Surah 17

Surah 17:81

"And say: ‘The truth has come and falsehood has passed away. Surely falsehood is (bound) to pass away.’"
The Command to emigrate Verses 17:80-81
Show Full Scripture Context (17:80-81) — 2 Verses
Verse 80

وَقُل رَّبِّ أَدۡخِلۡنِي مُدۡخَلَ صِدۡقٖ وَأَخۡرِجۡنِي مُخۡرَجَ صِدۡقٖ وَٱجۡعَل لِّي مِن لَّدُنكَ سُلۡطَٰنٗا نَّصِيرٗا

And say: ‘My Lord, cause me to enter a truthful entrance, and cause me to exit a truthful exit, and grant me authority from Yourself (to) help (me).’

Verse 81

وَقُلۡ جَآءَ ٱلۡحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ ٱلۡبَٰطِلُۚ إِنَّ ٱلۡبَٰطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقٗا

And say: ‘The truth has come and falsehood has passed away. Surely falsehood is (bound) to pass away.’

Imam Ahmad recorded that Ibn 'Abbas said: The Prophet was in Makkah, then he was commanded to emigrate, and Allah revealed the words:

Quoted Scripture
"And say: "My Lord! Let my entry be good, and (likewise) my exit be good. And grant me from You a helping authority.""

At-Tirmidhi said, "This is Hasan Sahih."

Al-Hasan Al-Basri commented on this Ayah, "When the disbelievers of Makkah conspired to kill the Messenger of Allah, or expel him or imprison him, Allah wanted him to fight the people of Makkah, and commanded him to go to Al-Madinah. What Allah said was:

Quoted Scripture
"And say: "My Lord! Let my entry be good, and (likewise) my exit be good...""

{And say: "My Lord! Let my entry be good..."} means, my entry to Al-Madinah.

{and (likewise) my exit be good,} means, my exit from Makkah. This was also the view of 'Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam.

Quoted Scripture
"And grant me from You a helping authority."

Al-Hasan Al-Basri explained this Ayah; "His Lord promised to take away the kingdom and glory of Persia and give it to him, and the kingdom and glory of Byzantium and give it to him."

Qatadah said, "The Prophet of Allah knew that that he could not achieve this without authority or power, so he asked for authority to help him support the Book of Allah, the Laws of Allah, the obligations of Allah and to establish the religion of Allah. Authority is a mercy from Allah which He places among His servants, otherwise some of them would attack others, and the strong would consume the weak." Alongside the truth, he also needed power and authority in order to suppress those who opposed and resisted him, hence Allah said:

Quoted Scripture
"Indeed We have sent Our Messengers with clear proofs,"

until His saying,

{And We brought forth iron} (57:25)

A Threat to the Disbelievers of the Quraysh

Quoted Scripture
"And say: "Truth has come and falsehood has vanished...""

This is a threat and a warning to the disbelievers of the Quraysh, for there has come to them from Allah the truth of which there can be no doubt and which they have no power to resist. This is what Allah has sent to them of the Qur'an, faith and beneficial knowledge. Their falsehood has perished or vanished and been destroyed, it cannot remain or stand firm in the face of the truth.

Quoted Scripture
"Nay, We fling the truth against the falsehood, so it destroys it, and behold, it disappears."

Al-Bukhari recorded that 'Abdullah bin Mas'ud said: The Prophet entered Makkah (at the Conquest), and around the House (the Ka'bah) were three hundred and sixty idols. He started to strike them with a stick in his hand, saying,

{Truth has come and falsehood has vanished. Surely falsehood is ever bound to vanish.} [17:81]

{Truth has come, and falsehood can neither create anything nor resurrect (anything).} [34:49]

— from Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Page 70-72)

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.