Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 9

Mufti Taqi Usmani

They try to deceive Allah and those who believe, while they are not deceiving anyone except themselves, although they are unaware of it.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

They seek to deceive Allah and the believers, yet they only deceive themselves, but they fail to perceive it.

Ruwwad Translation Center

They seek to deceive Allah and those who believe, while they deceive none but themselves, but they do not realize.

A. J. Arberry

They would trick God and the believers, and only themselves they deceive, and they are not aware.

Abdul Haleem

They seek to deceive God and the believers but they only deceive themselves, though they do not realize it.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

They would deceive Allah and those who believe, whereas they deceive not save themselves, and they perceive not.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Fain would they deceive Allah and those who believe, but they only deceive themselves, and realise (it) not!

Abul Ala Maududi

They thus try to deceive Allah and the Believers, but they succeed in deceiving none except themselves and they realize it not.

Ahmed Ali

They (try to) deceive God and those who believe, yet deceive none but themselves although they do not know.

Ahmed Raza Khan

They wish to deceive Allah and the believers; and in fact they deceive none except themselves and they do not have any understanding.

Ali Quli Qarai

They seek to deceive Allah and those who have faith, yet they deceive no one but themselves, but they are not aware.

Ali Ünal

They would trick God and those who believe, and they trick only their own selves (of which they are enamored), but they do not perceive.

Amatul Rahman Omar

They abandon Allâh and those who believe, but they (as a matter of fact) only deprive themselves (of the blessings of God), and they do not perceive (it).

English Literal

They deceive God, and those who believed, and they do not deceive except themselves, and they do not feel/know/sense.

Faridul Haque

They wish to deceive Allah and the believers; and in fact they deceive none except themselves and they do not have any understanding.

Hamid S. Aziz

They would deceive Allah and those who do believe; but they deceive only themselves and they do not perceive.

Hilali & Khan

They (think to) deceive Allah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not!

Maulana Mohammad Ali

They seek to deceive Allah and those who believe and they deceive only themselves and they perceive not.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

They desire to deceive Allah and those who believe, and they deceive only themselves and they do not perceive.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

They think to beguile Allah and those who believe, and they beguile none save themselves; but they perceive not.

Muhammad Sarwar

They deceive God and the believers. However, they have deceived no one but themselves, a fact of which they are not aware.

Qaribullah & Darwish

They seek to deceive Allah and those who believe, but they deceive none except themselves, though they do not sense it.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

They try to deceive Allah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not!

Wahiduddin Khan

They seek to deceive God and the believers, but they only deceive themselves, though they do not realize it.

Talal Itani

They seek to deceive God and those who believe, but they deceive none but themselves, though they are not aware.

Tafsir jalalayn

They would deceive God and the believers, by manifesting the opposite of the unbelief they hide, so that they can avoid His rulings in this world; and only themselves they deceive (yukhdi`n), for the evil consequences of their deception will rebound upon them, as they are disgraced in this world when God makes known to His Prophet what they are hiding, and they will be punished in the Hereafter; and they are not aware, and they do not know that they are actually deceiving themselves (mukhda`a [although a third verbal form, from khda`a] actually denotes a one-way action, such as [when one says] `qabtu al-lissa, `I punished the thief' [using the third verbal form `qaba]; the mention of `God' in [this statement] is for [rhetorical] effect; a variant reading [for wa-m yukhdi`na] has wa-m yakhda`na).

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

And of mankind, there are some who say;"We believe in Allah and the Last Day" while in fact they do not believe. They try to deceive Allah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not!
Meaning of Nifaq
Nifaq means to show conformity - or agreement - and to conceal evil. Nifaq has several types;
Nifaq in the creed that causes its people to reside in Hell for eternity, and
Nifaq in deed, which is one of the major sins, as we will explain soon, Allah willing.

Ibn Jurayj said of the hypocrite that,

"His actual deeds are different from what he publicizes, what he conceals is different from what he utters, his entrance and presence are not the same as his exit and absence."
The Beginning of Hypocrisy

The revelations about the characteristics of the hypocrites were revealed in Al-Madinah, this is because there were no hypocrites in Makkah. Rather the opposite was the situation in Makkah, since some people were forced to pretend that they were disbelievers, while their hearts concealed their faith. Afterwards, the Messenger of Allah migrated to Al-Madinah, where the Ansar from the tribes of Aws and Khazraj resided. They used to worship idols during the pre-Islamic period of ignorance, just as the rest of the Arab idolators. Three Jewish tribes resided in Al-Madinah, Banu Qaynuqa-allies of Al-Khazraj, Banu An-Nadir and Banu Qurayzah-allies of the Aws. Many members of the Aws and Khazraj tribes embraced Islam. However, only a few Jews embraced Islam, such as Abdullah bin Salam.

During the early stage in Al-Madinah, there weren't any hypocrites because the Muslims were not strong enough to be feared yet. On the contrary, the Messenger of Allah conducted peace treaties with the Jews and several other Arab tribes around Al-Madinah. Soon after, the battle of Badr occurred and Allah gave victory to Islam and its people.

Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salul was a leader in Al-Madinah. He was Al-Khazraj's chief, and during the period of Jahiliyyah he was the master of both tribes - Aws and Khazraj. They were about to appoint him their king when the Message reached Al-Madinah, and many in Al-Madinah embraced Islam.

Ibn Salul's heart was filled with hatred against Islam and its people. When the battle of Badr took place, he said, "Allah's religion has become apparent." So he pretended to be Muslim, along with many of those who were just like him, as well as many among the People of the Book.

It was then that hypocrisy began in Al-Madinah and among the surrounding nomad tribes. As for the Emigrants, none of them were hypocrites, since they emigrated willingly (seeking the pleasure of Allah). Rather, when a Muslim would emigrate from Makkah, he would be forced to abandon all of his wealth, offspring and land; he would do so seeking Allah's reward in the Hereafter.
The Tafsir of Ayah 2;8

Allah said,

وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ امَنَّا بِاللّهِ وَبِالْيَوْمِ الاخِرِ وَمَا هُم بِمُوْمِنِينَ


And of mankind, there are some who say;"We believe in Allah and the Last Day" while in fact they do not believe.

Muhammad bin Ishaq narrated that Ibn Abbas said that,

"This refers to the hypocrites among the Aws and Khazraj and those who behaved as they did."

This is how Abu Al-Aliyah, Al-Hasan, Qatadah and As-Suddi explained this Ayah.

Allah revealed the characteristics of the hypocrites, so that the believers would not be deceived by their outer appearance, thus saving the believers from a great evil. Otherwise, the believers might think that the hypocrites were believers, when in reality they are disbelievers. To consider the sinners as righteous people is extremely dangerous, Allah said,
وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ امَنَّا بِاللّهِ وَبِالْيَوْمِ الاخِرِ وَمَا هُم بِمُوْمِنِينَ
(And of mankind, there are some who say;"We believe in Allah and the Last Day" while in fact they do not believe) meaning, they utter these false statements only with their tongues, just as Allah said,

إِذَا جَأءَكَ الْمُنَـفِقُونَ قَالُواْ نَشْهَدُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُهُ

When the hypocrites come to you (O Muhammad), they say;"We bear witness that you are indeed the Messenger of Allah." Allah knows that you are indeed His Messenger. (63;1)

This Ayah means that;

the hypocrites utter these statements only when they meet you, not because they actually believe what they are saying. The hypocrites emphasize their belief in Allah and the Last Day with their words, when that is not the case in reality. Therefore, Allah stated that the hypocrites lie in their testimony of creed, when He said,
وَاللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِينَ لَكَاذِبُونَ
(And Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are indeed liars), (63;1), and,
وَمَا هُم بِمُوْمِنِينَ
(while in fact they believe not).

Allah said,
يُخَادِعُونَ اللّهَ وَالَّذِينَ امَنُوا
(They try to deceive Allah and those who believe).

The hypocrites show belief outwardly while concealing disbelief. They think that by doing this, they will mislead Allah, or that the statements they utter will help them with Allah, and this is an indication of their total ignorance. They think that such behavior will deceive Allah, just as it might deceive some of the believers.

Similarly, Allah said,

يَوْمَ يَبْعَثُهُمُ اللَّهِ جَمِيعاً فَيَحْلِفُونَ لَهُ كَمَا يَحْلِفُونَ لَكُمْ وَيَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّهُمْ عَلَى شَىْءٍ أَلَا إِنَّهُمْ هُمُ الْكَـذِبُونَ

On the Day when Allah will resurrect them all together; then they will swear to Him as they swear to you. And they think that they have something (to stand upon). Verily, they are liars! (58;18)

Hence, Allah refuted their way by saying,

وَمَا يَخْدَعُونَ إِلاَّ أَنفُسَهُم وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ


While they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not!

Allah stated that the hypocrites only deceive themselves by this behavior, although they are unaware of this fact.

Allah also said,

إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِينَ يُخَادِعُونَ اللّهَ وَهُوَ خَادِعُهُمْ

Verily, the hypocrites try to deceive Allah, but it is He Who deceives them. (4;142)

Also, Ibn Abi Hatim narrated that Ibn Jurayj commented on Allah's statement,

"The hypocrites pronounce, `There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah' seeking to ensure the sanctity of their blood and money, all the while concealing disbelief."

Allah's statement;

وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يَقُولُ امَنَّا بِاللّهِ وَبِالْيَوْمِ الاخِرِ وَمَا هُم بِمُوْمِنِينَ


يُخَادِعُونَ اللّهَ وَالَّذِينَ امَنُوا وَمَا يَخْدَعُونَ إِلاَّ أَنفُسَهُم وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ

And of mankind, there are some who say;"We believe in Allah and the Last Day" while in fact they believe not. They try to deceive Allah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not!

Sa`id said that Qatadah commented,

"This is the description of a hypocrite. He is devious; he says the truth with his tongue and defies it with his heart and deeds. He wakes up in a condition other than the one he goes to sleep in, and goes to sleep in a different condition than the one he wakes up in. He changes his mind just like a ship that moves about whenever a wind blows.