39. Surah Az-Zumar
The Quranic text and Ali’s version
وَمَا
قَدَرُوا
اللَّهَ
حَقَّ
قَدْرِهِ...
39:67. No just estimate have they made of Allah, such as is due to Him:
C4341. Cf. 6:91, and n. 909; and 22:74.
In running after false gods or the powers of nature they have forgotten that all creatures are as nothing before Allah.
... وَالْأَرْضُ جَمِيعًا قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ...
on the Day of Judgement the whole of the earth will be but His handful,
C4342. See last note.
The whole earth will be no more to Allah than a thing that a man might enclose in the hollow of his hand, nor will the heavens with their vast expanse be more than a scroll, which a man might roll up with his right hand, the hand of power and action.
... وَالسَّماوَاتُ مَطْوِيَّاتٌ بِيَمِينِهِ...
and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand:
... سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ ﴿٦٧﴾
Glory to Him!
High is He above the Partners they attribute to Him!
وَنُفِخَ
فِي
الصُّورِ...
39:68. The Trumpet will (just) be sounded,
...فَصَعِقَ مَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَن فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَّا مَن شَاء اللَّهُ...
when all that are in the heavens and on earth will swoon, except such as it will please Allah (to exempt).
C4343. Saiqa implies the idea of a swoon, or loss of all consciousness of being: it implies a cessation of the normal functioning of the usual powers of life or feeling.
- With the first Trumpet of the Resurrection the whole world will cease to be in the form and the relations which we see now:
- there will be a new heaven and a new earth, see 14:48, n. 1925;
- human souls will for the time being be dazed and lose all memory or consciousness of time or place or personality.
- With the second one, they will stand in a new world; they will see with clearer vision than ever before; and judgment will proceed. (R).
... ثُمَّ نُفِخَ فِيهِ أُخْرَى...
Then will a second one be sounded,
... فَإِذَا هُم قِيَامٌ يَنظُرُونَ ﴿٦٨﴾
when behold, they will be standing and looking on!
وَأَشْرَقَتِ
الْأَرْضُ
بِنُورِ
رَبِّهَا...
39:69. And the Earth will shine with the glory of its Lord:
C4344. It will be a new Earth. All traces of injustice or inequality, darkness or evil, will have gone.
There will be the one universal Light, the Glory of Allah, which will now illuminate all.
Falsehood, pretence, and illusion will have disappeared. Everything will be seen in its true light.
... وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاء...
the Record (of Deeds) will be placed (open);
the prophets and the witnesses will be brought forward:
... وَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُم بِالْحَقِّ وَهُمْ لَا يُظْلَمُونَ ﴿٦٩﴾
and a just decision pronounced between them; and they will not be wronged (in the least).
C4345. It is in such a scene of Reality that Judgment will be held. Before the Throne of Allah, the book of each man's deeds and motives will be placed wide open, which all may see; the Prophets and Preachers of Truth and the martyrs who gave their lives or made their real sacrifices in the cause of Truth, will be in the Court, to give evidence; and the decision pronounced will be absolutely just, for the Judge will not only be just, but He will know every fact and circumstance, and His wisdom will give due weight to everything, great or small. (R).
وَوُفِّيَتْ
كُلُّ
نَفْسٍ
مَّا
عَمِلَتْ...
39:70. And to every soul will be paid in full (the fruit) of its deeds;
... وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَفْعَلُونَ ﴿٧٠﴾
and (Allah) knoweth best all that they do.
C4346. In an earthy court, a decision may possibly go wrong because the judge is deceived; here no deceit or mistake will be possible, for Allah knows all, and knows it better than any one else can. (R).
وَسِيقَ
الَّذِينَ
كَفَرُوا
إِلَى
جَهَنَّمَ
زُمَرًا...
39: 71. The Unbelievers will be led to Hell in crowds;
C4347. Crowds: this is the word which gives the key-note to the Surah. If the soul does not stand to its own convictions or search out the Truth by itself, it will be classed with the crowds that go to Perdition!
... حَتَّى إِذَا جَاؤُوهَا فُتِحَتْ أَبْوَابُهَا...
until, when they arrive there, its gates will be opened,
... وَقَالَ لَهُمْ خَزَنَتُهَا أَلَمْ يَأْتِكُمْ رُسُلٌ مِّنكُمْ...
and its Keepers will say,
"Did not messengers come to you from among yourselves,
C4348. The Keepers may be supposed to be angels, who know nothing of the conditions of evil on this earth, and are surprised at such crowds coming to the "Evil Abode". (R).
