English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Allah swears by the Day of Resurrection, affirming that people will be raised from their graves and stand before their Lord for judgment.

The oath affirms resurrection, rising from the graves, and standing for judgment.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Allah also swears by every self-reproaching soul. The believer reproaches himself for shortcomings in this world, and every soul will reproach itself on the Day of Resurrection.

It is the soul that repeatedly reproaches itself for its deeds and shortcomings.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The stubborn denier imagines that Allah will not gather his bones after death, out of ignorance and aggression.

He denies that his scattered bones will be gathered after death.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Yes indeed. Allah is fully able to restore even his fingertips; by restoring them, the whole body is restored perfectly.

Allah is able to restore even the smallest and finest parts of the body.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

His denial does not arise from a lack of evidence. Rather, the human being wants to continue in deliberate sin and denial throughout the life ahead of him.

He wants to persist in wrongdoing during the time that remains before him.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

He asks about the Day of Resurrection as one who deems it far-fetched and denies it: When will it be?

The question is asked in denial and as though the Resurrection were far-fetched.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

When the Resurrection comes, the sight will be dazzled and fixed because of the immense terror it sees.

The eyes stare in bewilderment at the horrors of that Day.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The moon will lose its light and become dark.

The moon’s light will disappear.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The sun and moon will be joined: the moon will be darkened and the sun will be folded up. Their condition will show that they are subjected servants of Allah.

The sun and moon will be brought together after their light is taken away.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

On seeing those terrors, the human being will ask in alarm where he can flee and find rescue.

He looks for an escape from the terrors before him.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

There will be no refuge and no place in which anyone can take shelter apart from Allah.

No mountain, fortress, or other refuge will provide safety.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The final destination that Day will be to your Lord. No one can hide or flee; all will be stopped before Him and recompensed.

All creation will finally stand before Allah for recompense.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The human being will be informed of all his deeds, good and evil, what he did earlier and later; he will receive a report that he cannot deny.

Every deed sent ahead or left behind will be disclosed.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The human being will be a clear witness against himself and will know his own condition and deeds.

A person knows his own deeds and is a witness against himself.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Even if he offers every excuse, it will not be accepted. His hearing, sight, and limbs will testify against what he did.

Excuses will not remove the testimony established against him.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Because the Prophet was eager to retain the revelation, he would hasten with the recitation while Jibril was reciting. Allah instructed him not to move his tongue in haste.

He was instructed to listen and not hasten while the revelation was being recited.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Allah guaranteed that the Qur’an would be gathered in the Prophet’s heart and that he would be able to recite it.

Allah guaranteed its preservation in his heart and its recitation by his tongue.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

When Jibril completed its recitation, the Prophet was to follow and listen to that recitation.

After the recitation was completed, he was to follow it attentively.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Allah also guaranteed the explanation of the Qur’an’s meanings.

Its meanings and explanation are guaranteed by Allah.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The cause of this heedlessness is that people love the immediate world, its pleasures, and its desires.

They prefer the present world because its enjoyment is immediate.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

They leave the Hereafter and neglect working for it, although it is everlasting and deserves to be preferred.

They abandon concern and preparation for the lasting Hereafter.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The faces of those who preferred the Hereafter will be radiant, beautiful, and illuminated because of the joy within their hearts.

Their outward radiance reflects the bliss and joy within them.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

They will look at their Lord according to their ranks, delighting in the sight of His noble Face; this will increase their radiance.

They will look at their Lord and delight in seeing His noble Face.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The faces of those who preferred the immediate world will be gloomy, frowning, humiliated, and darkened.

Their faces will show gloom, humiliation, and distress.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

They will expect a severe, backbreaking punishment and painful torment to be inflicted upon them.

They expect a calamity so severe that it breaks the back.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

When the soul reaches the collarbones, distress becomes intense and the dying person seeks every possible means of relief.

The soul has risen to the collarbones as death draws near.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

It will be asked who can perform a healing recitation and cure him. Ordinary means have been exhausted, but Allah’s decree cannot be repelled.

They seek someone who might treat him by recitation or another remedy.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The dying person becomes certain that this is the separation from the world.

He realizes that death is the final parting from worldly life.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

One hardship is joined to another, the matter becomes grave, and the soul is forced to leave the body to which it was accustomed.

The hardships of death are joined together and become severe.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The soul will be driven to Allah for recompense, and the servant will be made to acknowledge his deeds.

The final driving is to Allah, where every person is recompensed.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The denier neither believed in Allah and what must be believed, nor prayed.

He neither affirmed the truth nor established prayer.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Rather, he denied the truth and turned away from it.

He met the truth with denial and withdrawal.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Then he went to his family swaggering, carefree, and unconcerned.

He returned proudly and carelessly to his family.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

A repeated threat is directed to the denier: woe is near to you, then woe.

These words warn him that punishment has drawn near.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The threat is repeated again because warning has been repeated and confirmed.

The repeated wording intensifies and confirms the warning.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Does the human being think that he will be left neglected—neither commanded nor forbidden, and neither rewarded nor punished? That would not befit Allah’s wisdom.

He will not be left without commands, prohibitions, reward, or punishment.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Was he not first a small drop of semen that was emitted?

His beginning was a lowly drop of emitted semen.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

Then he became a clinging clot. Allah created him as a living being and formed and proportioned him perfectly.

Allah created him and perfected his form.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

From that human being Allah made the two sexes: male and female.

Allah created from him the male and the female.

English Tafsir (Al-Sa‘di):

The One who created the human being through these stages is fully able to bring the dead back to life. He is able to do all things.

The One who began creation is fully able to restore life to the dead.

Summary of the Meanings:

Allah affirms the Resurrection, His power to restore every part of the human body, the terrors of that Day, the absence of any escape, and the disclosure of every deed. A person will be a witness against himself even if he presents excuses.

Allah instructed the Prophet not to hasten his tongue with the revelation and guaranteed the Qur’an’s collection, recitation, and explanation.

People are distracted by love of the immediate world and neglect the Hereafter. On that Day, radiant faces will look towards their Lord, while gloomy faces will expect severe punishment.

When the soul reaches the collarbones, the dying person knows that separation has come. The soul is driven to Allah, while the one who denied, turned away, and swaggered carelessly receives repeated warning.

The human being will not be left neglected. His creation from a drop, then a clot, and his formation as male or female prove that Allah is fully able to bring the dead back to life.