Al-Qur'an Surah Al-Hadid Verse 27

Mufti Taqi Usmani

Then We made Our messengers follow them one after the other, then We sent after them ‘Īsā, the son of Maryam (Jesus, son of Mary), and gave him the Injīl, and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, it was invented by them; We did not ordain it for them, but (they adopted it) to seek Allah’s pleasure, then could not observe it as was due. So We gave the believers from among them their reward. And many of them are sinners.

Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran

Then in the footsteps of these ˹prophets˺, We sent Our messengers, and ˹after them˺ We sent Jesus, son of Mary, and granted him the Gospel, and instilled compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they made it up—We never ordained it for them—only seeking to please Allah, yet they did not ˹even˺ observe it strictly. So We rewarded those of them who were faithful. But most of them are rebellious.

Ruwwad Translation Center

Then We sent Our messengers in their footsteps, and We sent after them Jesus, son of Mary; We gave him the Gospel, and instilled kindness and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. As for monasticism, they invented it – We did not prescribe it for them – seeking thereby Allah’s pleasure, yet they did not observe it faithfully. So We gave those who believed among them their reward, but most of them are evildoers.

A. J. Arberry

Then We sent, following in their footsteps, Our Messengers; and We sent, following, Jesus son of Mary, and gave unto him the Gospel. And We set in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism they invented -- We did not prescribe it for them -- only seeking the good pleasure of God; but they observed it not as it should be observed. So We gave those of them who believed their wage; and many of them are ungodly.

Abdul Haleem

We sent other messengers to follow in their footsteps. After those We sent Jesus, son of Mary: We gave him the Gospel and put compassion and mercy into the hearts of his followers. But monasticism was something they invented- We did not ordain it for them- only to seek God’s pleasure, and even so, they did not observe it properly. So We gave a reward to those of them who believed, but many of them were lawbreakers.

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

Thereafter in their footsteps We caused Our apostles to follow, and We caused lsa, son Of Maryam, to follow them, and We vouchsafed Unto him the Injil, and We placed In the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And asceticism! they innovated it- We prescribed it not for them Only seeking Allah's pleasure yet they tended it not with tendence due thereto. So We vouchsafed Unto such of them as believed their hire, and many of them are transgressors.

Abdullah Yusuf Ali

Then, in their wake, We followed them up with (others of) Our messengers; We sent after them Jesus the son of Mary, and bestowed on him the Gospel; and We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him Compassion and Mercy. But the Monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them; (We commanded) only the seeking for the Good Pleasure of Allah; but that they did not foster as they should have done. Yet We bestowed, on those among them who believed, their (due) reward, but many of them are rebellious transgressors.

Abul Ala Maududi

In their wake, We sent a succession of Our Messengers, and raised Jesus, son of Mary, after all of them, and bestowed upon him the Evangel, and We set tenderness and mercy in the hearts of those that followed him. As for monasticism, it is they who invented it; We did not prescribe it for them. They themselves invented it in pursuit of Allah's good pleasure, and then they did not observe it as it ought to have been observed. So We gave their reward to those of them that believed. But many of them are wicked.

Ahmed Ali

Then in their train We sent Our apostles, and succeeding them Jesus, son of Mary, and gave him the Gospel, and put into the hearts of his followers compassion and kindness. But they created monasticism which had not been prescribed for them by Us except for seeking the pleasure of God; yet they did not observe it as it should have been rightly observed. So We gave those among them who were believers their reward; but most of them are disobedient.

Ahmed Raza Khan

We then sent Our other Noble Messengers after them following their footsteps, and after them We sent Eisa, the son of Maryam, and bestowed the Injeel to him; and We instilled compassion and mercy in the hearts of his followers; and they invented monasticism which We had not ordained upon them only to seek Allah’s pleasure, then did not properly abide by it as it should have been rightfully abided; We therefore gave the believers among them their reward; and many of them are sinners.