... يَتْلُونَ عَلَيْكُمْ آيَاتِ رَبِّكُمْ وَيُنذِرُونَكُمْ لِقَاء يَوْمِكُمْ هَذَا...
rehearsing to you the Signs of your Lord, and warning you of the meeting of this Day of yours?"
... قَالُوا بَلَى...
The answer will be: "True:
... وَلَكِنْ حَقَّتْ كَلِمَةُ الْعَذَابِ عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ ﴿٧١﴾
but the Decree of Punishment has been proved true against the Unbelievers!"
C4349. Cf. 10:33.
The answer is perhaps given by other angels: 'yes; messengers were sent to them from among themselves, to warn them and proclaim to them Mercy through repentance; but the decree of Allah, which warned them of punishment, has now come true against them, for they rebelled and were haughty; they rejected Truth, Faith, and Mercy!'
قِيلَ
ادْخُلُوا
أَبْوَابَ
جَهَنَّمَ
خَالِدِينَ
فِيهَا...
39: 72. (To them) will be said:
"Enter ye the gates of Hell, to dwell therein:
... فَبِئْسَ مَثْوَى الْمُتَكَبِّرِينَ ﴿٧٢﴾
and evil is (this) abode of the arrogant!"
C4350. As elsewhere, the root of Evil is pointed out to be in self-love and arrogance.
Cf. 2:34, etc.
وَسِيقَ
الَّذِينَ
اتَّقَوْا
رَبَّهُمْ
إِلَى
الْجَنَّةِ
زُمَرًا...
39: 73. And those who feared their Lord will be led to the Garden in crowds:
C4351. The righteous ones will also go in crowds, and not be alone. There is now a true sorting out. Verses 73-75 are parallel in contrast to verses 71-72 above.
...حَتَّى إِذَا جَاؤُوهَا وَفُتِحَتْ أَبْوَابُهَا...
until behold, they arrive there; its gates will be opened:
... وَقَالَ لَهُمْ خَزَنَتُهَا سَلَامٌ عَلَيْكُمْ...
and its Keepers will say:
"Peace be upon you!
... طِبْتُمْ فَادْخُلُوهَا خَالِدِينَ ﴿٧٣﴾
Well have ye done!
Enter ye here, to dwell therein."
C4352. The angels in heaven are not surprised at the advent of the good and righteous souls. They are glad; they greet them with the salutation of Peace; they congratulate them; and they welcome them in.
وَقَالُوا
الْحَمْدُ
لِلَّهِ
...
39: 74. They will say: "Praise be to Allah,
C4353. This is said by the new arrivals in heaven. As is right, they begin with the Praises of Allah, which shows at once their satisfaction and their gratitude.
... الَّذِي صَدَقَنَا وَعْدَهُ وَأَوْرَثَنَا الْأَرْضَ...
Who has truly fulfilled His promise to us, and has given us (this) land in heritage:
C4354. In heritage: i.e. as our Portion.
Cf. 3:180, and n. 485; 6:165, and n. 988.
There is no question here of their passing on any property to heirs. They are the final possessors of Heaven for eternity, by the grace of Allah.
نَتَبَوَّأُ مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ حَيْثُ نَشَاء...
we can dwell in the Garden as we will:
... فَنِعْمَ أَجْرُ الْعَامِلِينَ ﴿٧٤﴾
how excellent a reward for those who work (righteousness)!"
وَتَرَى
الْمَلَائِكَةَ
حَافِّينَ
مِنْ
حَوْلِ
الْعَرْشِ
يُسَبِّحُونَ
بِحَمْدِ
رَبِّهِمْ...
39: 75. And thou wilt see the angels surrounding the Throne (Divine) on all sides, singing Glory and Praise to their Lord.
... وَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُم بِالْحَقِّ...
The Decision between them (at Judgement) will be in (perfect) justice.
... وَقِيلَ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ ﴿٧٥﴾
And the cry (on all sides) will be,
"Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds!"
Asad’s version:
(39:67) And no true understanding of God have they [who worship aught beside Him], inasmuch as the whole of the earth will be as a [mere] handful to Him on Resurrection Day, and the heavens will be rolled up in His right hand:" limitless is He in His glory, and sublimely exalted above anything to which they may ascribe a share in His divinity!
39:68 And [on that Day,] the trumpet [of judgment] will be sounded, and all [creatures] that are in the heavens and all that are on earth will fall down senseless, unless they be such as God wills [to exempt]. 67 And then it will sound again - and lo! standing [before the Seat of Judgment], they will begin to see [the truth]! 68
39:69 And the earth will shine bright with her Sustainer's light. 69 And the record [of everyone's deeds] will be laid bare, 70 and all the prophets will be brought forward, and all [other] witnesses; 71 and judgment will be passed on them all injustice. And they will not be wronged, (39:70) for every human being will be repaid in full for whatever [good or evil] he has done: 72 and He is fully aware of all that they do.
