Surah 15 · Meccan · 99 Verses
الحجر
SURAH AL-HIJR
The Rocky Tract
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
ذَرْهُمْ يَأْكُلُوا۟ وَيَتَمَتَّعُوا۟ وَيُلْهِهِمُ ٱلْأَمَلُ ۖ فَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُونَ
Let them eat and enjoy themselves and be diverted by [false] hope, for they are going to know.
وَمَآ أَهْلَكْنَا مِن قَرْيَةٍ إِلَّا وَلَهَا كِتَابٌۭ مَّعْلُومٌۭ
And We did not destroy any city but that for it was a known decree.
مَّا تَسْبِقُ مِنْ أُمَّةٍ أَجَلَهَا وَمَا يَسْتَـْٔخِرُونَ
No nation will precede its term, nor will they remain thereafter.
لَّوْ مَا تَأْتِينَا بِٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ ٱلصَّٰدِقِينَ
Why do you not bring us the angels, if you should be among the truthful?"
مَا نُنَزِّلُ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةَ إِلَّا بِٱلْحَقِّ وَمَا كَانُوٓا۟ إِذًۭا مُّنظَرِينَ
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا ٱلذِّكْرَ وَإِنَّا لَهُۥ لَحَٰفِظُونَ
Indeed, it is We who sent down the message [i.e., the Qur’ān], and indeed, We will be its guardian.
وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ فِى شِيَعِ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ
And We had certainly sent [messengers] before you, [O Muḥammad], among the sects of the former peoples.
وَمَا يَأْتِيهِم مِّن رَّسُولٍ إِلَّا كَانُوا۟ بِهِۦ يَسْتَهْزِءُونَ
And no messenger would come to them except that they ridiculed him.
كَذَٰلِكَ نَسْلُكُهُۥ فِى قُلُوبِ ٱلْمُجْرِمِينَ
Thus do We insert it [i.e., denial] into the hearts of the criminals.
لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۦ ۖ وَقَدْ خَلَتْ سُنَّةُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ
They will not believe in it, while there has already occurred the precedent of the former peoples.
وَلَوْ فَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِم بَابًۭا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ فَظَلُّوا۟ فِيهِ يَعْرُجُونَ
And [even] if We opened to them a gate from the heaven and they continued therein to ascend,
لَقَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا سُكِّرَتْ أَبْصَٰرُنَا بَلْ نَحْنُ قَوْمٌۭ مَّسْحُورُونَ
They would say, "Our eyes have only been dazzled. Rather, we are a people affected by magic."
وَلَقَدْ جَعَلْنَا فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ بُرُوجًۭا وَزَيَّنَّٰهَا لِلنَّٰظِرِينَ
And We have placed within the heaven great stars and have beautified it for the observers.
وَحَفِظْنَٰهَا مِن كُلِّ شَيْطَٰنٍۢ رَّجِيمٍ
And We have protected it from every devil expelled [from the mercy of Allāh]
إِلَّا مَنِ ٱسْتَرَقَ ٱلسَّمْعَ فَأَتْبَعَهُۥ شِهَابٌۭ مُّبِينٌۭ
Except one who steals a hearing and is pursued by a clear burning flame.
وَٱلْأَرْضَ مَدَدْنَٰهَا وَأَلْقَيْنَا فِيهَا رَوَٰسِىَ وَأَنۢبَتْنَا فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ شَىْءٍۢ مَّوْزُونٍۢ
And the earth - We have spread it and cast therein firmly set mountains and caused to grow therein [something] of every well-balanced thing.
وَجَعَلْنَا لَكُمْ فِيهَا مَعَٰيِشَ وَمَن لَّسْتُمْ لَهُۥ بِرَٰزِقِينَ
وَإِن مِّن شَىْءٍ إِلَّا عِندَنَا خَزَآئِنُهُۥ وَمَا نُنَزِّلُهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِقَدَرٍۢ مَّعْلُومٍۢ
And there is not a thing but that with Us are its depositories, and We do not send it down except according to a known [i.e., specified] measure.
وَأَرْسَلْنَا ٱلرِّيَٰحَ لَوَٰقِحَ فَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءًۭ فَأَسْقَيْنَٰكُمُوهُ وَمَآ أَنتُمْ لَهُۥ بِخَٰزِنِينَ
وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْنَا ٱلْمُسْتَقْدِمِينَ مِنكُمْ وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْنَا ٱلْمُسْتَـْٔخِرِينَ
And We have already known the preceding [generations] among you, and We have already known the later [ones to come].
وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ يَحْشُرُهُمْ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ حَكِيمٌ عَلِيمٌۭ
And indeed, your Lord will gather them; indeed, He is Wise and Knowing.
وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ مِن صَلْصَٰلٍۢ مِّنْ حَمَإٍۢ مَّسْنُونٍۢ
And We did certainly create man out of clay from an altered black mud.
وَٱلْجَآنَّ خَلَقْنَٰهُ مِن قَبْلُ مِن نَّارِ ٱلسَّمُومِ
And the jinn We created before from scorching fire.
وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ إِنِّى خَٰلِقٌۢ بَشَرًۭا مِّن صَلْصَٰلٍۢ مِّنْ حَمَإٍۢ مَّسْنُونٍۢ
And [mention, O Muḥammad], when your Lord said to the angels, "I will create a human being out of clay from an altered black mud.
فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُۥ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِى فَقَعُوا۟ لَهُۥ سَٰجِدِينَ
فَسَجَدَ ٱلْمَلَٰٓئِكَةُ كُلُّهُمْ أَجْمَعُونَ
So the angels prostrated - all of them entirely,
قَالَ يَٰٓإِبْلِيسُ مَا لَكَ أَلَّا تَكُونَ مَعَ ٱلسَّٰجِدِينَ
[Allāh] said, "O Iblees, what is [the matter] with you that you are not with those who prostrate?"
قَالَ لَمْ أَكُن لِّأَسْجُدَ لِبَشَرٍ خَلَقْتَهُۥ مِن صَلْصَٰلٍۢ مِّنْ حَمَإٍۢ مَّسْنُونٍۢ
He said, "Never would I prostrate to a human whom You created out of clay from an altered black mud."
وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكَ ٱللَّعْنَةَ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلدِّينِ
And indeed, upon you is the curse until the Day of Recompense."
قَالَ رَبِّ فَأَنظِرْنِىٓ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ
He said, "My Lord, then reprieve me until the Day they are resurrected."
قَالَ فَإِنَّكَ مِنَ ٱلْمُنظَرِينَ
[Allāh] said, "So indeed, you are of those reprieved
إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ ٱلْوَقْتِ ٱلْمَعْلُومِ
Until the Day of the time well-known."
قَالَ رَبِّ بِمَآ أَغْوَيْتَنِى لَأُزَيِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
[Iblees] said, "My Lord, because You have put me in error, I will surely make [disobedience] attractive to them [i.e., mankind] on earth, and I will mislead them all
إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ ٱلْمُخْلَصِينَ
Except, among them, Your chosen servants."
قَالَ هَٰذَا صِرَٰطٌ عَلَىَّ مُسْتَقِيمٌ
[Allāh] said, "This is a path [of return] to Me [that is] straight.
إِنَّ عِبَادِى لَيْسَ لَكَ عَلَيْهِمْ سُلْطَٰنٌ إِلَّا مَنِ ٱتَّبَعَكَ مِنَ ٱلْغَاوِينَ
Indeed, My servants - no authority will you have over them, except those who follow you of the deviators.
وَإِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ لَمَوْعِدُهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
And indeed, Hell is the promised place for them all.
لَهَا سَبْعَةُ أَبْوَٰبٍۢ لِّكُلِّ بَابٍۢ مِّنْهُمْ جُزْءٌۭ مَّقْسُومٌ
It has seven gates; for every gate is of them [i.e., Satan's followers] a portion designated."
إِنَّ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ فِى جَنَّٰتٍۢ وَعُيُونٍ
Indeed, the righteous will be within gardens and springs,
ٱدْخُلُوهَا بِسَلَٰمٍ ءَامِنِينَ
[Having been told], "Enter it in peace, safe [and secure]."
لَا يَمَسُّهُمْ فِيهَا نَصَبٌۭ وَمَا هُم مِّنْهَا بِمُخْرَجِينَ
No fatigue will touch them therein, nor from it will they [ever] be removed.
۞ نَبِّئْ عِبَادِىٓ أَنِّىٓ أَنَا ٱلْغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ
[O Muḥammad], inform My servants that it is I who am the Forgiving, the Merciful,
وَأَنَّ عَذَابِى هُوَ ٱلْعَذَابُ ٱلْأَلِيمُ
And that it is My punishment which is the painful punishment.
About This Surah
Surah Al-Hijr answers mockery with confidence in revelation, creation, resurrection, and continued worship. It presents the preservation of the Reminder, recounts Adam and Iblis, describes Abraham’s guests and the destruction of Lot’s people, recalls the people of the Thicket and the Rock, and recognizes the Messenger’s emotional pain. Its closing counsel is neither denial nor retaliation, but praise, prostration, and faithful perseverance.
Al-Hijr opens with rejection so settled that some people will recognize the truth only when recognition can no longer change their course. Accusations against the Messenger are answered by the pattern of earlier messengers and by the statement that God sent down the Reminder and will guard it. The claim concerns the revealed Reminder; it is not an assertion about the perfection of every copy, typography, translation, commentary, or digital implementation.
The surah points to constellations, guarded heavens, extended earth, measured growth, winds, rain, provision, life, death, and gathering. These signs connect ordinary dependence with resurrection. References to heavenly guarding belong to the unseen and do not authorize speculative cosmology presented as Quranic fact.
The creation narrative contrasts Adam’s formation with Iblis’s arrogant refusal. Iblis requests delay and promises to beautify error, but his authority over sincere servants is denied. Temptation is serious without becoming a doctrine that removes human responsibility or treats every psychological struggle as paranormal control.