Ali Quli Qarai

Then We followed them up with Our apostles and We followed [them] with Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Evangel, and We put kindness and mercy into the hearts of those who followed him. But as for monasticism, they innovated it—We had not prescribed it for them—only seeking Allah’s pleasure. Yet they did not observe it with due observance. So We gave to the faithful among them their [due] reward, but many of them are transgressors.

Ali Ünal

Thereafter, We sent, following in their footsteps, others of Our Messengers, and We sent Jesus son of Mary, and granted him the Gospel, and placed in the hearts of those who followed him tenderness and mercy. And monasticism: they innovated it – We did not prescribe it to them – only to seek God’s good pleasure, but they have not observed it as its observance requires. So We have granted those among them who have truly believed their reward, but many among them have been transgressors.

Amatul Rahman Omar

Then We caused a series of Our Messengers one after the other to follow them closely in their footsteps, and we caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow them, and We gave him (- Jesus) the Evangel. And We placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him, but as for monasticism they invented it themselves, We did not enjoin it upon them. (They started monastic life) to seek Allâh´s pleasure, but they did not observe it (as faithfully) as it should have been observed. Yet We duly rewarded such of them as (truly) believed but many of them were transgressors.

English Literal

Then We sent after/made to follow on their tracks with Our messengers, and We sent after/made to follow with Jesus Mary`s son, and We gave/brought him the Bible/New Testament , and We made/put in (the) hearts/minds (of) those who followed him mercy/compassion, and mercy and monkhood/monasticism they invented/innovated it , We did not order/ dictate it on them except (their) wishing/desiring God`s acceptance/ approval , so they did not tend/protect it its deserved/just protection/keep , so We gave/brought those who believed from them their reimbursement ; many/much from them (are) debauchers .

Faridul Haque

We then sent Our other Noble Messengers after them following their footsteps, and after them We sent Eisa, the son of Maryam, and bestowed the Injeel to him; and We instilled compassion and mercy in the hearts of his followers; and they invented monasticism which We had not ordained upon them only to seek Allah’s pleasure, then did not properly abide by it as it should have been rightfully abided; We therefore gave the believers among them their reward; and many of them are sinners.

Hamid S. Aziz

Then We made Our Messengers to follow in their footsteps, and We sent Jesus, son of Mary afterwards, and We bestowed on him the Gospel, and We put in the heart of those who followed him kindness and mercy; but monkery (or monasticism), they invented it - We did not prescribe it for them - (We commanded) only the seeking of Allah´s pleasure, but they did not observe it with its due observance; so We gave to those of them who believed their reward, but most of them are transgressors.

Hilali & Khan

Then, We sent after them, Our Messengers, and We sent 'Iesa (Jesus) - son of Maryam (Mary), and gave him the Injeel (Gospel). And We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him, compassion and mercy. But the Monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them, but (they sought it) only to please Allah therewith, but that they did not observe it with the right observance. So We gave those among them who believed, their (due) reward, but many of them are Fasiqun (rebellious, disobedient to Allah).

Maulana Mohammad Ali

And certainly We sent Noah and Abraham, and We gave prophethood and the Book to their offspring; so among them is he who goes aright, but most of them are transgressors.

Mohammad Habib Shakir

Then We made Our apostles to follow in their footsteps, and We sent Isa son of Marium afterwards, and We gave him the Injeel, and We put in the hearts of those who followed him kindness and mercy; and (as for) monkery, they innovated it-- We did not prescribe it to them-- only to seek Allah's pleasure, but they did not observe it with its due observance; so We gave to those of them who believed their reward, and most of them are transgressors.

Mohammed Marmaduke William Pickthall

Then We caused Our messengers to follow in their footsteps; and We caused Jesus, son of Mary, to follow, and gave him the Gospel, and placed compassion and mercy in the hearts of those who followed him. But monasticism they invented - We ordained it not for them - only seeking Allah's pleasure, and they observed it not with right observance. So We give those of them who believe their reward, but many of them are evil-livers.

Muhammad Sarwar

Then We sent Our other Messengers to follow their traditions. After them We sent Jesus, the son of Mary, to whom We gave the Gospel. In the hearts of his followers We placed compassion and mercy. We did not command them to lead the monastic life. This was their own method of seeking the pleasure of God. Despite this intention, they did not properly observe it (the monastic life). To the believers among them, We gave their reward but many of them are evil-doers.

Qaribullah & Darwish

Following them We sent Our (other) Messengers, and We sent following in their footsteps, (Prophet) Jesus, the son of Mary and gave him the Gospel, and put tenderness and mercy in the hearts of his followers. As for monasticism, they invented it thereby seeking the pleasure of Allah. We did not write it for them, and they did not observe it as it should be observed. We gave to those of them who believed their wage, but many of them are impious.

Safi-ur-Rahman al-Mubarakpuri

Then, We sent after them Our Messengers, and We sent `Isa the son of Maryam, and gave him the Injil. And We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him, compassion and mercy. But the monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them, but (they sought it) only to please Allah therewith, but that they did not observe it with the right observance. So, We gave those among them who believed, their (due) reward; but many of them are rebellious.

Wahiduddin Khan

Then, in their wake, We followed them up with [others of] Our messengers and after them Jesus, son of Mary. We gave him the Gospel and imbued the hearts of those who followed him with compassion and mercy. But We did not prescribe monasticism for them: that was their own innovation by which they sought to please God. But then, they did not observe it in the way that it should have been observed. So We rewarded only those who were truly faithful, for many of them were disobedient.

Talal Itani

Then We sent in their wake Our messengers, and followed up with Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel, and instilled in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy. But as for the monasticism which they invented—We did not ordain it for them—only to seek God’s approval. But they did not observe it with its due observance. So We gave those of them who believed their reward, but many of them are sinful.

Tafsir jalalayn

Then We sent to follow in their footsteps Our messengers, and We sent to follow, Jesus son of Mary, and We gave him the Gospel, and We placed in the hearts of those who followed him kindness and mercy. But [as for] monasticism, namely, abstention from women and seclusion in monasteries, they invented it, [an innovation] on their part -- We had not prescribed it for them, We did not enjoin them to it; but they took it on -- only seeking God's beatitude. Yet they did not observe it with due observance, for many of them abandoned it and rejected the religion of Jesus and embraced the religion of their [then] king. However, many of them did remain upon the religion of Jesus and they believed in our Prophet [when he came]. So We gave those of them who believed, in him, their reward; but many of them are immoral.

Tafseer Ibn Kathir

ثُمَّ قَفَّيْنَا عَلَى اثَارِهِم بِرُسُلِنَا وَقَفَّيْنَا بِعِيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ وَاتَيْنَاهُ الاِْنجِيلَ

Then, We sent after them Our Messengers, and We sent 'Isa the son of Maryam, and gave him the Injil.

referring to the Injil that Allah revealed to him,

وَجَعَلْنَا فِي قُلُوبِ الَّذِينَ اتَّبَعُوهُ

And We ordained in the hearts of those who followed him, i.e., the disciples,

رَأْفَةً

compassion (and tenderness),

وَرَحْمَةً

and mercy. (toward the creatures).

Allah's statement,

وَرَهْبَانِيَّةً ابْتَدَعُوهَا

But the monasticism which they invented for themselves,

refers to the monasticism that the Christian nation invented,

مَا كَتَبْنَاهَا عَلَيْهِمْ

We did not prescribe for them,

`We -- Allah -- did not ordain it for them, but they chose it on their own.'

There are two opinions about the meaning of,

إِلاَّ ابْتِغَاء رِضْوَانِ اللَّهِ

only to please Allah therewith,

- The first is that they wanted to please Allah by inventing monasticism.

Sa`id bin Jubayr and Qatadah said this.

- The second meaning is;"We did not ordain them to practice that but, rather, We ordained them only to seek what pleases Allah."

