Al-Qalam (The Pen)

26. But when they entered the garden and beheld it, they said: “Indeed, we have gone astray.”

27. [Then they said:] “Nay! We are totally deprived of everything!”

28. The wisest among them said: “Did I not tell you: why do you not glorify Allah.

29. They said: “Glorified is Our Lord! Verily, we were wrong-doers.”

30. Then, they turned to each other, blaming one another.

These blessed Verses proceed with the story of the owners of the orchard as mentioned in the preceding blessed Verses. Aspiring to pick up their fruits unbeknownst to the needy, they intended to impede them from availing themselves of Divine Bounties.

They departed at daybreak, unaware of the lightning that had turned the orchard into ashes when they were asleep at night time. The blessed Verses reflect that when they beheld their orchard, they found it in such a mess that they thought it were not their orchard and they had lost their way.

The Arabic plural adjectival form

dhallun (“the astray”)

may connote that they had seemingly lost their way to the orchard or to the Truth, as suggested by some Qur’an exegetes, though the former sense seeming further befitting herein.

The blessed Verse 27 reflects that they regarded themselves as the true needy who aspired to deprive those in need from the produce. Their attempt at such impediment led to their deprivation from the material gains as well as the spiritual blessings accrued through expending in Cause of Allah and helping those in need.

The blessed Verse 28 is saying that the wisest of them at the time said:

“Did I not ask you to glorify Allah and remember His Majesty and refrain from disobeying Him and give thanks by helping the needy by expending your possessions. However, you failed to hearken to my words and met such dire fate.

The blessed Verse reflects that one of them believed in God Almighty and warned them against miserliness and avarice, but others failed to listen to him. However, following the incident he reproached them with further convincing logical arguments.

According to the blessed Verse 29, they experienced a rude awakening and confessed to their sins, saying that God Almighty is glorified and they were indubitably wrong doers and wronged themselves as well as others. The Arabic word awsat in the preceding blessed Verse connotes one who is moderate in terms of reason and sensibility.

The interrogative clause

“Why do you not glorify God Almighty”

alludes to the point that all righteous good deeds stem from belief in God Almighty, knowing and glorifying Him. However, some exegetes maintain that the Arabic verbal noun tasbih herein connotes giving thanks for the Bounties.

The blessed Verse 30 reflects that the brothers addressed each other and censured one another. Apparently, while confessing to his flaws, each of them tried to hold others accountable and severely rebuked others regarding others as the main cause of the calamity as he was not that unaware of God Almighty and justice.

That is the fate of all the wrong doers who get entangled with Divine torment, confessing to their sins but holding others responsible for their own afflictions. Nonetheless, it is goes without saying that they are all accountable for the misdeeds and vices.