أَفَأَمِنُوا مَكْرَ اللَّهِ فَلَا يَأْمَنُ مَكْرَ اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْقَوْمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ ﴿۹۹﴾ أَوَلَمْ يَهْدِ لِلَّذِينَ يَرِثُونَ الْأَرْضَ مِنْ بَعْدِ أَهْلِهَا أَنْ لَوْ نَشَاءُ أَصَبْنَاهُمْ بِذُنُوبِهِمْ وَنَطْبَعُ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ فَهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُونَ ﴿۱۰۰﴾ تِلْكَ الْقُرَى نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنْبَائِهَا وَلَقَدْ جَاءَتْهُمْ رُسُلُهُمْ بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ فَمَا كَانُوا لِيُؤْمِنُوا بِمَا كَذَّبُوا مِنْ قَبْلُ كَذَلِكَ يَطْبَعُ اللَّهُ عَلَى قُلُوبِ الْكَافِرِينَ ﴿۱۰۱﴾ وَمَا وَجَدْنَا لِأَكْثَرِهِمْ مِنْ عَهْدٍ وَإِنْ وَجَدْنَا أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَفَاسِقِينَ ﴿۱۰۲﴾

﴾99﴿ Afa aminoo makral laah; falaa ya'manu makral laahi illal qawmul khaasiroon
﴾100﴿ Awa lam yahdi lillazeena yarisoonal arda mim ba'di ahlihaaa al law nashaaa'u asabnaahum bizunoobihim; wa natba'u 'alaa quloobihim fahum laa yasma'oon
﴾101﴿ Tilkal quraa naqussu 'alaika min ambaaa'ihaa; wa laqad jaaa'at hum Rusuluhum bilbaiyinaati famaa kaanoo liyu'minoo bimaa kazzaboo min qabl; kazaalika yatba'ul laahu 'alaa quloobil kaafireen
﴾102﴿ Wa maa wajadnaa li aksarihim min 'ahd; wa inw wajadnaaa aksarahum lafaasiqeen

﴾99﴿ Did they become fearless from the punishment of Allah Therefore, they are not fearless of the punishment of Allah, the Most High, except the group of losers
﴾100﴿ Has it not been revealed to those who have inherited the earth after its inhabitants that if we will We will punish them for their sins, and We will seal their hearts, so they will not hear
﴾101﴿ We recited some of its news to you from these villages, and it was true that their messengers came to them with clear orders Therefore, they were never the ones who believed because they had denied before that, because of this, Allah the Exalted puts a seal on the hearts of the disbelievers
﴾102﴿ And we did not find in most of them faithfulness to the covenant and indeed, we found most of them disobedient

[99] After mentioning specific times, this verse now refers to all times in general.
"Makr" refers to the punishment of Allah the Exalted that comes gradually and with delay (in the form of respite).
In this verse, amn (security) means becoming free of fear in the world — that is, their hearts have no fear of the punishment of Allah the Exalted.
Whereas in verse 82 of Surah Al-An‘am, amn refers to being saved from the punishment of Allah through tawhid (belief in the Oneness of Allah).
Therefore, there is no contradiction between the two meanings.
[100] In this verse, there is both a warning and a threat, along with mention of worldly punishment.
It reinforces the previous verses about the coming of punishment.
"Yahdī" here refers to intellectual guidance — meaning the truth becomes clear through reason.
"Bi-dhunūbihim" indicates that all the sins committed by previous nations, one or two at a time, are now gathered collectively in these present people.
It also mentions the cause of their heedlessness: the sealing of their hearts and their inability to hear the truth.
The sealing of the heart becomes the reason for the sealing of the ears — and this is why the verse uses fa to indicate consequence.
[101] This mentions the previous nations as a reminder for the present people, showing that their current condition is similar to that of the earlier people to whom messengers were sent.
Likewise, a messenger has also come to these people.
However, among the former nations, there were three levels of rejection — and these same three levels exist in the present people as well:
1. Denial (takdhīb)
2. Being deprived of faith (ḥirmān al-īmān)
3. Sealing of hearts (khatm)
[102] This refers to all disbelievers — past and present — and it highlights the common reason for their punishment.
What is meant by "ʿahd" (covenant) is the fulfillment of the promise of tawḥīd (monotheism), which was taken in the Realm of Spirits (ʿĀlam al-Arwāḥ) and was later renewed through the prophets.