أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ ٱشْتَرَوُا۟ ٱلضَّلَٰلَةَ بِٱلْهُدَىٰ وَٱلْعَذَابَ بِٱلْمَغْفِرَةِ فَمَآ أَصْبَرَهُمْ عَلَى ٱلنَّارِ
“Those are they who purchase error at the price of guidance, and torment at the price of pardon. How constant are they in their strife to reach the Fire!” — M. M. Pickthall
Zemahşerî states that the expression 'being upon the fire' (على النار) refers to being close to fire, leaning against it and benefiting from it, standing or sitting nearby while surrounding it. In this situation, people are positioned as if they dominate or are elevated above the fire, just as the preposition 'على' carries the meaning of proximity and encompassment.
أو لأن المصطلين بها والمستمتعين بها إذا تكنفوها قياما وقعودا كانوا مشرفين عليهاAccording to Râzî, for the expression 'what makes them so patient with the fire' (مَا أَصْبَرَهُمْ عَلَى النَّارِ), there are two fundamental views: the first is that this is an interrogative expression of blame or reproach (meaning 'what made them patient/steadfast with the fire, what caused them to abandon the truth and follow falsehood'), the second is that it expresses taaccüb (expression of amazement). According to the taaccüb interpretation, when a person consents to something that necessitates fire and knowingly commits it, they are considered as if they consented to the punishment and showed patience toward it. Râzî also discusses the relationship of this expression with the concept of 'ajab' attributed to Allah, bringing evidence from both the Qur'an (Ra'd 5) and a hadith, and notes that amazement attributed to Allah differs from amazement in humans.
أحدهما : أن { ما } في هذه الآية استفهام التوبيخ معناه : ما الذي أصبرهم وأي شيء صبرهم على النار حتى تركوا الحق واتبعوا الباطل وهذا قول عطاء وابن زيدAccording to this exegete, the particle 'ma' in the verse, according to the majority of scholars (Hasan, Mujahid), expresses amazement/astonishment and means 'let their patience with fire be wondered at'; Hasan, Katada, Ibn Jubayr, and Rabi' have interpreted this as 'what audacity drives them toward the fire', basing it on Yemenite dialect. Furthermore, according to Ibn Abbas, Suddi, Ata, and Abu Ubaida, 'ma' carries the meaning of istifham-ı tevbih (a question of reproach/rebuke) and means 'what is their persistence in the deeds of the people of fire'.
قال الحسن وقتادة وبن جبير والربيع : ما لهم والله عليها من صبر ولكن ما أجراهم على النار وهي لغة يمنية معروفةAccording to Ibn Kesîr, the verse indicates that the disbelievers, by choosing punishment instead of forgiveness and committing the causes leading to it, are in a severe, great, and terrible punishment to such a degree that it causes astonishment when their steadfastness and persistence toward the fire they find themselves in is observed. It is narrated that another meaning of this expression also points to how persistent and steadfast they were in committing the sins that led them to the fire.
يخبر تعالى أنهم في عذاب شديد عظيم هائل يتعجب من رآهم فيها من صبرهم على ذلك مع شدة ماهم فيه من العذاب والنكال والأغلالTaberî conveys two different interpretations of the particle 'ma' in the expression 'how patient they are with the fire' (فما أصبرهم على النار): according to some exegetes, this is in the sense of istifham (questioning), meaning 'what makes them patient/steadfast with the fire?'; according to others, it is in the sense of taaccüb (expression of amazement), meaning 'how extreme is their audacity driving them toward the fire'. Taberî himself prefers the view of taaccüb, noting that the demonstrative pronoun 'that' in the verse refers back to all the matters mentioned in the verse.
وقال آخرون: هو تعجب، يعني: فما أشد جرأتهم على النار بعملهم أعمال أهل النارAccording to Beydâvî, what those who conceal what was revealed in the Book and take a small price in exchange will eat in their bellies is fire; this situation is expressed either metaphorically as eating fire because what they received in exchange leads to fire, or it means they will literally eat fire on the Day of Resurrection. Allah not speaking to them expresses His anger toward them and their deprivation of the honor shown to those near to Him. These people preferred in this world to trade guidance for misguidance and in the next world forgiveness for punishment, and amazement is expressed at the striking patience they showed toward the fire.
ولا يكلمهم الله يوم القيامة عبارة عن غضبه عليهمCommon ground
All exegetes agree that the particle 'ma' in the verse revolves around two fundamental semantic axes: either taaccüb (amazement) or istifham-ı tevbih (a question of reproach/rebuke). Furthermore, most of them converge on the point that the emphasis is on the disbelievers' insistence and steadfastness in abandoning truth, pursuing falsehood, trading guidance for misguidance.
Differences
While Zemahşerî addresses the matter more by focusing on the linguistic/literary meaning of proximity and encompassment of the preposition 'على', Râzî and Taberî support the distinction between istifham and taaccüb with narrations and make a choice (Taberî emphasizes taaccüb). Kurtubî details these two views by naming the Companions and Successors and adds a linguistic explanation such as Yemenite dialect. Ibn Kesîr and Beydâvî, on the other hand, offer more moral/functional interpretations, drawing attention to the severity of insistence in sin; Beydâvî further expands the expression 'eating fire' in the context of the verse with a discussion of metaphor versus literal meaning.
Historical context
Early-period exegetes (Taberî, Zemahşerî) rely more on narration and linguistic analysis, while later-period exegetes (Râzî, Kurtubî, Ibn Kesîr, Beydâvî) systematized this accumulated knowledge and divided the istifham-taaccüb discussion into clearer categories, bringing together different views of Companions and Successors. The basic interpretive framework remained largely stable over time, with development primarily in the direction of linguistic deepening and systematization of narrations.
The different interpretations of this verse draw attention to how a person who knowingly insists on a wrong path can end up developing an attitude that harms themselves. In our time, this can serve as food for thought regarding not concealing the truth for personal gain even when one knows what is correct, protecting both knowledge and conscience together, and acting with sincerity. Thus, the verse can be connected with the theme of an individual taking responsibility for their own choices and not compromising on truthfulness.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar