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Surah 2 · Madinah · 286 āyāt
Phase 05 · Hijrah and the building of Madinah(1–5 AH) — view in timelineAl-BaqarahThe Cow
البقرة
The longest surah of the Qurʾān and, by revelation order, the 87th — the first substantial surah revealed after the Hijrah, and it grew across nearly the whole of the Madinan period. It opens the charter of the new community: the three classes of people (the believer, the disbeliever, the hypocrite), the story of Ādam and the khilāfah on earth, an extended reckoning with Banū Isrāʾīl and their covenant, the turning of the qiblah toward Makkah, and then sūrah-length legislation — fasting, ḥajj, marriage, divorce, war, charity and debt — closing with āyat al-Kursī, the āyah of ribā, the āyah of debt (the longest āyah in the Qurʾān) and the final two āyāt that the Prophet ﷺ said suffice a servant at night.
Why it was revealed
Madinah was a mixed city of Muhājirūn, Anṣār, Jewish tribes with treaties, and hypocrites who had not yet shown their hand. Al-Baqarah was revealed in stages to lay the foundation of this new society: its relationship to the earlier scriptural community, its direction of prayer, its law, and its distinct identity as 'a median nation'.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 4486 and 40; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 (the closing two āyāt); al-Suyūṭī, al-Itqān (on the last-revealed āyāt); Al-Suyūṭī, al-Itqān fī ʿUlūm al-Qurʾān; al-Wāḥidī, Asbāb al-Nuzūl; Ibn Kathīr on 2:142–144; Ibn Kathīr on 2:183–185; Ibn Kathīr on 2:190 and 2:216; Ibn Kathīr on 2:281; Ibn Kathīr on 2:40–123; Ibn Kathīr, introduction to al-Baqarah; Ibn Kathīr, introduction to Sūrat al-Baqarah; Ibn Hishām, al-Sīrah
Al-Suyūṭī reports that al-Baqarah was the first surah revealed in Madinah, though its āyāt continued to descend over a long span; the āyah of ribā and the āyah of debt (2:275–282) are counted among the very last revealed to the Prophet ﷺ before his death. Abū Masʿūd reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: "Whoever recites the last two āyāt of al-Baqarah at night, they will suffice him."
Cited toAl-Suyūṭī, al-Itqān fī ʿUlūm al-Qurʾān; Ibn Kathīr, introduction to Sūrat al-Baqarah; Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 (the closing two āyāt)
In the Prophet's ﷺ life
Arrival in Madinah and the new community's charter
Following the Hijrah, the Muhājirūn and Anṣār formed one body under the Prophet ﷺ while Madinah's Jewish tribes held treaties with him. Al-Baqarah opens by classifying all who heard the call: believers, disbelievers, and the hypocrites, whose portrait (2:8–20) responds directly to the conditions of the city.
Cited toIbn Kathīr, introduction to al-Baqarah; Ibn Hishām, al-Sīrah
- Madd — 2 vowels
- Madd — 2, 4 or 6 vowels
- Madd — 6 vowels (lāzim)
- Madd — 4 or 5 vowels (wājib)
- Ghunnah — 2 vowels
- Qalqalah
- Ikhfāʾ
- Ikhfāʾ shafawī
- Idghām shafawī
- Idghām with ghunnah
- Idghām without ghunnah
- Idghām mutajānisayn
- Idghām mutaqāribayn
- Iqlāb
- Hamzat al-waṣl
- Lām shamsiyyah
- Silent letter
Tajwīd markup and colour convention: Quran.com API (v4) — text_uthmani_tajweed. Recitation audio: Quran.com / Quran Foundation Audio API (v4).
Three classes and the guidance of the God-conscious
The surah opens with the disconnected letters, then names the Book as guidance for the muttaqīn — those who believe in the unseen, establish prayer and spend what they have been given. It then sets disbelief (2:6–7) and, at greater length, hypocrisy (2:8–20) against this description, giving the new Madinan community a mirror for self-examination.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:3; Ibn Kathīr on 2:2–3
ٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَـٰهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ
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Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them,
From the tafsīr
'Guidance for the muttaqīn' is restricted to those who act on the unseen; the Book increases the sincere in guidance while its outward wording does nothing for a heart already sealed.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:2–3
Belief in the unseen, prayer and spending are named first because they represent the heart's belief, the body's worship and wealth's worship together.
Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 2:3
Key takeaways
- Guidance is conditioned on taqwā, not merely on possessing the text.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:3; Ibn Kathīr on 2:2–3
- Belief, prayer and spending together define practical faith.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:3; Ibn Kathīr on 2:2–3
- The Qurʾān opens by asking you to place yourself in one of three categories, not by describing strangers.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:3; Ibn Kathīr on 2:2–3
Reflect
Which of the three groups — believer, disbeliever, hypocrite — does your last week of choices most resemble?
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Question 1 of 2
Why, per Ibn Kathīr, does the Qurʾān not increase the disbelieving heart in guidance?
Question 2 of 2
According to 2:3, what three things characterise the muttaqīn?
Ādam, the angels' question, and the khilāfah
Allah informs the angels He will place a khalīfah on earth; they raise the concern of corruption and bloodshed, and He answers 'I know what you do not know'. Ādam is taught the names, outperforms the angels in this test of knowledge, and is honoured with their prostration — while Iblīs refuses. Ādam and Ḥawwāʾ then fall through Shayṭān's whispering, repent with words taught by their Lord, and are sent to earth with a promise: guidance will come, and whoever follows it need not fear or grieve.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:31–33; Ibn Kathīr on 2:30
وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ إِنِّى جَاعِلٌ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً ۖ قَالُوٓا۟ أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَن يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا وَيَسْفِكُ ٱلدِّمَآءَ وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّىٓ أَعْلَمُ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
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And [mention, O Muḥammad], when your Lord said to the angels, "Indeed, I will make upon the earth a successive authority." They said, "Will You place upon it one who causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we exalt You with praise and declare Your perfection?" He [Allāh] said, "Indeed, I know that which you do not know."
From the tafsīr
The angels' question was one of seeking understanding, not objection; Allah's reply established that His knowledge encompasses reasons unseen even to the angels.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:30
Teaching Ādam 'the names of all things' is read as language and the essential nature of created things, a knowledge that let him answer where the angels could not.
Cited toAl-Ṭabarī on 2:31–33
Key takeaways
- Human weakness and corruption were foreknown by Allah yet the trust was still placed on earth.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:31–33; Ibn Kathīr on 2:30
- Knowledge, not mere worship, is what distinguished Ādam's honour in this episode.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:31–33; Ibn Kathīr on 2:30
- Repentance restores the relationship even after a foundational fall; the door was never closed.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:31–33; Ibn Kathīr on 2:30
Reflect
Where has knowledge — properly used — served you where mere routine has not?
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Question 1 of 2
What did Allah reply when the angels questioned the placing of a khalīfah on earth?
Question 2 of 2
What let Ādam succeed where the angels could not, per al-Ṭabarī?
Banū Isrāʾīl and the broken covenant
A long address to the Children of Israel recalls Allah's favours upon them — rescue from Firʿawn, the manna and quails, the covenant at Sinai — set against a repeated pattern of breaking that covenant, worshipping the calf, killing prophets and distorting the scripture. Āyah 21, addressed to 'O mankind', broadens the call to worship the one Creator that opens this long historical argument.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:40; Ibn Kathīr on 2:83
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ ٱعْبُدُوا۟ رَبَّكُمُ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَكُمْ وَٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
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O mankind, worship your Lord, who created you and those before you, that you may become righteous -
From the tafsīr
The address moves from a general call to humanity (2:21) into a specific covenant people, showing that the demand of tawḥīd is universal even where the history that follows is particular.
