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Al-A'raf 95

Ayah 95 of 206 · Meccan

ثُمَّ بَدَّلۡنَا مَكَانَ ٱلسَّيِّئَةِ ٱلۡحَسَنَةَ حَتَّىٰ عَفَواْ وَّقَالُواْ قَدۡ مَسَّ ءَابَآءَنَا ٱلضَّرَّآءُ وَٱلسَّرَّآءُ فَأَخَذۡنَٰهُم بَغۡتَةٗ وَهُمۡ لَا يَشۡعُرُونَ ٩٥

Then We exchanged in place of the bad [condition], good, until they increased [and prospered] and said, "Our fathers [also] were touched with hardship and ease."1 So We seized them suddenly while they did not perceive.2

Translation: Saheeh International (English)

1 Instead of being grateful to Allāh for His blessings, they merely attributed them to the changing fortunes of time.

2 That they had been tried and tested.

Word by word

Each word's meaning and sound

  1. ثُمَّThenthumma
  2. بَدَّلۡنَاWe changedbaddalnā
  3. مَكَانَ(in) placemakāna
  4. ٱلسَّيِّئَةِ(of) the badl-sayi-ati
  5. ٱلۡحَسَنَةَthe goodl-ḥasanata
  6. حَتَّىٰuntilḥattā
  7. عَفَواْthey increasedʿafaw
  8. وَّقَالُواْand saidwaqālū
  9. قَدۡVerilyqad
  10. مَسَّ(had) touchedmassa
  11. ءَابَآءَنَاour forefathersābāanā
  12. ٱلضَّرَّآءُthe adversityl-ḍarāu
  13. وَٱلسَّرَّآءُand the easewal-sarāu
  14. فَأَخَذۡنَٰهُمSo We seized themfa-akhadhnāhum
  15. بَغۡتَةٗsuddenlybaghtatan
  16. وَهُمۡwhile theywahum
  17. لَا(did) notlā
  18. يَشۡعُرُونَperceiveyashʿurūna

Tafsir

After trying them with suffering and illness Allah improved their situation and turned their suffering into well-being and safety, until they became many and their wealth increased, and they said that the bad and good that they had experienced was a normal part of life and that the same thing had happened to their ancestors before them. They did not recognise that there was a lesson to be learned in the difficulties that occurred to them and that there was a test for them in the good that they were given. Then Allah overtook them suddenly with the punishment, while they were unaware of it and did not expect it.

Al-Mukhtasar in interpreting the Noble Quran