وَلِيَعْلَمَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْعِلْمَ أَنَّهُ الْحَقُّ مِنْ رَبِّكَ فَيُؤْمِنُوا بِهِ فَتُخْبِتَ لَهُ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَهَادِ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِلَى صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيمٍ ﴿۵۴﴾ وَلَا يَزَالُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا فِي مِرْيَةٍ مِنْهُ حَتَّى تَأْتِيَهُمُ السَّاعَةُ بَغْتَةً أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمْ عَذَابُ يَوْمٍ عَقِيمٍ ﴿۵۵﴾

﴾54﴿ Wa liya'lamal lazeena ootul 'ilma annahul haqqu mir Rabbika fa yu'minoo bihee fatukhbita lahoo quloobuhum; wa innal laaha lahaadil lazeena aamanoo ilaa Siraatim Mustaqeem
﴾55﴿ Wa laa yazaalul lazeena kafaroo fee miryatim minhu hattaa taatiyahumus Saa'atu baghtatan aw yaatiyahum 'azaabu Yawmin 'aqeem

﴾54﴿ And so that those who have been given knowledge may know that it is the truth from your Lord, and therefore believe in it, and their hearts may humbly submit to it. And indeed, Allah guides the believers to the straight path
﴾55﴿ And those who disbelieve will always remain in doubt about this until the Hour comes upon them suddenly, or there comes to them the punishment of a barren day

[54] This part of the verse is linked to “فَيَنسَخُ اللَّهُ”—meaning that when Allah removes the doubts and distortions of Shayṭān, it benefits the believers.
As a result, their knowledge and certainty in the truth of the Qur’an increases.
The phrase “فَيُؤْمِنُوا بِهِ” can be understood in two ways:
1. It refers to increased faith and certainty in those who already believe—because they had prior faith, this new clarity adds to it.
2. It refers specifically to the scholars among the People of the Book, who recognized the truth of the Qur’an and then accepted it with full conviction.
“فَتُخْبِتَ لَهُ قُلُوبُهُمْ”: As explained earlier in the Sūrah, “ikhbāt” means humility, submission, and heartfelt sincerity—so upon recognizing the truth, they don’t just believe, but also humbly submit.
“لَهَادٍ” shows that with this increase in knowledge, faith, and submission, they are granted even further guidance.
--- Note: The interpretation given above is the clear and sound tafsīr.
However, some commentators link this verse to the incident of al-Gharānīq, which is highly problematic and incorrect for several reasons:
1. The narration is not authentic. As Qāḍī ‘Iyāḍ said in al-Shifā’,* this hadith is not reliably transmitted, has many inconsistencies, and is not accepted in hadith methodology.
2. Imām Bayhaqī, as cited in Sirāj al-Munīr, also stated that this report is not established through proper chains.
3. Tafsīr al-Qurṭubī mentions that the report is rejected (munkar) and disconnected (munqaṭi‘).
4. Imām Fakhr al-Rāzī, in Tafsīr al-Kabīr, declared the report to be false and fabricated.
5. Though al-Bukhārī did mention a related narration, the story of al-Gharānīq is not found in it.
6. The incident implies lying or error attributed to the Prophet (peace be upon him), while it is agreed upon that prophets are infallible in conveying revelation.
7. The Qur’an itself refutes this, such as in Surah al-Ḥāqqah (69:47) and Surah al-Isrā’ (17:75), which affirm that had the Prophet spoken falsely, he would have been seized and punished by Allah.
8. If Shayṭān were able to insert polytheistic statements into the Prophet’s speech, or mimic his voice to confuse listeners, trust in the Qur’an as a whole would be lost.
9. Surah al-Najm, where the supposed event took place, was revealed early in Makkah, while this Surah (al-Ḥajj) is Madani. It is extremely unlikely that such a supposed insertion could remain unnoticed for so long.
10. Ibn ‘Abdah noted that the word “al-Gharānīq” (used in the fabricated story) was never used in pre-Islamic Arabic poetry or speech to refer to idols—rather, it refers to large carrion-eating birds, making its use for "goddesses" very questionable.
11. If this story were true, Jews, Christians, hypocrites, and polytheists would have used it as a strong argument against the Prophet, saying: "You yourself admitted to shirk—why then do you stop us?" Yet no such objection is recorded.
Therefore, the correct tafsīr is the one focused on the removal of doubts by divine revelation, increasing the believers’ certainty, and discrediting the false interpretations linked to al-Gharānīq.
[55] This verse connects back to verse 53, emphasizing that due to the doubts cast by Shayṭān, disbelievers remain in constant uncertainty—and this verse serves as a warning (takhwīf).
The term “السَّاعَةُ” refers either to: – The Day of Judgment, or – The moment of death, when the unseen becomes reality.
The phrase “يَوْمٍ عَقِيمٍ” (a barren day) can mean: – The Day of worldly punishment, or – The Day of Judgment.
“‘Aqīm” literally means barren or sterile, referring here to a day with no following night, symbolizing a final and irreversible moment.
It also implies a day without any good or relief—a day that brings only loss, regret, and destruction, especially for those who remained in doubt and disbelief.