Quran Universe
43:47

فَلَمَّا جَآءَهُم بِـَٔايَٰتِنَآ إِذَا هُم مِّنۡهَا يَضۡحَكُونَ

Falamma jaahum biayatina itha hum minha yadhakoona

But when he brought them Our signs, at once they laughed at them.

Word by word
  1. فَلَمَّاBut when
  2. جَآءَهُمhe came to them
  3. بِـَٔايَٰتِنَآwith Our Signs
  4. إِذَاbehold
  5. هُمThey
  6. مِّنۡهَاat them
  7. يَضۡحَكُونَlaughed
Az-Zukhruf · 43:47Makkah

Clear signs, and at once they laughed.

Laughter as a shield against the truth

Their response
the signshand, staff, more
met with
laughterimmediately
Why they laughed
it was funnynothing to it
arrogancerefusing to look

Ibn Kathir says despite the signs they remained arrogant and stubbornly refused to follow him. They made fun of the message and laughed at the one who had brought it.

A serious reminder comes up at the dinner table and someone makes a joke, and everyone laughs, and the moment is gone. Maybe you made the joke. Laughter can be a way to avoid thinking.

Joking about serious things is harmless.

Sometimes I laugh at a truth because I do not want to face it.

Try this

Next time a reminder makes you uncomfortable, resist the joke and sit with it for a moment.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 43:46)

And indeed We did send Musa with Our Ayat to Fir'awn and his chiefs. He said: "Verily, I am a Messenger of the Lord of all that exists. (46)But when he came to them with Our Ayat, behold, they laughed at them (47)And not an Ayah We showed them but it was greater than its fellow preceding it, and We seized them with torment, in order that they might turn (48)And they said (to Musa): "O you sorcerer! Invoke your Lord for us according to what He has made a pact with you. Verily, We shall guide ourselves. (49)But when We removed the torment from them, behold, they broke their covenant (50)

Musa was sent with the Message of Tawhid to Fir'awn and His Chiefs

Here Allah tells us about His servant and Messenger Musa, peace be upon him, and how He sent him to Fir'awn and his chiefs. That is, his governors, ministers, leaders and followers among the Egyptians and the Children of Israel. Allah sent him to call them to worship Allah alone, with no partner or associate, and to forbid them from worshipping anything other than Him. He sent him with mighty signs, such as his hand and his staff, other signs such as the flood, locusts, Qummal, frogs and blood, and the loss of their crops and lives. Yet despite all that they remained arrogant and stubbornly refused to follow him; they rejected his message and made fun of it, and laughed at the one who had brought it.

وَمَا نُرِيهِمْ مِنْ آيَةٍ إِلَّا هِيَ أَكْبَرُ مِنْ أُخْتِهَا ۖ

(And not an Ayah We showed them but it was greater than its fellow preceding it,) but despite that they would not give up their sin, misguidance, ignorance and confusion. Every time one of these signs came to them, they would go and implore Musa, saying,

يَا أَيُّهَ السَّاحِرُ

("O you sorcerer!...") meaning, expert or knowledgeable one – this was the view of Ibn Jarir.

The scholars of that time were the sorcerers or magicians, and magic was not regarded as something reprehensible by them at that time, so this was not a slight on their part. They were in a state of need, so it would not have been appropriate for them to insult him. This was a way of honoring him, as they thought. On each occasion, they promised Musa that if the torment was lifted from them, they would believe in him and let the Children of Israel go with him, but on each occasion they went back on their word. This is like the Ayat:

فَأَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِمُ الطُّوفَانَ وَالْجَرَادَ وَالْقُمَّلَ وَالضَّفَادِعَ وَالدَّمَ آيَاتٍ مُفَصَّلَاتٍ فَاسْتَكْبَرُوا وَكَانُوا قَوْمًا مُجْرِمِينَ - وَلَمَّا وَقَعَ عَلَيْهِمُ الرِّجْزُ قَالُوا يَا مُوسَى ادْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ بِمَا عَهِدَ عِنْدَكَ ۖ لَئِنْ كَشَفْتَ عَنَّا الرِّجْزَ لَنُؤْمِنَنَّ لَكَ وَلَنُرْسِلَنَّ مَعَكَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ - فَلَمَّا كَشَفْنَا عَنْهُمُ الرِّجْزَ إِلَىٰ أَجَلٍ هُمْ بَالِغُوهُ إِذَا هُمْ يَنْكُثُونَ

(So We sent on them: the flood, the locusts, the Qummal, the frogs, and the blood; manifest signs, yet they remained arrogant, and they were of those people who were criminals. And when the punishment struck them, they said: "O Musa! Invoke your Lord for us because of His promise to you. If you remove the punishment from us, we indeed shall believe in you, and we shall let the Children of Israel go with you." But when We removed the punishment from them to a fixed term, which they had to reach, behold! they broke their word!)(7:133-135)