The Parable in the Qur’an
The parable of good and bad tree is mentioned in Surah Ibrāhīm (14:24–26) as under:
“Do you not see how Allah compares a good word to a good tree — firmly rooted, with its branches reaching the sky, giving its fruit at all times by the permission of its Lord? And the example of a bad word is like a bad tree, uprooted from the surface of the earth, having no stability.”
Meaning of the Parable
Let us understand the parable for its better understanding and adaptability:
- The Good Tree (Shajarat Ṭayyibah):
- Represents pure faith, the word of tawḥīd (Lā ilāha illā Allāh), or righteous speech and deeds.
- The roots of the good tree represent deep conviction and sincerity in the heart.
- The branches indicate good deeds, character, influence reaching others.
- And the fruit of a good tree mean benefit to self and community, continuous reward.
- That is, the pure word is so fruitful that every person (or community) who bases his system of life on it, gets benefit from it every moment for it helps to produce clearness in thought, balance in temperament, strength in character, purity in morals, firmness in conduct, righteousness in talk, straightforwardness in conversation, good temperament in social behavior, nobility in culture, justice and equity in economy, honesty in politics, nobility in war, sincerity in peace; confidence in promises and pledges. In short, it is the elixir that changes everything into gold if one makes the proper use of it.
- The Bad Tree (Shajarat Khabeethah):
- A bad tree represents false beliefs, shirk, lies, hypocrisy.
- Having dried up, it has no more strong foundation and can be easily uprooted, the same way a liar always gets caught no much how much he tries to hide his lies.
- A bad tree since produces no fruit or has a shade, it has no benefit, only harm, and does not last.
- Good Word
- Though the expression literally means pure word, here it stands for truthful saying and righteous creed. According to the Quran, this saying and creed are the acceptance of the doctrine of Tauhid, belief in Prophethood and revelation, and in the life of the Hereafter, for it declares these things to be the fundamental truths.
- This is to show the strength and extent of the pure word. As the entire system of the universe hangs upon the reality contained in this pure word which the believer professes, the earth and its entire system cooperates with him and the heaven with its entire system welcomes him. There is, therefore, no conflict between him and the law of nature, and everything in its very nature extends its help to him.
- The Evil word
- Evil word is the opposite of pure word. It may be applied to everything that is unreal and wrong but here it stands for any false creed that one might adopt as a basis of his system of life, irrespective of whether it be atheism or heresy or disbelief or shirk or idol worship or any other ism that has not been brought by a Messenger.
- And evil word (false creed) has no stability because it is against the law of nature. Therefore, everything in the universe opposes it and refutes it, as if the earth hates it and is ready to spit out its seeds every time they are sown in it, and if some seed succeeds in growing an evil tree, heaven suppresses down its branches. In fact, false creed could never have been allowed to develop, if man had not been given the freedom of choice and respite for work for the sake of his trial. That is why when same foolish people exert to establish a system of life on it, it is allowed to grow to a certain extent, but it produces nothing but harmful results as long as it lasts. And no sooner does it encounter with adverse circumstances than it is thoroughly uprooted from the earth.
Thus, the distinction between the pure word and the evil word is so apparent that anyone who makes a critical study of the religious, moral, intellectual and cultural history of the world can perceive it easily. For the pure word has always been the one and same during the whole history of mankind and has never been uprooted. On the contrary, there have been innumerable evil words but each and every one has been so uprooted that there has remained hardly anything of it except its name in the pages of history. Nay, some of these had proved to be so absurd that if these are mentioned today one wonders how one could have followed such nonsensical things.
There has been another noteworthy difference between the two words. Whenever and wherever the pure word has been adopted by an individual or a community, its blessings had not been confined to that individual and community but had benefited all around them. On the contrary, whenever and wherever an evil word has been adopted by an individual or a community, its evils had spread chaos and disorder all around them.
In this connection, it should also be noted that the parable of the pure word and the evil word explains the same theme that had been explained by the similitude of the mound of ashes that is blown away by the wind of the stormy day (Ayat 18) and of the foam of flood, and the scum of the melted metals.
Context of Revelation
Surah Ibrāhīm was revealed in Makkah when the Prophet ﷺ was facing mockery and resistance. The parable was meant to encourage believers that Islam, though appearing small then, would grow strong and fruitful like the good tree. In fact, it was also a warning to Quraysh that their falsehood was like a weak tree destined to perish.
Lessons for Us Today
- Faith must be deeply rooted — mere words without conviction are like a shallow plant that withers.
- Actions prove faith — like a tree giving fruit, a believer should spread benefit to society.
- Words matter — both good and bad speech have lasting impact.
- False ideologies don’t last — lies, oppression, and injustice may appear strong but collapse over time.
- Legacy of values — just as a tree provides fruit for generations, sincere deeds outlive us.
To sum the verse, in today’s life:
- A person living with honesty, integrity, and faith is like the good tree — strong, beneficial, and remembered.
- A person driven by corruption, arrogance, or deceit is like the bad tree — eventually cut off and forgotten.
We have already shared many other important verses from Surah 14. Ibrāhīm "إبراهيم" (Prophet Abraham عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ), which may be accessed for more information and Divine guiding commandments and instructions.
May Allāh (سبحانه و تعالى) help us understand Qur'ān and follow the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, which is embodiment of commandments of Allah contained in the Qur'ān. May Allah help us to be like the ones He loves and let our lives be lived helping others and not making others' lives miserable or unlivable. May all our wrong doings, whether intentional or unintentional, be forgiven before the angel of death knocks on our door.
وَمَا عَلَيۡنَاۤ اِلَّا الۡبَلٰغُ الۡمُبِيۡنُ
(36:17) and our duty is no more than to clearly convey the Message.”
That is Our duty is only to convey to you the message that Allah has entrusted us with. Then it is for you to accept it or reject it. We have not been made responsible for making you accept it forcibly, and if you do not accept it, we shall not be seized in consequence of your disbelief, you will yourselves be answerable for your actions on Day of Resurrection.
May Allah forgive me if my posts ever imply a piety far greater than I possess. I am most in need of guidance.
Reading the Qur'ān should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully. It will also help the Muslims to have grasp over social issues and their answers discussed in the Qur'an and other matter related to inter faith so that they are able to discuss issues with non-Muslims with authority based on refences from Qur'an.
Note: When we mention God in our posts, we mean One True God, we call Allah in Islam, with no associates. Allah is the Sole Creator of all things, and that Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing. Allah has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
You may also refer to our exclusive reference page: Selected verses from selected Surahs of Al-Qurʾān for compiled verses from other surahs.
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An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs and selected verses of Al-Qurʾān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that the exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi.
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