Tafseer of Hud · Hud · 11:52
And O my people, ask forgiveness of your Lord and then repent to Him. He will send [rain from] the sky upon you in showers and increase you in strength [added] to your strength. And do not turn away, [being] criminals."
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The exposition of the interpretation of the words of Allah the Exalted: وَيَا قَوْمِ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّكُمْ ثُمَّ تُوبُوا إِلَيْهِ يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِدْرَارًا وَيَزِدْكُمْ قُوَّةً إِلَى قُوَّتِكُمْ وَلا تَتَوَلَّوْا مُجْرِمِينَ (52)
Abū Jaʿfar says: Allah the Exalted announces what Hūd said to his people: وَيَا قَوْمِ اسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّكُمْ — that is to say: believe in Him so that He may forgive you your sins.
The seeking of forgiveness (istighfār) in this place is belief in Allah, for Hūd (peace be upon him) called his people to the oneness of Allah so that He would forgive them their sins, just as Nūḥ said to his people: اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاتَّقُوهُ وَأَطِيعُونِ * يَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ مِنْ ذُنُوبِكُمْ وَيُؤَخِّرْكُمْ إِلَى أَجَلٍ مُسَمًّى (Sūrat Nūḥ 71: 3–4)
ثُمَّ تُوبُوا إِلَيْهِ — that is to say: then turn to Allah in repentance from your former sins and your worship of others besides Him, after believing in Him. يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِدْرَارًا — that is to say: for if you believe in Allah and turn back from your disbelief in Him, He will cause the rain of heaven to descend upon you abundantly at the time when you have need of it, and your lands will revive from drought and famine.
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the exegetes spoke.
Mention of who said that:
18261 — ʿAlī ibn Dāwūd related to me, saying: ʿAbdallāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word مِدْرَارًا : "one following upon the other."
18262 — Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word يُرْسِلِ السَّمَاءَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِدْرَارًا : "this means that He will cause it to descend upon them abundantly as falling drops and rain."
As for His word وَيَزِدْكُمْ قُوَّةً إِلَى قُوَّتِكُمْ : Mujāhid used to say concerning this word —
18263 — as Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning the word of Allah وَيَزِدْكُمْ قُوَّةً إِلَى قُوَّتِكُمْ : "strength upon your strength."
18264 — Al-Muthanná related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibil related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid — and Isḥāq said: ʿAbdallāh related to us, on the authority of Warqāʾ, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid —
18265 — Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: Al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, who said that Mujāhid said this; he mentioned the same.
18266 — Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word وَيَزِدْكُمْ قُوَّةً إِلَى قُوَّتِكُمْ : "He had given them strength; if they had obeyed him, He would have added strength to their strength. And it has been mentioned to us that this was said to them, وَيَزِدْكُمْ قُوَّةً إِلَى قُوَّتِكُمْ , because offspring had already been withheld from them for years; and Hūd said to them: if you believe in Allah, Allah will revive your lands and grant you possessions and children, for that is a form of strength."
وَلا تَتَوَلَّوْا مُجْرِمِينَ — that is to say: do not turn away from that to which I invite you — the oneness of Allah and the renunciation of the idols and images — مُجْرِمِينَ — that is to say: as disbelievers in Allah.