In the name of God, the Merciful, the Beneficent
They ask you about the mountains. Say: “My Lord will scatter them far and wide, and leave the Earth level and bare, with no curves or ruggedness to be seen.
On that day, all will follow the summoning Voice from which there will be no escape. All sounds will be hushed before the Most Gracious, and you will hear nothing but a faint sough in the air.
On that day, intercession will be of no avail to any except a person in whose case the Most Gracious will have granted permission, and whose word He will have accepted. He knows all that lies open before them and all that is hidden from them, whereas they cannot have thorough knowledge of him.
All faces shall be humbled before the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting Lord; and undone shall be he who is burdened with evil-doing; but anyone who will have done righteous deeds, being a believer, need have no fear of being wronged or deprived (of aught of his merit).
And thus have We bestowed from on high the Qur’an in the Arabic tongue, and have given in it many facets to all manner of warnings, so that they may be God-fearing or that it may be for them a source of remembrance.
Sublimely exalted is God, the Ultimate Sovereign, the Ultimate Truth. Be not in haste with the Qur’an before it has been revealed to you in full, but always say: “My Lord, increase my knowledge.”
(Ta Ha: 20: 105-114)
Last week we commented on the verses that precede today’s passage, which show a scene taking place on the Day of Resurrection, when the unbelievers whisper to one another asking about the duration of their life on Earth. They feel it to be exceedingly short, to the extent that the one endowed with the most sound judgment and accurate views states that it lasted only one day. The awesomeness of the scene is further enhanced through the answer they receive to a question they used to ask here in this life. “They ask you about the mountains. Say: My Lord will scatter them far and wide, and leave the Earth level and bare, with no curves or ruggedness to be seen. On that day, all will follow the summoning Voice from which there will be no escape. All sounds will be hushed before the Most Gracious, and you will hear nothing but a faint sough in the air. On that day, intercession will be of no avail to any except a person in whose case the Most Gracious will have granted permission, and whose word He will have accepted. He knows all that lies open before them and all that is hidden from them, whereas they cannot have thorough knowledge of him.”
This awesome scene comes clearly before our eyes, and we see the great mountains, which we have known to be firmly rooted and stable, being blown and scattered. They are raised no more; indeed they are flat, level with no curves or any rugged surface. The whole Earth is flat, level, without hills or valleys.
But after the blowing away of the mountains, the storm dies down and the gathered multitudes listen attentively. Every movement and every little sound is hushed. They all listen to the voice that calls them to group, and they follow its commands submissively, acting promptly, turning neither here nor there. This is a totally different reaction from the ones they showed in this life when they were called to follow Divine guidance, but they turned away and refused. We note the perfect harmony of expression when the response to the summoning voice is total, with no escape, and the flat, level Earth that has no curve or elevation.
This is followed by a state of perfect silence, with no sounds to be heard: “All sounds will be hushed before the Most Gracious, and you will hear nothing but a faint sough in the air... All faces shall be humbled before the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting Lord.”
The whole scene is majestic, and the whole place, vast and infinitely stretching, is still, silent, and quiet. Whenever anyone speaks, they only whisper. Questions are raised very quietly, for all feel their humility. God’s majesty imparts an air of great reverence. No one may intercede except a person whose words are acceptable to God. All knowledge belongs to God, while creatures cannot have full knowledge of Him. The wrongdoers will be burdened with the wrongs they have perpetrated, which will lead them to ruin, while the believers are reassured, fearing no injustice or lack of appreciation of their good works. The whole scene is one of great majesty, witnessed by God, the Most-Merciful.
“And thus have We bestowed from on high the Qur’an in the Arabic tongue, and have given in it many facets to all manner of warnings, so that they may be God-fearing or that it may be for them a source of remembrance.” It is in the same pattern that the Qur’an gives a whole variety of warnings, painting scenes of awesome and reverential fear to remind those who reject its message of what they will face in the life to come. Perhaps they may take heed, or they may realize that they need to act before it is too late. Hence, at the beginning of the Surah God says to His Messenger: “We did not bestow this Qur’an on you from on high to cause you distress, but only as an admonition to the God-fearing.”
At the beginning of his message, the Prophet used to repeat the words of God’s revelations before the angel had finished them. He did so because he was very keen that he should not forget any word. That was not easy for him. Hence, his Lord reassures him that he will not forget what is entrusted to him.
“Sublimely exalted is God, the Ultimate Sovereign, the Ultimate Truth. Be not in haste with the Qur’an before it has been revealed to you in full, but always say: ‘My Lord, increase my knowledge’.” Most sublime is God, the true king of the whole universe. Before Him all heads are hung down, and all perpetrators of injustice are powerless, while believers who have done well are reassured. It is He who has bestowed this Qur’an from on high. Therefore, you, Muhammad, need not hasten to repeat its words. He has sent it down for a definite purpose, and He will not allow it to be lost. All you need to do is to pray to Him for increased knowledge, reassured that what He has given you will not be taken away. True knowledge is that imparted by God. It is the one that lingers, brings benefit, yields good fruits and is never wasted.
The Surah then touches on the story of Adam, which will be subject of our commentary next week, God willing.
