Al-A'raf (surah)
7th chapter of the Qur'an
Al-Araf (Arabic: ٱلأعراف, al-ʾAʿrāf; meaning: The Heights) is the 7th chapter (sūrah) of the Quran, with 206 verses (āyāt). It takes its name from verses 46–47, in which the word A'raf appears. Al-A'raf also refers to a realm of the afterlife in Islam inhabited by those who are evenly balanced in their sins and virtues and so neither in heaven or hell.
Regarding the timing and contextual background of the revelation (Asbāb al-nuzūl), it is a "Meccan surah", which means it was revealed before the Hijra.
According to the scholar Abul A'la Maududi, the surah were revealed about the same time as that of the surah Al-An'am, i.e., the last year of the Islamic prophet Muhammad's residence at Makkah: the manner of its admonition clearly indicates that it belongs to the same period and both have the same historical background; however, it cannot be declared with assurance which of these two was uncovered before the other. The audience should keep in mind the introduction to Al-An'am.
Summary
1-2 Allah tells Muhammad not to doubt the Quran
3 The people exhorted to believe in it
4-5 Many cities destroyed for their unbelief
6-9 Prophets and their hearers on the judgment-day
10 The ingratitude of infidels
11 The creation of Adam
11-12 Satan refuses to obey Allah by bowing to Adam
13 He is driven from Paradise
14-15 He is respited until the resurrection
16-17 He avows his purpose to beguile man
18 God threatens Satan and his victims
19-24 The fall of Adam and Eve
25-26 They are expelled from Paradise
27-29 Indecent customs condemned
30-31 God to be sought in prayer
32-34 True worshippers to be decently clad
35 Every nation has a fixed term of life
36-42 The doom of those who reject the apostles of God
43-45 The blessed reward of true believers
45-46 God's curse on the infidels
47-50 The veil of A'raf and its inhabitants
51-52 The rejecters of God's apostles to be forgotten
53-54 A warning against rejecting Muhammad
55-59 The Creator and Lord of the worlds to be served
The History of Noah
60-65 Noah rejected by his people—their fate
The History of Hūd
66-73 Húd rejected by the Ádites—their fate
The History of Sálih
74-80 Sálih rejected by the Thamúdites—their destruction
The Story of Lot
81-85 Lot rejected and the Sodomites destroyed
The History of Shuaib
86-94 Shuaib rejected by the Madianites, and their doom
God speaks about other nations in the past
95-96 Unbelievers at Makkah unaffected either by adversity or prosperity
97-101 The dreadful fate of those cities who rejected the apostles of God and charged them with imposture
102-103 They are reprobated
The story of Moses
104-105 Moses is sent to Pharaoh and his princes
106-108 The miracles of the serpent and leprous hand
109-115 The magicians of Egypt called
116-120 Contest by miracles between Moses and the magicians
121-123 Several magicians converted to Moses
124-127 Pharaoh's anger kindled against them
128 Pharaoh and his princes persecute Moses and his people
129-130 Moses exhorts his people to patient trust in God
131-132 Adversity and prosperity alike unavailing to bring Pharaoh to repentance
133-134 The Egyptian unbelievers plagued
135 The hypocrisy of the Egyptians
136 They are destroyed in the Red Sea
137 The people of Moses triumph, and possess the eastern and western land
138-141 The children of Israel become idolatrous
142 Moses makes Aaron his deputy, and fasts forty days
143 He desires to see the glory of God, but repents his rashness
144-145 God gives Moses the law on two tables
146-147 Infidels threatened for calling their prophets impostors
148 The people of Moses worship the golden calf
149 They repent their sin
150 Moses in indignation assaults Aaron
151 He prays for forgiveness for himself and Aaron
152 He calls for vengeance on the idolaters
153 God merciful to believers
154 Moses's anger is appeased
155 He chooses seventy elders
155-156 Moses prays for deliverance from destruction by lightning
156-159 The Illiterate Prophet foretold by Moses
160 Some Jews rightly directed
161 The Israelites divided into twelve tribes
161 The rock smitten, and manna and quails given
162-163 The command to enter the city saying Hittatun, and the fate of the disobedient
164-167 The Sabbath-breakers changed into apes
168-169 Dispersion of the Jews among the nations
170-171 Some of their successors faithful to the law of Moses
172 God shakes Mount Sinai over the Israelites
God mentioned other topics
173-175 God's covenant with the children of Adam
176-179 The curse of Balaam a warning to infidels
180 Many genii and men created for hell
181-182 The names of God not to be travestied
183-184 God's method of leading infidels to destruction
185 Muhammad not possessed of a devil
186 No hope for the reprobate
187 The coming of the “last hour” sudden
188 Muhammad no seer, only a preacher
189-190 guilty of idolatry
191-198 The folly of idolatry
199 Muhammad commanded to use moderation
200-201 He is to repel Satan by using the name of God
202 The people of Makkah incorrigible
203 They charge Muhammad with imposture
204 ۩ 206 The Quran to be listened to in silence and holy meditation
Subject matter
Although heading of the subject matter of this surah can be summarized as "Invitation to the Divine Message", some further elaboration is required to comprehend the underlying themes and their interconnection.
Contents
The chapter refers to Adam and Eve, Noah, Lot, Hud, Saleh, Shuaib, Moses and Aaron. The significant issues, Divine laws and points of guidance in this surah are as follows
A greeting is given to the People of the Book (Jews and Christians) to become Muslims.
An admonition is given to the unbelievers about the results of their disavowal through referring to the case of punishments which were caused upon previous nations for their off-base mentality towards their Rasools.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Al-A'raf (surah)” as 7th chapter of the Qur'an. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
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The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as 7th chapter of the Qur'an. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q219713. VIAF identifies the subject as 185321098. The Library of Congress control number is no99063588. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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