19. Maryam Mecca 44

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

وَكَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا قَبْلَهُم مِّن قَرْنٍ...   

19:98.  But how many (countless) generation before them have We destroyed?

C2533. Cf. 19:74, from which this sentence is brought up as a reminiscence, showing the progress of sin, the Guidance which Allah gives to the good, the degradation of blasphemy, the respite granted, and the final End, when personal responsibility will be enforced.

...هَلْ تُحِسُّ مِنْهُم مِّنْ أَحَدٍ أَوْ تَسْمَعُ لَهُمْ رِكْزًا ﴿٩٨﴾

Canst thou find a single one of them (now) or hear (so much as) a whisper of them?


Other versions:


19:98

Wakam ahlakna qablahum min qarnin hal tuhissu minhum min ahadin aw tasmaAAu lahum rikzan

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Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning

Muhammad Asad

 

for, how many a generation have We destroyed before their time - [and] canst thou perceive any one of them [now], or hear any whisper of them?

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M. M. Pickthall

 

And how many a generation before them have We destroyed! Canst thou (Muhammad) see a single man of them, or hear from them the slightest sound?

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Shakir

 

And how many a generation have We destroyed before them! Do you see any one of them or hear a sound of them?

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Yusuf Ali

 

But how many (countless) generations before them have We destroyed? Canst thou find a single one of them (now) or hear (so much as) a whisper of them?

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[Al-Muntakhab]

 

How many generations before them have We reduced to a useless form. Look around and see if you can find any one of them or hear their voice, be it uttered loudly or under their breath!

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[Progressive Muslims]

 

And how many a generation have We destroyed before them Do you perceive any of them or hear from them a sound



[[ Yuksel note-

016:044 The Arabic word BaYaNa means (1) explain an ambiguous message; or (2) declare a hidden message. This multiple-meaning verse is one of the most abused verses by the followers of hadith hearsay. They choose the first meaning. Their rendering, however, contradicts many verses of the Quran: the Quran is explained not by Muhammad, but by its author, God Himself (75:19).

Thus it is described as a "clarified/explained book" (5:15; 12:1; 26:195; 44:6), and we are reminded over and over that it is "easy to understand" (54:17,22,32,40). Thus, the second alternative is the intended meaning, since the Quran was received by Muhammad in a private session called revelation, and his job was to deliver and declare the message he received. God orders Muhammad to proclaim the revelation which is revealed to him personally. Indeed, this is the whole mission of the messengers (16:35). Thus, the word "litubayyena" of 16:44 is similar to the one in 3:187. Verse 3:187 tells us that the people who received the revelation should "proclaim the scripture to the people, and never conceal it." See 2:159,160; 3:187 and 16:64. For a comparative discussion on verse 16:44, see the Sample Comparisons section in the Introduction.

The Quran is simple to understand (54:11). Whoever opens his/her mind and heart as a monotheist and takes the time to study it, will understand it. This understanding will be enough for salvation. Beyond this, to understand the multiple-meaning verses you do not need to be a messenger of God. If you have a good mind and have studied the Quran as a believer, that is, if you have a deep knowledge, then you will be able to understand the true meanings of multiple-meaning verses. The verse 3:7, which is about the multiple-meaning verses, points this fact in a multiple-meaning way (this is an interesting subject which warrants another article): ". . . No one knows their true meaning except God and those who possess knowledge. . ." ]]