Cited toAl-Ṭabarī on 2:40
The covenant taken from Banū Isrāʾīl — kindness to parents, kin, orphans and the needy, and truthful speech — mirrors obligations later confirmed for the Muslim community, showing continuity of moral law across prophets.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:83
Key takeaways
- Favour carries responsibility; recounting blessings in the Qurʾān precedes an account of what was owed in return.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:40; Ibn Kathīr on 2:83
- The moral covenant — kindness to parents, kin and the vulnerable — is not unique to one nation.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:40; Ibn Kathīr on 2:83
- A people's decline is repeatedly tied in the Qurʾān to their own choices, not fatalism.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:40; Ibn Kathīr on 2:83
Reflect
Which favour in your own life have you received without reflecting on what it obliges you to do?
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Question 1 of 2
What does Ibn Kathīr note about the covenant mentioned in 2:83?
Question 2 of 2
What does 2:21 call all of mankind to do?
The turning of the qiblah and the median nation
Critics ask why the qiblah changed; the answer is that the change tested who would follow the Messenger against who would turn back. Allah names this community an ummatan wasaṭan — a median, balanced nation — witnesses over mankind as the Messenger is witness over them. Ibrāhīm's earlier trial and his prayer for a line of leadership (2:124) are recalled as the deep root of this identity, and the theme closes with the call to seek help through patience and prayer.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:143; Ibn Kathīr on 2:124
۞ وَإِذِ ٱبْتَلَىٰٓ إِبْرَٰهِـۧمَ رَبُّهُۥ بِكَلِمَـٰتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّى جَاعِلُكَ لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًا ۖ قَالَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِى ۖ قَالَ لَا يَنَالُ عَهْدِى ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ
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And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Abraham was tried by his Lord with words [i.e., commands] and he fulfilled them. [Allāh] said, "Indeed, I will make you a leader for the people." [Abraham] said, "And of my descendants?" [Allāh] said, "My covenant does not include the wrongdoers."
وَكَذَٰلِكَ جَعَلْنَـٰكُمْ أُمَّةً وَسَطًا لِّتَكُونُوا۟ شُهَدَآءَ عَلَى ٱلنَّاسِ وَيَكُونَ ٱلرَّسُولُ عَلَيْكُمْ شَهِيدًا ۗ وَمَا جَعَلْنَا ٱلْقِبْلَةَ ٱلَّتِى كُنتَ عَلَيْهَآ إِلَّا لِنَعْلَمَ مَن يَتَّبِعُ ٱلرَّسُولَ مِمَّن يَنقَلِبُ عَلَىٰ عَقِبَيْهِ ۚ وَإِن كَانَتْ لَكَبِيرَةً إِلَّا عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ هَدَى ٱللَّهُ ۗ وَمَا كَانَ ٱللَّهُ لِيُضِيعَ إِيمَـٰنَكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ بِٱلنَّاسِ لَرَءُوفٌ رَّحِيمٌ
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And thus We have made you a median [i.e., just] community that you will be witnesses over the people and the Messenger will be a witness over you. And We did not make the qiblah which you used to face except that We might make evident who would follow the Messenger from who would turn back on his heels. And indeed, it is difficult except for those whom Allāh has guided. And never would Allāh have caused you to lose your faith [i.e., your previous prayers]. Indeed Allāh is, to the people, Kind and Merciful.
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱسْتَعِينُوا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ وَٱلصَّلَوٰةِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ مَعَ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ
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O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allāh is with the patient.
From the tafsīr
Wasaṭ was understood by the earliest exegetes as 'just and best', a nation balanced between extremes in belief and practice, fit to bear witness over other nations on the Day of Judgement.
Cited toAl-Ṭabarī on 2:143
Ibrāhīm's covenant of leadership is explicitly denied to the wrongdoers among his descendants — honour by lineage alone was rejected even for the friend of Allah's own family.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:124
Key takeaways
- A change in ritual direction became a test of who genuinely follows guidance versus custom.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:143; Ibn Kathīr on 2:124
- 'Balance' in this community is a description with content — moderation, justice, and testimony to truth.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:143; Ibn Kathīr on 2:124
- Lineage guarantees nothing; Ibrāhīm's own request for his descendants was conditioned on their justice.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 2:143; Ibn Kathīr on 2:124
Reflect
In what area of your practice have you confused familiarity with genuine conviction?
