Surah Araf ayat 5 Tafsir Quran 7:5

﴿فَمَا كَانَ دَعْوَاهُمْ إِذْ جَاءَهُم بَأْسُنَا إِلَّا أَن قَالُوا إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَالِمِينَ﴾
[ الأعراف: 5]

7:5 And their declaration when Our punishment came to them was only that they said, "Indeed, we were wrongdoers!"

And their only plea their only words when Our might came upon them was to say ‘We were evildoers indeed’.

When our anger was displayed in action, nothing did they say with pining regrets and vain repentance but: we were wrongful of actions

Nations that were destroyed Allah said, وَكَم مِّن قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكْنَـهَا ( And a great number of towns We destroyed. ) for defying Our Messengers and rejecting them.
This behavior led them to earn disgrace in this life, which led them to disgrace in the Hereafter.
Allah said in other Ayat, وَلَقَدِ اسْتُهْزِىءَ بِرُسُلٍ مِّن قَبْلِكَ فَحَاقَ بِالَّذِينَ سَخِرُواْ مِنْهُمْ مَّا كَانُواْ بِهِ يَسْتَهْزِءُونَ ( And indeed (many ) Messengers before you were mocked at, but their scoffers were surrounded by the very thing that they used to mock at) 6:10, and فَكَأَيِّن مِّن قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكْنَـهَا وَهِىَ ظَالِمَةٌ فَهِىَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَى عُرُوشِهَا وَبِئْرٍ مُّعَطَّلَةٍ وَقَصْرٍ مَّشِيدٍ ( And many a township did We destroy while they were given to wrongdoing, so that it lie in ruins (up to this day ), and ( many ) a deserted well and lofty castle!) 22:45, and, وَكَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا مِن قَرْيَةٍ بَطِرَتْ مَعِيشَتَهَا فَتِلْكَ مَسَـكِنُهُمْ لَمْ تُسْكَن مِّن بَعْدِهِمْ إِلاَّ قَلِيلاً وَكُنَّا نَحْنُ الْوَرِثِينَ ( And how many a town have We destroyed, which was thankless for its means of livelihood And those are their dwellings, which have not been inhabited after them except a little.
And verily, We have been the heirs )28:58.
Allah's saying, فَجَآءَهَا بَأْسُنَا بَيَـتًا أَوْ هُمْ قَآئِلُونَ ( Our torment came upon them by night or while they were taking their midday nap.
) means, Allah's command, torment and vengeance came over them at night or while taking a nap in the middle of the day.
Both of these times are periods of rest and leisure or heedlessness and amusement.
Allah also said أَفَأَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَى أَن يَأْتِيَهُم بَأْسُنَا بَيَـتاً وَهُمْ نَآئِمُونَ - أَوَ أَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَى أَن يَأْتِيَهُمْ بَأْسُنَا ضُحًى وَهُمْ يَلْعَبُونَ ( Did the people of the towns then feel secure against the coming of Our punishment by night while they were asleep Or, did the people of the towns then feel secure against the coming of Our punishment in the forenoon while they were playing )7:97-98 and, أَفَأَمِنَ الَّذِينَ مَكَرُواْ السَّيِّئَاتِ أَن يَخْسِفَ اللَّهُ بِهِمُ الاٌّرْضَ أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لاَ يَشْعُرُونَ - أَوْ يَأْخُذَهُمْ فِى تَقَلُّبِهِمْ فَمَا هُم بِمُعْجِزِينَ - أَوْ يَأْخُذَهُمْ عَلَى تَخَوُّفٍ فَإِنَّ رَبَّكُمْ لَرَؤُوفٌ رَّحِيمٌ ( Do then those who devise evil plots feel secure that Allah will not sink them into the earth, or that the torment will not seize them from directions they perceive not Or that He may catch them in the midst of their going to and from, so that there be no escape for them Or that He may catch them with gradual wastage.
Truly, Your Lord is indeed full of kindness, Most Merciful ) 16:45-47.
Allah's saying; فَمَا كَانَ دَعْوَاهُمْ إِذْ جَآءَهُم بَأْسُنَآ إِلاَ أَن قَالُواْ إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَـلِمِينَ ( No cry did they utter when Our torment came upon them but this: "Verily, we were wrongdoers." ) This means, when the torment came to them, their cry was that they admitted their sins and that they deserved to be punished.
Allah said in a similar Ayah, وَكَمْ قَصَمْنَا مِن قَرْيَةٍ كَانَتْ ظَـلِمَةً ( How many a town given to wrongdoing, have We destroyed )21:11, until, خَـمِدِينَ ( Extinct )21:15.
Allah's saying. فَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ ( Then surely, We shall question those (people ) to whom it ( the Book ) was sent) is similar to the Ayat, وَيَوْمَ يُنَـدِيهِمْ فَيَقُولُ مَاذَآ أَجَبْتُمُ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ( And (remember ) the Day ( Allah ) will call them, and say: "What answer gave you to the Messengers") 28:65, and, يَوْمَ يَجْمَعُ اللَّهُ الرُّسُلَ فَيَقُولُ مَاذَآ أُجِبْتُمْ قَالُواْ لاَ عِلْمَ لَنَآ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ عَلَّـمُ الْغُيُوبِ ( On the Day when Allah will gather the Messengers together and say to them: "What was the response you received" They will say: "We have no knowledge, verily, only You are the Knower of all that is unseen." ) 5:109.
Allah will question the nations, on the Day of Resurrection, how they responded to His Messengers and the Messages He sent them with.
He will also question the Messengers if they conveyed His Messages.
So, `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas, who said commenting on the Ayah: فَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ( Then surely, We shall question those (people ) to whom it ( the Book ) was sent and verily, We shall question the Messengers.) He said; "About what they conveyed." Ibn `Abbas commented on Allah's statement, فَلَنَقُصَّنَّ عَلَيْهِم بِعِلْمٍ وَمَا كُنَّا غَآئِبِينَ ( Then surely, We shall narrate unto them (their whole story ) with knowledge, and indeed We have not been absent.) "The Book will be brought forth on the Day of Resurrection and it will speak, disclosing what they used to do." وَمَا كُنَّا غَآئِبِينَ ( and indeed We have not been absent ) meaning, On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will inform His servants about what they said and did, whether substantial or minor.
Certainly, He witnesses to everything, nothing escapes His observation, and He is never unaware of anything.
Rather, He has perfect knowledge of what the eyes are deluded by and what the hearts conceal, وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلاَّ يَعْلَمُهَا وَلاَ حَبَّةٍ فِى ظُلُمَـتِ الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ رَطْبٍ وَلاَ يَابِسٍ إِلاَّ فِى كِتَـبٍ مُّبِينٍ ( Not a leaf falls, but He knows it.
There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record. )6:59

