Adapted from Tafsir Ibn Ashur

Themes and purpose:

This surah affirms Allah’s absolute majesty, power, and knowledge. It commands faith and spending, contrasting the believers' light with the hypocrites' darkness on Judgment Day. It warns against hard-heartedness and explains that Allah sent messengers with the Book, the Balance, and "iron" to establish justice for humanity.

Context of Revelation:

Era: The majority consider it a Madinan surah, but there is strong evidence that its beginning is Makkan, as ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb read it before his conversion (Year 4 of Prophethood).

Context: The surah addresses believers in different states: some struggling with hard hearts (the Makkan context) [16], and others dealing with the rewards of struggle and spending after the Conquest [10].

Chronology: The surah as a whole is counted as the 95th, as its revelation was complete after Sūrat al-Zilzāl.

Name and Ayah Count:

Name: "Sūrat al-Ḥadīd" (The Iron), named for the mention of iron in ayah 25.

Virtue: It is one of the Musabbiḥāt (glorifying surahs). The Prophet (ﷺ) encouraged reading them before sleep, stating they contain an ayah more valuable than a thousand, likely referring to ayah 3.

Ayah Count: 28 ayahs (Madīnah/Makkah/Shām) or 29 (Baṣrah/Kūfah).

Surah Overview:

• Reminding of Allah's majesty, attributes, power, and knowledge. [1-6]
• Commanding faith and action, and urging spending in Allah's cause, as wealth is temporary. [7, 10-11]
• Describing the light of the believers versus the darkness of the hypocrites on Judgment Day. [12-15]
• Warning believers against the hard-heartedness that afflicted the People of the Book. [16]
• Reminding of the Resurrection and the insignificance of worldly life. [17, 20]
• Commanding patience through tribulations. [22-23]
• Stating the purpose of sending Messengers with the Book, the Balance, and Iron is to establish universal justice. [25]
• Comparing the mission of Muḥammad (ﷺ) to the lineage of Noah and Abraham, confirming their descendants included both guided and corrupt. [26]
• Mentioning Jesus and his followers, confirming that prophecy ended with him before Islam. [27]
• Calling believers to sincerity, promising them a double portion of mercy and light. [28-29]