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Question 1 of 2
What did Allah tell Ibrāhīm about his covenant of leadership extending to his descendants (2:124)?
Question 2 of 2
Why, per 2:143, was the change of qiblah instituted?
True righteousness (birr) and the fast of Ramaḍān
Āyah 177 redefines birr away from ritual orientation alone toward belief, generosity to the vulnerable, prayer, honesty in covenants and patience in hardship. The passage moves into the legislation of fasting, decreed 'as it was decreed upon those before you' so that taqwā, not hunger for its own sake, is the aim, with mercy shown throughout for the traveller and the sick.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:183; Ibn Kathīr on 2:177
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱسْتَعِينُوا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ وَٱلصَّلَوٰةِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ مَعَ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ
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O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allāh is with the patient.
۞ لَّيْسَ ٱلْبِرَّ أَن تُوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ قِبَلَ ٱلْمَشْرِقِ وَٱلْمَغْرِبِ وَلَـٰكِنَّ ٱلْبِرَّ مَنْ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ وَٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ وَٱلْكِتَـٰبِ وَٱلنَّبِيِّـۧنَ وَءَاتَى ٱلْمَالَ عَلَىٰ حُبِّهِۦ ذَوِى ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ وَٱلْيَتَـٰمَىٰ وَٱلْمَسَـٰكِينَ وَٱبْنَ ٱلسَّبِيلِ وَٱلسَّآئِلِينَ وَفِى ٱلرِّقَابِ وَأَقَامَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتَى ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱلْمُوفُونَ بِعَهْدِهِمْ إِذَا عَـٰهَدُوا۟ ۖ وَٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ فِى ٱلْبَأْسَآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ وَحِينَ ٱلْبَأْسِ ۗ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا۟ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُتَّقُونَ
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Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is [in] one who believes in Allāh, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveler, those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves; [and who] establishes prayer and gives zakāh; [those who] fulfill their promise when they promise; and [those who] are patient in poverty and hardship and during battle. Those are the ones who have been true, and it is those who are the righteous.
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
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O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous -
From the tafsīr
The āyah was revealed answering a dispute over facing east or west in prayer, redirecting attention to the substance of righteousness: belief and its fruits in wealth and conduct.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:177
'That you may become righteous' names taqwā as the fast's purpose; fasting trains the soul to leave what is permitted for Allah's sake, which strengthens leaving what is forbidden.
Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 2:183
Key takeaways
- Righteousness is defined by content — belief, charity, honesty, patience — not by ritual direction alone.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:183; Ibn Kathīr on 2:177
- Fasting was legislated across earlier nations too; it is not a novel burden but a shared discipline.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:183; Ibn Kathīr on 2:177
- The stated purpose of fasting is taqwā, which should be the measure of whether a fast has 'worked'.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 2:183; Ibn Kathīr on 2:177
Reflect
Does your fasting change your conduct toward people, or only your appetite?
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Question 1 of 2
What prompted the revelation of 2:177 on true righteousness?
Question 2 of 2
What does al-Saʿdī identify as the stated purpose of fasting in 2:183?
The obligation of fighting and the wisdom in what you dislike
Legislation for warfare is set within limits — fight those who fight you, do not transgress, and stop when they cease — while 2:216 states the deeper principle: battle is decreed though hateful to you, for you may hate a thing that is good for you and love a thing that is bad for you, and Allah knows what you do not.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 2:190; Ibn Kathīr on 2:216
كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلْقِتَالُ وَهُوَ كُرْهٌ لَّكُمْ ۖ وَعَسَىٰٓ أَن تَكْرَهُوا۟ شَيْـًٔا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ۖ وَعَسَىٰٓ أَن تُحِبُّوا۟ شَيْـًٔا وَهُوَ شَرٌّ لَّكُمْ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنتُمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
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Battle has been enjoined upon you while it is hateful to you. But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allāh knows, while you know not.
