Sūrat ar-Raʿd
Section 3 of 13 · Surah Studies · Mufti Abdul Rahman Mangera
When We Are Dust
That takes the sūrah to about verse 4. The discussion from verses 5 and 6 onwards concerns the Day of Judgement, and in particular this objection, which is where Allah raises the matter:
۞ وَإِن تَعْجَبْ فَعَجَبٌ قَوْلُهُمْ أَءِذَا كُنَّا تُرَٰبًا أَءِنَّا لَفِى خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍ ۗ أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ بِرَبِّهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلْأَغْلَـٰلُ فِىٓ أَعْنَاقِهِمْ ۖ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ أَصْحَـٰبُ ٱلنَّارِ ۖ هُمْ فِيهَا خَـٰلِدُونَ
“If you wonder, then wondrous indeed is their saying, “Is it that, once we are dust, we are to be created anew?” They are those who have disbelieved in their Lord, and they are those who (shall) have shackles around their necks, and they are the people of the Fire. They shall remain there forever.” (13:5)
When we have become dust, shall we then be made a new creation? The objection is answered in numerous places. Allah (swt) made you the first time from nothing; now at least there is some dust to go by — and even from a purely rational standpoint, the DNA is there, if one wishes to look at it from that perspective.
What must be understood about the people of Makkah is that they did not deny God. They ascribed partners to Him, and in doing so they in fact demoted Allah (swt): they did not give Him His due consideration. For this reason they would toy with their beliefs and ideas. Otherwise, Allah says numerous times in the Qur'an that if they were asked who created the world, they would answer: Allah. They knew Him to be Allah; they knew Him to be the creator of the world. But they did not accord Him that seriousness, because they had so many other gods set before Him. One of the things they could not understand, therefore, was how we could be resurrected; and that is mentioned here.