Al-Masad
سُورَةُ المَسَدِ
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
About Surah Al-Masad
Meccan · 5 verses
Main Themes
The fate of Abu Lahab, the spiritual consequences of enmity toward the Prophet, divine justice for persecutors
Significance
Al-Masad (The Palm Fiber, also Al-Lahab) is unique in the Quran as the only surah that condemns specific named individuals — Abu Lahab (the Prophet's uncle) and his wife — and declares them condemned to Hell. The surah was revealed in response to Abu Lahab's violent rejection of the Prophet's earliest public call, throwing stones and cursing him. Its historical fulfilment — both Abu Lahab and his wife died as enemies of Islam — is cited as an evidence of the Quran's divine knowledge.
Key Verse Explained
Ayah 2 ("His wealth will not avail him or that which he gained") directly refutes the Meccan belief that wealth and status guaranteed immunity from divine consequences. Abu Lahab was among Mecca's wealthiest and most influential men, yet the surah declares his wealth useless against divine judgement. Scholars use this as a case study in the Islamic principle that no worldly resource, however great, can substitute for righteous action and acknowledgment of truth.
Related Practices
Al-Masad is used in Islamic history courses as documentation of the specific opposition the Prophet ﷺ faced from within his own family and the courage required to continue revelation in those conditions. The surah's fulfilment (both Abu Lahab and his wife died as non-Muslims) is cited in Islamic apologetics as evidence of the Quran's supernatural knowledge, since when the surah was revealed, Abu Lahab theoretically could have converted to disprove it.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ تَبَّتْ يَدَا أَبِي لَهَبٍ وَتَبَّ 1
May the hands of Abu Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he.
مَا أَغْنَىٰ عَنْهُ مَالُهُ وَمَا كَسَبَ 2
His wealth will not avail him or that which he gained.
سَيَصْلَىٰ نَارًا ذَاتَ لَهَبٍ 3
He will [enter to] burn in a Fire of [blazing] flame
وَامْرَأَتُهُ حَمَّالَةَ الْحَطَبِ 4
And his wife [as well] - the carrier of firewood.
فِي جِيدِهَا حَبْلٌ مِنْ مَسَدٍ 5
Around her neck is a rope of [twisted] fiber.