(7:5) And when Our scourge fell upon them their only cry was: 'We are indeed transgressors.' *5

And their declaration when Our punishment came meaning

*5).
People can learn a lesson from the tragic fate of those nations that spurned God's Guidance.
and instead followed the guidance of others; and they became so degenerate that their very existence became an intolerable burden on the earth.
Eventually, God's scourge seized them.
and the earth was cleansed of their filthy existence.

The words uttered by, the evil-doers: 'We are indeed transgressors', emphasizes two points, First, that it is pointless for one to realize and repent of one's wrong-doing after the time for such repentance is past.
Individuals and communities who allow the term granted to them to be wasted in heedlesness and frivolity, who turn a deaf car to those who invite them to the truth, have so often been overtaken in the past by God's punishmet.
Second, there are numerous instances of individuals as well as communities which incontrovertibly prove that when the wrong-doings of a nation exceed a certain limit, the term granted to it expires and God's punishment suddenly overtakes it.
And once a nation is subjected to God's punishment, there is no escape from it.
Since human history abounds in such instances, there is no reason why people should persist in the same iniquity, and repent only when the time for repentance has passed.

 

Nations that were destroyed Allah said, وَكَم مِّن قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكْنَـهَا ( And a great number of towns We destroyed. ) for defying Our Messengers and rejecting them.
This behavior led them to earn disgrace in this life, which led them to disgrace in the Hereafter.
Allah said in other Ayat, وَلَقَدِ اسْتُهْزِىءَ بِرُسُلٍ مِّن قَبْلِكَ فَحَاقَ بِالَّذِينَ سَخِرُواْ مِنْهُمْ مَّا كَانُواْ بِهِ يَسْتَهْزِءُونَ ( And indeed (many ) Messengers before you were mocked at, but their scoffers were surrounded by the very thing that they used to mock at) 6:10, and فَكَأَيِّن مِّن قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكْنَـهَا وَهِىَ ظَالِمَةٌ فَهِىَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَى عُرُوشِهَا وَبِئْرٍ مُّعَطَّلَةٍ وَقَصْرٍ مَّشِيدٍ ( And many a township did We destroy while they were given to wrongdoing, so that it lie in ruins (up to this day ), and ( many ) a deserted well and lofty castle!) 22:45, and, وَكَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا مِن قَرْيَةٍ بَطِرَتْ مَعِيشَتَهَا فَتِلْكَ مَسَـكِنُهُمْ لَمْ تُسْكَن مِّن بَعْدِهِمْ إِلاَّ قَلِيلاً وَكُنَّا نَحْنُ الْوَرِثِينَ ( And how many a town have We destroyed, which was thankless for its means of livelihood And those are their dwellings, which have not been inhabited after them except a little.
And verily, We have been the heirs )28:58.
Allah's saying, فَجَآءَهَا بَأْسُنَا بَيَـتًا أَوْ هُمْ قَآئِلُونَ ( Our torment came upon them by night or while they were taking their midday nap.
) means, Allah's command, torment and vengeance came over them at night or while taking a nap in the middle of the day.
Both of these times are periods of rest and leisure or heedlessness and amusement.
Allah also said أَفَأَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَى أَن يَأْتِيَهُم بَأْسُنَا بَيَـتاً وَهُمْ نَآئِمُونَ - أَوَ أَمِنَ أَهْلُ الْقُرَى أَن يَأْتِيَهُمْ بَأْسُنَا ضُحًى وَهُمْ يَلْعَبُونَ ( Did the people of the towns then feel secure against the coming of Our punishment by night while they were asleep Or, did the people of the towns then feel secure against the coming of Our punishment in the forenoon while they were playing )7:97-98 and, أَفَأَمِنَ الَّذِينَ مَكَرُواْ السَّيِّئَاتِ أَن يَخْسِفَ اللَّهُ بِهِمُ الاٌّرْضَ أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لاَ يَشْعُرُونَ - أَوْ يَأْخُذَهُمْ فِى تَقَلُّبِهِمْ فَمَا هُم بِمُعْجِزِينَ - أَوْ يَأْخُذَهُمْ عَلَى تَخَوُّفٍ فَإِنَّ رَبَّكُمْ لَرَؤُوفٌ رَّحِيمٌ ( Do then those who devise evil plots feel secure that Allah will not sink them into the earth, or that the torment will not seize them from directions they perceive not Or that He may catch them in the midst of their going to and from, so that there be no escape for them Or that He may catch them with gradual wastage.
