10:86

وَنَجِّنَا بِرَحۡمَتِكَ مِنَ ٱلۡقَوۡمِ ٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَ

Wanajjina birahmatika mina alqawmi alkafireena

And save us by Your mercy from the disbelieving people."

Word by word
  1. وَنَجِّنَاAnd save us
  2. بِرَحۡمَتِكَby Your Mercy
  3. مِنَfrom
  4. ٱلۡقَوۡمِthe people
  5. ٱلۡكَٰفِرِينَthe disbelievers
Yunus · 10:86Makkah

Save us by Your mercy, not by our strength.

The second half of their dua


What they asked for
the weakno army of their own
ask
Your mercyand beneficence
from
the denierswho covered the truth
What saves
our own strengthplanning, numbers
His mercywe trusted You

Ibn Kathir explains: save us through Your mercy and beneficence from those who denied the truth. Their dua ends with a statement of trust: we truly have believed in You and put our trust in You.

You have no connections, no savings cushion, no backup plan. It feels like powerlessness. Mercy is not earned by strength. Ask for it plainly, as they did.

Without power or resources, I have no way out.

Allah's mercy can save me where my strength cannot.

Try this

Make a short dua today that begins: O Allah, by Your mercy, save me from...

Simplified reflection. Read the tafsir for scholarship.draft
Tafsir Ibn Kathir (shared passage from 10:84)

And Musa said: "O my people! If you have believed in Allah, then put your trust in Him if you are Muslims. (84)They said: "In Allah we put our trust. Our Lord! Make us not a trial for the folk who are wrongdoers (85)"And save us by Your mercy from the disbelieving folk. (86)

Musa encouraged His People to put Their Trust in Allah

Allah told us that Musa said to the Children of Israel:

يَا قَوْمِ إِن كُنتُمْ آمَنتُم بِاللَّهِ فَعَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلُوا إِن كُنتُم مُّسْلِمِينَ

(O my people! If you have believed in Allah, then put your trust in Him if you are Muslims.) Allah is sufficient for those who put their trust in Him.

أَلَيْسَ اللَّهُ بِكَافٍ عَبْدَهُ

(Is not Allah sufficient for His servant?)(39:36)

وَمَن يَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَى اللَّهِ فَهُوَ حَسْبُهُ

(And whosoever puts his trust in Allah, then He will suffice him.)(65:3) Allah combines worship and reliance in many places. He said:

فَاعْبُدْهُ وَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَيْهِ

(So worship Him and put your trust in Him.)(11:123)

قُلْ هُوَ الرَّحْمَٰنُ آمَنَّا بِهِ وَعَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلْنَا

(Say: "He is the Most Gracious (Allah), in Him we believe, and in Him we put our trust..)(67:29) and

رَّبُّ الْمَشْرِقِ وَالْمَغْرِبِ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ فَاتَّخِذْهُ وَكِيلًا

((He alone is) the Lord of the east and the west; none has the right to be worshipped but He. So take Him (alone) as a protector.)(73:9) And Allah commanded the believers to say many times in their Salah:

إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ

(You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything).)(1:5) The Children of Israel complied with this command and said:

عَلَى اللَّهِ تَوَكَّلْنَا رَبَّنَا لَا تَجْعَلْنَا فِتْنَةً لِّلْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

(In Allah we put our trust. Our Lord! Make us not a trial for the folk who are wrongdoers.) This means don't give them victory over us so that they rule us. So they might not think that they have authority over us because they were following the truth and we were falsehood. This might be a deceiving trial for them. This meaning was reported from Abu Mijliz and Abu Ad-Duha, 'Abdur-Razzaq, in a narration from Mujahid, said,

رَبَّنَا لَا تَجْعَلْنَا فِتْنَةً لِّلْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

(Our Lord! Make us not a trial for the folk who are wrongdoers) meaning, "Do not give them authority over us so they might make us fall into Fitnah." Allah's statement:

وَنَجِّنَا بِرَحْمَتِكَ

(And save us by Your mercy) means save us through Your mercy and beneficence

مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ

(from the disbelieving folk.) meaning, from those who denied the truth and covered it. We truly have believed in You and put our trust in You.