Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 204

Mufti Taqi Usmani

Among men there is one whose speech, in this life, attracts you; he even makes Allah his witness on what is in his heart, while he is extremely quarrelsome.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

There are some ˹hypocrites˺ who impress you with their views regarding worldly affairs and openly call upon Allah to witness what is in their hearts, yet they are your worst adversaries.

Ruwwad Translation Center

There are some [hypocrites] who amaze you with their words in the life of this world and call upon Allah to witness what is in their heart, yet they are the fiercest opponents.

A. J. Arberry

And some men there are whose saying upon the present world pleases thee, and such a one calls on God to witness what is in his heart, yet he is most stubborn in altercation,

Abdul Haleem

There is [a kind of] man whose views on the life of this world may please you [Prophet], he even calls on God to witness what is in his heart, yet he is the bitterest of opponents.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

And of mankind is he whose discourse for the purpose of this world thou admirest, and he taketh Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart, whereas he is the most contentious of the adversaries.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

There is the type of man whose speech about this world's life May dazzle thee, and he calls Allah to witness about what is in his heart; yet is he the most contentious of enemies.

Abul Ala Maududi

There is a certain type of man who charms you in this worldly life with his glib talk. He calls Allah to witness again and again that he cherishes good intentions in his heart, whereas, in fact, he is the deadliest opponent of the Truth.

Ahmed Ali

There is a man who talks well of the world to your pleasing, and makes God witness to what is in his heart, yet he is the most contentious;

Ahmed Raza Khan

And among men is one whose conversation may please you in the life of this world, and he brings Allah as witness to what is in his heart, whereas he is the biggest quarreller!

Ali Quli Qarai

Among the people is he whose talk about worldly life impresses you, and he holds Allah witness to what is in his heart, though he is the staunchest of enemies.

Ali Ünal

Among the people there is he whose conversation on (the affairs of) the present, worldly life fascinates you, and he calls on God to bear testimony to what is in his heart, yet he is most fierce in enmity.

Amatul Rahman Omar

Of the people there is he whose talk on the present life pleases you, and he calls Allâh to witness as to that (sincerity) which is in his heart, and yet he is of the most contentious of all the adversaries (hence your most stubborn enemy).

English Literal

And from the people, whom his saying pleases/marvels you in the life the present/the worldly life, and he makes God (a) witness on what is in his heart/mind , and he is (the) harshest/most violent disputer (in) the dispute/controversy .

Faridul Haque

And among men is one whose conversation may please you in the life of this world, and he brings Allah as witness to what is in his heart, whereas he is the biggest quarreller!

Hamid S. Aziz

There is among men a type whose speech about the life of this world pleases you, and he calls on Allah to witness what is in his heart; yet is he most fierce in opposition unto you.

Hilali & Khan

And of mankind there is he whose speech may please you (O Muhammad SAW), in this worldly life, and he calls Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart, yet he is the most quarrelsome of the opponents.

Maulana Mohammad Ali

And of men is he whose speech about the life of this world pleases thee, and he calls Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart, yet he is the most violent of adversaries.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

And among men is he whose speech about the life of this world causes you to wonder, and he calls on Allah to witness as to what is in his heart, yet he is the most violent of adversaries.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

And of mankind there is he whoso conversation on the life of this world pleaseth thee (Muhammad), and he calleth Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart; yet he is the most rigid of opponents.

Muhammad Sarwar

There are some people whose words about this life may please you. They say that God knows what they have in their hearts. But, in fact, they are the most quarrelsome opponents.

Qaribullah & Darwish

There is he whose sayings pleases you in this worldly life and uses Allah as a witness for what is in his heart, but he is most stubborn in adversary.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

And of mankind there is he whose speech may please you (O Muhammad), in this worldly life, and he calls Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart, yet he is the most quarrelsome of the opponents.

Wahiduddin Khan

There are some men whose views on the affairs of this life may please you. They even call on God to witness whatever is in their heart, yet they are the most contentious of quarrellers.

Talal Itani

Among the people is he whose speech about the worldly life impresses you, and he calls God to witness what is in his heart, while he is the most hostile of adversaries.

Tafsir jalalayn

And among people there is he whose speech in the life of this world pleases you, but it would not please you in the Hereafter because it contradicts what he actually used to believe; and who calls on God to witness what is in his heart, as being in accordance with what he says; yet he is most stubborn in dispute, with you and your followers on account of his enmity towards you; this was al-Akhnas b. Sharq, a hypocrite who spoke kindly in the presence of the Prophet (s), swearing that he believed in him and that he loved him, and frequently sitting with him. God then revealed his mendacity in this matter. On one occasion he passed by some crops and livestock that belonged to the Muslims and later that night he set fire to them [the crops] and slaughtered them [the livestock]. God, moreover, says;

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

The Characteristics of the Hypocrites

Allah says;

وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يُعْجِبُكَ قَوْلُهُ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَيُشْهِدُ اللّهَ عَلَى مَا فِي قَلْبِهِ

And of mankind there is he whose speech may please you (O Muhammad), in this worldly life, and he calls Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart,

As-Suddi said that;

these Ayat were revealed about Al-Akhnas bin Shariq Ath-Thaqafi who came to Allah's Messenger and announced his Islam although his heart concealed otherwise.

Ibn Abbas narrated that;

these Ayat were revealed about some of the hypocrites who criticized Khubayb and his companions who were killed during the Raji` incident. Thereafter, Allah sent down His condemnation of the hypocrites and His praise for Khubayb and his companions;

النَّاسِ مَن يَشْرِي نَفْسَهُ ابْتِغَاء مَرْضَاتِ اللّهِ


And of mankind is he who would sell himself, seeking the pleasure of Allah. (2;207)

It was also said that;

they refer to the hypocrites and the believers in general.

This is the opinion of Qatadah, Mujahid, Ar-Rabi bin Anas and several others, and it is correct.

Ibn Jarir related that Al-Qurazi said that;

Nawf Al-Bikali, who used to read (previous Divine) Books said, "I find the description of some members of this Ummah in the previously revealed Books of Allah;

they (hypocrites) are people who use the religion to gain material benefit. Their tongues are sweeter than honey, but their hearts are more bitter than Sabir (a bitter plant, aloe). They show the people the appearance of sheep while their hearts hide the viciousness of wolves. Allah said, `They dare challenge Me, but they are deceived by Me. I swear by Myself that I will send a Fitnah (trial, calamity) on them that will make the wise man bewildered.'

I contemplated about these statements and found them in the Qur'an describing the hypocrites;

وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يُعْجِبُكَ قَوْلُهُ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَيُشْهِدُ اللّهَ عَلَى مَا فِي قَلْبِهِ

And of mankind there is he whose speech may please you (O Muhammad), in this worldly life, and he calls Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart.

This statement by Al-Qurazi is Hasan Sahih.

Allah said;

وَيُشْهِدُ اللّهَ عَلَى مَا فِي قَلْبِهِ

and he calls Allah to witness as to that which is in his heart,

This Ayah indicates that such people pretend to be Muslims, but defy Allah by the disbelief and hypocrisy that their hearts conceal.

Similarly Allah said;

يَسْتَخْفُونَ مِنَ النَّاسِ وَلَا يَسْتَخْفُونَ مِنَ اللَّهِ

They may hide (their crimes) from men, but they cannot hide (them) from Allah. (4;108)

This Tafsir was reported from Ibn Abbas by Ibn Ishaq.

It was also said that;

the Ayah means that when such people announce their Islam, they swear by Allah that what is in their hearts is the same of what their tongues are pronouncing.

This is also a correct meaning for the Ayah that was chosen by Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam.

It is also the choice of Ibn Jarir who related it to Ibn Abbas and Mujahid.

Allah knows best.

Allah knows best.

Allah said;

وَهُوَ أَلَدُّ الْخِصَامِ



Yet he is the most Aladd of the opponents.

The Ayah used the word Aladd here, which literally means `wicked' (here it means `quarrelsome').

A variation of the word Ludda was also used in another Ayah;

وَتُنْذِرَ بِهِ قَوْماً لُّدّاً

So that you (Muhammad) warn with it (the Qur'an) a Ludda people. (19;97)

Hence, a hypocrite lies, alters the truth when he quarrels and does not care for the truth. Rather, he deviates from the truth, deceives and becomes most quarrelsome.

It is reported in Sahih that Allah's Messenger said;

ايَةُ الْمُنَافِقِ ثَلثٌ

إِذَا حَدَّثَ كَذَبَ

وَإذَا عَاهَدَ غَدَرَ

وَإِذَا خَاصَمَ فَجَر

The signs of a hypocrite are three;

Whenever he speaks, he tells a lie.

Whenever he promises, he always breaks it (his promise).

If you have a dispute with him, he is most quarrelsome.

Imam Bukhari reported that Aishah narrated that the Prophet said;

إِنَّ أَبْغَضَ الرِّجَالِ إلَى اللهِ الاْلَدُّ الْخَصِم

The most hated person to Allah is he who is Aladd and Khasim (meaning most quarrelsome).

Allah then said