Sūrah hii ni ufunuo wa Makka kwa mujibu wa baadhi ya wanazuoni, na wa Makka na Madina kwa mujibu wa wengine, ambapo aya tatu za kwanza zinasemekana kuteremshwa Makka na zilizobaki Madina. Mtazamo wa mwisho huenda ndio wenye uzito zaidi.

This sūrah is a Makkan revelation according to some authorities and a Makkan- Madinan one according to others, with the first three verses said to have been revealed in Makkah and the rest in Madinah. The latter view is perhaps weightier.

Hata hivyo, sura hii ni kitu kimoja kilichofungamana, inayolenga kuweka msingi mmoja wa mambo ya msingi kabisa ya imani. Kwa hiyo tunaelekea zaidi kuichukulia kuwa ufunuo wote ulishuka Madina. Mada zake zinaendana zaidi na mada za sehemu ya Qur'ani iliyoshuka Madina. Inahusu jambo la unafiki na kujifanya kwa uongo, ambayo hayakujulikana kabisa miongoni mwa jumuiya ya Waislamu huko Makka.

Yet the sūrah is one interwoven entity, aiming at the establishment of one of the most fundamental aspects of faith. Hence we are more inclined to take it as being an entirely Madinan revelation. Its subject matter is more in line with the topics of the part of the Qur’ān revealed in Madinah. It relates to the phenomena of hypocrisy and false pretences which were unheard of among the Muslim community in Makkah.

Lakini hakuna haja ya kukataa dai kwamba sura hii ni ya Makka na Madina, kwa sababu inawezekana kwamba aya nne za mwisho zilifunuliwa Madina na kuunganishwa na tatu za mwanzo kwa sababu ya ufanano wa mada. Hivyo, sasa na tuangalie sura hii na mada yake.

But there is no need to reject the assertion that the sūrah is a Makkan-Madinan one, because it is possible that the last four verses were revealed in Madinah and integrated with the first three on the grounds of similarity of subject matter. Having said that, let us now consider the sūrah and its theme.

Imani na Matendo Sura hii yenye aya saba fupi inashughulikia suala muhimu na la msingi ambalo laweza kubadilisha kabisa maana za kawaida zinazopewa maneno ‘imani’, au īmān, na ‘kufuru’, au kufr. Zaidi ya hayo, inaweka wazi ukweli wa msingi uliomo katika asili ya dini ya Kiislamu, faida kubwa inayotoa kwa binadamu wote, na baraka nyingi ambazo Mungu aliwaneemesha wanadamu alipowatumia ujumbe wake wa mwisho.

Belief and Practice This sūrah of seven short verses tackles an important and vital issue which could very well change the common meanings normally assigned to the terms ‘faith’, or īmān, and ‘disbelief’, or kufr. Moreover, it brings out the fundamental truth intrinsic in the nature of the Islamic faith, the enormous benefit it offers to all humanity and the abundant blessings with which God favoured mankind when He sent them His last message.