Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 90

Mufti Taqi Usmani

Vile is that for which they have sold out their selves: that they should deny what Allah has revealed, grudging that Allah should send down some of His bounty to whomsoever He wills from among His servants. So, they came out with wrath upon wrath. And for the unbelievers, there is humiliating punishment.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

Miserable is the price they have sold their souls for—denying Allah’s revelation and resenting Allah for granting His grace to whoever He wills of His servants! They have earned wrath upon wrath. And such disbelievers will suffer a humiliating punishment.

Ruwwad Translation Center

How miserable is the price for which they sold their souls – disbelieving in Allah’s revelation out of jealous hatred that Allah would send down His grace to whom He wills of His slaves. Thus they have incurred wrath upon wrath, and for the disbelievers there will be a disgracing punishment.

A. J. Arberry

Evil is the thing they have sold themselves for, disbelieving in that which God sent down, grudging that God should send down of His bounty on whomsoever He will of His servants, and they were laden with anger upon anger; and for unbelievers awaits a humbling chastisement.

Abdul Haleem

Low indeed is the price for which they have sold their souls by denying the God-sent truth, out of envy that God should send His bounty to any of His servants He pleases. The disbelievers have ended up with wrath upon wrath, and a humiliating torment awaits them.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

Vile is that for which they have bartered their souls, that they should disbelieve that which Allah hath sent down, out of envy that Allah should reveal, out of His grace, unto whosoever of His bond men He listeth. Wherefore they have drawn upon themselves wrath upon wrath, and unto the infidel shall be a torment ignominious.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Miserable is the price for which they have sold their souls, in that they deny (the revelation) which Allah has sent down, in insolent envy that Allah of His Grace should send it to any of His servants He pleases; Thus have they drawn on themselves Wrath upon Wrath. And humiliating is the punishment of those who reject Faith.

Abul Ala Maududi

What a mean thing it is with which they delude their minds. They reject the Guidance which Allah has sent down merely because of their grudge why Allah has in His bounty sent it to whom He chose from amongst His servants. They have thus incurred wrath after wrath, and for such disbelievers there is a disgraceful doom.

Ahmed Ali

They bartered their lives ill denying the revelation of God out of spite that God should bestow His grace among His votaries on whomsoever He will, and thus earned wrath upon wrath. The punishment for disbelievers is ignominious.

Ahmed Raza Khan

How abject is the price for which they exchange their lives that they should disbelieve in what Allah has sent down, jealous that Allah should reveal of His grace to whomever He wills of His bondmen! So they deserved wrath upon wrath; and for the disbelievers is a disgraceful punishment.

Ali Quli Qarai

Evil is that for which they have sold their souls, by defying what Allah has sent down, out of envy that Allah should bestow His grace on any of His servants that He wishes. Thus, they earned wrath upon wrath, and there is a humiliating punishment for the faithless.

Ali Ünal

How evil is that for which they have sold themselves: (they have disbelieved in what God has sent down) begrudging that God should send down out of His grace the Book (and bestow Messengership) on whomever He wills of His servants. So they have earned wrath upon wrath. And, (as with other unbelievers who, defeated by their haughtiness, malicious envy, racial prejudice, worldly desires and ambitions, knowingly reject the truth) for those unbelievers is a shameful, humiliating punishment.

Amatul Rahman Omar

Evil is that thing they have sold themselves for that they should reject that (source of guidance) which Allâh has revealed, grudging that Allâh should send down His grace on such of His servants as He pleases. Thus they have incurred (His) displeasure after displeasure. There awaits these disbelievers a humiliating punishment.

English Literal

How bad (it is what), they bought/volunteered with it themselves, that they disbelieve with what God descended, corrupting/transgressing that God descends from His grace/favour on whom He wants/wills from His worshippers/slaves, so they returned/resided with anger on anger, and to the disbelievers (is) a humiliating torture.

Faridul Haque

How abject is the price for which they exchange their lives that they should disbelieve in what Allah has sent down, jealous that Allah should reveal of His grace to whomever He wills of His bondmen! So they deserved wrath upon wrath; and for the disbelievers is a disgraceful punishment.

Hamid S. Aziz

For a miserable price have they sold their souls, in not believing what Allah has revealed, grudging because Allah sends down of His grace on whomsoever of His servants He will; and they have brought on themselves wrath after wrath and for the disbelievers is there shameful woe.

Hilali & Khan

How bad is that for which they have sold their ownselves, that they should disbelieve in that which Allah has revealed (the Quran), grudging that Allah should reveal of His Grace unto whom He will of His slaves. So they have drawn on themselves wrath upon wrath. And for the disbelievers, there is disgracing torment.

Maulana Mohammad Ali

Evil is that for which they sell their souls -- that they should deny that which Allah has revealed, out of envy that Allah should send down of His grace on whomsoever of His servants He pleases; so they incur wrath upon wrath. And there is an abasing chastisement for the disbelievers.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

Evil is that for which they have sold their souls-- that they should deny what Allah has revealed, out of envy that Allah should send down of His grace on whomsoever of His servants He pleases; so they have made themselves deserving of wrath upon wrath, and there is a disgraceful punishment for the unbelievers.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

Evil is that for which they sell their souls: that they should disbelieve in that which Allah hath revealed, grudging that Allah should reveal of His bounty unto whom He will of His slaves. They have incurred anger upon anger. For disbelievers is a shameful doom.

Muhammad Sarwar

Evil is that for which they have sold their souls: They have refused to accept God's revelations in rebellion against the servant of God whom He has, by His Grace, chosen to grant His message. They have brought upon themselves God's wrath in addition to the wrath that they had incurred upon themselves for their previous sins. The disbelievers will suffer a humiliating torment.

Qaribullah & Darwish

Evil is that for which they have bartered away their souls, that they disbelieve what Allah has sent down, grudging that Allah should send down from His bounty to whom He chooses from His worshipers! They have incurred wrath over wrath. For the unbelievers there is a humiliating punishment.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves, that they should disbelieve in that which Allah has revealed (the Qur'an), grudging that Allah should reveal of His grace unto whom He wills of His servants. So they have drawn on themselves wrath upon wrath. And for the disbelievers, there is disgracing torment.

Wahiduddin Khan

What they have sold their souls for is evil: to the denial of God's own revelation, grudging that He should reveal His bounty to whom He chooses from among His servants! They have incurred wrath upon wrath. Humiliating punishment awaits those who deny the truth.

Talal Itani

Miserable is what they sold their souls for—rejecting what God has revealed, out of resentment that God would send down His grace upon whomever He chooses from among His servants. Thus they incurred wrath upon wrath. And there is a demeaning punishment for the disbelievers.

Tafsir jalalayn

Evil is that for which they sell their souls, that is, their share of the reward [in the Hereafter] (bi'sam, `evil is that [for] which'; m here is an indefinite particle, representing `a thing', and constitutes a specification qualifying the subject of [the verb] bi's, `evil is', the very thing being singled out for criticism); that they disbelieve in that, Qur'n, which God has revealed, grudging (baghyan here is an object denoting reason for yakfur, `they disbelieve'), that is, out of envy, that God should reveal (read either yunzil or yunazzil) of His bounty, the Inspiration, to whomever He will of His servants, to deliver the Message; and they were laden, they returned, with anger, from God for their disbelief in what He has revealed (the indefinite form, bi- ghadabin, `with anger', is used to emphasise the awesomeness [of the `anger']), upon anger, which they deserved formerly, when they neglected the Torah and disbelieved in Jesus; and for the disbelievers there shall be a humiliating chastisement.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

Allah said,

بِيْسَمَا اشْتَرَوْاْ بِهِ أَنفُسَهُمْ أَن يَكْفُرُواْ بِمَا أنَزَلَ اللّهُ بَغْياً



How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves, that they should disbelieve in that which Allah has revealed (the Qur'an),

Mujahid said that the Ayah,
بِيْسَمَا اشْتَرَوْاْ بِهِ أَنفُسَهُمْ
(How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves), means

"The Jews sold the truth for falsehood and hid the truth about Muhammad."

As-Suddi said that the Ayah,
بِيْسَمَا اشْتَرَوْاْ بِهِ أَنفُسَهُمْ
(How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves) means,

"The Jews sold themselves."

meaning, what is worse is what they chose for themselves by disbelieving in what Allah revealed to Muhammad instead of believing, aiding and supporting him. This behavior of theirs is the result of their injustice, envy and hatred,

أَن يُنَزِّلُ اللّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ عَلَى مَن يَشَاء مِنْ عِبَادِهِ

grudging that Allah should reveal of His grace unto whom He wills of His servants."

There is no envy worse than this.

Therefore,

فَبَأوُواْ بِغَضَبٍ عَلَى غَضَبٍ

So they have drawn on themselves wrath upon wrath.

Ibn Abbas commented on this Ayah,

"Allah became angry with them because they ignored some of the Tawrah and disbelieved in the Prophet that He sent to them."

I (Ibn Kathir) say that;

the meaning of,
بَأوُواْ
(And they drew on themselves) is that they deserved and acquired multiplied anger.

Also, Abu Al-Aliyah said,

"Allah became angry with them, because of their disbelief in the Injil and `Isa and He became angry with them again, because they disbelieved in Muhammad and the Qur'an."

Similar was said by Ikrimah and Qatadah.

Allah said,

وَلِلْكَافِرِينَ عَذَابٌ مُّهِينٌ



And for the disbelievers, there is disgracing torment.

Since their disbelief was a result of their transgression and envy, which was caused by arrogance, they were punished with disgrace and humiliation in this world and the Hereafter.

Similarly, Allah said,

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِى سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَخِرِينَ

Verily, those who scorn My worship (i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness) they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!" (40;60),

meaning, "Disgraced, degraded and humiliated."

Imam Ahmad narrated that Amr bin Shu`ayb said that his father said that his grandfather said that the Prophet said,

يُحْشَرُ الْمُتَكَبِّرُونَ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ أَمْثَالَ الذَّرِّ فِي صُوَرِ النَّاسِ يَعْلُوهُمْ كُلُّ شَيْءٍ مِنَ الصِّغَارِ حَتَّى يَدْخُلُوا سِجْنًا فِي جَهَنَّمَ يُقَالُ لَهُ بَوْلَسُ تَعْلُوهُمْ نَارُ الاَْنْيَارِ يُسْقَونَ مِنْ طِينَةِ الْخَبَالِ عُصَارَةِ أَهْلِ النَّار

The arrogant people will be gathered on the Day of Resurrection in the size of ants, but in the shape of men. Everything shall be above them, because of the humiliation placed on them, until they enter a prison in Jahannam called `Bawlas' where the fire will surround them from above. They shall drink from the puss of the people of the Fire