Tafseer of The Groups · Az-Zumar · 39:69
And the earth will shine with the light of its Lord, and the record [of deeds] will be placed, and the prophets and the witnesses will be brought, and it will be judged between them in truth, and they will not be wronged.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of the saying of the Exalted: وَأَشْرَقَتِ الأَرْضُ بِنُورِ رَبِّهَا وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ بِالْحَقِّ وَهُمْ لا يُظْلَمُونَ (39:69) (And the earth will shine with the light of its Lord, and the Book will be laid down, and the prophets and the witnesses will be brought forth, and judgment will be passed among them with the truth, and they will not be wronged.)
The Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: And the earth will be illuminated by the light of its Lord. One says "ashraqat al-shams" (the sun shone) when it is bright and gives light, and "ashraqat" when it rises. And that is at the moment when the All-Merciful manifests Himself to pass judgment among His creatures.
And in a sense similar to what we have said about this, the exegetes have expressed themselves.
* Mention of who said that:
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His saying: ( وَأَشْرَقَتِ الأرْضُ بِنُورِ رَبِّهَا ) he said: They will hinder one another in His light no more than they hinder one another in seeing the sun on a clear day in which there is no haze.
Muḥammad related to us, saying: Aḥmad related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: ( وَأَشْرَقَتِ الأرْضُ بِنُورِ رَبِّهَا ) he said: it gave light.
And His saying ( وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ ) means: the book of their deeds, for the purpose of their reckoning and their recompense.
As Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda ( وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ ) he said: the books of their deeds.
Muḥammad related to us, saying: Aḥmad related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī ( وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ ) he said: the reckoning.
And His saying: ( وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ ) says: and the prophets are brought forth, so that their Lord may ask them about how their communities answered them and what they cast back at them in this world when the message of Allah came to them. And the witnesses — He means by the witnesses: the community of Muḥammad ﷺ. Their Lord summons them as witnesses against the messengers, concerning what I have mentioned regarding the conveying of the message of Allah with which their Lord sent them to their communities, when their communities deny that they conveyed to them the message of Allah. And "al-shuhadāʾ" is the plural of "shahīd" (witness). This is similar to the saying of Allah: وَكَذَلِكَ جَعَلْنَاكُمْ أُمَّةً وَسَطًا لِتَكُونُوا شُهَدَاءَ عَلَى النَّاسِ وَيَكُونَ الرَّسُولُ عَلَيْكُمْ شَهِيدًا (And thus We have made you a moderate community, so that you would be witnesses against the people, and so that the Messenger would be a witness against you.)
And it has been said: by His saying ( الشُّهَدَاءِ ) are meant those who were killed in the way of Allah (the martyrs). But what they have said about this in this place has no strong meaning, because it directly follows His saying: ( وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ بِالْحَقِّ ). Therein lies a clear indication of the correctness of what we have said: that the prophets and the witnesses were summoned only for the judgment among the prophets and their communities, and that "al-shuhadāʾ" is only the plural of "shahīd" — those who testify for the prophets against their communities, as we have mentioned.
And in a sense similar to what we have said about this, the exegetes have expressed themselves.
* Mention of who said that:
ʿAlī related to us, saying: Abū Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His saying ( وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ ): for they testify for the messengers concerning the conveying of the message, and concerning the denial of the communities toward them.
* Mention of who made the other statement that we have cited:
Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī ( وَجِيءَ بِالنَّبِيِّينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ ): those who fell in obedience to Allah (the martyrs).
And His saying: ( وَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ بِالْحَقِّ ) — the Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: and judgment is passed among the prophets and their communities with the truth. And His judging among them with the truth entails that no one is charged with the sin of another, and that no soul is punished except for what it has acquired.
