Surah Ar-Room · سُوْرَةُ الرُّوْمِ · Juz 21

Q 30:9

أَوَلَمْ يَسِيرُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَيَنظُرُوا۟ كَيْفَ كَانَ عَـٰقِبَةُ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ ۚ كَانُوٓا۟ أَشَدَّ مِنْهُمْ قُوَّةً وَأَثَارُوا۟ ٱلْأَرْضَ وَعَمَرُوهَآ أَكْثَرَ مِمَّا عَمَرُوهَا وَجَآءَتْهُمْ رُسُلُهُم بِٱلْبَيِّنَـٰتِ ۖ فَمَا كَانَ ٱللَّهُ لِيَظْلِمَهُمْ وَلَـٰكِن كَانُوٓا۟ أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ

Translations

Have they not traveled through the earth and observed how was the end of those before them? They were greater than them in power, and they plowed the earth and built it up more than they have built it up, and their messengers came to them with clear evidences. And Allah would not ever have wronged them, but they were wronging themselves.

Sahih International · EN

N'ont-ils pas parcouru la terre pour voir ce qu'il est advenu de ceux qui ont vécu avant eux? Ceux-là les surpassaient en puissance et avaient labouré et peuplé la terre bien plus qu'ils ne l'ont fait eux-mêmes. Leurs messagers leur vinrent avec des preuves évidentes. Ce n'est pas Allah qui leur fit du tort; mais ils se firent du tort à eux-mêmes.

Muhammad Hamidullah · FR

Tafsir

Do these people not travel the earth so that they can ponder over what the outcome of the nations who rejected Allah before them was? Those nations were much stronger than them; they adapted the land for farming and construction, and populated it much more than these people have. Their Messengers brought clear proofs and evidences for the oneness of Allah but they were rejected. So when Allah punished them, He was not oppressive, rather they themselves were oppressive by leading themselves to destruction by disbelief.

Al-Mukhtasar fi Tafsir al-Quran · Tafsir Center for Quranic Studies

Read Ibn Kathir (Ibn Kathir (abridged, English))

الرَّحِيمُ (the Most Merciful.) means, towards His believing servants. وَعْدَ اللَّهِ ۖ لَا يُخْلِفُ اللَّهُ وَعْدَهُ ((It is) a promise of Allah, and Allah fails not in His promise.) means, ‘this that We have told you, O Muhammad, that the Romans will defeat the Persians, is a true promise from Allah, truth which cannot be changed and which will surely come to pass, because Allah has decreed that the one of the two parties that is closer to the truth will prevail and that victory will be theirs.’ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ (but most men know not) means, they do not know the decree of Allah concerning His creation, but what He does is wise and is based on justice. His saying:

Arabic text: Tanzil (Uthmani). Translations: Sahih International (en), Muhammad Hamidullah (fr). tanzil.net