Surah Luqman, Verses 1–9

A Very Brief Summary of Verses 1–5

In the first five verses of Surah Luqman, Allah reminds us of an important truth:

The Qur’an is a book of wisdom and guidance. Yet not everyone benefits from this guide in the same way.

So who benefits?

Those who do good, establish prayer, give zakat, and believe with certainty in the Hereafter.

There is an important detail here: the Qur’an does not only ask us to know what is right; it asks us to live by the truth we know.

Because people may do wrong even though they know what is right. They may do evil even though they know what goodness is.

The message the first five verses give us is this:

Guidance is not merely learning the right path, but walking upon it.

Now, as we move to verses 6–9, we encounter a very striking comparison. On one side are people who listen to Allah’s verses; on the other are people who do not want to hear those verses.

And our main question is this:

If someone does not want to hear the truth, how can we explain the truth to them?

Verses 6–9: What Do People Listen To, and What Do They Close Their Ears To?

VERSE 6 — Words That Distance People from the Truth

Now I want to begin by asking you a question.

Question: Why do people sometimes refuse to listen to things that would benefit them, yet enjoy listening to things that would harm them?

Let us think.

A friend calls us and gossips about someone else. We can talk for half an hour, an hour. We do not get bored at all.

But what happens when someone points out our own mistake?

We do not even want to listen for five minutes.

But why?

Answer: Because people do not always want to hear the truth. Sometimes they want to hear what pleases them.

In verse 6 of Surah Luqman, Allah speaks of those who purchase distracting talk to lead people away from Allah’s path.

The expression in the verse is “lahw al-hadith.”

In other words, words that distract people, occupy them, and can distance them from the truth.

Let us be careful here. Let us not understand every form of entertainment, conversation, or rest as bad. What the verse particularly emphasizes is leading people away from Allah’s path and mocking Allah’s verses.

Now let us ask the second question.

Question: Do people distance themselves from the truth only by listening to lies?

No.

Sometimes they distance themselves through incorrect information. Sometimes they become so occupied with unnecessary things that they cannot make time to think about what is right.

For example, we pick up our phone.

We watch one video, then another, then another.

We look up and an hour has passed.

Now let us ask ourselves:

What did we learn in that hour? Which mistake of ours did we correct? What good did we move closer to?

Perhaps nothing.

The phone itself is not bad here. What matters is what we use it for.

With the same phone, we can learn the Qur’an, help someone, or gain useful knowledge.

So the issue is not the tool, but our choice.

Now let us go a little deeper.

Question: Can constantly listening to something wrong cause a person to see that wrong as normal over time?

It can.

For example, imagine an environment where lying has become commonplace.

Everyone lies to one another. People regard this as cleverness.

After a while, what might a child growing up there begin to think?

“So sometimes you need to lie to get things done.”

This is where the danger lies.

People do not merely gain information from what they hear. Sometimes what they hear also influences their standards of right and wrong.

So let us ask ourselves this question today:

What kind of person are the things I listen to turning me into?

VERSE 7 — Not Hearing the Truth, or Not Wanting to Hear It?

Now we move to verse 7.

Here Allah speaks of a very striking human behavior.

A person who turns away arrogantly when Allah’s verses are recited to them, as though they have never heard them…

The verse even speaks of their behaving as though there were a heaviness in their ears.

Now let us think.

Question: Is it possible for someone not to hear even though their hearing is sound?

They may physically hear.

But they may not want to accept what they hear.

For example, our spouse says to us:

“You never listen to me.”

What do we answer?

“What do you mean I do not listen? I heard everything you said.”

But did we really listen?

Perhaps we heard the words but did not try to understand what they wanted to tell us.

Because listening is not merely hearing sounds.

Listening means taking what the other person says seriously.

Now another question.

Question: Why do people sometimes immediately reject criticism directed at them?

Because criticism may reveal our mistake.

And admitting our mistake can sometimes be hard on our pride.

Imagine a workplace.

An employee tells their manager that they have made a mistake.

What does the manager answer?

“Are you going to teach me how to do my job?”

So what is the problem here?

Is it that what the employee said is wrong?

No. Perhaps the employee is right.

But the manager does not want to listen because they see themselves as superior.

This is one of the issues the verse prompts us to consider: arrogance can prevent a person from accepting the truth.

Now let us ask.

Question: Do we ever behave like this?

When our child points out our mistake…

When our spouse warns us…

When a friend shows us our error…

Do we immediately become defensive?

Or do we think first?

“Could they be telling the truth?”

There is something we all need to learn here.

The truth a person speaks does not become false because of their age, position, or knowledge.

Sometimes even a child younger than us may speak the truth.

So what is our attitude toward Allah’s verses?

The Qur’an speaks of patience.

Are we patient?

The Qur’an speaks of justice.

Are we just?

The Qur’an speaks of goodness.

Do we truly do good?

Or do we listen to the verses but act as though we have not heard them when it comes to changing ourselves?

Let us think about this for a moment.

Because the person described in verse 7 is not merely someone who does not know the verses.

It is someone who turns away even though the verses are recited to them.