Allah's statement,

فَمَا رَعَوْهَا حَقَّ رِعَايَتِهَا

but that they did not observe it with the right observance.

meaning, they did not abide by what they ordered themselves to do.

This Ayah criticizes them in two ways;

- first, they invented in things in their religion, things which Allah did not legislate for them.

- The second is that they did not fulfill the requirements of what they themselves invented and which they claimed was a means of drawing near to Allah, the Exalted and Most Honored.

An-Nasa'i -- and this is his wording - recorded that Ibn Abbas said,

"There were kings after `Isa who changed the Tawrah and the Injil when there were still believers who recited Tawrah and the Injil. Their kings were told,

`We were never confronted by more severe criticism and abuse than of these people.' --

they recite the Ayah,

وَمَن لَّمْ يَحْكُم بِمَأ أَنزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُوْلَـيِكَ هُمُ الْكَـفِرُونَ

And whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed, such are the disbelievers. (5;44),

as well as, they accuse us of short comings in our actions, while still they recite. Therefore, summon them and let them recite these Ayat our way and believe in them our way.'

The king summoned them and gathered them and threatened them with death if they did not revert from reciting the original Tawrah and Injil to using the corrupted version only.

They said,

`Why do you want us to do that, let us be.'

Some of them said,

`Build a narrow elevated tower for us and let us ascend it, and then give us the means to elevate food and drink to us. This way, you will save yourselves from hearing us.'

Another group among them said,

`Let us go about in the land and eat and drink like beasts do, and if you find us in your own land, then kill us.'

Another group among them said,

`Build homes (monasteries) for us in the deserts and secluded areas, where we can dig wells and plant vegetables. Then, we will not refute you and will not even pass by you.'

These groups said this, even though they all had supporters among their tribes. It is about this that Allah the Exalted and Most Honored sent down this Ayah,

وَرَهْبَانِيَّةً ابْتَدَعُوهَا مَا كَتَبْنَاهَا عَلَيْهِمْ إِلاَّ ابْتِغَاء رِضْوَانِ اللَّهِ

فَمَا رَعَوْهَا حَقَّ رِعَايَتِهَا

(But the monasticism which they invented for themselves, We did not prescribe for them, but (they sought it) only to please Allah therewith, but that they did not observe it with the right observance.) "'

Then Allah says,

فَأتَيْنَا الَّذِينَ امَنُوا مِنْهُمْ أَجْرَهُمْ وَكَثِيرٌ مِّنْهُمْ فَاسِقُونَ



So, We gave those among them who believed, their (due) reward; but many of them are rebellious.

Imam Ahmad recorded that Anas bin Malik said that the Prophet said,

لِكُلِّ نَبِيَ رَهْبَانِيَّةٌ وَرَهْبَانِيَّةُ هذِهِ الاُْمَّةِ الْجِهَادُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ عَزَّ وَجَل

Every Prophet has Rahbaniyyah (monasticism); Jihad in the cause of Allah, the Exalted and Most Honored, is the Rahbaniyyah of this Ummah.

Al-Hafiz Abu Ya`la collected this Hadith and in this narration, the Prophet said,

لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَهْبَانِيَّةٌ وَرَهْبَانِيَّةُ هذِهِ الاُْمَّةِ الْجِهَادُ فِي سَبِيلِ الله

Every Ummah has Rahbaniyyah; Jihad in the cause of Allah is the Rahbaniyyah of this Ummah.

Imam Ahmad recorded that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri said that a man came to him and asked him for advice, and Abu Sa`id said that he asked the same of Allah's Messenger. Abu Sa`id said,

"So, I advise you to

- adhere by the Taqwa of Allah, because it is the chief of all matters.

- Fulfill the obligation of Jihad, because it is the Rahbaniyyah of Islam.

- Take care of remembering Allah and reciting the Qur'an, because it is your closeness (or status) in the heavens and your good fame on earth."

Only Imam Ahmad collected this Hadith