سُوْرَةُ الزُّخْرُفِ
Surah Az-Zukhruf (43) — Ayah 54
فَٱسْتَخَفَّ قَوْمَهُۥ فَأَطَاعُوهُ ۚ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا۟ قَوْمًا فَـٰسِقِينَ ﴿54﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
Thus he [Fir‘aun (Pharaoh)] befooled (and misled) his people, and they obeyed him. Verily, they were ever a people who were Fâsiqûn (rebellious, disobedient to Allâh).
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
فَٱسْتَخَفَّ
fa-is'takhaffa
So he bluffed
قَوْمَهُۥ
qawmahu
his people
فَأَطَاعُوهُ ۚ
fa-aṭāʿūhu
and they obeyed him
إِنَّهُمْ
innahum
Indeed, they
كَانُوا۟
kānū
were
قَوْمًۭا
qawman
a people
فَـٰسِقِينَ
fāsiqīna
defiantly disobedient
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.
54. In this way, he fooled his people, and they obeyed him. Indeed, they were a rebellious [53] people.
[53] By saying such things, Pharaoh made fools of his people, and they became fools, because they were rebellious people who cared for nothing except their worldly interests, and they saw their benefit only in remaining slaves to Pharaoh. Although the truth had become clear to Pharaoh, he was going through all these machinations so that weakness and instability would not occur in his rule. He also knew very well the mentality of the common people—how to get things done by such conscienceless, unprincipled, and unintelligent people, and how to make them follow his words.
[53] By saying such things, Pharaoh made fools of his people, and they became fools, because they were rebellious people who cared for nothing except their worldly interests, and they saw their benefit only in remaining slaves to Pharaoh. Although the truth had become clear to Pharaoh, he was going through all these machinations so that weakness and instability would not occur in his rule. He also knew very well the mentality of the common people—how to get things done by such conscienceless, unprincipled, and unintelligent people, and how to make them follow his words.
