Surah Ibrahim Ayat 22 in Arabic Text
English Translation
Here you can read various translations of verse 22
And Satan will say when the matter has been concluded, “Indeed, Allah had promised you the promise of truth. And I promised you, but I betrayed you. But I had no authority over you except that I invited you, and you responded to me. So do not blame me; but blame yourselves. I cannot be called to your aid, nor can you be called to my aid. Indeed, I deny your association of me [with Allah] before. Indeed, for the wrongdoers is a painful punishment.”
And Satan will say when the matter is decided: “It was Allah Who gave you a promise of Truth: I too promised, but I failed in my promise to you. I had no authority over you except to call you but ye listened to me: then reproach not me, but reproach your own souls. I cannot listen to your cries, nor can ye listen to mine. I reject your former act in associating me with Allah. For wrong-doers there must be a grievous penalty.”
After the matter has been finally decided Satan will say: “Surely whatever Allah promised you was true; as for me, I went back on the promise I made to you. I had no power over you except that I called you to my way and you responded to me. So, do not blame me but blame yourselves. Here, neither I can come to your rescue, nor can you come to mine. I disavow your former act of associating me in the past with Allah. A grievous chastisement inevitably lies ahead for such wrong-doers.”
And Shaitan (Satan) will say when the matter has been decided: “Verily, Allah promised you a promise of truth. And I too promised you, but I betrayed you. I had no authority over you except that I called you, so you responded to me. So blame me not, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can you help me. I deny your former act in associating me (Satan) as a partner with Allah (by obeying me in the life of the world). Verily, there is a painful torment for the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.).”
And Satan saith, when the matter hath been decided: Lo! Allah promised you a promise of truth; and I promised you, then failed you. And I had no power over you save that I called unto you and ye obeyed me. So blame not, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can ye help me, Lo! I disbelieved in that which ye before ascribed to me. Lo! for wrong-doers is a painful doom.
And Ash-Shaytan (The all-vicious “one”, i.e., the Devil) says, as soon as the Command is decreed, “Surely Allah promised you a promise of Truth, and I promised you, then I failed you; and in no way did I have any all-binding authority over you except that I called you, so you responded to me. So do not blame me and blame yourselves. In no way can I be a screamer (i.e., able to every for help for you) for you, and in no way can you be screamers for me. Surely I disbelieved in your associating me (with Allah) earlier.” Surely the unjust will have a painful torment.
When everything has been decided, Satan will say, ‘God gave you a true promise. I too made promises but they were false ones: I had no power over you except to call you, and you responded to my call, so do not blame me; blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can you help me. I reject the way you associated me with God before.’ A bitter torment awaits such wrongdoers,
جب اور کام کا فیصلہ کردیا جائے گا تو شیطان کہے گا کہ اللہ نے تو تمہیں سچا وعده دیا تھا اور میں نے تم سے جو وعدے کیے تھے ان کے خلاف کیا، میرا تم پر کوئی دباؤ تو تھا ہی نہیں، ہاں میں نے تمہیں پکارا اور تم نے میری مان لی، پس تم مجھے الزام نہ لگاؤ بلکہ خود اپنے آپ کو ملامت کرو، نہ میں تمہارا فریاد رس اور نہ تم میری فریاد کو پہنچنے والے، میں تو سرے سے مانتا ہی نہیں کہ تم مجھے اس سے پہلے اللہ کا شریک مانتے رہے، یقیناً ﻇالموں کے لیے دردناک عذاب ہے
Quran 14 Verse 22 Explanation
For those looking for commentary to help with the understanding of Surah Ibrahim ayat 22, we’ve provided two Tafseer works below. The first is the tafseer of Abul Ala Maududi, the second is of Ibn Kathir.
Ala-Maududi
(14:22) After the matter has been finally decided Satan will say: “Surely whatever Allah promised you was true; as for me, I went back on the promise I made to you.[30] I had no power over you except that I called you to my way and you responded to me.[31] So, do not blame me but blame yourselves. Here, neither I can come to your rescue, nor can you come to mine. I disavow your former act of associating me in the past with Allah.[32] A grievous chastisement inevitably lies ahead for such wrong-doers.”
30. When the criminals will charge Satan with leading them astray, he will plead guilty, as if to say: You yourselves see now that all the promises and warnings made by Allah have come out true and all the promises which I made have proved to be false. I also confess that it was all deception that I gave you false assurances of prosperity, beguiled you by greed and enticed you in the snare of great expectations. I assured you that in the first instance there will be no life in the Hereafter, and that, if there be any, you will be freed by the intercession of such and such a saint. The only thing you have to do is to make offerings before him: then you may do whatever you please, for he will deliver you from all the consequences. I repeat that I said all these things and asked my agents to say the same.
31. That is, you cannot say and prove that it was I who forced you to follow the wrong way, whereas you wanted to follow the right way. You will yourselves admit that it is not so. I did no more than this that I invited you to falsehood in opposition to the invitation to the truth and tempted you to vice instead of virtue. But I had no power to force you to the wrong way, if you desired to follow the right way, when you had the power and the option to follow either of the ways. Now I am ready to bear the burden of the wicked invitation I extended to you, but you are not justified in any way to throw on me the burden of accepting my invitation for you did it on your own responsibility. You should, therefore, yourselves bear all its consequences.
32. This is a clear proof of shirk in practice, as apart from shirk in creed. As Satan will charge his followers with making him a partner with God, it is obvious that as far as creed is concerned there is no one who makes Satan a partner with God in His Godhead or His worship: nay, every one curses him for his evil ways. Nevertheless, people obey and submit to him and follow him blindly, as if he were their god and that is what has been termed shirk.
