سُوْرَةُ النَّحْلِ
Surah An-Nahl (16) — Ayah 28
ٱلَّذِينَ تَتَوَفَّىٰهُمُ ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةُ ظَالِمِىٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ ۖ فَأَلْقَوُا۟ ٱلسَّلَمَ مَا كُنَّا نَعْمَلُ مِن سُوٓءٍۭ ۚ بَلَىٰٓ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلِيمٌۢ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ ﴿28﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
"Those whose lives the angels take while they are doing wrong to themselves (by disbelief and by associating partners in worship with Allâh and by committing all kinds of crimes and evil deeds)." Then, they will make (false) submission (saying): "We used not to do any evil." (The angels will reply): "Yes! Truly, Allâh is All-Knower of what you used to do.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
ٱلَّذِينَ
alladhīna
Those whom
تَتَوَفَّىٰهُمُ
tatawaffāhumu
take them in death
ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةُ
l-malāikatu
the Angels
ظَالِمِىٓ
ẓālimī
(while) wronging
أَنفُسِهِمْ ۖ
anfusihim
themselves
فَأَلْقَوُا۟
fa-alqawū
then they would offer
ٱلسَّلَمَ
l-salama
the submission
مَا
mā
Not
كُنَّا
kunnā
we were
نَعْمَلُ
naʿmalu
doing
مِن
min
any
سُوٓءٍۭ ۚ
sūin
evil
بَلَىٰٓ
balā
Nay
إِنَّ
inna
indeed
ٱللَّهَ
l-laha
Allah
عَلِيمٌۢ
ʿalīmun
(is) All-Knower
بِمَا
bimā
of what
كُنتُمْ
kuntum
you used (to)
تَعْمَلُونَ
taʿmalūna
do
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.
28. Those disbelievers who wronged themselves—when the angels come to take their souls, they will surrender [29] and say, “We were not doing anything evil.” The angels will say, “Yes, you were! Allah certainly knows well what you were doing.”
[29]
The Punishment of the Grave and Its Nature:
The very angels whose coming they kept demanding from their Prophet—when those angels actually arrive, all their arrogance is shattered and they collapse like foam. Yet, they do not stop there; rather, they will completely deny their disobedience and their activities against the truth, and will surrender their weapons so that they may receive safety from the angels. To this, they will be answered: “Do you now wish to deceive Allah by lying?” Even though Allah is fully aware of your every action—how you became enemies of the Prophets, rejected the truth, and persisted in your disbelief and polytheism. The punishment for your rebellion is that now you will be cast into Hell forever. This warning from the angels reaches the criminals even in this world, that is, with the last gasp of death, every person begins to see their end, and the angels even make it clear to them. The period from the last gasp of death until resurrection on the Day of Judgment is called Barzakh, and in hadith, this period is referred to with the words “grave and tomb,” whether the deceased is actually intact or not, or has been disposed of in some other way—whether devoured by a beast or drowned in water. The deniers of hadith who deny the punishment of the grave are refuted in these verses. When the soul departs from the body, which is called death, even then the soul neither dies nor perishes, but remains established with its personality, and this very soul will be returned to its body on the Day of Resurrection, the body that will be provided to it on that day. This is called the second life, and the punishment or reward that occurs in the realm of Barzakh, as mentioned in these verses, is only for the soul. Just as a person sometimes experiences pain in a dream, it seems to him that he is being beaten, and he feels the pain of that beating, even though all these events happen to the soul, while the body lies on the bed. Then, when he wakes up, the effects of the beating in the dream are not only in his mind, but sometimes are found on his body as well, and he appears frightened. The condition of the punishment of the grave is exactly like this. Similarly, in dreams, a person also experiences events of comfort and happiness, and when he wakes up, he himself is cheerful and everyone sees his face radiant with joy. The state of the reward of the grave is also like this. In other words, the realm of Barzakh is a state of semi-life in which the effects of death are more prominent, and so this semi-living state of Barzakh is described as death itself. For further details, refer to my book “Ruh, the Punishment of the Grave, and the Hearing of the Dead.”
[29]
The Punishment of the Grave and Its Nature:
The very angels whose coming they kept demanding from their Prophet—when those angels actually arrive, all their arrogance is shattered and they collapse like foam. Yet, they do not stop there; rather, they will completely deny their disobedience and their activities against the truth, and will surrender their weapons so that they may receive safety from the angels. To this, they will be answered: “Do you now wish to deceive Allah by lying?” Even though Allah is fully aware of your every action—how you became enemies of the Prophets, rejected the truth, and persisted in your disbelief and polytheism. The punishment for your rebellion is that now you will be cast into Hell forever. This warning from the angels reaches the criminals even in this world, that is, with the last gasp of death, every person begins to see their end, and the angels even make it clear to them. The period from the last gasp of death until resurrection on the Day of Judgment is called Barzakh, and in hadith, this period is referred to with the words “grave and tomb,” whether the deceased is actually intact or not, or has been disposed of in some other way—whether devoured by a beast or drowned in water. The deniers of hadith who deny the punishment of the grave are refuted in these verses. When the soul departs from the body, which is called death, even then the soul neither dies nor perishes, but remains established with its personality, and this very soul will be returned to its body on the Day of Resurrection, the body that will be provided to it on that day. This is called the second life, and the punishment or reward that occurs in the realm of Barzakh, as mentioned in these verses, is only for the soul. Just as a person sometimes experiences pain in a dream, it seems to him that he is being beaten, and he feels the pain of that beating, even though all these events happen to the soul, while the body lies on the bed. Then, when he wakes up, the effects of the beating in the dream are not only in his mind, but sometimes are found on his body as well, and he appears frightened. The condition of the punishment of the grave is exactly like this. Similarly, in dreams, a person also experiences events of comfort and happiness, and when he wakes up, he himself is cheerful and everyone sees his face radiant with joy. The state of the reward of the grave is also like this. In other words, the realm of Barzakh is a state of semi-life in which the effects of death are more prominent, and so this semi-living state of Barzakh is described as death itself. For further details, refer to my book “Ruh, the Punishment of the Grave, and the Hearing of the Dead.”
