22:57

وَٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ وَكَذَّبُواْ بِـَٔايَٰتِنَا فَأُوْلَـٰٓئِكَ لَهُمۡ عَذَابٞ مُّهِينٞ

Waallatheena kafaroo wakaththaboo biayatina faolaika lahum AAathabun muheenun

And they who disbelieved and denied Our signs - for those there will be a humiliating punishment.

Word by word
  1. وَٱلَّذِينَAnd those who
  2. كَفَرُواْdisbelieved
  3. وَكَذَّبُواْand denied
  4. بِـَٔايَٰتِنَاOur Verses
  5. فَأُوْلَـٰٓئِكَthen those
  6. لَهُمۡfor them
  7. عَذَابٞ(will be) a punishment
  8. مُّهِينٞhumiliating
Al-Hajj · 22:57Madinah

Pride that turned from truth meets humiliation.

The end of arrogant denial


What they did
disbelievedhearts rejected the truth
denied the signstoo proud to follow
meet
humiliating punishmentthe match for pride
Why humiliation
random severityno reason
a fitting answerpride is brought low

Ibn Kathir says these were people who resisted the Messengers and were too proud to follow them. The humiliation is in recompense for arrogantly turning from the truth.

You get into a debate and realize halfway that you are wrong, but your ego will not let you admit it. The verse shows where that pride ends up if it becomes a lifetime habit. Humility today is the cure.

Admitting I am wrong would be humiliating.

Humbling myself now is far lighter than being humbled later.

Try this

Admit one mistake today, plainly, to the person it affected.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 22:55)

And those who disbelieved, will not cease to be in doubt about it until the Hour comes suddenly upon them, or there comes to them the torment of Yawm 'Aqim (55)The sovereignty on that Day will be that of Allah. He will judge between them. So those who believed and did righteous good deeds will be in Gardens of Delight (56)And those who disbelieved and denied Our Ayat, for them will be a humiliating torment (in Hell)(57)

The Disbelievers will remain in Doubt and Confusion

Allah tells us that the disbelievers will remain in doubt concerning this Qur'an. This was the view of Ibn Jurayj and was the view favored by Ibn Jarir.

حَتَّىٰ تَأْتِيَهُمُ السَّاعَةُ بَغْتَةً

(until the Hour comes suddenly upon them,) Mujahid said: "By surprise." Qatadah said:

بَغْتَةً

(suddenly) means, the command of Allah will catch the people unaware. Allah never seizes a people except when they are intoxicated with pride, enjoying a life of luxury, and they think that the punishment will never come upon them, but Allah does not punish anyone except the evildoers.

أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمْ عَذَابُ يَوْمٍ عَقِيمٍ

(or there comes to them the torment of Yawm 'Aqim.) Mujahid said, "Ubay bin Ka'b said: 'Yawm 'Aqim means the day of Badr.'" 'Ikrimah and Mujahid said: "Yawm 'Aqim means the Day of Resurrection, following which there will be no night." This was also the view of Ad-Dahhak and Al-Hasan Al-Basri. Allah says:

الْمُلْكُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلَّهِ يَحْكُمُ بَيْنَهُمْ

(The sovereignty on that Day will be that of Allah. He will judge between them.) This is like the Ayat:

مَالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ

(The Only Owner of the Day of Recompense)(1:4)

الْمُلْكُ يَوْمَئِذٍ الْحَقُّ لِلرَّحْمَٰنِ ۚ وَكَانَ يَوْمًا عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ عَسِيرًا

(The sovereignty on that Day will be the true (sovereignty), belonging to the Most Gracious (Allah), and it will be a hard Day for the disbelievers.)(25:26)

فَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ

(So those who believed and did righteous good deeds) means, their hearts believed in Allah and His Messenger ﷺ, and they acted in accordance with what they knew; their words and deeds were in harmony.

فِي جَنَّاتِ النَّعِيمِ

(in Gardens of Delight.) means, they will enjoy eternal bliss which will never end or fade away.

وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا وَكَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا

(And those who disbelieved and denied Our Ayat,) means, their hearts rejected and denied the truth; they disbelieved in it and resisted the Messengers and were too proud to follow them.

فَأُولَٰئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ مُّهِينٌ

(for them will be a humiliating torment.) means, in recompense for arrogantly turning away from the truth.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَكْبِرُونَ عَنْ عِبَادَتِي سَيَدْخُلُونَ جَهَنَّمَ دَاخِرِينَ

(Verily, those who scorn My worship they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!)[40:60]