Al-Qur'an Surah An-Nur Verse 63

Mufti Taqi Usmani

Do not take the call of the messenger among you as a call of one of you to another. Allah definitely knows those of you who sneak out hiding themselves under the cover of others. So, those who violate his (messenger’s) order must beware, lest they are visited by a trial or they are visited by a painful punishment.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

Do not treat the Messenger’s summons to you ˹as lightly˺ as your summons to one another.[[ There is also a different interpretation: “Do not call the Messenger ˹by his name˺ as you call one another.” In other words, Do not say, ‘O Muḥammad.’ Rather, say, ‘O Prophet.’ ]] Allah certainly knows those of you who slip away, hiding behind others.[[ Some hypocrites used to sneak out while the Prophet (ﷺ) was talking.]] So let those who disobey his orders beware, for an affliction may befall them, or a painful torment may overtake them.

Ruwwad Translation Center

Do not consider the Messenger’s summons to you as your summons to one another. Allah surely knows those of you who slip away hiding behind others. So let those who disobey his command beware lest some trial may afflict them or they may be afflicted with a painful punishment.

A. J. Arberry

Make not the calling of the Messenger among yourselves like your calling one of another. God knows those of you who slip away surreptitiously; so let those who go against His command beware, lest a trial befall them, or there befall them a painful chastisement.

Abdul Haleem

[People], do not regard the Messenger’s summons to you like one of you summoning another- God is well aware of those of you who steal away surreptitiously- and those who go against his order should beware lest a trial afflict them or they receive a painful punishment.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

Place not the apostle's calling among you on the same footing as your calling of each other. Of a surety Allah knoweth those who slip away privately; let therefore those who oppose His commandment beware lest there befall them a trial or there befall them a torment afflictive.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Deem not the summons of the Messenger among yourselves like the summons of one of you to another; Allah doth know those of you who slip away under shelter of some excuse; then let those beware who withstand the Messenger's order, lest some trial befall them, or a grievous penalty be inflicted on them.

Abul Ala Maududi

O Believers, do not consider the summoning by the Messenger like the summoning among you by one another. Allah knows well those of you who steal away, concealing themselves behind others. Let those who disobey the order of the Messenger beware lest they should be involved in some affliction, or are visited by a woeful scourge.

Ahmed Ali

Do not consider your being summoned by the Apostle to be like your summoning one another. God knows those of you who go away surreptitiously. So let those who act in contravention of his command take heed lest a trial should befall them or a grievous punishment come upon them.

Ahmed Raza Khan

Do not presume among yourselves the calling of the Noble Messenger equal to your calling one another; Allah knows those among you who sneak away by some pretext; so those who go against the orders of the Noble Messenger must fear that a calamity may strike them or a painful punishment befall them. (To honour the Holy Prophet – peace and blessings be upon him – is part of faith. To disrespect him is blasphemy.)

Ali Quli Qarai

Do not consider the Apostle’s summons amongst you to be like your summoning one another. Allah certainly knows those of you who slip away shielding one another. Those who disobey his orders should beware lest an affliction should visit them or a painful punishment should befall them.

Ali Ünal

Do not treat the Messenger’s summoning and praying for you as your summoning and praying for one another. Indeed, God knows well those of you who surreptitiously sneak away, taking cover behind one another. So, let those who go against the Messenger’s order beware lest a bitter trial befall them or a painful punishment afflict them.

Amatul Rahman Omar

(Believers!) do not treat the call of the Messenger among yourselves like the call of one of you to another. Allâh indeed knows those of you who sneak away stealthily (from the conference). So let those who go against His command beware, lest some calamity should befall them or they receive some painful punishment.

English Literal

Do not make calling the messenger between you as calling some of you (to) some, God had been know(ing) those who sneak/slip away taking refuge/dodging from you, so those who differ/disagree from His order/command should be warned/cautious that misguidance/seduction or a painful torture strikes them .

