Commentary on the Koran: Surah 69 (No. Q069)

Pickthall’s Translation; Bible Quotes are from the English Standard Version unless otherwise noted.

Introduction

At-Haqqah takes its name from the word in the first three verses which poses the question as to the reality but it could also be termed “The Inevitable” in that the Judgment is applied to all.

It belongs to the Middle Group of Beccan Surahs.

The text begins with a rebuke of the A’ad and Thamud who disbelieved in the Judgment to come. Thamud was destroyed by lightning and A’ad was destroyed by a fierce roaring wind after they had disregarded the prophets, Salih and Hud, sent to them as we saw in Surah 15.

So also Egypt was punished after rejecting Moses and those before were also punished from Noah onwards as a memorial.

Verses 13 to 17 refer to the Judgment. The reference in verse 17 to the eight angels around or upholding the throne refers to the covering cherubs but is in the advanced phase of the City of God where the combined Host are present and the four cherubim of the Host are combined with the leaders of the Temple of God of the Human Host upholding the Throne of God (cf. Revelation chapters 21-22 and also The City of God (No. 180)).

The texts from verse 18 to 31 deal with those placed under Judgement and placed on the right and left hand of God for reward and correction. Verses 32ff. deal with the fettering of those under correction and those exposed to the Second Death of Revelation chapter 20. The reference to poets and diviners is a derogatory message to the idolatrous Lords of Becca concerning their rites of divination, which they practice to this day. The false sayings of the Imams and the Hadith will be punished and soon.

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69.1. The Reality!

69.2. What is the Reality?

69.3. Ah, what will convey unto thee what the reality is!

Read Commentary on the Koran: Surah 17 (No. Q017) for Revelation 20:11-15 as quoted at ayat 15; Hebrews 9:27 at ayat 18 and 2Corinthians 5:10 at ayat 36 and also refer to 1John 2:17 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 18 (No. Q018) at ayat 8; 2Peter 1:20-21 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 20 (No. Q020) at ayat 6; John 5:28-29 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 21 (No. Q021) at ayat 47; Daniel 12:2 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 24 (No. Q024) at ayat 42 and Psalm 119:160 Commentary on the Koran: Surah 33 (No. Q033) at ayat 40.

Proverbs 21:30 No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the LORD.

Acts 5:39 but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice,

Psalm 144:4 Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.

Psalm 102:25-27 Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. ²⁶They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,²⁷but you are the same, and your years have no end.

2Samuel 14:14 We must all die; we are like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God will not take away life, and he devises means so that the banished one will not remain an outcast.

69.4. (The tribes of) Thamud and A'ad disbelieved in the judgment to come.

69.5. As for Thamud, they were destroyed by the lightning.

69.6. And as for A'ad, they were destroyed by a fierce roaring wind,

69.7. Which He imposed on them for seven long nights and eight long days so that thou mightest have seen men lying overthrown, as they were hollow trunks of palm- trees.

69.8. Canst thou (O Muhammad) see any remnant of them?

69.9. And Pharaoh and those before him, and the communities that were destroyed, brought error,

69.10. And they disobeyed the messenger of their Lord, therefore did He grip them with a tightening grip.

69.11. Lo! when the waters rose, We carried you upon the ship

69.12. That We might make it a memorial for you, and that remembering ears (that heard the story) might remember.

The generations of old thought that all things would continue as usual, that they could do as they pleased, that they would not face judgment and they did not heed the warnings of the messengers sent to them and they did not repent of their evil ways.

The tribe of Thamud was destroyed by the lightning, the tribe of A'ad was destroyed by a fierce roaring wind that lasted for seven long nights and eight long days. None of them remained.

The pharaoh and his hosts were drowned in the Red Sea.

The people of Noah perished in the flood. They ruined their physical lives and were consigned to the Second Resurrection to face the judgement that is surely certain to take place.

The Sadducees taught against the Resurrection of the Dead and were refuted by Christ. The Pharisees taught the Resurrection of the Dead but made the laws of God of no account by their traditions and for which they were sent into captivity. The Imams destroyed the Koran with the Hadith and will repent soon or die in great numbers.

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

Genesis 7:23 He blotted out every living thing that was on the face of the ground, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens.

They were blotted out from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ark.

Jude 1:7 just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.

Exodus 15:4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his host he cast into the sea, and his chosen officers were sunk in the Red Sea.

Deuteronomy 11:4 and what he did to the army of Egypt, to their horses and to their chariots, how he made the water of the Red Sea flow over them as they pursued after you, and how the LORD has destroyed them to this day,

See 1Corinthians 10:11 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 29 (No. Q029) at ayat 15.

69.13. And when the trumpet shall sound one blast

69.14. And the earth with the mountains shall be lifted up and crushed with one crash,

69.15. Then, on that day will the Event befall.

69.16. And the heaven will split asunder, for that day it will be frail.

Matthew 24:31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

1Corinthians 15:22-24 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. ²³But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. ²⁴Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.

1Corinthians 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.

Revelation 16:18-20 And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. ¹⁹The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. ²⁰And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found.

Revelation 6:14 The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.

Refer to Revelation 20:11-15 as quoted in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 17 (No. Q017) at ayat 15; Revelation 20:4-6 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 18 (No. Q018) at ayat 31 and 1Thessalonians 4:16-17 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 27 (No. Q027) at ayat 87.

