Surah Kahf ayat 55 Tafsir Quran 18:55

﴿وَمَا مَنَعَ النَّاسَ أَن يُؤْمِنُوا إِذْ جَاءَهُمُ الْهُدَىٰ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُوا رَبَّهُمْ إِلَّا أَن تَأْتِيَهُمْ سُنَّةُ الْأَوَّلِينَ أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ قُبُلًا﴾
[ الكهف: 55]

18:55 And nothing has prevented the people from believing when guidance came to them and from asking forgiveness of their Lord except that there [must] befall them the [accustomed] precedent of the former peoples or that the punishment should come [directly] before them.

And nothing prevented people that is the disbelievers of Mecca from believing an yu’minū is after al-nāsa ‘people’ constitutes the second direct object clause when the guidance the Qur’ān came to them and from asking forgiveness of their Lord without that there should come upon them the precedent of the ancients sunnatu’l-awwalīn constitutes the subject of the verb that is to say Our precedent of dealing with them which is the destruction decreed for them or that the chastisement should come upon them before their very eyes in front of them and for them to see — which was their being killed on the day of Badr a variant reading for qibalan has qubulan which in the accusative is the plural of qabīlin meaning ‘of various kinds’.

What kept people back from acknowledging and accepting the spirit of truth presented to them to guide them into all truth and inspire them to invoke their Creators mercy and forgiveness but to rest content until they are wedded to the same calamities wedding those of old or to perceive through sense of sight the torment destined to be laid upon the damned

The Rebellion of the Disbelievers Allah tells us about the rebellion of the disbelievers in ancient times and in more recent times, and how they rejected the obvious truth even when they witnessed clear signs and proofs.
Nothing stopped them from following the truth except their demand to witness with their own eyes the punishment which they were being warned about.
As some of them said to their Prophet: فَأَسْقِطْ عَلَيْنَا كِسَفاً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ ( So cause a piece of the heaven to fall on us, if you are of the truthful! ) 26:187, Others said: ائْتِنَا بِعَذَابِ اللَّهِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ ( Bring Allah's torment upon us if you are one of the truthful. ) 29:29 The Quraysh said: اللَّهُمَّ إِن كَانَ هَـذَا هُوَ الْحَقَّ مِنْ عِندِكَ فَأَمْطِرْ عَلَيْنَا حِجَارَةً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ أَوِ ائْتِنَا بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ ( O Allah! If this is indeed the truth from You, then rain down stones on us from the sky or bring upon us a painful torment. ) 8:32 وَقَالُواْ يأَيُّهَا الَّذِى نُزِّلَ عَلَيْهِ الذِّكْرُ إِنَّكَ لَمَجْنُونٌ - لَّوْ مَا تَأْتِينَا بِالْمَلَـئِكَةِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ ( And they say: "O you to whom the Reminder has been sent down! Verily, you are a mad man! Why do you not bring angels to us if you are of the truthful" ) 15:6-7.
There are other Ayat refering to the same thing.
Then Allah says: إِلاَّ أَن تَأْتِيَهُمْ سُنَّةُ الاٌّوَّلِينَ ( except that the ways of the ancients be repeated with them, ) meaning, their overwhelming punishment, destroying every last one of them. أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ قُبُلاً ( or the torment be brought to them face to face. ) they see it with their own eyes, being directly confronted with it.
Then Allah says: وَمَا نُرْسِلُ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلاَّ مُبَشِّرِينَ وَمُنذِرِينَ ( And We send not the Messengers except as bearers of good news and warners. ) before the punishment they give good news to those who believe in them and follow them, and warnings to those who reject them and oppose them.
Then Allah tells us about the disbelievers who argue: بِالْبَـطِلِ لِيُدْحِضُواْ بِهِ الْحَقَّ ( with falsehood, in order to refute the truth thereby. ) they try to weaken the truth that the Messengers brought, but they cannot achieve that. وَاتَّخَذُواْ ءايَاتِى وَمَا أُنْذِرُواْ هُزُواً ( And they take My Ayat and that which they are warned for jest! ) they take the proof, evidence and miracles sent with the Messengers to warn them, and make them fear the punishment; هُزُواً ( as a jest and mockery ) and they make fun of them, which is the worst type of disbelief. وَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّن ذُكِّرَ بِـَايِـتِ رَبِّهِ فَأَعْرَضَ عَنْهَا وَنَسِىَ مَا قَدَّمَتْ يَدَاهُ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ أَكِنَّةً أَن يَفْقَهُوهُ وَفِى ءَاذَانِهِمْ وَقْراً وَإِن تَدْعُهُمْ إِلَى الْهُدَى فَلَنْ يَهْتَدُواْ إِذاً أَبَداً - وَرَبُّكَ الْغَفُورُ ذُو الرَّحْمَةِ لَوْ يُؤَاخِذُهُم بِمَا كَسَبُواْ لَعَجَّلَ لَهُمُ الْعَذَابَ بَل لَّهُم مَّوْعِدٌ لَّن يَجِدُواْ مِن دُونِهِ مَوْئِلاً

(18:55) (The question is) what kept them back from accepting guidance when it came before them and from asking the forgiveness of their Lord? It is nothing more than this that they are waiting for the same thing to happen to them that visited the former communities; or that they should see the scourge of Allah coming before them! *52

And nothing has prevented the people from meaning

*52) This is to warn the people that the Qur'an has left no stone unturned in making the Truth plain.
It has employed all kinds of arguments, parables, similitudes and used all the possible effective ways to appeal to the heart and the mind of man, and adopted the best possible style.
In short, nothing has been left that could persuade the people to accept the Truth.
If, in spite of this, they do not accept the truth, it is obvious that they are waiting for God's scourge like the one that visited the former communities to make them realize their error.

