Tafsir of Nuh 71:25

Surah Nuh (71): 25

(25) مما خطيئاتهم أغرقوا فأدخلوا نارا

The word (مما) here is an extra particle (صلة), similar to its use in verses like {فبما نقضهم} (An-Nisa: 155) and {فبما رحمة} (An-Nisa: 159).

The meaning is: "Because of their sins" or "due to them."

Ibn Mas'ud recited it as {من خطاياهم} (Min khatayāhum), placing mā after min. In this recitation, mā is not an extra particle, as it combines with what follows to establish the verbal noun (مصدر).

Know that the preceding placement of {مما خطاياهم} clarifies that their drowning in the flood and their subsequent entry into the Fire were solely due to their sins. Therefore, anyone who claims, like some astrologers, that this event occurred because half of the Great Cycle (الدور الأعظم) had elapsed, or similar claims, is contradicting the explicit text of this verse and must be deemed an unbeliever (mukaffar).

The word {خطيئاتهم} (khati’ātihim) has been read with a hamza (خطيئاتهم), or with the hamza converted to a yā’ and assimilated (خطيّاتهم), or as {خَطَايَاهُمْ} (khaṭāyāhum).

It can also be read in the singular form {خطيئتهم} (khati’atihim) to refer to the genus (الجنس), or it may refer specifically to disbelief (Kufr).

Know that Khaṭāyā (خَطَايَا) and Khaṭī’āt (خَطِيئَات) are both plurals of Khaṭī’ah (خَطِيئَة). The former is a broken plural (جمع تكسير), and the latter is a sound feminine plural (جمع سلامة). This has been discussed previously in Al-Baqarah (2:58) regarding {نغفر لكم خطاياكم} and in Al-A'raf (7:161) regarding {خطيئاتكم}.

Our scholars use this verse to affirm the punishment of the grave based on two points derived from {أغرقوا فأدخلوا نارا} (drowned, and then admitted into a Fire):

1. The Fā’ (فاء): The fā’ in {فأدخلوا نارا} indicates immediate succession; the entry into the Fire happened right after the drowning. If this were interpreted as the punishment of the Hereafter, the implication of this fā’ would be nullified.
2. The Past Tense: The statement is in the past tense (فأدخلوا - fa-udkhilū), which implies it has already occurred.

Counter-Argument (The View of Muqātil and Al-Kallābī): They state that it means they will be admitted into the Fire in the Hereafter, and the past tense is used because the event is certain and the promise is true, similar to {ونادى أصحاب النار} (The inhabitants of the Fire called out) (Al-A'raf: 50) and {ونادى أصحاب الجنة} (The inhabitants of Paradise called out) (Al-A'raf: 44).

Rebuttal: What they said involves abandoning the apparent meaning without proof.

Objection: We abandon the apparent meaning because of evidence: we witness the deceased remaining in the water after drowning. How can it be said that they were admitted into the Fire at that very moment?

Answer: This difficulty arises only from the belief that a person is merely the sum of this physical structure. This is incorrect, as we have established that the human being is the entity that existed from the beginning of life, even when its body was small, and its parts are constantly decaying and dissolving. The remaining part is not the changing part. Therefore, this human being refers to that essential entity that has remained from the beginning until now. Why is it impossible that, even while the physical corpse remained in the water, Allah Almighty transferred those original, remaining essential parts—which constituted that specific person—to the Fire for torment?

This is an allusion to the fact that they persistently worshipped those idols precisely so that these idols would repel afflictions and bring benefits. When the punishment of Allah came upon them, those idols were of no use to them, nor could they repel Allah's punishment. This is like His saying: {Or do they have gods who protect them from Us?} (Al-Furqan: 28). This verse serves as proof against everyone who relies on anything other than Allah Almighty.

Surah Nuh (71): 26

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