ثُمَّ ذَهَبَ إِلىٰ أَهلِهِ يَتَمَطّىٰ

And went swaggering to his family.

EXEGESIS

Yatamaṭṭā (swaggering) is the form five verb from maṭā, which means to stretch and extend.^{‎[1]Tahqiq, 11/139.} As form five implies reflexive and exaggerated meaning, yatamaṭṭā means moving with outstretched strides in an affected and proud way. That is why most exegetes have taken the verb as synonymous to tabakhtur (strut).^{‎[2]Mizan, 20/114, Tabrisi, 10/606, Baydawi, 5/267.}

EXPOSITION

Not only does this type of person deny the message of God, he takes pride in that, going back to his family with a swaggering stride,^{‎[3]See Zamakhshari, 4/664.} similar to the verse, And when they returned to their folks they would return rejoicing (83:31).

In such a context, ahl (translated here as folks) can also be understood in a more general sense to include like-minded individuals in addition to the family.^{‎[4]Like saying ahl al-īmān or ahl al-kufr.} In other words, such individuals who take pride in their disbelief form communities around their shared views. Within these circles, they boast to one another about their rejection and mockery of divine messengers and scriptures – a phenomenon all too familiar in the contemporary world.

Note the striking contrast of the description of their disdainful gait to the descriptions of them being driven or dragged towards hell in verse 30, and the back-breaking punishment of verse 25.

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. ‘The Lord says, “The women of Zion are haughty, walking along with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, strutting along with swaying hips, with ornaments jingling on their ankles.”’^{‎[5]Isaiah 3:16.}

[1] Tahqiq, 11/139.
[2] Mizan, 20/114, Tabrisi, 10/606, Baydawi, 5/267.
[3] See Zamakhshari, 4/664.
[4] Like saying ahl al-īmān or ahl al-kufr.
[5] Isaiah 3:16.