Quran Universe
17:77

سُنَّةَ مَن قَدۡ أَرۡسَلۡنَا قَبۡلَكَ مِن رُّسُلِنَاۖ وَلَا تَجِدُ لِسُنَّتِنَا تَحۡوِيلًا

Sunnata man qad arsalna qablaka min rusulina wala tajidu lisunnatina tahweelan

[That is Our] established way for those We had sent before you of Our messengers; and you will not find in Our way any alteration.

Word by word
  1. سُنَّةَ(Such is Our) Way
  2. مَن(for) whom
  3. قَدۡ[verily]
  4. أَرۡسَلۡنَاWe sent
  5. قَبۡلَكَbefore you
  6. مِنof
  7. رُّسُلِنَاۖOur Messengers
  8. وَلَاAnd not
  9. تَجِدُyou will find
  10. لِسُنَّتِنَا(in) Our way
  11. تَحۡوِيلًاany alteration
Al-Isra · 17:77Makkah

This is Our way with messengers, and it does not change.

A pattern you can count on

The sunnah
a messenger
driven out
consequences come
no changethe same every time
History is
random
patternedAllah's unchanging way

Ibn Kathir explains this is what Allah usually does to those who reject His messengers and drive them out. He adds that if the Prophet ﷺ were not the Messenger of Mercy, a punishment never seen before would have come. Allah would not punish them while he was among them.

Life can feel chaotic, like there are no rules. The verse says there are. Truth wins in the end, and those who fight it lose. That is a pattern you can lean on when you feel outnumbered for doing right.

There is no pattern, the powerful just do what they want.

Allah has a steady way, and truth always comes out ahead.

Try this

When you feel alone in doing right this week, remember this verse and keep going.

Related8:33
Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 17:76)

And verily, they were about to frighten you so much as to drive you out from the land. But in that case, they would not have stayed (therein) after you, except for a little while (76)A Sunnah with which We sent Our Messengers before you and you will not find any alteration in Our Sunnah (77)

The Reason why these Ayat were revealed

This was revealed concerning the disbelievers among the Quraysh, when they wanted to expel the Messenger of Allah ﷺ from among themselves. So Allah issued a warning to them in this Ayah, telling them that if they expelled him, they would not stay in Makkah for very long after that. And this is what happened after he migrated from them when their persecution became so intense. Only a year and a half after that, Allah brought him and them together on the battlefield of Badr, without any pre-arranged appointment, and He caused him to prevail over them and defeat them, so he killed their leaders and took their families as captives. Hence Allah said:

سُنَّةَ مَن قَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا

(A Sunnah with which We sent) meaning this is what We usually do to those who reject Our Messengers and persecute them by driving the Messenger out from among themselves - the punishment comes to them. If it were not for the fact that the Prophet ﷺ was the Messenger of Mercy, vengeance would have come upon them such as had never been seen before in this world. So Allah says:

وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُمْ وَأَنتَ فِيهِمْ

(And Allah would not punish them while you are among them.)[8:33]