Faridul Haque

Do not presume among yourselves the calling of the Noble Messenger equal to your calling one another; Allah knows those among you who sneak away by some pretext; so those who go against the orders of the Noble Messenger must fear that a calamity may strike them or a painful punishment befall them. (To honour the Holy Prophet – peace and blessings be upon him – is part of faith. To disrespect him is blasphemy.)

Hamid S. Aziz

Only those are believers who believe in Allah and His Messenger, and when they are with him (the Messenger) upon some common business, go not away until they have asked leave of him. Verily, those who ask your leave they it is who believe in Allah and His Messenger. So, if they ask your leave for any of their own concerns, then give leave to whomever you will of them, and ask for them forgiveness of Allah; verily, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.

Hilali & Khan

Make not the calling of the Messenger (Muhammad SAW) among you as your calling of one another. Allah knows those of you who slip away under shelter (of some excuse without taking the permission to leave, from the Messenger SAW). And let those who oppose the Messenger's (Muhammad SAW) commandment (i.e. his Sunnah legal ways, orders, acts of worship, statements, etc.) (among the sects) beware, lest some Fitnah (disbelief, trials, afflictions, earthquakes, killing, overpowered by a tyrant, etc.) befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them.

Maulana Mohammad Ali

Only those are believers who believe in Allah and his Messenger, and when they are with him on a momentous affair, they go not away until they have asked leave of him. Surely they who ask leave of thee, are they who believe in Allah and His Messenger; so when they ask leave of thee for some affair of theirs, give leave to whom thou wilt of them, and ask forgiveness for them from Allah. Surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

Do not hold the Apostle's calling (you) among you to be like your calling one to the other; Allah indeed knows those who steal away from among you, concealing themselves; therefore let those beware who go against his order lest a trial afflict them or there befall them a painful chastisement.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

Make not the calling of the messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knoweth those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them.

Muhammad Sarwar

Do not address the Messenger as you would call each other. God knows those who secretly walk away from you and hide themselves. Those who oppose the Messengers should beware, lest some trouble or a painful torment should befall them.

Qaribullah & Darwish

Do not make the calling of the Messenger among yourselves like your calling to one another. Allah knows those of you who slip away surreptitiously, so let those who disobey His command beware, lest they are struck by sedition, or, they are stricken with a painful punishment.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

Make not the calling of the Messenger among you as your calling one of another. Allah knows those of you who slip away under shelter. And let those beware who oppose the Messenger's commandment, lest some Fitnah should befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them.

Wahiduddin Khan

Do not treat being called by the Messenger like being called by one another. God knows those of you who slip away on some pretext. Let those who go against his order beware lest some affliction befall them or they receive a painful punishment.

Talal Itani

Do not address the Messenger in the same manner you address one another. God knows those of you who slip away using flimsy excuses. So let those who oppose his orders beware, lest an ordeal strikes them, or a painful punishment befalls them.

Tafsir jalalayn

Do not, among yourselves, consider the calling of the Messenger to be like your calling of one another, by saying, `O Muhammad!' (s), but say, `O Prophet of God', or, `O Messenger of God!' gently, respectfully and in a low voice. Verily God knows those of you who slip away surreptitiously, that is, those who leave the mosque secretly during the sermon without asking leave, hiding behind something (qad, `verily', is for confirmation). So let those who contravene His command, that is, God's command, or that of His Messenger, beware lest an ordeal, a trial, befall them, or there befall them a painful chastisement, in the Hereafter.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

The Etiquette of addressing the Prophet

Allah says;

لَاا تَجْعَلُوا دُعَاء الرَّسُولِ بَيْنَكُمْ كَدُعَاء بَعْضِكُم بَعْضًا



Make not the calling of the Messenger among you as your calling one of another.

Ad-Dahhak said, reporting from Ibn Abbas;

"They used to say, `O Muhammad,' or `O Abu Al-Qasim,' but Allah forbade them to do that, as a sign of respect towards His Prophet, and told them to say, `O Prophet of Allah,' `O Messenger of Allah."'

This was also the view of Mujahid and Sa`id bin Jubayr.

Qatadah said;

"Allah commanded that His Prophet should be treated with respect and honor, and that he should be a leader."

