Surah Al-Mulk 67:16 — Meaning, Translation & Reflection

ءَأَمِنتُم مَّن فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ أَن يَخْسِفَ بِكُمُ ٱلْأَرْضَ فَإِذَا هِىَ تَمُورُ

English: Are you sure that He who is in Heaven will not make the earth swallow you up with a violent shudder?

Bengali: তোমরা কি ভাবনামুক্ত হয়ে গেছ যে, আকাশে যিনি আছেন তিনি তোমাদেরকে ভূগর্ভে বিলীন করে দেবেন, অতঃপর তা কাঁপতে থাকবে।

Meaning & Reflection

'Do you feel secure that the One above will not cause the earth to swallow you, so that it suddenly heaves?' Ibn Ashur and al-Biqa'i note the turn from evidence to warning: the very ground just described as 'tamed' for you is held steady only by His will — and the question exposes a false sense of safety. al-Saadi reads it as a mercy in disguise: He is able to seize the heedless at any moment, yet He forbears and delays. Ask yourself: the solidity I stand on, I never once secured; it is on loan, moment by moment. Do I mistake His patience for His absence — reading the fact that nothing has collapsed as proof that nothing can?

Grounded in classical tafsir: Ibn Ashur, al-Biqa'i, al-Saadi.

Reflect with the Five Lenses

Maani's framework for Tadabbur (heart-centred reflection) on Surah Al-Mulk 67:16:

• Wording. Look closely at the specific words and structure. Which word stands out, and why might Allah have chosen it here?
• Quranic Worlds. Place the verse in its context — what is happening around it, and what world does it open up?
• Personal Experience. Ask not just what this means, but what it means TO me and FOR me, right now in my life.
• Connections. How does this verse connect to other verses, to the Sunnah, or to themes across the Quran?
• General Lessons. What timeless lesson or action point can I carry away and live by?