Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Kahf Verse 29

Mufti Taqi Usmani

And say, “The truth is from your Lord. Now, whoever so wills may believe and whoever so wills may deny.” Surely, We have prepared for the unjust a fire, whose tent will envelop them. And if they will beg for help, they shall be helped with water like oily dregs that will scald the faces. Vile is the drink, and evil is the Fire as a resting-place.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

And say, ˹O Prophet,˺ “˹This is˺ the truth from your Lord. Whoever wills let them believe, and whoever wills let them disbelieve.” Surely We have prepared for the wrongdoers a Fire whose walls will ˹completely˺ surround them. When they cry for aid, they will be aided with water like molten metal, which will burn ˹their˺ faces. What a horrible drink! And what a terrible place to rest!

Ruwwad Translation Center

Say, “The truth is from your Lord. Whoever wills may believe, and whoever wills may disbelieve.” We have prepared for the wrongdoers a Fire which will encompass them like the walls. If they cry for relief, they will be relieved with water like boiling oil that will scald the faces. What a terrible drink, and what a terrible resting place!

A. J. Arberry

Say: 'The truth is from your Lord; so let whosoever will believe, and let whosoever will disbelieve.' Surely We have prepared for the evildoers a fire, whose pavilion encompasses them; if they call for succour, they will be succoured with water like molten copper, that shall scald their faces -- how evil a potion, and how evil a resting-place!

Abdul Haleem

Say, ‘Now the truth has come from your Lord: let those who wish to believe in it do so, and let those who wish to reject it do so.’ We have prepared a Fire for the wrongdoers that will envelop them from all sides. If they call for relief, they will be relieved with water like molten metal, scalding their faces. What a terrible drink! What a painful resting place!

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

And say thou: the truth is from your Lord; let him therefore who will, believe, and let him who will, disbelieve. Verily We have gotten ready for the wrong-doers a Fire the awnings whereof shall encompass them; and if they cry for relief they shall be relieved with water like the dregs of oil scalding their faces. 111 the drink, and vile the resting-place!

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Say, "The truth is from your Lord"; Let him who will believe, and let him who will, reject (it); for the wrong-doers We have prepared a Fire whose (smoke and flames), like the walls and roof of a tent, will hem them in; if they implore relief they will be granted water like melted brass, that will scald their faces, how dreadful the drink! How uncomfortable a couch to recline on!

Abul Ala Maududi

And proclaim: "This is the Truth from your Lord. Now let him who will, believe; and let him who will, disbelieve. We have prepared a Fire for the wrong-doers whose billowing folds encompass them. If they ask for water, they will be served with a drink like dregs of oil that will scald their faces. How dreadful a drink, and how evil an abode!

Ahmed Ali

Say: "The truth is from your Lord: So believe if you like, or do not believe if you will." We have prepared for the sinners a fire which will envelope them in its tent. If they ask for water they will be helped to liquid like molten brass that would scald their mouths. How evil the drink, and evil the resting-place!

Ahmed Raza Khan

And proclaim, “The Truth is from your Lord”; so whoever wills may accept faith, and whoever wills may disbelieve – We have indeed prepared for the disbelievers a fire the walls of which will surround them; if they plead for water, their plea will be answered with water like molten metal which shall scald their faces; what an evil drink it is; and what an evil destination is hell!

Ali Quli Qarai

And say, ‘[This is] the truth from your Lord: let anyone who wishes believe it, and let anyone who wishes disbelieve it.’ Indeed, We have prepared for the wrongdoers a Fire whose curtains will surround them [on all sides]. If they cry out for help, they will be helped with a water like molten copper, which will scald their faces. What an evil drink, and how ill a resting place!

Ali Ünal

And say: "The truth from your Lord (has come in this Qur’an)." Then, whoever wills (to believe), let him believe; and whoever wills (to disbelieve), let him disbelieve. Surely, We have prepared for the wrongdoers a Fire, its billowing folds encompassing them. If they beg for water they will be given water like molten metal that scalds their faces. How dreadful a drink, and how evil a couch to rest on!

Amatul Rahman Omar

And say, `It is the truth from your Lord, therefore let him who wishes (it) believe (in it) and let him who wishes (otherwise) disbelieve (in it).´ (But let everyone remember,) We have prepared for the unjust a fire whose (flaming) enclosure will surround (and fumes envelope) them. If they cry for water, they shall be helped with water (boiling) like molten lead, which will scald their faces. How dreadful the drink and how dismal is (the Fire as) a resting place!

