Yā-Sīn: (30) Woe to them...

Then the Exalted said: {khamidūn} (extinguished/silent). Then: {yā ḥasratan ‘alā l-‘ibād} (Woe to the servants).

This means this is the time for regret, so let regret be present.

{yā ḥasratan} (Woe/Regret) and the indefinite form (tanwīn) here implies abundance. There are several issues concerning this verse:

Issue 1: The Definite Article (Alif and Lām) in al-‘ibād (the servants)

This allows for two interpretations:

1. For the known (al-ma‘hūd): Referring specifically to those who were destroyed by the Shout (Sayḥah). Thus, "Woe to those [specific people]."
2. For the genus (jins): Referring to the genus of disbelieving deniers.

Issue 2: Who is the one expressing regret?

There are several views on this:

1. No actual regretter: The purpose is to show that this is the time when regret is demanded, as remorse becomes certain upon the realization of the punishment.
   • Linguistic Note: The object (maf‘ūl) is sometimes omitted when the focus is not on it. For example, one says, "So-and-so gives and withholds," without mentioning what is given, as the point is about the capacity for giving and withholding. Omitting the object is common. Omitting the subject (fā‘il), as in this case, is rare. The justification here is that mentioning the regretter is not the primary goal; the goal is that regret is an established reality at that time.
2. Allah is the speaker (by way of metaphor/personification): This is done to magnify the matter and emphasize its gravity. In this case, it is like other terms attributed to Allah metaphorically, such as laughing, forgetting, mocking, wondering, and wishing. Alternatively, the meaning of saying "Woe!" or "Alas!" is not that the speaker is regretful, but rather that the speaker is reporting the occurrence of regret. In this view, there is no need for figurative interpretation to explain that Allah is speaking; He is reporting the reality, except for the vocative call (yā), which is figurative, meaning the report itself.
3. The yearning believers and the angels: As seen in the account of Ḥabīb, who, while being killed, used to say, "O Allah, guide my people." After they killed him and he entered Paradise, he said, "Oh, I wish my people knew!" Thus, a Muslim may regret or feel remorse for a disbeliever, both for and because of them.

Issue 3: Variations in Recitation (Qirā’āt)

It has been recited with {‘alayhim ḥasratun} (regret upon them) with tanwīn (indefinite). And {yā ḥasrata l-‘ibād} (Woe of the servants) with iḍāfah (genitive construction) without the preposition ‘alā. It has also been recited as {yā ḥasrata ‘alayhi} (Woe upon him/it) using the hā’ (pronoun) to treat the connection (waṣl) as if it were a pause (waqf).

Issue 4: Who is intended by al-‘ibād (the servants)?

There are several views:

1. The Three Messengers: As if the disbelievers, upon the appearance of the ordeal, would say, "Woe to them! We wish they were present in our affair so we could believe in them."
2. The people of Ḥabīb.
3. Every disbeliever who persisted, was arrogant, and acted haughtily.

Regarding the first view, the term ‘ibād (servants) is applied to the believers, as in His saying: {Indeed, My servants—over them you will have no authority} (Al-Ḥijr: 42) and {Say, "O My servants who have transgressed} (Az-Zumar: 53).

Regarding the second view, ‘ibād refers to the disbelievers. There is a distinction between ‘abd (servant) in general and ‘abd when it is iḍāfah (possessed) to Allah. The addition to the noble attribute (Allah) bestows honor upon the possessed noun. For example, Bayt Allāh (The House of Allah) carries a nobility that al-Bayt (The House) alone does not. Following this principle, {and the servants of the Most Merciful} (Al-Furqān: 63) is like {Indeed, My servants} (Al-Ḥijr: 42), and similarly {Servants of Allah} (Aṣ-Ṣāffāt: 74).

Then Allah the Exalted explained the reason for the regret in His saying: {No messenger came to them except that they used to} mock him.

This is the cause of the remorse. This is because if a king sent an envoy, and the envoy introduced himself and asked for something simple, and the recipient rejected and denied him, and then the recipient stood before the king on his throne and recognized that the envoy was indeed from the king—the recipient would feel immense regret.

Similarly, the Messengers were like kings, or even greater, due to the honor Allah bestowed upon them and made them His representatives, as He said: {Say, "If you should love Allah, then follow me, [so] Allah will love you} (Āl ‘Imrān: 31). They came and identified themselves, yet they possessed no apparent worldly grandeur. Then, on the Day of Resurrection or when the ordeal appears, their true greatness with Allah will be revealed to them. What they called to was something simple, whose benefit returned to them—the worship of Allah—and they were not asked for any reward for it. At that point, the severe remorse will occur. How could it not be so, when they were content with turning away, even going so far as to harm, mock, belittle, and treat them with contempt?

The pronoun in {mā ya’tīhim} (No messenger came to them) may refer back to the people of Ḥabīb—meaning, no messenger from the three messengers came to them except that they mocked him, according to our view that the regret is upon them. Or, it may refer to the persistent disbelievers.

< {7} Have they not seen how many generations We destroyed before them? Indeed, to them they will not return. >