Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Ma'idah Verse 109

Mufti Taqi Usmani

(Be mindful of) the day when Allah will assemble the messengers and will say to them, “How were you responded to?” They will say, “We have no knowledge. Surely You alone have the full knowledge of all that is unseen.”

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

˹Consider˺ the Day Allah will gather the messengers and say, “What response did you receive?” They will reply, “We have no knowledge ˹compared to You˺! You ˹alone˺ are indeed the Knower of all unseen.”

Ruwwad Translation Center

On the Day when Allah will gather the messengers and say, “What response did you receive?” They will say, “We have no knowledge. You alone are the All-Knower of all unseen.”

A. J. Arberry

The day when God shall gather the Messengers, and say, 'What answer were you given?' They shall say, 'We have no knowledge; Thou art the Knower of the things unseen.

Abdul Haleem

On the Day when God assembles all the messengers and asks, ‘What response did you receive?’ they will say, ‘We do not have that knowledge: You alone know things that cannot be seen.’

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

Beware of the Day whereon Allah shall assemble the apostles and say unto them: how were you answered? Then they will say: no knowledge have we; verily Thou! Thou art the Great Knower of the things hidden.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

One day will Allah gather the messengers together, and ask; "What was the response ye received (from men to your teaching)?" They will say; "We have no knowledge; it is Thou Who knowest in full all that is hidden."

Abul Ala Maududi

The Day when Allah will gather together the Messengers and say: 'What answer were you given?' They will reply: 'We have no real knowledge of it. You alone fully know all that lies beyond the reach of human perception.

Ahmed Ali

The day God will gather the apostles and ask: "What answer was made to you?" They will say: "We know not. You alone know the secrets unknown."

Ahmed Raza Khan

On the day when Allah will gather all the Noble Messengers, and then say, “What response did you get?” They will submit, “We do not have any knowledge; indeed it is only You, Who knows all the hidden.”

Ali Quli Qarai

The day Allah will gather the apostles and say, ‘What was the response to you?’ They will say, ‘We have no knowledge. Indeed You are knower of all that is Unseen.’

Ali Ünal

The day when God will gather the Messengers and ask them: "What was the response you received (from the people to whom you were appointed to convey My Message)?" They say: "We have no knowledge; You and You alone have knowledge of the Unseen (of all that lies beyond the reach of any created being’s perception)."

Amatul Rahman Omar

(Imagine) the day when Allâh will gather together all the Messengers and asks, `What response did you receive?´ They will say, `We have no real knowledge (about the minds of the people), surely it is You alone Who have true and perfect knowledge of all things unseen.´

English Literal

A day God gathers/collects the messengers, so he says: "What were you answered/replied?" They said: "No knowledge for us, that you (are) knower (of) the unseens/hiddens (unknown)."

Faridul Haque

On the day when Allah will gather all the Noble Messengers, and then say, “What response did you get?” They will submit, “We do not have any knowledge; indeed it is only You, Who knows all the hidden.”

Hamid S. Aziz

Then Allah will say, "O Jesus, son of Mary! Remember My favours towards you and towards your mother, when I aided you with the Holy Ghost, so that you did speak to men in childhood and in maturity. Behold, I taught you the Book and Wisdom, and the Torah and the Gospel; and behold, you did create of clay, as it were, the likeness of a bird, by My power, and did blow thereon, and it became a bird by My power; and you did heal the blind from birth, and the lepers by My permission; and when you did bring forth the dead by My permission; and behold, I did restrain the children of Israel from (violence to) you , when you did come to them with manifest signs, and yet those who disbelieved amongst them said, ´This is naught but obvious magic.´

Hilali & Khan

On the Day when Allah will gather the Messengers together and say to them: "What was the response you received (from men to your teaching)? They will say: "We have no knowledge, verily, only You are the All-Knower of all that is hidden (or unseen, etc.)."

Maulana Mohammad Ali

Thus it is more probable that they will give true testimony or fear that other oaths will be taken after their oaths. And keep your duty to Allah and hearken. And Allah guides not the transgressing people.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

On the day when Allah will assemble the apostles, then say: What answer were you given? They shall say: We have no knowledge, surely Thou art the great Knower of the unseen things.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

In the day when Allah gathereth together the messengers, and saith: What was your response (from mankind)? they say: We have no knowledge. Lo! Thou, only Thou art the Knower of Things Hidden,

Muhammad Sarwar

Have fear of the day when God will bring all the Messengers together and ask them, "What was the response of men to your call?" They will reply, "We have no knowledge. You are the only One who has knowledge of the unseen."

Qaribullah & Darwish

On a Day, Allah will gather all the Messengers and ask them: 'How were you answered' They will reply: 'We have no knowledge, You are the Knower of the unseen'

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

On the Day when Allah will gather the Messengers together and say to them: "What was the response you received (from men to your teaching)" They will say: "We have no knowledge, verily, only You are the Knower of all that is hidden."

Wahiduddin Khan

The Day when God assembles the messengers and asks them, "What was the response you received [from the people]?" they will reply, "We have no knowledge of it. You alone know what is hidden."

Talal Itani

On the Day when God will gather the messengers, then say, “What response were you given?” They will say, “We have no knowledge; it is you who are the Knower of the unseen.”

Tafsir jalalayn

Mention, the day when God shall gather the messengers, which is the Day of Resurrection, and He will say, to them, as a rebuke for their peoples; `What answer were you given?', when you summoned [them] to proclaim God's Oneness; they shall say, `We have no knowledge, of this; You, only You, are the Knower of things unseen', those things which are hidden from [God's] servants and that which they [the messengers] have forgotten all knowledge of on account of the great terror of the Day of Resurrection and their fright; but when they have calmed down, they [proceed to] bear witness against their communities.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

The Messengers Will be Asked About Their Nations

Allah says;

يَوْمَ يَجْمَعُ اللّهُ الرُّسُلَ فَيَقُولُ مَاذَا أُجِبْتُمْ

قَالُواْ لَا عِلْمَ لَنَا إِنَّكَ أَنتَ عَلَّمُ الْغُيُوبِ



On the Day when Allah will gather the Messengers together and say to them;"What was the response you received (from men to your teaching)!" They will say;"We have no knowledge, verily, only You are the Knower of all that is hidden."

Allah states that on the Day of Resurrection, He will ask the Messengers about how their nations, to whom He sent them, answered and responded to their teachings.

Allah said in other Ayat,

فَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرْسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَنَسْـَلَنَّ الْمُرْسَلِينَ

Then surely, We shall question those (people) to whom it (the Book) was sent and verily, We shall question the Messengers. (7;6)

and,

فَوَرَبِّكَ لَنَسْـَلَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينََمَّا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ

So, by your Lord, We shall certainly call all of them to account. For all that they used to do. (15;92-93)

According to Mujahid, Al-Hasan Al-Basri and As-Suddi, The statement of the Messengers here,
لَا عِلْمَ لَنَا
(We have no knowledge),

is the result of the horror of that Day.

Abdur-Razzaq narrated that Ath-Thawri said that Al-A`mash said that Mujahid said about the Ayah,
يَوْمَ يَجْمَعُ اللّهُ الرُّسُلَ فَيَقُولُ مَاذَا أُجِبْتُمْ
(On the Day when Allah will gather the Messengers together and say to them;"What was the response you received)!"

They will become afraid and reply,
لَا عِلْمَ لَنَا
(We have no knowledge),

Ibn Jarir and Ibn Abi Hatim also recorded this explanation.

Ali bin Abi Talhah said that Ibn Abbas commented on the Ayah,

"They will say to the Lord, Most Honored, `We have no knowledge beyond what we know, and even that, You have more knowledge of them than us."

This response is out of respect before the Lord, Most Honored, and it means, we have no knowledge compared to Your encompassing knowledge. Therefore, our knowledge only grasped the visible behavior of these people, not the secrets of their hearts. You are the Knower of everything, Who has encompassing knowledge of all things, and our knowledge compared to Your knowledge is similar to not having any knowledge at all, for
أَنتَ عَلَّمُ الْغُيُوبِ
(only You are the Knower of all that is hidden)