Tafseer of The Most High · Al-A'laa · 87:16
But you prefer the worldly life,
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 discourse on the explanation of His statement, the Exalted: بَلْ تُؤْثِرُونَ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا (16) ("But you prefer the worldly life")
And His statement: بَلْ تُؤْثِرُونَ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا ("But you prefer the worldly life").
He says to the people: but you, O people, prefer the splendor of the worldly life over the Hereafter. وَالآخِرَةُ خَيْرٌ ("while the Hereafter is better") for you, وَأَبْقَى ("and more lasting"); He says: and the splendor of the Hereafter is better for you, O people, and more lasting, for the worldly life is perishable, while the Hereafter is lasting—it is not exhausted and does not perish.
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: بَلْ تُؤْثِرُونَ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا ("But you prefer the worldly life"): the people preferred that which is perishable, except whom Allah protected.
