Surah 11:47

"He said, ‘My Lord, surely I take refuge with You for asking You about what I have no knowledge of, and unless You forgive me and have compassion on me, I shall be one of the losers.’"

Christian Footnotes (1)Islamic Commentaries (1)Manuscripts (44)

A Return to the Story of the Son of Nuh and mentioning what transpired between Nuh and Allah concerning Him Verses 11:45-47

Show Full Scripture Context (11:45-47) — 3 Verses

Verse 45

وَنَادَىٰ نُوحٞ رَّبَّهُۥ فَقَالَ رَبِّ إِنَّ ٱبۡنِي مِنۡ أَهۡلِي وَإِنَّ وَعۡدَكَ ٱلۡحَقُّ وَأَنتَ أَحۡكَمُ ٱلۡحَٰكِمِينَ

And Noah called out to his Lord, and said, ‘My Lord, surely my son is one of my family, and surely Your promise is the truth, and You are the most just of judges.’

Verse 46

قَالَ يَٰنُوحُ إِنَّهُۥ لَيۡسَ مِنۡ أَهۡلِكَۖ إِنَّهُۥ عَمَلٌ غَيۡرُ صَٰلِحٖۖ فَلَا تَسۡـَٔلۡنِ مَا لَيۡسَ لَكَ بِهِۦ عِلۡمٌۖ إِنِّيٓ أَعِظُكَ أَن تَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلۡجَٰهِلِينَ

He said, ‘Noah! Surely he is not one of your family. Surely it is an unrighteous deed. So do not ask Me about what you have no knowledge of. Surely I admonish you not to be one of the ignorant.’

Verse 47

قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّيٓ أَعُوذُ بِكَ أَنۡ أَسۡـَٔلَكَ مَا لَيۡسَ لِي بِهِۦ عِلۡمٞۖ وَإِلَّا تَغۡفِرۡ لِي وَتَرۡحَمۡنِيٓ أَكُن مِّنَ ٱلۡخَٰسِرِينَ

He said, ‘My Lord, surely I take refuge with You for asking You about what I have no knowledge of, and unless You forgive me and have compassion on me, I shall be one of the losers.’

This was a request for information and an inquiry from Nuh concerning the cirumstances of his son's drowning.

Quoted Scripture

"and said, ''O my Lord! Verily, my son is of my family!""

This means, "Verily, You promised to save my family and Your promise is the truth that does not fail. Therefore, how can he (my son) be drowned and You are the Most Just of the judges?"

Quoted Scripture

"He (Allah) said: "O Nuh! Surely, he is not of your family...""

This means, "He (your son) is not of those whom I promised to save. I only promised you that I would save those of your family who believe." For this reason Allah said,

{and your family except him against whom the Word has already gone forth.} 11:40

Thus, for his son, it had already been decreed that he would be drowned due to his disbelief and his opposition to his father, the Prophet of Allah, Nuh peace be upon him.

Concerning Allah's statement,

Quoted Scripture

"Surely, he is not of your family;"

meaning that he (Nuh's son) was not among those whom Allah promised to save.

'Abdur-Razzaq recorded that Ibn 'Abbas said, "He was the son of Nuh, but he opposed him in deeds and intention." Ikrimah said in some of the modes of recitation it said here,

"Verily, he (Nuh's son) worked deeds that were not righteous."

About this Source & Scholarly Authority (Tafsir Ibn Kathir)

Universal Sunni Consensus: Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim by Hafiz Ibn Kathir (701–774 AH / 1301–1373 AD) is universally regarded across all major schools of Sunni Islam (traditional, Salafi, Ash'ari) as the most authoritative classical exegesis. It is prized because it relies on Tafsir bil-Ma'thur—interpreting the Quran using the Quran itself, authentic Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, and recorded statements of the early Companions (Sahabah).

Standard English Edition: This text is from the standard 10-volume English abridgment published by Dar-us-Salam Publications (supervised by Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri), which is the official, most widely distributed English Quranic commentary in mosques and Islamic libraries worldwide today.

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