Tafseer of Crouching · Al-Jaathiya · 45:32
And when it was said, 'Indeed, the promise of Allah is truth and the Hour [is coming] - no doubt about it,' you said, 'We know not what is the Hour. We assume only assumption, and we are not convinced.' "
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: وَإِذَا قِيلَ إِنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ وَالسَّاعَةُ لا رَيْبَ فِيهَا قُلْتُمْ مَا نَدْرِي مَا السَّاعَةُ إِنْ نَظُنُّ إِلا ظَنًّا وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمُسْتَيْقِنِينَ ("And when it was said: Verily, the promise of Allah is true and concerning the Hour there is no doubt, you said: We do not know what the Hour is; we only suppose a supposition and we are not convinced") (32).
He — exalted is His mention — says: and at that moment it is said to them: ( وَإِذَا قِيلَ ) to you ( إِنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ ) — that which He has promised His servants, namely that He will bring them back to life after their death and raise them from their graves — ( حَقٌّ وَالسَّاعَةُ ) — which He has announced to them that He will cause to come for their gathering and their assembling for the reckoning, and the reward for obedience and the punishment for disobedience — is coming ( لا رَيْبَ فِيهَا ). He says: there is no doubt about it, that is, about the Hour, and the hāʾ in His saying ( فِيهَا ) refers to the Hour. The meaning of the word is: and concerning the Hour there is no doubt as to its coming, so fear Allah, believe in Allah and His Messenger, and act according to that which will save you from the punishment of Allah therein. ( قُلْتُمْ مَا نَدْرِي مَا السَّاعَةُ ) — as a denial by you of the promise of Allah — exalted is His praise —, as a rejection of His announcement and as a denial of His power to bring you back to life after your death.
And His saying ( إِنْ نَظُنُّ إِلا ظَنًّا ) says: and you said: we only suppose a supposition that the Hour is coming ( وَمَا نَحْنُ بِمُسْتَيْقِنِينَ ) — that it comes, nor that it will come to pass.
And the reciters differ over the reading of His saying ( وَالسَّاعَةُ لا رَيْبَ فِيهَا ). