Juz 20: An-Naml 56 to Al-ʿAnkabūt 45
Section 6 of 18 · Tafsir of the Qur’an · Mufti Abdul Rahman Mangera
6. Signs of the Day of Judgment
Among the most impactful passages in the Qur'an are those describing the signs and events of the Day of Judgment. These descriptions serve to awaken the human consciousness to the reality of accountability and the temporary nature of worldly existence. In Surah An-Naml, Allah (swt) presents some of these signs with vivid clarity.
One of the most striking signs mentioned is the appearance of a creature from the earth:
وَإِذَا وَقَعَ ٱلْقَوْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ أَخْرَجْنَا لَهُمْ دَآبَّةً مِّنَ ٱلْأَرْضِ تُكَلِّمُهُمْ أَنَّ ٱلنَّاسَ كَانُوا۟ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا لَا يُوقِنُونَ
“And when the word will come to fall upon them, We will bring forth for them a creature from the earth who will speak to them, because the people did not believe in Our signs.”
This dabbah (creature) from the earth represents one of the major signs that will appear near the end of time. Its appearance will follow an extraordinary cosmic event—the sun rising from the west instead of the east. This reversal of the natural order will signal that the time for acceptance of faith has ended. Once the sun has risen from the west, the doors of repentance will close permanently. From that point forward, no conversion will be accepted; believers will remain believers, and disbelievers will remain disbelievers.
In this context, the creature will appear and will mark people, distinguishing the believers from the disbelievers. This marking or branding will make manifest the inner reality of people's faith or disbelief, which will become fixed and unchangeable after this cosmic sign. The appearance of this creature thus represents the final phase of worldly existence before the actualization of the Day of Judgment.
Allah (swt) then describes a dramatic scene from the Day of Judgment itself:
وَيَوْمَ نَحْشُرُ مِن كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ فَوْجًا مِّمَّن يُكَذِّبُ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَا فَهُمْ يُوزَعُونَ
“And the Day when We will gather from every nation a host of those who used to reject Our signs, and they will be kept in rows.”
This verse depicts the orderly arrangement of the rejecters as they are brought forward for judgment. The organization into rows emphasizes the systematic nature of Divine justice, where each individual and community will be addressed according to their actions.
The accountability is then described:
حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا جَآءُو قَالَ أَكَذَّبْتُم بِـَٔايَـٰتِى وَلَمْ تُحِيطُوا۟ بِهَا عِلْمًا أَمَّاذَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
“Until when they will come, He (Allah) will say, 'Did you reject My signs while you did not encompass them with knowledge, or what was it that you used to do?'”
This questioning highlights a profound flaw in human rejection: dismissing divine signs without fully understanding them. Many reject faith not based on thorough investigation but on superficial assessment or inherited prejudice.
One of the most powerful images is presented in the description of the mountains on that Day:
وَتَرَى ٱلْجِبَالَ تَحْسَبُهَا جَامِدَةً وَه
“And you see the mountains (at present) supposing them as fixed (forever), while (on that Day) they will fly like the flight of clouds - an act of Allah who has perfected every thing. Surely, He is All-Aware of what you do.” (27:88)