Tafseer of The Stories · Al-Qasas · 28:71
Say, "Have you considered: if Allah should make for you the night continuous until the Day of Resurrection, what deity other than Allah could bring you light? Then will you not hear?"
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 statement concerning the interpretation of His word, the Exalted: قُلْ أَرَأَيْتُمْ إِنْ جَعَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكُمُ اللَّيْلَ سَرْمَدًا إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ مَنْ إِلَهٌ غَيْرُ اللَّهِ يَأْتِيكُمْ بِضِيَاءٍ أَفَلا تَسْمَعُونَ ("Say: 'Have you considered: if Allah were to make the night continuous over you until the Day of Resurrection, what god other than Allah would bring you light? Will you then not hear?'") (71)
Allah, exalted be His remembrance, says: Say, O Muḥammad, to these polytheists who ascribe associates to Allah (mushrikīn): O people, have you considered — if Allah were to make the night continuous over you, without any day following upon it, until the Day of Resurrection? The Arabs call everything that is unbroken and does not cease — whether it be prosperity, affliction, or a blessing — "sarmad".
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Al-Ḥārith related to me, he said: al-Ḥasan related to us, he said: Warqāʾ related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His word ( سَرْمَدًا ): continuous, not ceasing.
Al-Qāsim related to us, he said: al-Ḥusayn related to us, he said: Ḥajjāj related to me, Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Abī Jurayj, on the authority of Mujāhid, the same.
ʿAlī related to me, he said: ʿAbd Allāh related to us, he said: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word ( إِنْ جَعَلَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْكُمُ اللَّيْلَ سَرْمَدًا ): he says: continuous.
And His word ( مَنْ إِلَهٌ غَيْرُ اللَّهِ يَأْتِيكُمْ بِضِيَاءٍ ) ("what god other than Allah would bring you light?") means: what object of worship other than the One Worshipped, to Whom the worship of all things is due, would bring you the light of day, so that you might be illuminated thereby? ( أَفَلا تَسْمَعُونَ ) ("Will you then not hear?") means: will you then not take that to heart with your hearing and reflect upon it, so that you may be admonished, and will you then not know that it is your Lord who brings the night and takes away the day when He wills, and who, when He wills, brings the day and takes away the night, and thus favors you with their alternation?
