Quran 16:14 Surah Nahl ayat 14 Tafsir Ibn Katheer in English
﴿وَهُوَ الَّذِي سَخَّرَ الْبَحْرَ لِتَأْكُلُوا مِنْهُ لَحْمًا طَرِيًّا وَتَسْتَخْرِجُوا مِنْهُ حِلْيَةً تَلْبَسُونَهَا وَتَرَى الْفُلْكَ مَوَاخِرَ فِيهِ وَلِتَبْتَغُوا مِن فَضْلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ﴾
[ النحل: 14]
16:14 And it is He who subjected the sea for you to eat from it tender meat and to extract from it ornaments which you wear. And you see the ships plowing through it, and [He subjected it] that you may seek of His bounty; and perhaps you will be grateful.
Surah An-Nahl in ArabicTafsir Surah Nahl ayat 14
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Quran 16:14 Tafsir Al-Jalalayn
And He it is Who disposed the sea He it is Who subdued it that it might be sailed upon and dived in that you may eat from it fresh meat that is fish and bring forth from it ornaments which you wear namely pearls and coral. And you see observe the ships ploughing therein ploughing through the water that is cleaving it as they sail upon it coming and going with the same wind; and that you may seek wa-li-tabtaghū is a supplement to li-ta’kulū ‘that you may eat’ of His bounty exalted He be by way of commerce and that you might be thankful to God for all that.
Almuntakhab Fi Tafsir Alquran Alkarim
It is He Who made the sea subservient to you to use as a source of aliment and ornaments. You eat of its fresh and tender meat -fish- and wear of its coral and pearls. And you see the ships cleaving its surface and ploughing its billowy waves. They help you accomplish your objects sought after of His bounty to the end that your bosoms may hopefully surge up and answer thanks
Quran 16:14 Tafsir Ibn Kathir
Signs in the Oceans, Mountains, Rivers, Roads and Stars
Allah tells us how He has subjected the seas, with their waves lapping the shores, and how He blesses His servants by subjecting the seas for them so that they may travel on them, and by putting fish and whales in them, by making their flesh permissible to eat - whether they are caught alive or dead - at all times, including when people are in a state of Ihram.
He has created pearls and precious jewels in the oceans, and made it easy for His servants to recover ornaments that they can wear from the ocean floor.
He made the sea such that it carries the ships which plow through it.
He is the One Who taught mankind to make ships, which is the inheritance of their forefather Nuh.
He was the first one to travel by ship, he was taught how to make them, then people took this knowledge from him and passed it down from generation to generation through the centuries, so that they could travel from country to country and from place to place, bringing goods from here to there and from there to here.
Thus Allah says:
وَلِتَبْتَغُواْ مِن فَضْلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ
( that you may seek from His bounty and that you may perhaps be grateful. ) - for His bounty and blessings.
Then Allah mentions the earth and how He placed in it mountains standing firm, which make it stable and keep it from shaking in such a manner that the creatures dwelling on it would not be able to live.
Hence Allah says,
وَالْجِبَالَ أَرْسَـهَا
( And the mountains He has fixed firmly. ) ( 79: 32 ).
وَأَنْهَـراً وَسُبُلاً
( and rivers and roads ) meaning He has made rivers which flow from one place to another, bringing provision for His servants.
The rivers arise in one place, and bring provision to people living in another place.
They flow through lands and fields and wildernesses, through mountains and hills, until they reach the land whose people they are meant to benefit.
They meander across the land, left and right, north and south, east and west - rivers great and small - flowing sometimes and ceasing sometimes, flowing from their sources to the places where the water gathers, flowing rapidly or moving slowly, as decreed by Allah.
There is no god besides Him and no Lord except Him.
He also made roads or routes along which people travel from one land or city to another, and He even made gaps in the mountains so that there would be routes between them, as He says:
وَجَعَلْنَا فِيهَا فِجَاجاً سُبُلاً
( And We placed broad highways for them to pass through. ) 21:31
وَعَلامَـتٍ
( And landmarks ) meaning, signs like great mountains and small hills, and so on, things that land and sea travelers use to find their way if they get lost.
وَبِالنَّجْمِ هُمْ يَهْتَدُونَ
( and by the stars (during the night ), they ( mankind ) guide themselves.) meaning, in the darkness of the night.
This was the opinion of Ibn `Abbas.
Worship is Allah's Right
Then Allah tells us of His greatness, and that worship should be directed to Him alone, not to any of the idols which do not create but are rather themselves created.
Thus He says
أَفَمَن يَخْلُقُ كَمَن لاَّ يَخْلُقُ أَفَلا تَذَكَّرُونَ
( Is then He, Who creates, the same as one who does not create Will you not then reflect )( 16:17 ).
Then He shows His servants some of the many blessings He granted for them, and the many kinds of things that He has done for them.
He says;
وَإِن تَعُدُّواْ نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ لاَ تُحْصُوهَآ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
( And if you would try to count the favors of Allah, you would never be able to count them.
Truly, Allah is Forgiving, Most Merciful. ) ( 16:18 ) meaning that He pardons and forgives them.
If He were to ask you to thank Him for all of His blessings, you would not be able to do so, and if He were to command you to do so, you would be incapable of it.
If He punishes you, He is never unjust in His punishment, but He is Forgiving and Most Merciful, He forgives much and rewards for little.
