Surah Muhammad 47:9
سُورَةُ مُحَمَّدٍ · Medinan · Verse 9 of 38
ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَرِهُوا۟ مَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ فَأَحْبَطَ أَعْمَٰلَهُمْ
Translation
It is because they hate what God has sent down that He has caused their deeds to go to waste.
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
Wording
This verse reveals the profound reason behind the dire state of those who reject faith, connecting their inner disposition to the ultimate futility of their actions. It follows directly from the previous verse (47:8) which pronounced ruin and wasted deeds for the disbelievers.
Why this consequence?
The verse begins with ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ (That is because they...), clearly establishing a cause and effect. The word ذَٰلِكَ (that) points back to the "ruin" and "misguided deeds" mentioned just before, indicating that what follows is the fundamental reason for their predicament. The particle بِ (bi) signifies "because," making the link undeniable. Allah is directly explaining the foundational cause for their condemnation.
The Weight of "Hate"
At the heart of the matter is the word كَرِهُوا۟ (they hated). This isn't just a mild dislike or disagreement, but a deep aversion, detestation, or loathing. What exactly did they hate? The verse states مَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ (what Allah revealed). Scholars offer various insights into what this encompasses:
* It primarily refers to the Quran itself, with its commands and duties. As al-Jalalayn and al-Razi suggest, they found these duties burdensome because they were accustomed to self-indulgence and lacked moral restraint.
* Al-Razi expands this to include the divine message of Tawhid (the Oneness of Allah), which challenged their polytheistic beliefs, and the truth of the Afterlife, which they denied. This comprehensive rejection of Allah's revelation, in its entirety or its core tenets, is the pivot of their spiritual downfall, as Ibn Ashur notes.
Deeds Rendered Vain
The consequence of this deep-seated hatred is expressed with فَأَحْبَطَ أَعْمَٰلَهُمْ (so He nullified their deeds). The connective فَ (fa) indicates an immediate outcome, a direct result of their aversion to Allah's message. The word أَحْبَطَ (aḥbaṭa) is powerful. It means to render something useless, to make it fall flat, or to nullify its effect, much like a plant that appears to grow but yields no fruit.
Ibn Ashur highlights how this phrase, "He nullified their deeds," is distinct yet related to "He made their deeds go astray" (أَضَلَّ أَعْمَٰلَهُمْ) mentioned earlier in the Surah. While 'making deeds go astray' signifies misguidance, 'nullifying deeds' specifically emphasizes that even actions that might outwardly seem good (like charity or maintaining family ties in their pre-Islamic society) become utterly worthless in Allah's sight if performed without faith and with active rejection of His revelation. They gain no benefit from them, either in this world or the Hereafter, because their hatred of divine truth contaminated the very essence of their actions.
Sources: al-Zamakhshari (al-Kashshaf), al-Razi (Mafatih al-Ghayb), al-Jalalayn, Ibn Ashur (al-Tahrir wa al-Tanwir), al-Jadwal fi I'rab al-Quran (Mahmud Safi)
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Muhammad 47:9 is discussed in 3 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
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