39:67

وَمَا قَدَرُواْ ٱللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدۡرِهِۦ وَٱلۡأَرۡضُ جَمِيعٗا قَبۡضَتُهُۥ يَوۡمَ ٱلۡقِيَٰمَةِ وَٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتُ مَطۡوِيَّـٰتُۢ بِيَمِينِهِۦۚ سُبۡحَٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَٰلَىٰ عَمَّا يُشۡرِكُونَ

Wama qadaroo Allaha haqqa qadrihi waalardu jameeAAan qabdatuhu yawma alqiyamati waalssamawatu matwiyyatun biyameenihi subhanahu wataAAala AAamma yushrikoona

They have not appraised Allah with true appraisal, while the earth entirely will be [within] His grip on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens will be folded in His right hand. Exalted is He and high above what they associate with Him.

Word by word
  1. وَمَاAnd not
  2. قَدَرُواْthey appraised
  3. ٱللَّهَAllah
  4. حَقَّ(with) true
  5. قَدۡرِهِۦappraisal
  6. وَٱلۡأَرۡضُwhile the earth
  7. جَمِيعٗاentirely
  8. قَبۡضَتُهُۥ(will be) in His Grip
  9. يَوۡمَ(on the) Day
  10. ٱلۡقِيَٰمَةِ(of) the Resurrection
  11. وَٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتُand the heavens
  12. مَطۡوِيَّـٰتُۢ(will be) folded
  13. بِيَمِينِهِۦۚin His Right Hand
  14. سُبۡحَٰنَهُۥGlory be to Him
  15. وَتَعَٰلَىٰAnd High is He
  16. عَمَّاabove what
  17. يُشۡرِكُونَthey associate (with Him)
Az-Zumar · 39:67Makkah

They never measured Allah as He deserves.

The whole earth in His grip on the Day


On the Day
the whole earthwithin His grip
the heavensfolded in His right hand
He says
I am the Kingwhere are the kings?
Our estimate of Him
too smallone power among many
Glory be to Himabove all they associate

Ibn Abbas said whoever believes Allah is able to do all things has estimated Him rightly. Ibn Kathir reports the Prophet ﷺ recited this on the minbar, saying Allah will declare: I am the King.

Your boss's mood decides your week. A government office decides your year. They feel huge. On that Day He will ask: where are the kings of the earth? Measure Him rightly, and the rest shrinks.

The powerful people around me are what really decide things.

The whole earth is in Allah's grip; nothing is bigger than Him.

Try this

When someone powerful intimidates you today, quietly say Allahu akbar and remember who is King.

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir

They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. And on the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His Hand and the heavens will be rolled up in His Right Hand. Glorified be He, and High be He above all that they associate as partners with Him (67)

The Idolators did not make a just Estimate of Allah such as is due to Him

وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ

(They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him.) means, the idolators did not give Allah His due when they worshipped others alongside Him. He is the Almighty, and there is none mightier than Him; He is the One Who is able to do all things; He is the Owner of all things and everything is under His control and power. Mujahid said, "This was revealed concerning Quraysh." As-Suddi said, "They did not venerate Him as He deserves to be venerated." Muhammad bin Ka'b said, "If they had made a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him, they would not have lied." 'Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn 'Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ

(They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him.) "These are the disbeliever who did not believe that Allah had power over them. Whoever believes that Allah is able to do all things, has made a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him, and whoever does not believe that, has not made a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him."

Many Hadiths have been narrated concerning this Ayah and how it and other Ayat like it are to be interpreted and accepted without any attempts to twist or change the meaning. Concerning the Ayah,

وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ

(They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him.) Al-Bukhari recorded that 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "One of the rabbis came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said, 'O Muhammad! We learn that Allah will put the heavens on one finger, the earths on one finger, the trees on one finger, the water and dust on one finger, and the rest of creation on one finger, then He will say: I am the King.' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ smiled so broadly that his molars could be seen, in confirmation of what the rabbi had said. Then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recited:

وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ وَالْأَرْضُ جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ

(They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. And on the Day of Resurrection the whole of the earth will be grasped by His Hand)." Al-Bukhari also recorded this in other places of his Sahih. It was also recorded by Imam Ahmad and Muslim, and by At-Tirmidhi and An-Nasa'i in the (books of) Tafsir in their Sunans.

Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:

يَقْبِضُ اللهُ تَعَالَى الْأَرْضَ، وَيَطْوِي السَّمَاءَ بِيَمِينِهِ، ثُمَّ يَقُولُ: أَنَا الْمَلِكُ، أَيْنَ مُلُوكُ الْأَرْضِ؟

(Allah will grasp the earth and roll up the heavens in His Right Hand, then He will say: "I am the King, where are the kings of the earth?")" This version was recorded only by Al-Bukhari; Muslim recorded another version.

Al-Bukhari also recorded from Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

إِنَّ اللهَ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَىٰ يَقْبِضُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ الْأَرَضِينَ عَلَىٰ أُصْبُعٍ، وَتَكُونُ السَّمٰوَاتُ بِيَمِينِهِ، ثُمَّ يَقُولُ: أَنَا الْمَلِكُ

(On the Day of Resurrection, Allah, may He be blessed and exalted, will grasp the earth with one finger, and the heavens will be in His Right Hand, then He will say, "I am the King.")

This version was also recorded by Al-Bukhari It is recorded that Ibn 'Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "The Messenger of Allah ﷺ recited this Ayah on the Minbar one day:

وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ وَالْأَرْضُ جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَالسَّمَاوَاتُ مَطْوِيَّاتٌ بِيَمِينِهِ ۚ سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَىٰ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ 

(They made not a just estimate of Allah such as is due to Him. On the Day of Resurrection the whole earth will be grasped by His Hand and the heavens will be rolled up in His Right Hand. Glorified be He, and High be He above all that they associate as partners with Him!) The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said while moving his hand forward and backward:

يُمَجِّدُ الرَّبُّ نَفْسَهُ: أَنَا الْجَبَّارُ، أَنَا الْمُتَكَبِّرُ، أَنَا الْمَلِكُ، أَنَا الْعَزِيزُ، أَنَا الْكَرِيمُ

(And the Lord will glorify Himself, saying "I am Compeller, I am the Proud, I am the King, I am the Mighty, I am the Most Generous.")

And the Minbar shook so much that we feared that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ would fall." This was also recorded by Muslim, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah.