Transliteration:( Wala'in akharnaa 'anhumul 'azaaba ilaaa ummatim ma'doodatil la yaqoolunna maa yahbisuh; alaa yawma ya'teehim laisa masroofan 'anhum wa haaqa bihim maa kaanoo bihee yastahzi'oon )
"And if We were to delay the punishment from them for a specified time [20], they would surely say, 'What is keeping it back?' Know that on the day it comes to them, it will not be turned away from them, and they will be surrounded by the very punishment they used to mock [21]."
From this verse, we learn that punishment is never fully removed from an infidel, although it may sometimes be delayed. This delay leads the infidel to believe that they are immune to punishment, and as a result, they may increase in their transgression. Their question, "What is keeping it back?" is not asked out of mockery, but rather out of fear, as the delay makes them uncertain of the consequences.
When the punishment eventually arrives, it will not be averted or postponed. The very punishment they used to mock will envelop them, showing the certainty of Allah's decree and the inescapability of the consequences for their disbelief.
The tafsir of Surah Hud verse 8 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Hud ayat 7 which provides the complete commentary from verse 7 through 8.
(11:8) And were We to put off the chastisement from them for a determined period, they will cry out: ‘What withholds Him from chastising?’ Surely when the day of the chastisement will come, nothing will avert it and the chastisement which they had ridiculed shall encompass them.
There is no commentary by Abul Maududi available for this verse.
[549]- In ridicule and disbelief.
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