الحديد
Al Hadid
Verses
29
Revelation
Madani
Period
Madinan
Surah No.
57 / 114
Al-Hadid opens with a magnificent hymn of divine glorification – everything in the heavens and earth glorifies Allah. It was revealed to motivate the Madinan believers to spend generously in the path of Allah, and addresses those who are hesitant about financial sacrifice for the community's defence. The surah develops a profound philosophy of the hereafter: that worldly life is like a brief burst of vegetation that quickly withers, while the permanent life is the next. It also addresses the People of the Book regarding the nature of true faith and the continuity of prophethood, and mentions that Allah sent down iron containing great might and benefit for humanity.
أسباب النزول
Revealed in the Madinan period, primarily to address the believers' reluctance to spend generously in the path of Allah during a period of military and financial pressure. The reference to iron (57:25) was understood both literally – as a material of war and civilisation – and metaphorically as the force that implements divine justice. The surah's critique of those who failed to spend before the conquest was directed at those who waited until after the major battles to commit their resources.
“He is the First and the Last, the Ascendant and the Intimate, and He is, of all things, Knowing.”
The verse of the four divine names – Al-Awwal, Al-Akhir, Al-Zahir, Al-Batin – beloved by scholars of Islamic theology for its comprehensive statement of divine transcendence and immanence.
“Know that the life of this world is but amusement and diversion and adornment and boasting to one another and competition in increase of wealth and children.”
The Quran's most comprehensive description of worldly life's fleeting nature, listing five stages of human attachment to the dunya that ultimately lead nowhere compared to divine forgiveness and the Garden.