Quranic theme
Attractive
المزين
7 verses
When Pharaoh ordered his minister Haman to construct a tall tower to reach the heavens and look for the God of Moses, the absurd ambition did not appear to him as arrogance, but as a logical pursuit. The evil of his deed was made deeply alluring to him, barring him from the right path and ensuring his ruin (40:36-37). This mechanism—where destructive acts and falsehoods take on a blinding appeal—is a recurring spiritual warning. The danger is not merely that sin exists, but that human perception can be entirely inverted, causing darkness to feel like a comfortable enclosure rather than a trap.
How Do Foul Deeds Become Appealing?
This inversion of reality happens when hearts harden. If people do not learn humility when subjected to suffering, their hearts become rigid, allowing Satan to step in and make their foul deeds look attractive (6:43). As al-Zamakhshari notes (al-Kashshaf, 1/ 254), Satan acts as the beautifier, decorating the world and making it seem beautiful in people's eyes through constant whispers. Falsehood is actively masked and polished. Abu Bakr al-Jaza'iri (Aysar al-Tafasir, 2/ 106) points out that deceptive speech is deliberately adorned with falsehood and improved with lies to mislead the listener. This psychological capture creates a state comparable to a dead person trapped in deep darkness with no escape. To someone in that void, evil deeds continue to seem perfectly fine, a state entirely distinct from someone whom God has brought back to life and given light with which to walk among people (6:122).
Why Does the Majority Seem Right?
People naturally tend to equate scale with correctness, assuming that what is prevalent must be acceptable. A clear command severs this assumption, stating that bad cannot be likened to good, even when the sheer abundance of the bad is dazzling (5:100). This abundance often takes the form of entrenched cultural norms, where entire groups develop an internal logic that validates their behavior. Believers are instructed not to revile the false deities others call upon, lest those people revile God out of hostility and ignorance; to every single community, their own specific actions are made to seem alluring, though all will ultimately return to their Lord to be informed of exactly what they did (6:108).
Where Should the Eyes Rest?
The defense against this visual and spiritual deception is deliberate focus. The directive is to remain content in the company of those who pray to their Lord morning and evening, seeking only His approval (18:28). The physical gaze is explicitly addressed: eyes must not turn away from these humble worshippers out of a desire for the attractions of this worldly life. Yielding to those whose hearts have been made heedless, and who follow unbridled, low desires, is to surrender to the same illusions that drove Pharaoh to build his tower.
Human perception remains fragile, easily captured by an imposing monument or the polished surface of a lie. Escaping this deep darkness requires recognizing that a deadened heart will always find its own ruin alluring. Survival demands holding onto the light provided to walk among people, refusing to yield to unbridled ways, and remembering that the bad can never equal the good, regardless of how dazzling and abundant it appears (5:100).
Verses
All 7 verses, in mushaf order.
قُل لَّا يَسْتَوِى ٱلْخَبِيثُ وَٱلطَّيِّبُ وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ كَثْرَةُ ٱلْخَبِيثِ ۚ فَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ يَـٰٓأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَلْبَـٰبِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ
Say [Prophet], ‘Bad cannot be likened to good, though you may be dazzled by how abundant the bad is. Be mindful of God, people of understanding, so that you may prosper.’
فَلَوْلَآ إِذْ جَآءَهُم بَأْسُنَا تَضَرَّعُوا۟ وَلَـٰكِن قَسَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَزَيَّنَ لَهُمُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
If only they had learned humility when suffering came from Us! But no, their hearts became hard and Satan made their foul deeds alluring to them.
وَلَا تَسُبُّوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ ٱللَّهِ فَيَسُبُّوا۟ ٱللَّهَ عَدْوًۢا بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ زَيَّنَّا لِكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ عَمَلَهُمْ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِم مَّرْجِعُهُمْ فَيُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
[Believers], do not revile those they call on beside God in case they, in their hostility and ignorance, revile God. To each community We make their own actions seem alluring, but in the end they will return to their Lord and He will inform them of all they did.
أَوَمَن كَانَ مَيْتًا فَأَحْيَيْنَـٰهُ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُۥ نُورًا يَمْشِى بِهِۦ فِى ٱلنَّاسِ كَمَن مَّثَلُهُۥ فِى ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ لَيْسَ بِخَارِجٍ مِّنْهَا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِلْكَـٰفِرِينَ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
Is a dead person brought back to life by Us, and given light with which to walk among people, comparable to someone trapped in deep darkness who cannot escape? In this way the evil deeds of the disbelievers are made to seem alluring to them.
وَٱصْبِرْ نَفْسَكَ مَعَ ٱلَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ رَبَّهُم بِٱلْغَدَوٰةِ وَٱلْعَشِىِّ يُرِيدُونَ وَجْهَهُۥ ۖ وَلَا تَعْدُ عَيْنَاكَ عَنْهُمْ تُرِيدُ زِينَةَ ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا ۖ وَلَا تُطِعْ مَنْ أَغْفَلْنَا قَلْبَهُۥ عَن ذِكْرِنَا وَٱتَّبَعَ هَوَىٰهُ وَكَانَ أَمْرُهُۥ فُرُطًا
Content yourself with those who pray to their Lord morning and evening, seeking His approval, and do not let your eyes turn away from them out of desire for the attractions of this worldly life: do not yield to those whose hearts We have made heedless of Our Quran, those who follow their own low desires, those whose ways are unbridled.
وَقَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ يَـٰهَـٰمَـٰنُ ٱبْنِ لِى صَرْحًا لَّعَلِّىٓ أَبْلُغُ ٱلْأَسْبَـٰبَ
Pharaoh said, ‘Haman, build me a tall tower so that I may reach the ropes that lead
أَسْبَـٰبَ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ فَأَطَّلِعَ إِلَىٰٓ إِلَـٰهِ مُوسَىٰ وَإِنِّى لَأَظُنُّهُۥ كَـٰذِبًا ۚ وَكَذَٰلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِفِرْعَوْنَ سُوٓءُ عَمَلِهِۦ وَصُدَّ عَنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۚ وَمَا كَيْدُ فِرْعَوْنَ إِلَّا فِى تَبَابٍ
to the heavens to look for this God of Moses. I am convinced that he is lying.’ In this way the evil of Pharaoh’s deed was made alluring to him and he was barred from the right path- his scheming led only to ruin.