English Literal

And say: "The truth (is) from your Lord, so who willed/wanted, so he should believe, and who willed/wanted, so he should disbelieve, that We have prepared/made ready to the unjust/oppressive a fire, its elevated surrounding ash/smoke encircled/enveloped with them, and if they seek/ask for help (rain) they be helped/aided/rained upon with water as the dead`s pus/refined oil , (it) roasts/grills the faces/fronts, how bad (is) the drink? And it was a bad/evil/harmful convenience/benefit ."

Faridul Haque

And proclaim, “The Truth is from your Lord”; so whoever wills may accept faith, and whoever wills may disbelieve - We have indeed prepared for the disbelievers a fire the walls of which will surround them; if they plead for water, their plea will be answered with water like molten metal which shall scald their faces; what an evil drink it is; and what an evil destination is hell!

Hamid S. Aziz

Restrain thyself with those who call upon their Lord morning and evening, desiring His countenance (or nearness and intimacy), and let not your eyes be turned from them, desiring the adornment (and pomp) of the life of this world; and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance, and who follows his own lusts (prejudices, fantasies, superstitions), and whose affair has been abandoned.

Hilali & Khan

And say: "The truth is from your Lord." Then whosoever wills, let him believe, and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve. Verily, We have prepared for the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.), a Fire whose walls will be surrounding them (disbelievers in the Oneness of Allah). And if they ask for help (relief, water, etc.) they will be granted water like boiling oil, that will scald their faces. Terrible the drink, and an evil Murtafaqa (dwelling, resting place, etc.)!

Maulana Mohammad Ali

And keep thyself with those who call on their Lord morning and evening desiring His goodwill, and let not thine eyes pass from them, desiring the beauties of this world’s life. And follow not him whose heart We have made unmindful of Our remembrance, and he follows his low desires and his case exceeds due bounds.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

And say: The truth is from your Lord, so let him who please believe, and let him who please disbelieve; surely We have prepared for the iniquitous a fire, the curtains of which shall encompass them about; and if they cry for water, they shall be given water like molten brass which will scald their faces; evil the drink and ill the resting-place.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

Say: (It is) the truth from the Lord of you (all). Then whosoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve. Lo! We have prepared for disbelievers Fire. Its tent encloseth them. If they ask for showers, they will be showered with water like to molten lead which burneth the faces. Calamitous the drink and ill the resting-place!

Muhammad Sarwar

Say," Truth comes from your Lord. Let people have faith or disbelieve as they chose." For the unjust We have prepared a fire which will engulf them with its (flames). Whenever they cry for help they will be answered with water as hot as molted brass which will scald their faces. How terrible is such a drink and such a resting place!

Qaribullah & Darwish

Say: 'This is the truth from your Lord. Let whosoever will, believe, and whosoever will, disbelieve it' For the harmdoers, We have prepared a Fire, the pavilion of which encompasses them. When they cry out for relief, they shall be showered with water as hot as molten copper, which will scald their faces; how evil a drink, and how evil a restingplace!

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

And say: "The truth is from your Lord." Then whosoever wills, let him believe; and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve. Verily, We have prepared for the wrongdoers, a Fire whose walls will be surrounding them. And if they ask for drink, they will be granted water like Al-Muhl, that will scald their faces. Terrible is the drink, and an evil Murtafaq!

Wahiduddin Khan

Say, "This is the truth from your Lord. Let him who will, believe in it, and him who will, deny it." For the wrongdoers We have prepared a Fire which will cover them like a canopy, and if they beg for water, they will be given water as hot as molten lead, which will scald their faces: how dreadful a drink, and how evil a resting place!

Talal Itani

And say, “The truth is from your Lord. Whoever wills—let him believe. And whoever wills—let him disbelieve”. We have prepared for the unjust a Fire, whose curtains will hem them in. And when they cry for relief, they will be relieved with water like molten brass, which scalds the faces. What a miserable drink, and what a terrible place.