From the tafsīr
The āyah was revealed as fighting became obligatory rather than merely permitted, addressing the natural human aversion to war with a reminder that human judgement of benefit and harm is limited.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:216
The command not to transgress in fighting establishes that even a legitimate cause does not license unlimited means; the ethics of war are bound by the same revelation that permits it.
Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 2:190
Key takeaways
- Emotional aversion to a command does not indicate it is wrong for you.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 2:190; Ibn Kathīr on 2:216
- Legitimate causes still operate within limits set by revelation, not by expedience.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 2:190; Ibn Kathīr on 2:216
- Trusting Allah's knowledge over your own preference is a recurring test, not a one-off exception.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 2:190; Ibn Kathīr on 2:216
Reflect
Name one obligation you resent that may be functioning exactly as 2:216 describes.
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Question 1 of 2
What limit does al-Qurṭubī draw from 2:190's 'do not transgress'?
Question 2 of 2
What principle does 2:216 state about disliking what is decreed?
Āyat al-Kursī: the greatest āyah
Named by the Prophet ﷺ as the greatest āyah in the Qurʾān, it establishes Allah's unique life and self-sustenance, His freedom from drowsiness or sleep, His ownership of the heavens and earth, that no intercession occurs except by His permission, and that His Kursī encompasses the heavens and the earth without any weariness to Him.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ Muslim 810; Ibn Kathīr on 2:255
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْحَىُّ ٱلْقَيُّومُ ۚ لَا تَأْخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٌ وَلَا نَوْمٌ ۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ ۚ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ ۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ ۚ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفْظُهُمَا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِىُّ ٱلْعَظِيمُ
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Allāh - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Self-Sustaining. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursī extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great.
From the tafsīr
Ubayy ibn Kaʿb was asked by the Prophet ﷺ which āyah in the Book of Allah is greatest, and answered with āyat al-Kursī; the Prophet ﷺ struck his chest and said, 'Knowledge be pleased for you, Abū al-Mundhir.'
Cited toṢaḥīḥ Muslim 810
The āyah contains ten independent statements about Allah's names and attributes, more than any other single āyah, which is why scholars call it sayyidat āy al-Qurʾān, the mistress of the āyāt of the Qurʾān.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:255
Key takeaways
- No intercession takes place except by Allah's permission — this rules out any intermediary acting independently.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ Muslim 810; Ibn Kathīr on 2:255
- His knowledge extends to what is before and behind creation, and only what He wills is encompassed by others.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ Muslim 810; Ibn Kathīr on 2:255
- Preserving the heavens and the earth costs Him nothing; human fatigue is not analogous to His power.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ Muslim 810; Ibn Kathīr on 2:255
Reflect
Recite āyat al-Kursī and notice which of its ten statements you had not consciously reflected on before.
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Question 1 of 2
According to 2:255, under what condition does intercession occur before Allah?
Question 2 of 2
Which āyah did the Prophet ﷺ say was the greatest in the Qurʾān?
The prohibition of ribā and the āyah of debt
Those who consume ribā are described as unsettled like one touched by Shayṭān, because they equated trade with interest; Allah permitted trade and forbade ribā, granting amnesty for what is past to whoever desists. The surah's legal core closes with the great āyah commanding the writing down of debts (2:282, the Qurʾān's longest āyah) and ends with 2:286, affirming that Allah burdens no soul beyond its capacity, followed by the believers' prayer for pardon, forgiveness and help against the disbelieving people.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 on 2:285–286; Al-Qurṭubī on 2:282; Ibn Kathīr on 2:275
ٱلَّذِينَ يَأْكُلُونَ ٱلرِّبَوٰا۟ لَا يَقُومُونَ إِلَّا كَمَا يَقُومُ ٱلَّذِى يَتَخَبَّطُهُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ مِنَ ٱلْمَسِّ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّمَا ٱلْبَيْعُ مِثْلُ ٱلرِّبَوٰا۟ ۗ وَأَحَلَّ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ ٱلرِّبَوٰا۟ ۚ فَمَن جَآءَهُۥ مَوْعِظَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِۦ فَٱنتَهَىٰ فَلَهُۥ مَا سَلَفَ وَأَمْرُهُۥٓ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ ۖ وَمَنْ عَادَ فَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلنَّارِ ۖ هُمْ فِيهَا خَـٰلِدُونَ
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Those who consume interest cannot stand [on the Day of Resurrection] except as one stands who is being beaten by Satan into insanity. That is because they say, "Trade is [just] like interest." But Allāh has permitted trade and has forbidden interest. So whoever has received an admonition from his Lord and desists may have what is past, and his affair rests with Allāh. But whoever returns [to dealing in interest or usury] - those are the companions of the Fire; they will abide eternally therein.
