Surah 2. Al-Baqara, Ayah 88
| وَقَالُوا قُلُوبُنَا غُلْفٌ ۚ بَلْ لَعَنَهُمُ اللَّهُ بِكُفْرِهِمْ فَقَلِيلًا مَا يُؤْمِنُونَ |
| Transliteration | : | wa- qaalo qulob -naa ghulf bal lacana -hum 'allaah bi- kufr -him fa- qalel(an) maa yu'minon |
| Pickthall | : | And they say: Our hearts are hardened. Nay, but Allah hath cursed them for their unbelief. Little is that which they believe. |
| Asad | : | But they say, "Our hearts are already full of knowledge."73 Nay, but God has rejected them because of their refusal to acknowledge the truth: for, few are the things in which they believe.74 |
| Malik | : | They say: "Our hearts are in secure wrappers;" but the fact of the matter is that Allah has cursed them for their disbelief, so little is that which they believe. |
| Yusuf Ali | : | They say "Our hearts are the wrappings (which preserve Allah's word we need no more)." Nay Allah's curse is on them for their blasphemy; little is it they believe. 92 93 |
Note - 73Lit., "our hearts are repositories [of knowledge]" - an
allusion to the boast of the Jews that in view of the
religious knowledge which they already possess, they are
in no need of any further preaching (Ibn Kathir, on the
authority of Ibn 'Abbas; identical explanations are
mentioned by Tabari and Zamakhshari).
|
Note - 74I.e., all their beliefs are centred on themselves and
their alleged "exceptional" status in the sight of God.
|
Note - 92The Jews in their arrogance claimed that all wisdom and
all knowledge of God were enclosed in their hearts. But
there were more things in heaven and earth than were
dreamt of in their philosophy. Their claim was not only
arrogance but blasphemy. In reality they were men
without Faith. (I take Gulfan here to be the plural of
Gilafun the wrapping or cover of a book, in which the
book is preserved.) As usual, there is a much wider
meaning. How many people at all times and among all
nations close their hearts to any extension of knowlege
or spiritual influence because of some little fragment
which they have got and which they think is the whole of
Allah's Truth? Such an attitude shows really want of
faith and is a blasphemous limitation of Allah's
unlimited spiritual gifts to His creatures. [According to
another view, the verse refers to the Jewish claim that a
covering had been placed over their hearts which
prevented them from grasping the message of the Prophet
(peace be on him). See Ibn Kathir's commentary on the
verse. See also verse iv. 155.]
|
Note - 93The root kafara has many shades of meaning: (1) to deny
God's goodness, to be ungrateful, (2) to reject Faith,
deny His revelation, (3) to blaspheme, to ascribe some
limitation or attribute to God which is derogatory to His
nature. In a translation, one shade or another must be
put forward according to the context, but all are
implied.
|
Share your thoughts about this with others by posting a comment. Visit our FAQ for some ideas.
Filter Comments 
 |
Lit., "our hearts are repositories [of knowledge]" - an allusion to the boast of the Jews that in view of the religious knowledge which they already possess, they are in no need of any further preaching (Ibn Kathir, on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas; identical explanations are mentioned by Tabari and Zamakhshari). |
| |
The Jews in their arrogance claimed that all wisdom and all knowledge of God were enclosed in their hearts. But there were more things in heaven and earth than were dreamt of in their philosophy. Their claim was not only arrogance but blasphemy. In reality they were men without Faith. (I take Gulfan here to be the plural of Gilafun the wrapping or cover of a book, in which the book is preserved.) As usual, there is a much wider meaning. How many people at all times and among all nations close their hearts to any extension of knowlege or spiritual influence because of some little fragment which they have got and which they think is the whole of Allah's Truth? Such an attitude shows really want of faith and is a blasphemous limitation of Allah's unlimited spiritual gifts to His creatures. [According to another view, the verse refers to the Jewish claim that a covering had been placed over their hearts which prevented them from grasping the message of the Prophet (peace be on him). See Ibn Kathir's commentary on the verse. See also verse iv. 155.] |
| |
The root kafara has many shades of meaning: (1) to deny God's goodness, to be ungrateful, (2) to reject Faith, deny His revelation, (3) to blaspheme, to ascribe some limitation or attribute to God which is derogatory to His nature. In a translation, one shade or another must be put forward according to the context, but all are implied. |
