[3] This has been objected to on the grounds that the Prophet is not intended, as he would never assume such a thing.[4] The expression is used four other times in the Quran (3:169, 3:188, 14:42, 14:47) and none of those should be considered as being addressed to the Holy Prophet, in the sense that we should assume he had supposed something of this sort. Even if we consider it to be addressed to him, it would simply be an expression that is used as a rhetorical device. In any case, such addresses are always meant for the reader to draw conclusions from. However, in this case the address may be to the Prophet, because the verse is glad tidings to him and his followers that the righteous believers will be established on the earth.[5]
That those who are faithless can thwart [Allah] on the earth: if they try to avoid the judgement of God they will meet either eventual defeat in this world, or they will meet the inevitable final judgement of God in the hereafter. In any case, there is no escaping the consequences of their actions.
The expression on the earth (fī al-arḍ) is repeated from verse 55, and is meant to draw the reader’s attention to compare the final outcomes of both groups. Even if at the moment it might not be so, or even seem plausible, eventually even in this world, on this earth, the believers will be victorious and the wicked will be defeated. Their refuge shall be the fire, and it is surely an evil destination.
INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS
- There is no deep shadow, no utter darkness, where evildoers can hide.[6]
- Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, “Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.” The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.[7]
[1] Tibyan, 7/458.
[2] Nemuneh, 14/537.
[3] Zamakhshari, 3/252; Ibn Kathir, 6/74.
[4] Muhit, 8/66. Ṭabrisī opts for both options, that it is an address to the Prophet and the reader (Tabrisi, 7/240). See also Tantawi, 10/149.
[5] Mizan, 15/157. See also Fadlallah, 16/357.
[6] Job 34:22.
[7] Psalms 2:1-5.