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Word Analysis & Comparison
14. Surah • 4. Verse
Word Analysis
وَمَآ
wamā
And not
مِن
min
any
إِلَّا
illā
except
لَهُمْ ۖ
lahum
for them
ٱللَّهُ
l-lahu
Then Allah lets go astray
مَن
man
whom
مَن
man
whom
وَهُوَ
wahuwa
And He
Rashad Khalifa
The Final Testament
We did not send any messenger except (to preach) in the tongue of his people, in order to clarify things for them. GOD then sends astray whomever He wills, and guides whomever He wills. He is the Almighty, the Most Wise.
The Monotheist Group
The Quran: A Monotheist Translation
And We have not sent any messenger except in the language of his people, so he may clarify for them. But God misguides whom He wills, and He guides whom He wills. And He is the Noble, the Wise.
Edip-Layth
Quran: A Reformist Translation
We did not send any messenger except in the language of his people, so he may proclaim to them. But God misguides whom He wills, and He guides whom He wills. He is the Noble, the Wise.
Al-Hilali & Khan
Holy Quran Translation
And We sent not a Messenger except with the language of his people, in order that he might make (the Message) clear for them. Then Allâh misleads whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.
Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Holy Quran Translation
We sent not a messenger except (to teach) in the language of his (own) people, in order to make (things) clear to them. Now Allah leaves straying those whom He pleases and guides whom He pleases: and He is Exalted in power, full of Wisdom.
Marmaduke Pickthall
Holy Quran Translation
And We never sent a messenger save with the language of his folk, that he might make (the message) clear for them. Then Allah sendeth whom He will astray, and guideth whom He will. He is the Mighty, the Wise.
Taqi Usmani
Holy Quran Translation
We did not send any messenger but (speaking) in the language of his people, so that he might clearly convey the message to them. So, Allah lets go astray whom He wills and lets find guidance whom He wills. And He is the Mighty, the Wise.
Abdul Haleem
Holy Quran Translation
We have never sent a messenger who did not use his own people’s language to make things clear for them. But still God leaves whoever He will to stray, and guides whoever He will: He is the Almighty, the All Wise.
Mustafa Khattab
The Clear Quran
We have not sent a messenger except in the language of his people to clarify ˹the message˺ for them. Then Allah leaves whoever He wills to stray and guides whoever He wills. And He is the Almighty, All-Wise.
Abul A'la Maududi
Tafhim commentary
Never have We sent a Messenger but he has addressed his people in their language that he may fully expound his Message to them.[1] (And after the Message is expounded), Allah lets go astray whomsoever He wills, and guides to the Right Way whomsoever He wills.[2] He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.[3]
1
This implies two things: First, Allah sent down His message in the language of the people from among whom a Prophet was raised so that they might not have any excuse left that they could not understand the language of the message. Secondly, this ruled out the presumption that a Messenger was ever given the message in a different language merely for the sake of a miracle. For Allah considered it more important to make the people understand the message and guide them rightly than to satisfy their curiosity. Obviously the purpose could best be served only if the message was sent down to them in their own language by their Prophet and not in any other.
2
That is, although the Messenger conveys the message in the mother tongue of the people, which is understood by everyone of them, yet all of them are not guided aright. This happens because of the fact that all of those who understand a message do not necessarily accept it. For it is entirely with Allah to show guidance by means of His message to anyone He wills and to let go astray anyone in spite of it.
3
As Allah is All-Powerful, no one is able by oneself to get guidance or to go astray, for none is completely independent but is under the power of Allah. But as He is All-Wise, He does not use His power blindly so as to show guidance to anyone He wills and to let go astray anyone He desires without rhyme or reason. In fact, the one who gets guidance from Him gets it on merit and the one who is let go astray is deprived of guidance because he himself deliberately chooses deviation.
Mohamed Ahmed - Samira
Holy Quran Translation
We never sent a messenger who did not speak the tongue of his people, that he may explain to them distinctly. God leads whosoever He wills astray, and shows whoever He wills the way: He is all-mighty and all-wise.
