Transliteration:( Bi'samash taraw biheee anfusahum ai yakfuroo bimaaa anzalal laahu baghyan ai yunazzilal laahu min fadlihee 'alaa mai yashaaa'u min ibaadihee fabaaa'oo bighadabin 'alaa ghadab; wa lilkaafireena 'azaabum muheen )
"Miserable is that for which they have sold themselves [169]—that they disbelieve in what Allah has revealed, out of envy that Allah would send down of His bounty upon whom He wills of His servants [170]. So they have incurred wrath upon wrath [171]. And for the disbelievers, there is a humiliating punishment."
Their rejection of faith is tied to their own loss, as if they had made a bad trade.
Every human being is like a merchant, and life is his marketplace.
Each breath he takes is like a transaction, which reduces the time left in life but increases either good or evil deeds.
Whoever uses this life to earn good deeds is a successful merchant, but the one who chooses disbelief and sin is heading toward spiritual bankruptcy.
The Bani Israel were envious that the final Prophethood was not granted to one of their own, but rather to the Holy Prophet ﷺ, who was not from their lineage.
This envy blinded them, and as a result, they rejected the truth even after recognizing it.
From this, we learn that envy can be a major obstacle in the acceptance of faith and submission to truth.
As a result of their arrogance and denial, they incurred Allah’s wrath upon wrath.
They were punished in various forms through repeated calamities, destruction, disgrace, and divine chastisement.
This verse concludes by affirming that for such persistent disbelievers, there awaits a humiliating punishment—both in this world and in the Hereafter.
90. How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves, that they should disbelieve in that which Allah has revealed (the Qur’an), grudging that Allah should reveal of His grace unto whom He wills of His servants. So they have drawn on themselves wrath upon wrath. And for the disbelievers, there is disgracing torment.
Mujahid said,
(How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves), “The Jews sold the truth for falsehood and hid the truth about Muhammad .” As-Suddi said that the Ayah,
(How bad is that for which they have sold their own selves) means, “The Jews sold themselves.” meaning, what is worse is what they chose for themselves by disbelieving in what Allah revealed to Muhammad instead of believing, aiding and supporting him. This behavior of theirs is the result of their injustice, envy and hatred,
(grudging that Allah should reveal of His grace unto whom He wills of His servants). ” There is no envy worse than this. Therefore,
(So they have drawn on themselves wrath upon wrath). Ibn `Abbas commented on this Ayah, “Allah became angry with them because they ignored some of the Tawrah and disbelieved in the Prophet that He sent to them.” I (Ibn Kathir) say that the meaning of,
(And they drew on themselves) is that they deserved and acquired multiplied anger. Also, Abu Al-`Aliyah said, “Allah became angry with them, because of their disbelief in the Injil and `Isa and He became angry with them again, because they disbelieved in Muhammad and the Qur’an.” Similar was said by `Ikrimah and Qatadah. Allah said,
(And for the disbelievers, there is disgracing torment). Since their disbelief was a result of their transgression and envy, which was caused by arrogance, they were punished with disgrace and humiliation in this world and the Hereafter. Similarly, Allah said,
(Verily, those who scorn My worship (i.e. do not invoke Me, and do not believe in My Oneness) they will surely enter Hell in humiliation!”) (40:60) meaning, “Disgraced, degraded and humiliated.” Imam Ahmad narrated that `Amr bin Shu`ayb said that his father said that his grandfather said that the Prophet said,
(The arrogant people will be gathered on the Day of Resurrection in the size of ants, but in the shape of men. Everything shall be above them, because of the humiliation placed on them, until they enter a prison in Jahannam called `Bawlas’ where the fire will surround them from above. They shall drink from the puss of the people of the Fire.)
(2:90) Evil indeed is what they console themselves with.[96] They deny the guidance revealed by Allah, grudging that He chose to bestow His gracious bounty (of revelation and prophethood) on some of His servants whom He willed.[97] Thus they have brought on themselves wrath after wrath, and a humiliating chastisement is in store for such unbelievers.
96. Another possible rendering of the same verse is: ‘And how evil is that for the sake of which they have sold themselves’, i.e. for the sake of which they have sacrificed their ultimate happiness and salvation.
97. They had longed for the promised Prophet to arise from among their own people. But when he arose among a different people, a people they despised, they decided to reject him. It was as if they thought God was duty-bound to consult them in appointing Prophets, and since in this case He had failed to do so they felt they had a right to be offended by God’s ‘arbitrariness’.
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