Tafsir jalalayn

And say, to him and to his companions that this Qur'n is, `The truth [that comes] from your Lord; so whoever will, let him believe, and whoever will, let him disbelieve' -- this is [meant as] a threat to them. Indeed We have prepared for the wrongdoers, that is, the disbelievers, a Fire, and they will be surrounded by its pavilion, [by] that which encloses [the Fire itself]. If they cry out for help, they will be succoured with water like molten copper, like thick [burning] oil, which scalds faces, because of [the intensity of] its heat, if it is brought near them. What an evil drink, that is, and how ill, is the Fire [as], a resting-place! (murtafaqan is a specification derived from the agent of the verb, in other words, vile is the person choosing to rest thereon; and this is in contrast to what He will say next about Paradise; How fair a resting-place [below, verse 31]. For, indeed, what resting-place can there be in the Fire?

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

The Truth is from Allah, and the Punishment of Those Who do not believe in it

Allah says,

وَقُلِ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ

And say;"The truth is from your Lord."

Allah says to His Messenger Muhammad;"Say to the people, `What I have brought to you from your Lord is the truth, in which there is no confusion or doubt."'

فَمَن شَاء فَلْيُوْمِن وَمَن شَاء فَلْيَكْفُرْ

Then whosoever wills, let him believe; and whosoever wills, let him disbelieve.

This is a type of threat and stern warning, after which Allah says,

إِنَّا أَعْتَدْنَا

Verily, We have prepared,

meaning made ready,

لِلظَّالِمِينَ

for the wrongdoers,

meaning those who disbelieve in Allah, His Messenger and His Book,

نَارًا أَحَاطَ بِهِمْ سُرَادِقُهَا

a Fire whose walls will be surrounding them.

Ibn Jurayj said that Ibn Abbas said,
أَحَاطَ بِهِمْ سُرَادِقُهَا
(a Fire whose walls will be surrounding them),

"A wall of fire."

وَإِن يَسْتَغِيثُوا يُغَاثُوا بِمَاء كَالْمُهْلِ يَشْوِي الْوُجُوهَ

And if they ask for drink, they will be granted water like Al-Muhl, that will scald their faces.

Ibn Abbas said;

"Al-Muhl is thick water which is similar to the sediment in oil."

Mujahid said,

"It is like blood and pus."

Ikrimah said,

"It is the thing that is heated to the ultimate temperature."

Others said;

"It is everything that is melted."

Qatadah said,

"Ibn Mas`ud melted some gold in a grove, and when it became liquid and foam rose to the top, he said, this is the thing that is most like Al-Muhl."

Ad-Dahhak said;

"The water of Hell is black, and it itself is black and its people are black."

There is nothing contradictory in these comments, for Al-Muhl includes all of these unpleasant characteristics, it is black, evil-smelling, thick and hot, as Allah said,

يَشْوِي الْوُجُوهَ
((it) will scald their faces),

meaning because of its heat. When the disbeliever wants to drink it and brings it close to his face, it will scald it so that the skin of his face falls off into it.

Sa`id bin Jubayr said,

"When the people of Hell get hungry, they will ask for relief from it, and they will be given the tree of Zaqqum from which they will eat. The tree will tear off the skin of their faces, and if anyone who knew them were to pass by, he would recognize the skin of their faces in the tree. Then they will feel thirsty, so they will ask for drink, and they will be granted water like Al-Muhl, that is what has been heated to the ultimate temperature. When it is brought near their mouths, the flesh of their faces from which the skin has been torn off will be baked."

After describing this drink in these horrifying qualities, Allah says;

بِيْسَ الشَّرَابُ

Terrible is the drink,

meaning, how awful this drink is.

Similarly, He says in another Ayah;

وَسُقُواْ مَأءً حَمِيماً فَقَطَّعَ أَمْعَأءَهُمْ

and be given to drink boiling water so that it cuts up their bowels. (47;15)

تُسْقَى مِنْ عَيْنٍ ءَانِيَةٍ

They will be given to drink from a boiling spring. (88;5)

وَبَيْنَ حَمِيمٍ ءَانٍ

They will go between it (Hell) and the fierce boiling water. (55;44)

وَسَاءتْ مُرْتَفَقًا



and an evil Murtafaq!

means, how evil a place is the Fire to dwell and rest and gather.

As Allah says elsewhere;

إِنَّهَا سَأءَتْ مُسْتَقَرّاً وَمُقَاماً

Evil indeed it (Hell) is as an abode and as a place to rest in. (25;66