Al-Qur'an Surah Ar-Ra'd Verse 39

Mufti Taqi Usmani

Allah wipes off what He wills and affirms (what He wills), and with Him is the Mother Book.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

Allah eliminates and confirms what He wills, and with Him is the Master Record.[[ See footnote for {6:38}.]] 

Ruwwad Translation Center

Allah eliminates what He wills or affirms it, and with Him is the Master Book.

A. J. Arberry

God blots out, and He establishes whatsoever He will; and with Him is the Essence of the Book.

Abdul Haleem

God erases or confirms whatever He will, and the source of Scripture is with Him.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

Allah abolisheth whatsoever He Will and keepeth; and with Him is the mother of the Book.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Allah doth blot out or confirm what He pleaseth; with Him is the Mother of the Book.

Abul Ala Maududi

Allah effaces whatever He wills and retains whatever He wills. With Him is the Mother of the Book.

Ahmed Ali

God abrogates or confirms whatsoever He will, for He has with Him the Book of Books.

Ahmed Raza Khan

Allah erases and confirms whatever He wills; and only with Him is the real script.

Ali Quli Qarai

Allah effaces and confirms whatever He wishes and with Him is the Mother Book.

Ali Ünal

God effaces what He wills (of things and events He has created, and laws He has established), and He confirms and establishes (what He wills): with Him is the Mother of the Book.

Amatul Rahman Omar

Allâh repeals (the law relating to punishment) what He will and He establishes and confirms (what He pleases) and with Him is the source and origin of all laws and commandments.

English Literal

God eliminates/erases what He wills/wants, and He affirms/strengthens , and at Him (is) The Books` origin/mother.

Faridul Haque

Allah erases and confirms whatever He wills; and only with Him is the real script.

Hamid S. Aziz

Allah blots out what He will, or He establishes (what He wills); and with Him is the Mother of the Book (or Source of Ordinances).

Hilali & Khan

Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the Book (Al-Lauh Al-Mahfuz)

Maulana Mohammad Ali

And certainly We sent messengers before thee and appointed for them wives and children. And it is not in (the power of) messenger to bring a sign except by Allah’s permission. For every term there is an appointment.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

Allah makes to pass away and establishes what He pleases, and with Him is the basis of the Book.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

Allah effaceth what He will, and establisheth (what He will), and with Him is the source of ordinance.

Muhammad Sarwar

For every event God has ordained His decree. God establishes or effaces whatever He wants and with Him is the original of the Book.

Qaribullah & Darwish

Allah blots out, and He establishes what He will. With Him is the Essence of the Book.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the Book.

Wahiduddin Khan

God abrogates or confirms what He pleases; with Him is the source of all commandments.

Talal Itani

God abolishes whatever He wills, and He affirms. With Him is the source of the Scripture.

Tafsir jalalayn

God effaces, of it [the Book], whatever He will and He fixes (read yuthbit or yuthabbit), therein whatever He will of rulings or other matters, and with Him is the Mother of the Book, its [source of] origin, of which nothing is ever changed, and which consists of what He inscribed in pre-eternity (azal).

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

يَمْحُو اللّهُ مَا يَشَاء

Allah blots out what He wills,

of the divinely revealed Books,

وَيُثْبِتُ

and confirms,

until the Qur'an, revealed from Allah to His Messenger peace be upon him, abrogated them all.

Mujahid commented;
يَمْحُو اللّهُ مَا يَشَاء وَيُثْبِتُ
(Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills).

"Except life and death, misery and happiness (i.e., faith and disbelief), for they do not change."

Mansur said that he asked Mujahid,

"Some of us say in their supplication, `O Allah! If my name is with those who are happy (believers), affirm my name among them, and if my name is among the miserable ones (disbelievers), remove it from among them and place it among the happy ones."

Mujahid said. "This supplication is good."

I met him a year or more later and repeated the same question to him and he recited these Ayat,

إِنَّأ أَنزَلْنَـهُ فِى لَيْلَةٍ مُّبَـرَكَةٍ

We sent it (this Qur'an) down on a blessed night. (44;3)

Mujahid commented next,

"During Laylatul-Qadr (Night of the Decrees), Allah decides what provisions and disasters will occur in the next year of. He then brings forward or back (or blots out) whatever He wills.

As for the Book containing the records of the happy (believers) and the miserable (disbelievers), it does not change."

Al-A`mash narrated that Abu Wa'il, Shaqiq bin Salamah said that he used to recite this supplication often,

"O Allah, if You wrote us among the wretched ones, remove this status from us and write us among the blessed ones. If You wrote us among the blessed ones, please let us stay that way, for surely, You blot out and confirm what You will, and with You is the Mother of the Book."

Ibn Jarir At-Tabari collected this.

Similar statements were collected from Umar bin Al-Khattab and Abdullah bin Mas`ud, indicating that Allah blots out (or abrogates) and affirms what He wills in the Book of Records.

What further supports this meaning is that Imam Ahmad recorded that Thawban said that the Messenger of Allah said,

إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ لَيُحْرَمُ الرِّزْقَ بِالذَّنْبِ يُصِيبُهُ وَلَا يَرُدُّ الْقَدَرَ إِلاَّ الدُّعَاءُ وَلَا يَزِيدُ فِي الْعُمْرِ إِلاَّ الْبِر

A man might be deprived of a provision (that was written for him) because of a sin that he commits; only supplication changes Al-Qadar (Predestination); and only Birr (righteousness) can increase the life span."

An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah collected this Hadith.

There is also a Hadith recorded in the Sahih that affirms that;

maintaining the ties of the womb increases the life span.

يَمْحُو اللّهُ مَا يَشَاء وَيُثْبِتُ وَعِندَهُ أُمُّ الْكِتَابِ



Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the Book.

Al-Awfi reported that Ibn Abbas said about Allah's statement,

"A man might work in Allah's obedience for a while but he reverts to the disobedience of Him and then dies while misguided.

This is what Allah blots out, while what He confirms is a man who works in His disobedience, but since goodness was destined for him, he dies after reverting to the obedience of Allah.

This is what Allah confirms."

It was also reported that Sa`id bin Jubayr said that this Ayah is in the meaning of another Ayah,

فَيَغْفِرُ لِمَن يَشَأءُ وَيُعَذِّبُ مَن يَشَأءُ وَاللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

Then He forgives whom He wills and punishes whom He wills. And Allah is able to do all things. (2;284