سُوْرَةُ نُوْحٍ
Surah Nooh (71) — Ayah 9
ثُمَّ إِنِّىٓ أَعْلَنتُ لَهُمْ وَأَسْرَرْتُ لَهُمْ إِسْرَارًا ﴿9﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
"Then verily, I proclaimed to them in public, and I have appealed to them in private.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
ثُمَّ
thumma
Then
إِنِّىٓ
innī
indeed, I
أَعْلَنتُ
aʿlantu
announced
لَهُمْ
lahum
to them
وَأَسْرَرْتُ
wa-asrartu
and I confided
لَهُمْ
lahum
to them
إِسْرَارًۭا
is'rāran
secretly
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.
Then I preached to them openly and also spoke to them in private [5].
[5]
Worldly Benefits Obtained from Istighfar:
As far as my efforts to explain are concerned, I go to their gatherings and also to their homes. I also hold private meetings with them. I explain to them openly and, in a tone of goodwill, try to make them understand in individual meetings that the famine that has befallen you at this time, the lack of rain—if you turn to Allah and seek forgiveness for your sins, this famine will be lifted from you. By Allah’s mercy, there will be abundant rain, and Allah Almighty will grant great blessings in your wealth and children. It should be clear that such worldly benefits of istighfar have been mentioned at several other places in the Quran as well. For example, in Surah Al-Ma'idah it is said: And if the People of the Book had upheld the Torah, the Gospel, and what was revealed to them from their Lord, they would have received provision from above them and from beneath their feet. [5: 66] And in Surah Al-A'raf it is said: “If the people of the towns had believed and adopted taqwa, We would have opened for them blessings from the heavens and the earth.” [7: 96] From these verses, it is clearly understood that one of the worldly benefits of istighfar is that it removes poverty and many other difficulties. Thus, a person once complained to Hasan Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) about drought, another about poverty, and a third about not having children, so he instructed all three to do istighfar. Someone said that their complaints are different, but you are instructing each one to do istighfar? In response, he recited these very verses [verses 10 to 12] and satisfied him. In fact, some scholars say that for the attainment of every objective, one should do istighfar before Allah. Thus, once Sayyiduna Umar ؓ went out to pray for rain and sufficed only with istighfar. Someone said: O Leader of the Believers! You did not even pray for rain? He replied: I have knocked on those doors of the heavens from which rain descends. Then he recited these very verses of Surah Nuh to the people.
[5]
Worldly Benefits Obtained from Istighfar:
As far as my efforts to explain are concerned, I go to their gatherings and also to their homes. I also hold private meetings with them. I explain to them openly and, in a tone of goodwill, try to make them understand in individual meetings that the famine that has befallen you at this time, the lack of rain—if you turn to Allah and seek forgiveness for your sins, this famine will be lifted from you. By Allah’s mercy, there will be abundant rain, and Allah Almighty will grant great blessings in your wealth and children. It should be clear that such worldly benefits of istighfar have been mentioned at several other places in the Quran as well. For example, in Surah Al-Ma'idah it is said: And if the People of the Book had upheld the Torah, the Gospel, and what was revealed to them from their Lord, they would have received provision from above them and from beneath their feet. [5: 66] And in Surah Al-A'raf it is said: “If the people of the towns had believed and adopted taqwa, We would have opened for them blessings from the heavens and the earth.” [7: 96] From these verses, it is clearly understood that one of the worldly benefits of istighfar is that it removes poverty and many other difficulties. Thus, a person once complained to Hasan Basri (may Allah have mercy on him) about drought, another about poverty, and a third about not having children, so he instructed all three to do istighfar. Someone said that their complaints are different, but you are instructing each one to do istighfar? In response, he recited these very verses [verses 10 to 12] and satisfied him. In fact, some scholars say that for the attainment of every objective, one should do istighfar before Allah. Thus, once Sayyiduna Umar ؓ went out to pray for rain and sufficed only with istighfar. Someone said: O Leader of the Believers! You did not even pray for rain? He replied: I have knocked on those doors of the heavens from which rain descends. Then he recited these very verses of Surah Nuh to the people.