 

The Rebellion of the Disbelievers Allah tells us about the rebellion of the disbelievers in ancient times and in more recent times, and how they rejected the obvious truth even when they witnessed clear signs and proofs.
Nothing stopped them from following the truth except their demand to witness with their own eyes the punishment which they were being warned about.
As some of them said to their Prophet: فَأَسْقِطْ عَلَيْنَا كِسَفاً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ ( So cause a piece of the heaven to fall on us, if you are of the truthful! ) 26:187, Others said: ائْتِنَا بِعَذَابِ اللَّهِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ ( Bring Allah's torment upon us if you are one of the truthful. ) 29:29 The Quraysh said: اللَّهُمَّ إِن كَانَ هَـذَا هُوَ الْحَقَّ مِنْ عِندِكَ فَأَمْطِرْ عَلَيْنَا حِجَارَةً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ أَوِ ائْتِنَا بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ ( O Allah! If this is indeed the truth from You, then rain down stones on us from the sky or bring upon us a painful torment. ) 8:32 وَقَالُواْ يأَيُّهَا الَّذِى نُزِّلَ عَلَيْهِ الذِّكْرُ إِنَّكَ لَمَجْنُونٌ - لَّوْ مَا تَأْتِينَا بِالْمَلَـئِكَةِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّـدِقِينَ ( And they say: "O you to whom the Reminder has been sent down! Verily, you are a mad man! Why do you not bring angels to us if you are of the truthful" ) 15:6-7.
There are other Ayat refering to the same thing.
Then Allah says: إِلاَّ أَن تَأْتِيَهُمْ سُنَّةُ الاٌّوَّلِينَ ( except that the ways of the ancients be repeated with them, ) meaning, their overwhelming punishment, destroying every last one of them. أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ الْعَذَابُ قُبُلاً ( or the torment be brought to them face to face. ) they see it with their own eyes, being directly confronted with it.
Then Allah says: وَمَا نُرْسِلُ الْمُرْسَلِينَ إِلاَّ مُبَشِّرِينَ وَمُنذِرِينَ ( And We send not the Messengers except as bearers of good news and warners. ) before the punishment they give good news to those who believe in them and follow them, and warnings to those who reject them and oppose them.
Then Allah tells us about the disbelievers who argue: بِالْبَـطِلِ لِيُدْحِضُواْ بِهِ الْحَقَّ ( with falsehood, in order to refute the truth thereby. ) they try to weaken the truth that the Messengers brought, but they cannot achieve that. وَاتَّخَذُواْ ءايَاتِى وَمَا أُنْذِرُواْ هُزُواً ( And they take My Ayat and that which they are warned for jest! ) they take the proof, evidence and miracles sent with the Messengers to warn them, and make them fear the punishment; هُزُواً ( as a jest and mockery ) and they make fun of them, which is the worst type of disbelief. وَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّن ذُكِّرَ بِـَايِـتِ رَبِّهِ فَأَعْرَضَ عَنْهَا وَنَسِىَ مَا قَدَّمَتْ يَدَاهُ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ أَكِنَّةً أَن يَفْقَهُوهُ وَفِى ءَاذَانِهِمْ وَقْراً وَإِن تَدْعُهُمْ إِلَى الْهُدَى فَلَنْ يَهْتَدُواْ إِذاً أَبَداً - وَرَبُّكَ الْغَفُورُ ذُو الرَّحْمَةِ لَوْ يُؤَاخِذُهُم بِمَا كَسَبُواْ لَعَجَّلَ لَهُمُ الْعَذَابَ بَل لَّهُم مَّوْعِدٌ لَّن يَجِدُواْ مِن دُونِهِ مَوْئِلاً

( And naught hindereth mankind ) the people of Mecca, those who sponsored the army that fought against Muslims at Badr ( from believing ) in Muhammad ( pbuh ), and in the Qur’an ( when the guidance ) Muhammad ( pbuh ) and the Qur’an ( cometh unto them, and from asking for forgiveness of their Lord ) repent of disbelief and accept faith, ( unless (it be that they wish ) that the judgement of the men of old should come upon them) unless the destruction of the people of old should seize them ( or (that ) they should be confronted) on the Day of Badr ( with the Doom ) with the sword.

And nothing prevents men from believing, now when the guidance (the Quran) has come to them, and from asking Forgiveness of their Lord, except that the ways of the ancients be repeated with them (i.e. their destruction decreed by Allah), or the torment be brought to them face to face?

Page 300 English transliteration