Ibn Jarir said: "It means that Allah is Forgiving when you fail to thank Him properly, if you repent and turn to Him in obedience, and strive to do that which pleases Him.
He is Merciful to you and does not punish you if you turn to Him and repent."
Tafseer Tafheem-ul-Quran Syed Abu-al-A'la Maududi
(16:14) It is He Who has subjected the sea to your service so that you may get fresh flesh from it to eat and bring out of it articles of ornament, which you wear, and you see that the ship ploughs her course through it. He has done all this so that you may seek of His bounty *11 and show gratitude to Him.
And it is He who subjected the meaning
*11) That is, " try to get your sustenance in lawful ways ".
Tafsir Maarif-ul-Quran Mufti Muhammad Shafi
Signs in the Oceans, Mountains, Rivers, Roads and Stars
Allah tells us how He has subjected the seas, with their waves lapping the shores, and how He blesses His servants by subjecting the seas for them so that they may travel on them, and by putting fish and whales in them, by making their flesh permissible to eat - whether they are caught alive or dead - at all times, including when people are in a state of Ihram.
He has created pearls and precious jewels in the oceans, and made it easy for His servants to recover ornaments that they can wear from the ocean floor.
He made the sea such that it carries the ships which plow through it.
He is the One Who taught mankind to make ships, which is the inheritance of their forefather Nuh.
He was the first one to travel by ship, he was taught how to make them, then people took this knowledge from him and passed it down from generation to generation through the centuries, so that they could travel from country to country and from place to place, bringing goods from here to there and from there to here.
Thus Allah says:
وَلِتَبْتَغُواْ مِن فَضْلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ
( that you may seek from His bounty and that you may perhaps be grateful. ) - for His bounty and blessings.
Then Allah mentions the earth and how He placed in it mountains standing firm, which make it stable and keep it from shaking in such a manner that the creatures dwelling on it would not be able to live.
Hence Allah says,
وَالْجِبَالَ أَرْسَـهَا
( And the mountains He has fixed firmly. ) ( 79: 32 ).
وَأَنْهَـراً وَسُبُلاً
( and rivers and roads ) meaning He has made rivers which flow from one place to another, bringing provision for His servants.
The rivers arise in one place, and bring provision to people living in another place.
They flow through lands and fields and wildernesses, through mountains and hills, until they reach the land whose people they are meant to benefit.
They meander across the land, left and right, north and south, east and west - rivers great and small - flowing sometimes and ceasing sometimes, flowing from their sources to the places where the water gathers, flowing rapidly or moving slowly, as decreed by Allah.
There is no god besides Him and no Lord except Him.
He also made roads or routes along which people travel from one land or city to another, and He even made gaps in the mountains so that there would be routes between them, as He says:
وَجَعَلْنَا فِيهَا فِجَاجاً سُبُلاً
( And We placed broad highways for them to pass through. ) 21:31
وَعَلامَـتٍ
( And landmarks ) meaning, signs like great mountains and small hills, and so on, things that land and sea travelers use to find their way if they get lost.
وَبِالنَّجْمِ هُمْ يَهْتَدُونَ
( and by the stars (during the night ), they ( mankind ) guide themselves.) meaning, in the darkness of the night.
This was the opinion of Ibn `Abbas.
Worship is Allah's Right
Then Allah tells us of His greatness, and that worship should be directed to Him alone, not to any of the idols which do not create but are rather themselves created.
Thus He says
أَفَمَن يَخْلُقُ كَمَن لاَّ يَخْلُقُ أَفَلا تَذَكَّرُونَ
( Is then He, Who creates, the same as one who does not create Will you not then reflect )( 16:17 ).
Then He shows His servants some of the many blessings He granted for them, and the many kinds of things that He has done for them.
He says;
وَإِن تَعُدُّواْ نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ لاَ تُحْصُوهَآ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
( And if you would try to count the favors of Allah, you would never be able to count them.
Truly, Allah is Forgiving, Most Merciful. ) ( 16:18 ) meaning that He pardons and forgives them.
If He were to ask you to thank Him for all of His blessings, you would not be able to do so, and if He were to command you to do so, you would be incapable of it.
If He punishes you, He is never unjust in His punishment, but He is Forgiving and Most Merciful, He forgives much and rewards for little.
Ibn Jarir said: "It means that Allah is Forgiving when you fail to thank Him properly, if you repent and turn to Him in obedience, and strive to do that which pleases Him.
He is Merciful to you and does not punish you if you turn to Him and repent."
Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs
( And He it is Who hath constrained the sea to be of service ) to be subservient ( that ye eat fresh meat ) i.e. fish ( from thence, and bring forth from thence ) from the sea ( ornaments ) embellishments: pearls and other things ( which ye wear. And thou seest the ships ploughing it ) you see the ships coming and going in the sea by means of the same wind ( that ye (mankind ) may seek of His bounty) of His deeds; it is also said that this means: of His provision, ( and that haply ye may give thanks ) to His bounty.
Muhammad Taqiud-Din alHilali
And He it is Who has subjected the sea (to you), that you eat thereof fresh tender meat (i.e. fish), and that you bring forth out of it ornaments to wear. And you see the ships ploughing through it, that you may seek (thus) of His Bounty (by transporting the goods from place to place) and that you may be grateful.
We try our best to translate, keeping in mind the Italian saying: "Traduttore, traditore", which means: "Translation is a betrayal of the original text".
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