Surah Al-Baqara 2:42 — Meaning, Translation & Reflection
سُورَةُ البَقَرَةِ · Medinan · Verse 42 of 286
وَلَا تَلْبِسُوا۟ ٱلْحَقَّ بِٱلْبَٰطِلِ وَتَكْتُمُوا۟ ٱلْحَقَّ وَأَنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ
English: Do not mix truth with falsehood, or hide the truth when you know it.
Bengali: তোমরা সত্যকে মিথ্যার সাথে মিশিয়ে দিও না এবং জানা সত্ত্বে সত্যকে তোমরা গোপন করো না।
Meaning & Reflection
'And do not mix the truth with falsehood, nor conceal the truth while you know it.' Ibn Ashur and al-Saadi note the two corruptions of truth — *diluting* it by blending in falsehood, and *hiding* it while fully aware — both done 'while you know', with knowledge, deliberately. Ask yourself: the more sophisticated betrayal of truth is not the outright lie but the *mix* — the accurate thing shaded with a false spin, the honest report with the crucial part omitted. And concealment — staying silent about a truth I know others need — is named as its own sin. It presses me on my handling of truth: do I ever blend just enough falsehood into my account to serve myself? Do I stay silent about what I know to be true because speaking it is costly? The verse forbids not just lying, but *adulterating* and *withholding* the truth I possess.
Grounded in classical tafsir: Ibn Ashur, al-Saadi, Ibn Kathir.
Reflect with the Five Lenses
Maani's framework for Tadabbur (heart-centred reflection) on Surah Al-Baqara 2:42:
- Wording. Look closely at the specific words and structure. Which word stands out, and why might Allah have chosen it here?
- Quranic Worlds. Place the verse in its context — what is happening around it, and what world does it open up?
- Personal Experience. Ask not just what this means, but what it means TO me and FOR me, right now in my life.
- Connections. How does this verse connect to other verses, to the Sunnah, or to themes across the Quran?
- General Lessons. What timeless lesson or action point can I carry away and live by?