لَا يُكَلِّفُ ٱللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا ۚ لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا ٱكْتَسَبَتْ ۗ رَبَّنَا لَا تُؤَاخِذْنَآ إِن نَّسِينَآ أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا ۚ رَبَّنَا وَلَا تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَآ إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُۥ عَلَى ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِنَا ۚ رَبَّنَا وَلَا تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِۦ ۖ وَٱعْفُ عَنَّا وَٱغْفِرْ لَنَا وَٱرْحَمْنَآ ۚ أَنتَ مَوْلَىٰنَا فَٱنصُرْنَا عَلَى ٱلْقَوْمِ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ
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Allāh does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned. "Our Lord, do not impose blame upon us if we have forgotten or erred. Our Lord, and lay not upon us a burden like that which You laid upon those before us. Our Lord, and burden us not with that which we have no ability to bear. And pardon us; and forgive us; and have mercy upon us. You are our protector, so give us victory over the disbelieving people."
From the tafsīr
The comparison to one struck by Shayṭān into disorder reflects a report that the ribā-consumer will rise from the grave in that unsettled state on the Day of Resurrection.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 2:275
The command to record debts in writing, with witnesses, is read by most scholars as a recommendation for the community's benefit rather than an absolute legal obligation, given the trust shown in smaller transactions later in the same āyah.
Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 2:282
The Prophet ﷺ said whoever recites the last two āyāt of al-Baqarah at night, they will suffice him — understood by scholars as protection and sufficiency against harm that night.
Cited toṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 on 2:285–286
Key takeaways
- Ribā is condemned as fundamentally different from trade despite the disbelievers' claim of equivalence.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 on 2:285–286; Al-Qurṭubī on 2:282; Ibn Kathīr on 2:275
- Documenting debts is presented as ordinary prudence, not distrust, and is commended even where not obligatory.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 on 2:285–286; Al-Qurṭubī on 2:282; Ibn Kathīr on 2:275
- The surah's closing prayer models turning weakness — forgetfulness, error, incapacity — directly to Allah rather than despairing of it.
Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 5009 and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 807 on 2:285–286; Al-Qurṭubī on 2:282; Ibn Kathīr on 2:275
Reflect
Where in your finances have you blurred the line between a fair trade and an exploitative one?
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Check yourself
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Question 1 of 2
What claim of the ribā-consumers does 2:275 reject?
Question 2 of 2
What did the Prophet ﷺ say about reciting the last two āyāt of al-Baqarah at night?
