َ وَلَمْ نَكُ نُطْعِمُ الْمِسْكِينَ ﴿۴۴﴾ وَكُنَّا نَخُوضُ مَعَ الْخَائِضِينَ ﴿۴۵﴾ وَكُنَّا نُكَذِّبُ بِيَوْمِ الدِّينِ ﴿۴۶﴾ حَتَّى أَتَانَا الْيَقِينُ ﴿۴۷﴾ فَمَا تَنْفَعُهُمْ شَفَاعَةُ الشَّافِعِينَ ﴿۴۸﴾ فَمَا لَهُمْ عَنِ التَّذْكِرَةِ مُعْرِضِينَ ﴿۴۹﴾ كَأَنَّهُمْ حُمُرٌ مُسْتَنْفِرَةٌ ﴿۵۰﴾ فَرَّتْ مِنْ قَسْوَرَةٍ ﴿۵۱﴾ بَلْ يُرِيدُ كُلُّ امْرِئٍ مِنْهُمْ أَنْ يُؤْتَى صُحُفًا مُنَشَّرَةً ﴿۵۲﴾

﴾44﴿ Wa lam naku nut'imul miskeen
﴾45﴿ Wa kunnaa nakhoodu ma'al khaaa'ideen
﴾46﴿ Wa kunnaa nukazzibu bi yawmid Deen
﴾47﴿ Hattaaa ataanal yaqeen
﴾48﴿ Famaa tanfa'uhum shafaa'atush shaafi'een
﴾49﴿ Famaa lahum 'anittazkirati mu'rideen
﴾50﴿ Ka annahum humurum mustanfirah
﴾51﴿ Farrat min qaswarah
﴾52﴿ Bal yureedu kullum ri'im minhum any yu'taa suhufam munashsharah

﴾44﴿ And we were not among those who gave food to the needy
﴾45﴿ And we were among those who indulged in pleasure with those who indulged
﴾46﴿ And we were among those who denied the Day of Judgment
﴾47﴿ Until death came upon us
﴾48﴿ Then the intercession of the intercessors will not benefit them
﴾49﴿ So what is the reason for them to turn away from the admonition of the Quran
﴾50﴿ As if they were fleeing donkeys
﴾51﴿ Fleeing from a lion
﴾52﴿ Rather, each of them desires that he be given open scrolls

[44] What is meant by it is the abandonment of financial acts of worship, whose designated recipients in Islamic law are the needy—such as zakat and vows made for Allah.
[45] “Nakhudhu” (we used to plunge) — khawd means engaging in false talk and actions, that is, we used to participate in every gathering of falsehood, join groups of misguidance, and associate closely with misguided people.
This includes sitting in assemblies of disbelief and polytheism, and taking part in sinful and immoral activities—such as weddings, birthday celebrations (in the form of innovations), cinemas, and the like. All of these are included under this word.
Al-Alusi, the commentator, mentioned that gatherings where the faults of the noble Companions are spoken of also fall under this category.
[46] The root of all these crimes is the lack of belief in the Day of Judgment—in fact, they openly deny it.
[47] Al-Yaqīn (certainty) here means death, as in Surah Al-Hijr (15:99), because every intelligent and rational person is certain of death. There is no disagreement about the occurrence of death, even though there may be differences regarding its causes and the states that follow it.
[48] The particle “fa” indicates that the previously mentioned crimes are the cause of being deprived of intercession. “Fa mā tanfa‘uhum” — the specific use of the pronoun “hum” (them) shows that, apart from this category of criminals, other sinful believers can receive intercession. This is the belief of Ahl al-Sunnah wa'l-Jamā‘ah. The negation of benefit (nuf‘) here implies the complete absence of intercession itself — meaning that there is no intercession at all for these criminals, so how could there be any benefit?
[49,50,51] This is a reproach, and it mentions the cause of the previous crimes, which is turning away from the Noble Qur’an.
“Fa mā lahum” is an interrogative used for reasoning and indication—meaning: what reason do they have for turning away from the Qur’an, and what benefit is there in it?
“Qaswarah” has two well-known meanings: one is a lion, which wild donkeys greatly fear; the second is a hunter or attacker. Qaswarah is used both as a singular and plural. It is also used to mean “to rush or drive forward.”
This alludes to the fact that the one delivering the message of the Qur’an is, in bravery, like a lion, and in calling people, like a skilled hunter. Meanwhile, those who turn away from it are like wild donkeys.
[52,53,54,55] This too is a rebuke for their vile statements, and there are many interpretations for it: First, that each person demands a clear book like the Qur’an be given to them individually, as mentioned in Surah Al-An‘am (6:124).
Second, that each person should receive a divine message from Allah verifying the truthfulness of this Prophet.
Third, that a personal letter of exemption from Hell should be sent to everyone.
Fourth, that a list of one’s sins along with its expiation be handed out to each individual.
All these demands stem from their stubborn defiance.
“Fa-man shā’a dhakarah” — meaning whoever wills, may recite, study, and act upon this Qur’an. The use of the word shā’a (wills) indicates that taking heed from the Qur’an requires deliberate intent and full attention.
Al-Sharbini said its example is like a sweet ocean: whoever wants may scoop from it with their palms — it never decreases.