Aisha Bewley
Holy Quran Translation
We have not sent any Messenger except with the language of his people so he can make things clear to them. Allah misguides anyone He wills and guides anyone He wills. He is the Almighty, the All-Wise.
George Sale
Holy Quran Translation
We have sent no apostle but with the language of his people, that he might declare their duty plainly unto them: For God causeth to err whom He pleaseth, and directeth whom He pleaseth; and He is the mighty, the wise.
Hamid S. Aziz
Holy Quran Translation
We never sent a Messenger save with the language of his people, that he might clarify the message to them. Then Allah leads whom He will astray, and guides whom He will; and He is the Mighty, the Wise.
E. Henry Palmer
Holy Quran Translation
We have not sent any apostle save with the language of his people, that he might explain to them. But God leads whom He will astray, and guides whom He will; and He is the mighty, the wise.
Amatul Rahman Omar
Holy Quran Translation
And We sent no Messenger but (he spoke) in the language of his people so that he might make (all Our Messages) clear to them, yet Allâh leaves in error those who wish to remain in error and guides him who wishes to be guided (to the right path). And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.
Mahmoud Ghali
Holy Quran Translation
And in no way have We sent any Messenger except with the tongue of his people, that he may make (the message) evident for them. Then Allah leads into error whomever He decides and guides whomever He decides; and He is The Ever-Mighty, The Ever-Wise.
Bijan Moeinian
Holy Quran Translation
For those who ask why Qur’an is not revealed in another language as a miracle!] God has always sent His words to each nation on their own language so that they may get the message clearly. [The message thus being clear], God then makes whoever he pleases [of the disbelievers] to walk on the wrong path and whoever he pleases to join the right path and He is the All Mighty, the Wisest.
Ali Quli Qarai
Holy Quran Translation
We did not send any apostle except with the language of his people, so that he might make [Our messages] clear to them. Then Allah leads astray whomever He wishes, and He guides whomsoever He wishes, and He is the All-mighty, the All-wise.
Arthur John Arberry
Holy Quran Translation
And We have sent no Messenger save with the tongue of his people, that he might make all clear to them; then God leads astray whomsoever He will, and He guides whomsoever He will; and He is the All-mighty, the All-wise.
Muhammad Asad
Holy Quran Translation
AND NEVER have We sent forth any apostle otherwise than [with a message] in his own people's tongue, so that he might make [the truth] clear unto them; but God lets go astray him that wills [to go astray], and guides him that wills [to be guided] -for He alone is almighty, truly wise.
Abdel Khalek Himmat
Al- Muntakhab
We never sent a Messenger, to a people, who did not master their tongue so that he makes himself understood, distinctly expressing all that is meant leaving nothing merely implied. There and then does Allah misguide whom He will and guides to His path of righteousness whom He will, and He is the AL-Aziz (the Almighty) and AL-Hakim (the Source of wisdom and wise mysterious dispensations).
Shabbir Ahmed
Holy Quran Translation
We never sent a Messenger who did not speak the language of his people, so that he might make the Message clear to them. People go astray or attain guidance according to Allah's Laws (4:88). He is Almighty, Wise.
Syed Vickar Ahamed
Holy Quran Translation
We did not send a messenger except (to teach) in the language of his (own) people, so as to make (things) clear to them. Then Allah leaves wandering those whom He pleases: And guides whomsoever He wills: And He is the Exalted in Power (Al-Aziz), the Full of Wisdom (Al-Hakeem).
Progressive Muslims
Holy Quran Translation
And We have not sent any messenger except in the language of his people, so he may clarify to them. But God misguides whom He wills, and He guides whom He wills. And He is the Noble, the Wise.
Sahih International
(Umm Muhammad, Mary Kennedy, Amatullah Bantley)
And We did not send any messenger except [speaking] in the language of his people to state clearly for them, and Allah sends astray [thereby] whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.
Sam Gerrans
The Qur'an: A Complete Revelation
And We sent a messenger only in the tongue of his people, that he might make plain to them; and God sends astray whom He wills, and guides whom He wills; and He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.