Surah Al-Anbya Ayah 20 (21:20) — Meaning & Tafsir | Quran.GG

Surah Al-Anbya, Ayah 20

21:20 · Meaning and tafsir

يُسَبِّحُونَ ٱلَّيْلَ وَٱلنَّهَارَ لَا يَفْتُرُونَ ٢٠

They exalt [Him] night and day [and] do not slacken.

Surah Al-Anbya 21:20 in Arabic with its translation: “They exalt [Him] night and day [and] do not slacken.”

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Tafsir Ibn Kathir (abridged)

Creation was made with Justice and Wisdom

Allah tells us that He created the heavens and the earth in truth, i.e. with justice.

لِيَجْزِىَ الَّذِينَ أَسَاءُواْ بِمَا عَمِلُواْ وَيِجْزِى الَّذِينَ أَحْسَنُواْ بِالْحُسْنَى

(that He may requite those who do evil with that which they have done, and reward those who do good, with what is best.) 53:31. He did not create all that in vain or for (mere) play:

وَمَا خَلَقْنَا السَّمَآءَ وَالاٌّرْضَ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا بَـطِلاً ذَلِكَ ظَنُّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ فَوَيْلٌ لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ مِنَ النَّارِ

(And We created not the heaven and the earth and all that is between them without purpose! That is the consideration of those who disbelieve! Then woe to those who disbelieve from the Fire!) 38:27

Continue reading the tafsir of ayahs 16–20

Ma'arif al-Qur'an

This point has been brought to a conclusion in the next verse by saying يُسَبِّحُونَ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ‌ لَا يَفْتُرُ‌ونَ , (They proclaim His purity night and day, never slackening - 21:20).

Sayyidna ` Abdullah Ibn Harith ؓ عنہ said that he asked Ka` b al-Abbar ؓ how it was that angels kept reciting tasbih (proclaiming Allah's purity) all the time. Did they not have anything else to do? And if they did how could they do both things simultaneously, that is reciting tasbih and do other things. To this Ka'b replied "0 my nephew! Does performance of any of your jobs prevent you from breathing?" The truth is that tasbih comes to angels just as breathing comes to human beings which continues without stopping whatever else he may be doing.(Qurtubi, Al-Bahr ul-Muhit)

Tazkirul Quran

Every object on the earth and in the skies is God’s creation. Everything behaves as has been divinely ordained. In the entire universe, it is only man who is arrogant and disobedient. Those who do not believe in God indulge in arrogance and disobedience on the plea that there is nobody to rule over them, and they are free to do as they like. Those who believe in God also indulge in arrogance and disobedience, but they offer a different explanation for this behaviour. They take some particular individuals other than God as intermediaries and recommenders. They assume them to be closer to God and presume that if from time to time they are paid homage and obeisance, they will intercede with God for their salvation. Some assume angels to be the intermediaries, while others attribute such qualities to other human beings. But all such theories are totally baseless. If one has such a deep insight as to have a clear vision of Reality at the universal level, he will see that those beings (who are supposed to have divine attributes) are themselves awe-struck by God’s majesty and kneel down before Him. Ironically, it is in their name that man has adopted an attitude of arrogance and disobedience in the world.

Uthmani text of the Madinah mushaf (King Fahd Complex). Translation: Saheeh International. Tafsir via Quran.com.