Abraham’s guests arrive with good news before announcing judgment upon Lot’s people. The account describes prophetic warning, public wrongdoing, refusal, and consequence. It cannot be recruited to justify harassment, assault, or private punishment of contemporary people. The people of the Thicket and Al-Hijr likewise demonstrate that material security and carved dwellings do not cancel moral accountability.
The closing verses state plainly that hostile speech constricts the Messenger’s chest. The response—praise, prostration, and worship—offers devotional continuity without implying that distress is imaginary or that professional and human support are unnecessary. Revelation, accountability, emotional realism, and worship therefore form one sustained answer to rejection.
Core Themes
- Preservation of the revealed Reminder
- Creation and resurrection as measured divine acts
- Arrogance in the refusal of Iblis
- Punishment narratives bounded by prophetic context
- Material security unable to defeat accountability
- Worship and emotional steadiness under mockery
Structure
Verses 1–15: revelation, mockery, and delayed recognition — 1-15
The opening records rejection, accusations against the Messenger, and the repeated pattern faced by earlier messengers. Recognition after judgment is contrasted with a timely, responsible response to revelation.
Verses 16–25: heavens, earth, provision, and gathering — 16-25
Cosmic order, fertile earth, winds, rain, measured provision, life, death, and final gathering establish dependence on God without supplying a technical scientific manual or speculative map of the unseen.
Verses 26–44: Adam, Iblis, temptation, and limits — 26-44
Human creation and Iblis’s refusal expose arrogance disguised as superiority. His announced temptation is placed beside the explicit limit that he has no coercive authority over God’s sincere servants.
Verses 45–84: mercy, Abraham’s guests, Lot, and Al-Hijr — 45-84
Mercy and accountability frame the visits to Abraham and Lot and the brief reminders concerning the Thicket and the people of the Rock. Secure architecture cannot shelter injustice from consequence.
Verses 85–99: purposeful creation and prophetic consolation — 85-99
The closing joins creation with purpose, patient dignity, the gift of repeated verses, refusal of envy, acknowledged grief, public warning, praise, prostration, and worship until death.
Reading Guide
Keep preservation attached to the Reminder
Read verse 9 in its opening argument about revelation and mockery. Distinguish the Quranic preservation claim from later human work involving manuscripts, translations, fonts, databases, interfaces, and commentary.
Separate temptation from coercive possession
Read Iblis’s threat together with verses 39–42. The passage preserves moral danger and human responsibility while refusing exaggerated claims that Satan has independent, unlimited control over sincere servants.
Do not weaponize punishment narratives
Keep the accounts of Lot, the Thicket, and Al-Hijr within prophetic warning and divine judgment. They are never permission for private violence or abuse.
Take the closing distress seriously
Verses 97–99 acknowledge emotional constriction before giving devotional counsel. Worship may sustain a person, but the passage should not be used to shame distress or prohibit appropriate support.
Key Passages
The Reminder and divine guardianship — 9
The preservation statement answers accusations directed at revelation. This assurance about revelation does not mean that every later translation, commentary, printed copy, or software implementation is protected from human error.
Adam, Iblis, and bounded temptation — 26-42
Iblis’s refusal arises from arrogance, not lack of information. His intention to mislead is real, yet the passage denies him authority over sincere servants and therefore resists fatalism, coercion narratives, and the removal of personal responsibility.
Mercy and painful accountability — 45-50
The people of the Garden receive peace, while the Messenger is instructed to announce both divine forgiveness and painful punishment. Holding these statements together prevents mercy from becoming presumption and warning from becoming despair. Read the cited verses as a unit; their immediate argument does not become a stand-alone ruling, diagnosis, prediction, or guaranteed result.
Abraham’s guests and Lot’s people — 51-77
Good news to Abraham precedes the mission to Lot’s community. The passage concerns prophetic warning and divine judgment; it is not a modern criminal code and supplies no authority for harassment, vigilantism, or private punishment.
Distress, praise, and continuing worship — 97-99
The Quran acknowledges that hostile speech causes the Messenger distress. Praise, prostration, and worship are presented as faithful continuity, not proof that emotional pain is unreal or that seeking human assistance reflects weak faith. Read the cited verses as a unit; their immediate argument does not become a stand-alone ruling, diagnosis, prediction, or guaranteed result.
Recitation Note
No exclusive time, fixed repetition count, or guaranteed worldly outcome is asserted here for reciting Surah Al-Hijr. It may be read as Quran for worship, reflection, and study. Any separate claim about protection, healing, provision, marriage, pregnancy, or a prescribed number requires its own verified evidence and carefully limited wording.
Interpretation Limits
- Verse 15:9 concerns divine guardianship of the Reminder; it should not be expanded into infallibility claims for translations, commentary, or software.
- Unseen details about heavenly guarding and Satan must not be invented or presented as scientific findings.
- Lot’s narrative and other punishment accounts do not authorize harassment, vigilantism, or private violence.
- Devotional counsel in verses 97–99 must not be used to shame mental distress or replace appropriate care.