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Roots from this surah
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ه د ي
āyāt 2, 5, 26, 38, 120, 143, 213, 272to guide
- هُدًىguidance
- ٱهْدِنَاguide us
- مُهْتَدُونَrightly guided
ت ق و
āyāt 2, 21, 24, 63, 179, 183, 194, 197to guard oneself, be God-conscious
- ٱلْمُتَّقِينَthe God-conscious
- تَتَّقُونَyou may become righteous
- تَقْوَىٰGod-consciousness
ك ت ب
āyāt 78, 79, 183, 216, 246, 282, 283to write, decree
- ٱلْكِتَـٰبِthe Book
- كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُit is decreed upon you
- فَٱكْتُبُوهُso write it down
ع ه د
āyāt 27, 40, 80, 83, 124, 125, 177covenant, pledge
- عَهْدَ ٱللَّهِthe covenant of Allah
- عَهْدِىMy covenant
- عَـٰهَدُوا۟they pledged
ص ب ر
āyāt 45, 153, 155, 177, 249patience, steadfastness
- ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَthe patient
- ٱسْتَعِينُوا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِseek help through patience
- صَبْرًاpatience
ق ب ل
āyāt 125, 142, 143, 144, 149, 150direction, to face, to accept
- ٱلْقِبْلَةَthe direction of prayer
- فَتَقَبَّلْso accept
- قِبَلَtoward, facing
ر ب و
āyāt 275, 276, 278, 279, 280increase, interest/usury
- ٱلرِّبَوٰا۟interest
- يُرْبِىHe causes to grow
- يَمْحَقُHe effaces (used of ribā's outcome)
ع ل م
āyāt 30, 31, 32, 216, 255, 282to know
- أَعْلَمُI know
- عِلْمِهِۦHis knowledge
- يَعْلَمُونَthey know
ن ف ق
āyāt 3, 195, 215, 261, 262, 267, 274to spend
- يُنفِقُونَthey spend
- أَنفِقُوا۟spend
- نَفَقَةًan expenditure
س ل م
āyāt 112, 128, 131, 208peace, submission
- ٱلسِّلْمِsubmission / peace
- مُسْلِمًاone submitting
- أَسْلَمَhe submitted
Carry this with you
- Al-Baqarah lays the constitution of the Madinan community: belief, worship, law and identity together.
- Guidance is granted to those who act on it, not merely to those who possess the text.
- Knowledge, not status alone, distinguished Ādam's honour before the angels.
- A change in ritual direction became a real test of sincere following versus inherited habit.
- This community's balance (wasaṭ) is a description with ethical content, not a vague middle ground.
- Fasting is legislated for taqwā; its purpose is measured by conduct, not hunger alone.
- Emotional resistance to a command is not proof that the command is wrong for you.
- Āyat al-Kursī compresses more of Allah's names and attributes into one āyah than anywhere else in the Qurʾān.
- Ribā and trade are not equivalent despite the claim; the difference is stated, not merely asserted.
- The surah's closing prayer models turning weakness directly to Allah rather than concealing it.
Where this surah connects
Cross-surah threads
Parts of the Qurʾān explain other parts. Each thread below opens the same subject as it is argued across every other surah you have studied, in revelation order.
Sources behind Sūrah Al-Baqarah
Every line of context, tafsīr and takeaway on this page traces back to one of these references. Ḥadīth numbers open on sunnah.com and āyah references open on quran.com, so you can check the claim rather than take it on trust. The Arabic text itself is fetched live from a verified public corpus.
Ḥadīth6
Tafsīr26
- Al-Qurṭubī on 2:190
- Al-Qurṭubī on 2:282
- Al-Saʿdī on 2:183
- Al-Saʿdī on 2:3
- al-Suyūṭī, al-Itqān (on the last-revealed āyāt)
- Al-Suyūṭī, al-Itqān fī ʿUlūm al-Qurʾān
- Al-Ṭabarī on 2:143
- Al-Ṭabarī on 2:21
- Al-Ṭabarī on 2:31–33
- Al-Ṭabarī on 2:40
- al-Wāḥidī, Asbāb al-Nuzūl
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:124
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:142–144
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:177
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:183–185
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:190 and 2:216
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:2–3
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:216
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:255
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:275
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:281
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:30
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:40–123
- Ibn Kathīr on 2:83
- Ibn Kathīr, introduction to al-Baqarah
- Ibn Kathīr, introduction to Sūrat al-Baqarah
Seerah & history1
- Ibn Hishām, al-Sīrah
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Al-Baqarah — full exam
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Al-Baqarah · The obligation of fighting and the wisdom in what you dislike
What principle does 2:216 state about disliking what is decreed?
Arabic (Uthmānī script) and the Ṣaḥīḥ International translation are fetched live from the Quran.com API (v4), sourced from the King Fahd Complex muṣḥaf — api.quran.com API docs · Translation: Ṣaḥīḥ International · Integrity & testing protocol