Truly, Your Lord is indeed full of kindness, Most Merciful ) 16:45-47.
Allah's saying; فَمَا كَانَ دَعْوَاهُمْ إِذْ جَآءَهُم بَأْسُنَآ إِلاَ أَن قَالُواْ إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَـلِمِينَ ( No cry did they utter when Our torment came upon them but this: "Verily, we were wrongdoers." ) This means, when the torment came to them, their cry was that they admitted their sins and that they deserved to be punished.
Allah said in a similar Ayah, وَكَمْ قَصَمْنَا مِن قَرْيَةٍ كَانَتْ ظَـلِمَةً ( How many a town given to wrongdoing, have We destroyed )21:11, until, خَـمِدِينَ ( Extinct )21:15.
Allah's saying. فَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ ( Then surely, We shall question those (people ) to whom it ( the Book ) was sent) is similar to the Ayat, وَيَوْمَ يُنَـدِيهِمْ فَيَقُولُ مَاذَآ أَجَبْتُمُ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ( And (remember ) the Day ( Allah ) will call them, and say: "What answer gave you to the Messengers") 28:65, and, يَوْمَ يَجْمَعُ اللَّهُ الرُّسُلَ فَيَقُولُ مَاذَآ أُجِبْتُمْ قَالُواْ لاَ عِلْمَ لَنَآ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ عَلَّـمُ الْغُيُوبِ ( On the Day when Allah will gather the Messengers together and say to them: "What was the response you received" They will say: "We have no knowledge, verily, only You are the Knower of all that is unseen." ) 5:109.
Allah will question the nations, on the Day of Resurrection, how they responded to His Messengers and the Messages He sent them with.
He will also question the Messengers if they conveyed His Messages.
So, `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas, who said commenting on the Ayah: فَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الْمُرْسَلِينَ ( Then surely, We shall question those (people ) to whom it ( the Book ) was sent and verily, We shall question the Messengers.) He said; "About what they conveyed." Ibn `Abbas commented on Allah's statement, فَلَنَقُصَّنَّ عَلَيْهِم بِعِلْمٍ وَمَا كُنَّا غَآئِبِينَ ( Then surely, We shall narrate unto them (their whole story ) with knowledge, and indeed We have not been absent.) "The Book will be brought forth on the Day of Resurrection and it will speak, disclosing what they used to do." وَمَا كُنَّا غَآئِبِينَ ( and indeed We have not been absent ) meaning, On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will inform His servants about what they said and did, whether substantial or minor.
Certainly, He witnesses to everything, nothing escapes His observation, and He is never unaware of anything.
Rather, He has perfect knowledge of what the eyes are deluded by and what the hearts conceal, وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلاَّ يَعْلَمُهَا وَلاَ حَبَّةٍ فِى ظُلُمَـتِ الاٌّرْضِ وَلاَ رَطْبٍ وَلاَ يَابِسٍ إِلاَّ فِى كِتَـبٍ مُّبِينٍ ( Not a leaf falls, but He knows it.
There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record. )6:59

( No plea ) words ( had they, when Our terror ) Our punishment which destroyed them ( came unto them, save that they said: Lo! We were wrong-doers ) idolaters.

No cry did they utter when Our Torment came upon them but this: "Verily, we were Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.)".

Page 151 English transliteration