بَلِ الَّذينَ كَفَروا في تَكذيبٍ

وَاللَّهُ مِن وَرائِهِم مُحيطٌ

Rather, the faithless dwell in denial,

and Allah besieges them from all around.

EXEGESIS

Fī takdhīb (dwell in denial): takhdhīb is the verbal noun of kadhdhaba, which is the emphatic form of kadhaba and means to belie someone or deny their veracity. The preposition fī indicates an immersion in that denial.

Muḥīṭ (besieges from all around) is the active participle that comes from iḥāṭah, ‘to encompass’, which is derived from a wall (ḥāʾiṭ) encircling something.^{‎[1]Tibyan, 7/49; Tabrisi, 6/728.} The original meaning of iḥāṭah is to set a wall around something.^{‎[2]Tibyan, 6/166.} It can also mean to be surrounded by danger, like in the verse, waves assail them from every side (uḥīṭa bihim), and they think that they are besieged (10:22), or by destruction, such as in the verse, And ruin closed in (uḥīṭa) on his produce (18:42).^{‎[3]Tibyan, 7/49; Tabrisi, 6/728; Zamakhshari, 2/724; Razi, 21/465. For the meaning of destruction, see also 10:22.} Here it means that God has them completely surrounded. The double meaning of being surrounded and destruction is quite intentional here and the phrasing underscores the threat.

The somewhat untranslated min warāʾihim, means literally ‘from behind them’ and serves to reinforce the imagery of someone trying to futilely escape God’s punishment. It also plays into the notion of denial, and how the faithless have turned their back on God’s message and messengers.^{‎[4]See also Alusi, 15/2303; Mizan, 20/254.} Warāʾ can also mean ahead, or in a future time, similar to how it is used in Ahead of them (min warāʾihim) is hell (45:10). In this case it would mean that their destruction and punishment is inevitable and that God is awaiting them to judge them. The oppressors think their action has been done and ‘left behind them’, whereas its consequences are lying in wait for them.

EXPOSITION

Having reminded us of the fate of the ancient hosts, the surah now returns its gaze to the present and makes a general observation, pointing to the stubborn rejection of these very lessons by the disbelievers of Mecca. It begins with the declaration Rather, intending that the faithless who were quite familiar with the histories of those past nations, and their sudden destruction and disappearance, refuse to take heed but rather obstinately remained in denial of the truth. It is as if you saw someone cross the street when the light was red, get hit by a car, but then proceed to also cross, refusing to accept that the same would happen to you.

Denial should hence not simply be limited to the denial of God’s messengers, but rather a denial of the realities that they warn about. The faithless do not wish to face the facts, so to speak. To admit that one day their power and empire will be gone. One day they will die. One day they will have to answer for their actions. They live and behave as if there is no end in sight and that no one can ever hold them to account for their deeds. Those tyrants that think themselves above any law and think themselves to be the supreme authority are living in the most pitiful denial.

Even though they are in denial, God besieges them from all around. They cannot escape God’s judgement, just like no one can escape someone who has them completely surrounded.^{‎[5]Zamakhshari, 4/733.} There is also a beautiful interplay between these two verses. While the faithless dwell in denial and are immersed and fully submerged in it, God has completely surrounded them from all sides and directions.

The second meaning of iḥāṭah, namely destruction, is also worth further consideration here, as it acts as a warning of the imminency of their destruction should they persist in denial.^{‎[6]See Razi, 31/116.} By refusing to recognise the divine truth, they construct a false world in which they reign unchallenged. But this illusion cannot withstand the encircling reality of God’s decree. In denying judgement, they invite it; in fleeing the truth, they run headlong into it, and there he finds Allah, who will pay him his full account (24:39). The moral and spiritual choices we make in life shape our share in the hereafter. To live in denial is not without consequence and at the latest it will manifest itself in removal from God’s grace in the hereafter.

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. The imagery of these two verses is reflected in the sermon of Imam Ali (a) in which he admonishes: ‘Hasten towards the most common matter which is [also] specific to each one [of you], and that is death. Certainly, people [who have already gone] are ahead of you, while the final hour is driving you from behind. Remain light, in order to arrive [at the destination], for the first of you is awaiting the last of you.’^{‎[7]Nahj, sermon 167.}

Note: This sermon weaves the image of a believer hastening towards the forerunners of faith, who are awaiting him to join them. The Imam exhorts the believer to lighten his load of attachment to worldly possessions so that he may reach a high station at his destination and be joined to those forerunners.

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. ‘Am I only a God nearby,’ declares the Lord, ‘and not a God far away? Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do not I fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord.^{‎[8]Jeremiah 23:23-24.}

[1] Tibyan, 7/49; Tabrisi, 6/728.
[2] Tibyan, 6/166.
[3] Tibyan, 7/49; Tabrisi, 6/728; Zamakhshari, 2/724; Razi, 21/465. For the meaning of destruction, see also 10:22.
[4] See also Alusi, 15/2303; Mizan, 20/254.
[5] Zamakhshari, 4/733.
[6] See Razi, 31/116.
[7] Nahj, sermon 167.
[8] Jeremiah 23:23-24.