Muqatil said concerning the Ayah;
لَاا تَجْعَلُوا دُعَاء الرَّسُولِ بَيْنَكُمْ كَدُعَاء بَعْضِكُم بَعْضًا
(Make not the calling of the Messenger among you as your calling one of another).

"When you address him, do not say, `O Muhammad,' or `O son of `Abdullah'; rather honor him and say, `O Prophet of Allah,' or, `O Messenger of Allah.'

لَاا تَجْعَلُوا دُعَاء الرَّسُولِ بَيْنَكُمْ كَدُعَاء بَعْضِكُم بَعْضًا


Make not the calling of the Messenger among you as your calling one of another."

A second view concerning the meaning of the Ayah is that it means

`do not think that if he prays against you it is like when anyone else prays against you, because his prayers will be answered; so beware lest he prays against you and you will be doomed.'

Ibn Abi Hatim recorded this from Ibn Abbas, Al-Hasan Al-Basri and Atiyyah Al-`Awfi.

And Allah knows best.

قَدْ يَعْلَمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ يَتَسَلَّلُونَ مِنكُمْ لِوَاذًا

Allah knows those of you who slip away under shelter.

Muqatil bin Hayyan said,

"This refers to the hypocrites who used to find it too difficult to listen to the Khutbah on Fridays, so they would hide behind some of the Companions of Muhammad and sneak out of the Masjid.

It was not proper for a man to leave on Fridays once the Khutbah began, unless he had permission from the Prophet. If one of them wanted to leave, he would make a gesture to the Prophet with his finger, and the Prophet would give permission without the man speaking. This is because if the Prophet was giving the Khutbah and a man spoke, it would invalidate his Friday prayer." As-Suddi said, "If they were with him for a congregational prayer, they would hide behind one another so that he could not see them."
The Prohibition of going against the Messenger's Commandment

Then Allah says;

فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ

And let those beware who oppose the Messenger's commandment,

This means going against the commandment of the Prophet, which is his way, methodology and Sunnah. All words and deeds will be measured against his words and deeds; those that are in accordance with his words and deeds will be accepted, and whatever does not match up will be rejected, no matter who the person is who said and did them.

It was recorded in the Two Sahihs and elsewhere that the Messenger of Allah said;

مَنْ عَمِلَ عَمَلً لَيْسَ عَلَيْهِ أَمْرُنَا فَهُوَ رَدٌّ

Whoever does a deed that is not in accordance with this matter of ours will have it rejected.

meaning, let those beware who go against the Shariah of the Messenger, in secret and in the open,

أَن تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ

lest some Fitnah should befall them,

i.e., lest some disbelief or hypocrisy or innovation enter their hearts.

أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ




or a painful torment be inflicted on them.

means in this world afflicting them with capital punishment, or by law of prescribed punishment, or by confinement in prison, or so on.

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Hurayrah said,

"The Messenger of Allah said;

مَثَلِي وَمَثَلُكُمْ كَمَثَلِ رَجُلٍ اسْتَوْقَدَ نَارًا فَلَمَّا أَضَاءَتْ مَا حَوْلَهَا جَعَلَ الْفَرَاشُ وَهَذِهِ الدَّوَابُّ اللَّيِي يَقَعْنَ فِي النَّارِ يَقَعْنَ فِيهَا وَجَعَلَ يَحْجُزُهُنَّ وَيَغْلِبْنَهُ فَيَقْتَحِمْنَ فِيهَا قَالَ فَذَلِكَ مَثَلِي وَمَثَلُكُمْ أَنَا اخِذٌ بِحُجَزِكُمْ عَنِ النَّارِ هَلُمَّ عَنِ النَّارِ فَتَغْلِبُونِي وَتَقْتَحِمُونَ فِيهَا

The parable of me and you is as the example of a man who kindled a fire and when it illuminated all around him, moths and other creatures started falling into the fire, and he was trying to stop them but they overwhelmed him and still kept falling in. This is the parable of me and you. I am trying to restrain you and keep you away from the fire, but you overwhelm me and fall in.

This was also narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim