سُوْرَةُ النَّحْلِ
Surah An-Nahl (16) — Ayah 118
وَعَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ هَادُوا۟ حَرَّمْنَا مَا قَصَصْنَا عَلَيْكَ مِن قَبْلُ ۖ وَمَا ظَلَمْنَـٰهُمْ وَلَـٰكِن كَانُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ ﴿118﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And unto those who are Jews, We have forbidden such things as We have mentioned to you (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه و سلم) before [see Verse 6:146]. And We wronged them not, but they used to wrong themselves.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَعَلَى
waʿalā
And to
ٱلَّذِينَ
alladhīna
those who
هَادُوا۟
hādū
are Jews
حَرَّمْنَا
ḥarramnā
We have forbidden
مَا
mā
what
قَصَصْنَا
qaṣaṣnā
We related
عَلَيْكَ
ʿalayka
to you
مِن
min
before
قَبْلُ ۖ
qablu
before
وَمَا
wamā
And not
ظَلَمْنَـٰهُمْ
ẓalamnāhum
We wronged them
وَلَـٰكِن
walākin
but
كَانُوٓا۟
kānū
they used (to)
أَنفُسَهُمْ
anfusahum
themselves
يَظْلِمُونَ
yaẓlimūna
wrong
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
And whatever We made unlawful for the Jews, We have already explained to you [121] before. We did not wrong them, but they wronged themselves.
[121]
Only Four Things Are Essentially Forbidden:
Here, reference is made to verse 146 of Surah Al-An’am, which was revealed much earlier than Surah An-Nahl. In terms of chronological order, Surah Al-An’am is number 55, while this Surah An-Nahl is number 70. The objection of the disbelievers of Makkah was that, in the Shariah of the Children of Israel, besides these four things, there are many other things that are forbidden, which you Muslims have declared lawful. If the Mosaic law is also from Allah, then why are you violating it? And if both the Mosaic law and your law are revealed from Allah, then why is there a contradiction between them? The answer to this objection is being given here, which is that, fundamentally, the things that Allah has forbidden, and which are mentioned in all the books, are these four things. And the additional things that were forbidden to the Jews were made unlawful due to their own disobedience and transgressions.
[121]
Only Four Things Are Essentially Forbidden:
Here, reference is made to verse 146 of Surah Al-An’am, which was revealed much earlier than Surah An-Nahl. In terms of chronological order, Surah Al-An’am is number 55, while this Surah An-Nahl is number 70. The objection of the disbelievers of Makkah was that, in the Shariah of the Children of Israel, besides these four things, there are many other things that are forbidden, which you Muslims have declared lawful. If the Mosaic law is also from Allah, then why are you violating it? And if both the Mosaic law and your law are revealed from Allah, then why is there a contradiction between them? The answer to this objection is being given here, which is that, fundamentally, the things that Allah has forbidden, and which are mentioned in all the books, are these four things. And the additional things that were forbidden to the Jews were made unlawful due to their own disobedience and transgressions.
