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Hūd 11:83

The verse

11:83
مُّسَوَّمَةً عِندَ رَبِّكَ ۖ وَمَا هِىَ مِنَ ٱلظَّٰلِمِينَ بِبَعِيدٍ ٨٣
Marked with fire in the providence of thy Lord (for the destruction of the wicked). And they are never far from the wrong-doers. — Marmaduke Pickthall

The issue

The word ba‘īdin (“far”) in the verse is masculine. It should have been feminine as it is the adjective of hiya (“she”), translated as “these” in the verse. Proper grammar was sacrificed to keep the rhyme (al-fāṣila) of the verse.

Arabic text of this item

كان يجب أن تكون «بعيدة»، لكنها جاءت بصيغة المذكر مراعاةً للفاصلة: منضودٍ ـ ببعيدٍ.

Sources cited

Sources added in review (the original item cited none)

  1. al-Qurṭubī, al-Jāmiʿ li-aḥkām al-Qurʾān, on Q 11:83: “wa-jāʾa bi-baʿīd mudhakkaran ʿalā maʿnā bi-makān baʿīd” · link checked 2026-10-12
  2. al-Azharī, Tahdhīb al-lugha, vol. 2, p. 145 (citing al-Farrāʾ on Q 11:83) · link checked 2026-10-12