سُوْرَةُ الْاَنْۣبِيَآءِ
Surah Al-Anbiyaa (21) — Ayah 95
وَحَرَٰمٌ عَلَىٰ قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكْنَـٰهَآ أَنَّهُمْ لَا يَرْجِعُونَ ﴿95﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And a ban is laid on every town (population) which We have destroyed that they shall not return (to this world again, nor repent to Us).
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَحَرَٰمٌ
waḥarāmun
And (there is) prohibition
عَلَىٰ
ʿalā
upon
قَرْيَةٍ
qaryatin
a city
أَهْلَكْنَـٰهَآ
ahlaknāhā
which We have destroyed
أَنَّهُمْ
annahum
that they
لَا
lā
not
يَرْجِعُونَ
yarjiʿūna
will return
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 it is not possible for any town which We have destroyed that they will not return (to Us) (rather, they will have to come) [85].
[85] Several meanings of this verse have been stated, and all of them seem correct in their own context. One is the same as is clear from the translation: when We destroy some criminal towns, this is not the full recompense for their crimes. Surely, they will be brought before Us on the Day of Resurrection. At that time, We will give them the punishment for their crimes, and it is impossible for them not to come to Us. The second meaning is that We only destroy those towns about whom We are certain that they will never desist from their evil deeds. And the third meaning is that for the destroyed towns, it is not possible that We bring them back to life and send them back into the world, so that they may now perform good deeds and make up for what they missed.
[85] Several meanings of this verse have been stated, and all of them seem correct in their own context. One is the same as is clear from the translation: when We destroy some criminal towns, this is not the full recompense for their crimes. Surely, they will be brought before Us on the Day of Resurrection. At that time, We will give them the punishment for their crimes, and it is impossible for them not to come to Us. The second meaning is that We only destroy those towns about whom We are certain that they will never desist from their evil deeds. And the third meaning is that for the destroyed towns, it is not possible that We bring them back to life and send them back into the world, so that they may now perform good deeds and make up for what they missed.