Let us now consider this thesis from the opposite point of view. Someone might say that this does not hold good, for this is based on a mere saying of Satan which has been cited here. First, this objection is not sound because Allah Himself would have refuted it, had it been baseless.
Secondly, this is not the only instance of shirk in practice in the Quran. Here are a few more instances of this.
(a) It charges the Jews and Christians with shirk because they set up their priests and monks as their Lords besides Allah. (Surah At-Taubah, Ayat 31).
(b) Those who follow the superstitious customs have been called mushriks. (Surah Al-Anaam, Ayat 136-139).
(c) Those who follow their lusts have been charged with making their selves as their god. (Surah Al-Furqan, Ayat 43).
(d) Those who are disobedient to Allah have been accused of worshiping Satan. (Surah Saba, Ayat 60).
(e) Those who follow man made laws without Allah’s sanction have been reproved for setting up the makers of the laws without Allah’s sanction as partners with God. (Surah HaMim As-Sajdah, Ayat 21).
All the above instances are clear proofs of the fact that shirk is not confined to this creed alone that one might set up a partner with Allah in His Godhead as an article of faith. But it is also shirk that one should follow and surrender to someone other than Allah without any divine sanction or in spite of a divine prohibition. Such a one shall be guilty of shirk even though the follower might be at the same time cursing him whom he follows and obeys. The only difference between the two kinds of shirk may be the extent of the crime and not its nature.
Ibn-Kathir
22. And Shaytan will say when the matter has been decided: “Verily, Allah promised you a promise of truth. And I too promised you, but I betrayed you. I had no authority over you except that I called you, and you responded to me. So blame me not, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you, nor can you help me. I deny your former act in associating me (Shaytan) as a partner with Allah (by obeying me in the life of the world). Verily, there is a painful torment for the wrongdoers.” 23. And those who believed and did righteous deeds, will be made to enter Gardens under which rivers flow, – to dwell therein for ever (i.e. in Paradise), with the permission of their Lord. Their greeting therein will be: “Salam (peace!).”
Allah narrates to us what Iblis will say to his followers after Allah finishes with the judgement between His servants, sending the believers to the gardens of Paradise and the disbelievers to the lows (of the Fire). Iblis, may Allah curse him, will stand and address the latter, in order to add depression to their depression, sorrow to their sorrow and grief to their grief. He will declare,
`(Verily, Allah promised you a promise of truth.) by the words of His Messengers that if you follow them, you will gain safety and deliverance. Truly, Allah’s promise was true and correct news, while I promised you then betrayed you.’ Allah said in another Ayah,
(He (Shaytan) makes promises to them, and arouses in them false desires; and Shaytan’s promises are nothing but deceptions.) ﴿4:120﴾
(I had no authority over you) Shaytan will say, `I had no proof for what I called you to, nor evidence for what I promised you,
(except that I called you, and you responded to me.) even though the Messengers establish the proof and unequivocal evidences against you and affirmed the truth of what they were sent to you with. But you disobeyed the Messengers and ended up earning this fate,
(So blame me not,) today,
(but blame yourselves.), because it is your fault for defying the proofs and following me in the falsehood that I called you to.’ Shaytan will say next,
(I cannot help you), I cannot benefit, save, or deliver you from what you are suffering,
(nor can you help me.), nor can you save me and deliver me from the torment and punishment I am suffering,
(I deny your former act of associating me (Shaytan) as a partner with Allah.) or because you associated me with Allah before,’ according to Qatadah. Ibn Jarir commented; “I deny being a partner with Allah, the Exalted and Most Honored.” This opinion is the most plausible, for Allah said in other Ayat,
(And who is more astray than one who calls on others besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls to them And when mankind are gathered, they will become their enemies and will deny their worshipping.)﴿46:5-6﴾ and,
(Nay, but they (the so-called gods) will deny their worship of them, and become opponents to them.)﴿19:82﴾ Allah said next,
(Verily, the wrongdoers), who deviate from truth and follow falsehood, will earn a painful torment. It appears that this part of the Ayah narrates the speech that Shaytan will deliver to the people of the Fire after they enter it, as we stated. `Amir Ash-Sha`bi said, “On the Day of Resurrection, two speakers will address the people. Allah the Exalted will say to `Isa, son of Maryam,
(Did you say unto men: “Worship me and my mother as two gods besides Allah”) ﴿5:116﴾ until,
(Allah will say: “This is a Day on which the truthful will profit from their truth.”)﴿5:119﴾ Shaytan, may Allah curse him, will stand and address the people,
(I had no authority over you except that I called you, and you responded to me.) Allah next mentioned the final destination of the miserable ones, who earned the disgrace and torment and having to listen to Shaytan address them, then He mentioned the final destination of the happy ones,
(And those who believed and did righteous deeds, will be made to enter Gardens under which rivers flow,) wherever they wish them to flow and wherever they may be,
(to dwell therein for ever,) and will never transfer or be transferred from it,
(with the permission of their Lord. Their greeting therein will be: “Salam (peace!). ”) Allah said in other Ayat,
(Till, when they reach it, and its gates will be opened and its keepers will say: “Salamun `Alaykum (peace be upon you!)”) ﴿39:73﴾
(And angels shall enter unto them from every gate (saying): “Salamun `Alaykum (peace be upon you!).”) ﴿13:23-24﴾
(Therein they shall be met with greetings and the word of peace and respect.) ﴿25:75﴾
(Their way of request therein will be Subhanaka Allahumma (glory to you, O Allah) and Salam (peace!) will be their greetings therein (Paradise)! And the close of their request will be: Al-Hamdu Lillahi Rabbil-‘Alamin ﴿all praise to Allah the Lord of that exists﴾.)﴿10:10﴾
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