The First Resurrection occurs at the return of Messiah and the Second Resurrection about a thousand years later as we see from Revelation chapter 20.

69.17. And the angels will be on the sides thereof, and eight will uphold the Throne of thy Lord that day, above them.

As explained above in the Introduction this text refers to the duality of the Cherubim in the City of God (No. 180). It goes on to the Judgment.

Psalm 75:3 When the earth totters, and all its inhabitants, it is I who keep steady its pillars. Selah

Ezekiel 1:26 And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance.

Ezekiel 10:1 Then I looked, and behold, on the expanse that was over the heads of the cherubim there appeared above them something like a sapphire, in appearance like a throne.

69.18. On that day ye will be exposed; not a secret of you will be hidden.

Psalm 90:8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.

Luke 8:17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.

Romans 2:16 on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.

See Ecclesiastes 12:14 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 33 (No. Q033) at ayat 2.

69.19. Then, as for him who is given his record in his right hand, he will say: Take, read my book!

69.20. Surely I knew that I should have to meet my reckoning.

69.21. Then he will be in blissful state

69.22. In a high garden

69.23. Whereof the clusters are in easy reach.

69.24. (And it will be said unto those therein): Eat and drink at ease for that which ye sent on before you in past days.

1Peter 1:4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

1Peter 5:4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Refer to Revelation 20:6 Commentary on the Koran: Surah 18 (No. Q018) at ayat 31; Matthew 25:34 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 30 (No. Q030) at ayat 15 and 2Timothy 4:8 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 37 (No. Q037) at ayat 49.

69.25. But as for him who is given his record in his left hand, he will say: Oh, would that I had not been given my book

69.26. And knew not what my reckoning!

69.27. Oh, would that it had been death!

69.28. My wealth hath not availed me,

69.29. My power hath gone from me.

69.30. (It will be said): Take him and fetter him

69.31. And then expose him to hell-fire

69.32. And then insert him in a chain whereof the length is seventy cubits.

69.33. Lo! He used not to believe in Allah the Tremendous,

69.34. And urged not on the feeding of the wretched.

69.35. Therefore hath he no lover here this day,

69.36. Nor any food save filth

69.37. Which none but sinners eat.

Psalm 49:7-8 Truly no man can ransom another, or give to God the price of his life, ⁸for the ransom of their life is costly and can never suffice,

Proverbs 28:27 Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.

2Thessalonians 1:9 They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,

Refer to Revelation 20:11-15 as quoted in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 17 (No. Q017) at ayat 15 and Matthew 25:41 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 30 (No. Q030) at ayat 16.

69.38. But nay! I swear by all that ye see

69.39. And all that ye see not

69.40. That it is indeed the speech of an illustrious messenger.

69.41. It is not poet's speech - little is it that ye believe!

69.42. Nor diviner's speech - little is it that ye remember!

69.43. It is a revelation from the Lord of the Worlds.

Refer to the Introduction above regarding the condemnation of the Lords of Becca in the Qureysh.

See Hebrews 1:1-2 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 53 (No. Q053) at ayat 10 and also 2Peter 1:20-21 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 20 (No. Q020) at ayat 6; Deuteronomy 29:29 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 21 (No. Q021) at ayat 15 and 2Timothy 3:16-17 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 30 (No. Q030). at ayat 30.

Revelation 1:1 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

69.44. And if he had invented false sayings concerning Us,

69.45. We assuredly had taken him by the right hand

69.46. And then severed his life-artery,

69.47. And not one of you could have held Us off from him.

69.48. And lo! it is a warrant unto those who ward off (evil).

69.49. And lo! We know that some among you will deny (it).

69.50. And lo! it is indeed an anguish for the disbelievers.

The slanderers and defamers of the elect will be punished under judgment and correction in the Second Resurrection.

See Psalm 49:7-8 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 69 (No. Q069) at ayat 37 above.

Matthew 16:26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

John 10:29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

Deuteronomy 32:41 if I sharpen my flashing sword and my hand takes hold on judgment, I will take vengeance on my adversaries and will repay those who hate me.

Even the evildoers cannot be plucked out of God’s hand. They were warned to ward off evil but they did not listen and paid with their lives.

Refer to 2Chronicles 36:15-16 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 21 (No. Q021) at ayat 15.

Nehemiah 9:29-31 And you warned them in order to turn them back to your law. Yet they acted presumptuously and did not obey your commandments, but sinned against your rules, which if a person does them, he shall live by them, and they turned a stubborn shoulder and stiffened their neck and would not obey. ³⁰"Many years you bore with them and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. Yet they would not give ear. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. ³¹Nevertheless, in your great mercies you did not make an end of them or forsake them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

2Kings 17:13-14 Yet the LORD warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.” ¹⁴But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the LORD their God.

69.51. And lo! it is absolute truth.

69.52. So glorify the name of thy Tremendous Lord.

See Proverbs 21:30 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 69 (No. Q069) at ayat 3 above.

Refer also to Isaiah 46:9-1 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 17 (No. Q017) at ayat 111; Daniel 4:35 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 28 (No. Q028) at ayat 88; Jude 1:25 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 29 (No.Q029) at ayat 26 and 1Chronicles 29:11-12 in Commentary on the Koran: Surah 30 (No. Q030) at ayat 28.

Psalm 135:5-6 For I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord is above all gods. ⁶Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.

Revelation 7:12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

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