Surah Qaf 50:25
سُورَةُ قٓ · Meccan · Verse 25 of 45
مَّنَّاعٍۢ لِّلْخَيْرِ مُعْتَدٍۢ مُّرِيبٍ
Translation
everyone who hindered good, was aggressive, caused others to doubt,
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
Wording
This verse, 50:25, is part of a powerful scene on the Day of Judgment. Allah, the Exalted, is addressing the two angels responsible for each soul, the driver and the witness, commanding them to cast into Hell a specific type of person. The precision of the words chosen here by Allah paints a vivid picture of these individuals and their ultimate fate.
The Frequent Withholder
The first description is مَّنَّاعٍ لِّلْخَيْرِ (Mannā'in lil-khayr), meaning "one who frequently withholds good." The Arabic word مَنَّاعٍ (Mannā'in) is an intensive form, indicating someone who doesn't just withhold good once, but habitually, making it a deep-seated characteristic. It signifies someone who is excessively or consistently preventing good.
Scholars like al-Razi and Ibn Ashur discuss what "الخَيْر" (al-khayr), or "good," refers to here. It has two profound meanings. Firstly, it means withholding obligatory wealth, such as charity or zakat, from those who have a right to it. It’s an act of ingratitude for Allah's blessings, as al-Razi notes. Secondly, and perhaps even more gravely, it refers to withholding the ultimate good: faith and guidance. This person actively prevents others from embracing Islam or from receiving its benefits, as Ibn Ashur explains, "preventing people from good, and good is faith." They might deter their families or spread doubt to keep others away, making the withholding not just passive but an active impediment.
The Transgressor
Next, the verse describes this person as مُعْتَدٍ (Mu'tadī), "a transgressor." This word signifies someone who exceeds the limits set by Allah. Al-Zamakhshari defines them as "unjust, exceeding the truth."
Al-Razi highlights how this characteristic builds upon the previous one. If they withheld due charity, their transgression might involve taking what is forbidden, like usury or stolen goods. If they prevented others from faith, their transgression would extend to actively harming and insulting those who *did* believe, or spreading falsehoods about the Prophet, as Ibn Ashur states. So, it's not merely a failure to do good, but an active engagement in doing wrong, going beyond simple negligence to active harm and injustice.
The Doubter or Causer of Doubt
Finally, the person is called مُرِيبٍ (Murīb), "one who doubts" or "one who causes doubt." This word carries a dual meaning, both internal and external. Internally, as al-Jalalayn mentions, it describes someone who harbors deep suspicion about Allah and His religion, and specifically about the Hereafter and the promised reward, according to al-Razi.
Externally, and powerfully, it describes someone who *creates* doubt in the hearts of others. As Ibn Ashur explains, they "make others doubt by spreading fallacies to make them doubt the Prophet's truthfulness and the validity of faith/monotheism." This individual isn't just personally uncertain; they actively work to sow seeds of suspicion and confusion in the minds of others, preventing them from finding clarity and conviction.
These three intensive, active descriptions – the habitual withholder of good, the persistent transgressor, and the doubt-ridden doubt-creator – paint a stark picture of someone deeply entrenched in opposing truth and righteousness, earning them the severe consequence described in the ayah.
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 Qaf 50:25 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
Open Surah Qaf 50:25 in Maani to reflect on it through the Five Lenses: its wording, its context, what it means for you, its connections across the Quran and its lessons, grounded in classical tafsir.