39:71 And those who were bent on denying the truth will be urged on in throngs towards hell till, when they reach it, its gates will be opened, and its keepers will ask them, "Have there not come to you apostles from among yourselves, who conveyed to you your Sustainer's messages and warned you of the coming of this your Day [of Judgment]?"
They will answer: "Yea, indeed!" But the sentence of suffering will [already] have fallen due upon the deniers of the truth; 73
(39:72) [and] they will be told, "Enter the gates of hell, therein to abide!"
And how vile an abode for those who were given to false pride! 74
39:73 But those who were conscious of their Sustainer will be urged on in throngs towards paradise till, when they reach it, they shall find its gates wideopen; 75 and its keepers will say unto them, "Peace be upon you! Well have you done: enter, then, this [paradise], herein to abide! "
39:74 And they will exclaim: "All praise is due to God, who has made His promise to us come true, and has bestowed upon us this expanse [of bliss) as our portion, 74 so that we may dwell in paradise as we please!" And how excellent a reward will it be for those who laboured [in God's way] !
39:75 And thou wilt see the angels surrounding the throne of [God's] almightiness, 77 extolling their Sustainer's glory and praise. And judgment will have been passed in justice on all [who had lived and died], and the word will be spoken: 78 "All praise is due to God, the Sustainer of all the worlds!"
[[Asad’s notes:-
66 I.e., the whole universe is as nothing before Him: for this specific allegory of God's almightiness, see 21 : 104. There are many instances, in the Qur'an as well as in authentic ahadith, of the clearly metaphorical use of the term "hand" in allusions to God's absolute power and dominion. The particular reference, in the above, to the Day of Resurrection is due to the fact that it will be only on his own resurrection that a human being shall fully grasp the concept of God's almightiness; referred to in the subsequent words, "limitless is He in His glory" (subhanahu)".
67 As is evident from 27:89, the above is an allusion to the unbroken spiritual life in this world - and, therefore, happiness in the hereafter - of those who have attained to faith and have done righteous deeds. Cf 21 : 103 - "the supreme awesomeness [of the Day of Resurrection] will cause them no grief" .
68 Cf. 37:19.
69 I.e., with a clear revelation of His will. See also 14:48, where it is stated that on Resurrection Day "the earth shall be changed into another earth, as shall be the heavens" . A further allusion to this transformation (and not annihilation) of the universe is found in 20:105-107.
70 Cf. 17:13-14 (and the corresponding note 18); also 18:49.
71 See 4:41 and the corresponding note 52. Accordingly, the above phrase may well have the meaning of "all the prophets as witnesses", i.e., for or against those to whom they conveyed God's message. In all probability, however, the term shuhada' (or ashhad in 40:51) signifies here - as its singular shahid obviously does in 50:21 - maris newly-awakened consciousness, which will compel him to bear witness against himself on Judgment Day (cf. 6: 130, 17:14,24:24, 36:65, 41:20 ff).
72 Cf. 99:7-8, "he who shall have done an atom's weight of good, shall behold it; and he who shall have done an atom's weight of evil, shall behold it".
73 I.e., as an ineluctable consequence of their unrepented sinning.
74 Sc, "and therefore refused to submit to the guidance offered them by God's apostles": cf. 96:6-7 - "man becomes grossly overweening whenever he believes himself to be self-sufficient". See also 16:22 and the corresponding note 15. 75 Lit, "and its gates have [or "will have"] been opened", i.e., before their arrival, as indicated by the particle wa (lit., "and"), which in this case denotes precedence in time (Zamakhshari). Cf. in this connection 38:50 - "gardens of perpetual bliss, with gates wide-open to them".
76 Lit., "has made us heirs to this land", i.e., of paradise. According to all the classical commentators, the concept of "heritage" is used here metaphorically, to denote the rightful due, or portion, of the blessed. The term ard (lit., "earth" or "land") has also especially in poetry - the connotation of "anything that is spread" (cf. Lane 1 , 48): hence my rendering of it, in the above context, as
"expanse".
77 Whenever the term al-'arsh ("the throne [of God] ") occurs in the Qur'an, tt is used as a metaphor for His absolute dominion over all that exists: hence my rendering, "the throne of [God's] almightiness". (See also 7:54 and the corresponding note 43.) The mention of the "angels surrounding" it has, obviously, a metaphorical meaning: see note 4 on 40:7
78 Lit., "it will be said" ]]