Sura 44, ad-Dukhan [the smoke], Mecca 64

The Quranic text and Ali’s version

إِنَّ شَجَرَةَ الزَّقُّومِ ﴿٤٣﴾

44:43. Verily the tree of Zaqqum

C4721. Now follows a word-picture of the horrors to which Evil must lead us. What human language and what figures of speech can adequately describe them?

C4722. The opposite of "delicious Fruits" is the terrible tree of Zaqqam, which is further described in 37:62-68, where see n. 4073.

Also see 17:60, n. 2250.

طَعَامُ الْأَثِيمِ ﴿٤٤﴾

44. Will be the food of the Sinful --

كَالْمُهْلِ يَغْلِي فِي الْبُطُونِ ﴿٤٥﴾

45. Like molten brass; it will boil in their insides,

كَغَلْيِ الْحَمِيمِ ﴿٤٦﴾

46. Like the boiling of scalding water.

خُذُوهُ فَاعْتِلُوهُ إِلَى سَوَاء الْجَحِيمِ ﴿٤٧﴾

47. (A voice will cry:)

"Seize ye him and drag him into the midst of the Blazing Fire!

ثُمَّ صُبُّوا فَوْقَ رَأْسِهِ مِنْ عَذَابِ الْحَمِيمِ ﴿٤٨﴾

48. "Then pour over his head the Penalty of Boiling Water;

ذُقْ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْكَرِيمُ ﴿٤٩﴾

49. "Taste thou (this)!

Truly wast thou Mighty, full of honor!

C4723. In this particular Surah the besetting sin we are considering is the arrogance born of place or power, wealth or honour, as understood in this world. The punishment of ignominy looks back to the kind of sin which is to be punished.

إِنَّ هَذَا مَا كُنتُم بِهِ تَمْتَرُونَ ﴿٥٠﴾

50. "Truly this is what ye used to doubt!"

C4724. When the Punishment becomes a realized fact, how foolish will those look who doubted whether there would be a Hereafter?

إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي مَقَامٍ أَمِينٍ ﴿٥١﴾