These two things are not the same.

Not knowing is one thing; not wanting to learn is another.

VERSE 8 — The Relationship Between Believing and Doing Good Deeds

Now we have reached a very beautiful point.

While verses 6 and 7 describe a wrong attitude, verse 8 describes other people in contrast to it.

Allah says:

“Surely, for those who believe and do righteous deeds, there are Gardens of Bliss.”

Now let us ask.

Question: Why does Allah say those who believe and do righteous deeds, rather than simply those who believe?

What might we be being told here?

Let us think.

Someone says to us:

“I love you so much.”

But whenever we need them, they are not there.

Whenever we ask for help, they ignore us.

Whenever we have a problem, they leave us alone.

Now I ask:

Does love consist only of saying it, or must it also be shown through actions?

Of course, there must also be a corresponding expression in actions.

This example can help us as we think about the relationship between faith and righteous deeds.

Faith means believing in Allah and trusting Him.

Righteous deeds are the beautiful expression of that belief in our lives.

But let us pay attention to a detail here.

Question: When we speak of righteous deeds, should we think only of prayer, fasting, and zakat?

No.

These are very important acts of worship. But righteous deeds are not limited to them.

For example, parents treating their child justly…

A shopkeeper not deceiving a customer…

A student not cheating in an exam…

A person keeping their promise…

An employee doing their work properly…

All of these can be examples of righteous deeds done with the right intention.

Now let us ask a more important question.

Question: If someone performs prayer but also treats people unjustly, what should we do?

Let us avoid both wrong conclusions here.

We cannot say, “They pray, so their injustice does not matter.”

Nor can we say, “They act unjustly, so prayer has no meaning.”

What we need to do is both fulfill our acts of worship and correct the wrongs in our behavior.

Because the Qur’an calls us to live a consistent life, not a fragmented one.

We should not be one person at home, another at work, and another in worship.

Now let us think.

Question: Which of our everyday actions does our faith improve the most?

Let everyone answer this question for themselves.

VERSE 9 — Trusting Allah’s Promise

In verse 9, Allah states that those who believe and do righteous deeds will remain in those blessings forever.

Then comes a very important expression:

“Allah’s promise is true.”

Now let us ask.

Question: Why do people sometimes give up doing what is right even though they know it is right?

Because they want to see results immediately.

For example, let us imagine an honest shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper next door may be making more money by deceiving people.

Our shopkeeper, meanwhile, acts honestly but does not earn what they hope for.

What might they now begin to think?

“What is the point of my being honest?”

This is where a very important issue arises.

Question: Must an action bring us an immediate gain in order to be right?

No.

What is right remains right even if it does not immediately benefit us.

And what is wrong does not stop being wrong even if it brings us a quick gain.

So why can we sometimes not think this way?

Because we see only today.

Yet verses 8 and 9 turn our attention to the Hereafter.

The blessings Allah promises cannot be measured only by our worldly gains.

Let us not forget this here either: these verses do not say that everyone who does good will necessarily become wealthy in this world or never experience hardship.

The promise Allah makes here concerns the reward to be given in the Hereafter to those who believe and do righteous deeds.

Now let us consider an example from family life.

A father or mother is trying to teach their child good behavior.

Does the child learn immediately?

Not always.

Sometimes we say the same thing ten times.

We say it twenty times.

But we do not give up teaching.

Why?

Because we know the value of doing what is right.

Now let us ask ourselves:

We are patient when teaching others what is right, so why are we sometimes impatient about doing what is right in our own lives?

This is where we need to reconsider our faith in the Hereafter.

If we truly believe in the Hereafter, we should also know that our good deeds do not depend only on people’s appreciation.

People may not see.

People may not give thanks.

They may not even understand the value of the good we have done.

But Allah knows.

The reminder at the end of verse 9 that Allah possesses absolute might and wisdom is also very meaningful.

Allah both has the power to fulfill His promise and possesses wisdom.

As We End the Lesson: Let Us Ask Ourselves Four Questions

When we consider verses 6, 7, 8, and 9 of Surah Luqman together, four questions arise.

1. What am I listening to?

Do the things I listen to bring me closer to the truth, or distance me from it?

2. Do I accept what is right?

Or, when my mistake is pointed out, do I give in to my pride and turn away?

3. Am I living by what I believe?

Is my faith visible in my family, work, friendships, and relationships with people?

4. How patient am I when doing what is right?

Do I expect an immediate return, or do I trust Allah’s promise?

Now let us end by asking one final question.

Why do we read the Qur’an?

Only to learn what it says?

Or to change our lives through what we learn?

Let us think…

If someone read a map showing the right path every day, but continued walking down the wrong path, what benefit would reading that map bring them?

The Qur’an shows us the way.

But walking that path is our responsibility.

After this lesson today, let each of us choose one of our behaviors. Let us decide to correct one of our mistakes.

Because the Qur’an’s effect on our lives is understood not only by how many verses we have learned, but also by how much the verses we have learned have changed our behavior.

And perhaps the most important question we need to ask ourselves today is this:

“I listen to the Qur’an. But is the Qur’an able to change my life?”