Al-Qur'an Surah An-Nur Verse 15

Mufti Taqi Usmani

when you were welcoming it with your tongues, and were saying with your mouths something of which you had no knowledge, and were taking it as a trivial matter, while in the sight of Allah it was grave.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

when you passed it from one tongue to the other, and said with your mouths what you had no knowledge of, taking it lightly while it is ˹extremely˺ serious in the sight of Allah.

Ruwwad Translation Center

when you were passing it from one tongue to the other, and saying with your mouths what you had no knowledge of, and were taking it lightly, whereas with Allah it was a grave offense.

A. J. Arberry

When you received it on your tongues, and were speaking with your mouths that whereof you had no knowledge, and reckoned it a light thing, and with God it was a mighty thing --

Abdul Haleem

When you took it up with your tongues, and spoke with your mouths things you did not know [to be true], you thought it was trivial but to God it was very serious.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

When ye were publishing it with your tongues and saying that with your mouths of which ye had no knowledge. Ye deemed it light, and it was with Allah mighty!

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Behold, ye received it on your tongues, and said out of your mouths things of which ye had no knowledge; and ye thought it to be a light matter, while it was most serious in the sight of Allah.

Abul Ala Maududi

(Just think how erroneous you were,) when you passed this lie on from one tongue to the other and uttered with your mouths that of which you had no knowledge. You took it as a trifling matter whereas it was a grave offence in the sight of Allah.

Ahmed Ali

When you talked about it and said what you did not know, and took it lightly -- though in the sight of God it was serious --

Ahmed Raza Khan

When you rumoured with your tongues after hearing such matters, and uttered with your mouths about which you had no knowledge, and you considered it light; and that, in the sight of Allah, is very great.

Ali Quli Qarai

when you were receiving it on your tongues, and were mouthing something of which you had no knowledge, supposing it to be a light matter, while it was a grave [matter] with Allah.

Ali Ünal

Just think how you welcomed it with your tongues from one another and uttered with your mouths something about which you had no knowledge. You deemed it a trifle whereas in God’s sight it was most grave.

Amatul Rahman Omar

When (some of) you began to learn this (slander) from each others tongues, you gave tongue to that (rumour and made statements) of which you had no knowledge; and you considered it a trivial thing while it was grave in the sight of Allâh.

English Literal

When you receive it with your tongues/languages and you say with your mouths what knowledge is not for you with it (you have no knowledge of) and you think/suppose it (is) easy/light, and it is at God great.

Faridul Haque

When you rumoured with your tongues after hearing such matters, and uttered with your mouths about which you had no knowledge, and you considered it light; and that, in the sight of Allah, is very great.

Hamid S. Aziz

And but for the grace of Allah upon you, and His mercy in this world and the Hereafter, an awful doom would have seized you, for that which you glibly and hastily spread abroad.

Hilali & Khan

When you were propagating it with your tongues, and uttering with your mouths that whereof you had no knowledge, you counted it a little thing, while with Allah it was very great.

Maulana Mohammad Ali

And were it not for Allah’s grace upon you and His mercy in this world and the Hereafter, a grievous chastisement would certainly have touched you on account of the talk you indulged in.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

When you received it with your tongues and spoke with your mouths what you had no knowledge of, and you deemed it an easy matter while with Allah it was grievous.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

When ye welcomed it with your tongues, and uttered with your mouths that whereof ye had no knowledge, ye counted it a trifle. In the sight of Allah it is very great.

Muhammad Sarwar

Your tongues moved and your mouths spoke of something of which you had no knowledge. You thought it to be a trivial matter, while in the eyes of God it is blasphemy.

Qaribullah & Darwish

You carried with your tongues and uttered with your mouths what you did not know. You have thought it a trifle, but before Allah it was a mighty thing.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

When you were propagating it with your tongues, and uttering with your mouths that whereof you had no knowledge, you counted it a little thing, while with Allah it was very great.

Wahiduddin Khan

When you were spreading it with your tongues and saying with your mouths things of which you had no knowledge, you considered it to be a trivial matter, but, in God's sight, it was very serious.

Talal Itani

When you rumored it with your tongues, and spoke with your mouths what you had no knowledge of, and you considered it trivial; but according to God, it is serious.

Tafsir jalalayn

when you were receiving it [welcomingly] with your tongues, that is to say, [when] you were reporting it one from the other (one of the two letters t' has been omitted from the verb [tatalaqqawnahu, `you were receiving it']; idh, `when', is dependent because of massakum, `befallen you', or afadtum, `engaged in') and were uttering with your mouths that whereof you had no knowledge, supposing it to be a light matter, a sinless [act], while with God it was grave, in sinfulness.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

إِذْ تَلَقَّوْنَهُ بِأَلْسِنَتِكُمْ

When you were propagating it with your tongues,

Mujahid and Sa`id bin Jubayr said,

"Some of you were relating it to others," where one says, `I heard this from so-and-so, and so-and-so said such and such, and some of them mentioned such and such.'

Others recited the Ayah;

إِذْ تَلِقَّوْنَهُ بِأَلْسِنَتِكُمْ

"When you were inventing a lie with your tongues..."
In Sahih Al-Bukhari, it is recorded that A'ishah recited it like that.

According to her, the meaning refers to lies which a person persists in telling.

The first recitation is preferred and more popular, and the majority recites it that way, but the second is reported from A'ishah, the Mother of the believers.

وَتَقُولُونَ بِأَفْوَاهِكُم مَّا لَيْسَ لَكُم بِهِ عِلْمٌ

and uttering with your mouths that whereof you had no knowledge,

means, you were speaking about something which you knew nothing about.

Then Allah says;

وَتَحْسَبُونَهُ هَيِّنًا وَهُوَ عِندَ اللَّهِ عَظِيمٌ



you counted it a little thing, while with Allah it was very great.

means, `you said what you said about the Mother of the believers and you thought that it was a trifling and insignificant matter, but even if she was not the wife of the Prophet, it still would not be an insignificant matter -- so how about when she is the wife of the Unlettered Prophet, the Seal of the Prophets and Leader of the Messengers!'

It is a very serious matter with Allah that such a thing should be said about the wife of His Messenger! For Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, feels great fury and anger over such matters, and He would never decree such a thing for the wife of any of His Prophets. If that is the case, then how about the best of the wives of any Prophet, the wife of the best of the sons of Adam in this world and the next Allah says;

وَتَحْسَبُونَهُ هَيِّنًا وَهُوَ عِندَ اللَّهِ عَظِيمٌ


you counted it a little thing, while with Allah it was very great.

In the Two Sahihs it is reported that;

إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ لَيَتَكَلَّمُ بِالْكَلِمَةِ مِنْ سَخَطِ اللهِ لَا يَدْرِي مَا تَبْلُغُ يَهْوِي بِهَا فِي النَّارِ أَبْعَدَ مَا بَيْنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالاَْرْضِ

A man may say a word that angers Allah without realizing how far it will go, and because of that he will be thrown into Hell a distance greater than that between heaven and earth.

According to another report;

لَاا يُلْقِي لَهَا بَالاًا


And he may not pay any attention to it.