Tafseer of The Women · An-Nisaa · 4:55
And some among them believed in it, and some among them were averse to it. And sufficient is Hell as a blaze.
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 explanation of the words of Him, Mighty and Exalted: فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ آمَنَ بِهِ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ صَدَّ عَنْهُ وَكَفَى بِجَهَنَّمَ سَعِيرًا (55) (And among them are those who believed in it, and among them are those who turned away from it; and Hell suffices as a blazing Fire) (4:55)
Abū Jaʿfar said: He, exalted be His praise, means by this: And among those to whom the Book was given — namely the Jews of the Banū Isrāʾīl, to whom He, exalted be His praise, said: آمِنُوا بِمَا نَزَّلْنَا مُصَدِّقًا لِمَا مَعَكُمْ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ نَطْمِسَ وُجُوهًا فَنَرُدَّهَا عَلَى أَدْبَارِهَا (Believe in what We have sent down, confirming what is with you, before We efface faces and turn them backwards) — "among them are those who believed in it," that is to say: there are among them those who gave faith to what We sent down to Muḥammad ﷺ in confirmation of what they had — "and among them are those who turned away from it," that is to say: there are among them those who turned away from believing in it, as in:
9831 — Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, he said: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: "among them are those who believed in it," he said: in what was sent down to Muḥammad, namely among the Jews — "and among them are those who turned away from it."
9832 — Al-Muthannā related to me, he said: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, he said: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, the like of it.
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Abū Jaʿfar said: In this verse is an indication that those who turned away from what Allah sent down to Muḥammad ﷺ — namely the Jews of the Banū Isrāʾīl who were around the place of emigration of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ — that Allah only lifts from them the threat with which He threatened them, the threat in His words: آمِنُوا بِمَا نَزَّلْنَا مُصَدِّقًا لِمَا مَعَكُمْ مِنْ قَبْلِ أَنْ نَطْمِسَ وُجُوهًا فَنَرُدَّهَا عَلَى أَدْبَارِهَا أَوْ نَلْعَنَهُمْ كَمَا لَعَنَّا أَصْحَابَ السَّبْتِ وَكَانَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ مَفْعُولًا (Believe in what We have sent down, confirming what is with you, before We efface faces and turn them backwards, or curse them as We cursed the people of the Sabbath; and the command of Allah is carried out) — in this world, and that He has deferred their punishment to the Day of Resurrection, on account of the faith of those among them who believed. And that the threat against them from Allah, the threat of hastened punishment in this world, applied only so long as they all persisted in disbelief in what was sent down to His Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ. When a portion of them believed, they passed beyond the threat with which He threatened them in the near term of this world, and the punishment of those who persisted in denial was deferred to the Hereafter. So He said to them: Hell suffices for you as a blazing Fire.
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And by His words "and Hell suffices as a blazing Fire" He means: And it is enough for you, O you who deny what I have sent down to Muḥammad, My Prophet and My Messenger — "Hell as a blazing Fire," that is to say: the fire of Hell (jahannam), which is kindled against you, that is to say: which is set ablaze against you.
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And it is said: "saʿīr" (blazing), its origin is "masʿūr" (kindled), derived from "suʿirat tusʿar fa-hiya masʿūra" (it was kindled, it is kindled, so it is kindled), as Allah said: وَإِذَا الْجَحِيمُ سُعِّرَتْ [Sūrat al-Takwīr: 12] (And when the Hellfire is kindled), but it was transformed to the form "faʿīl," as one says: "kaff khaḍīb" (dyed palm) and "liḥya dahīn" (anointed beard), in the meaning of "dyed" and "anointed" — and "al-saʿīr" means: the burning fire.
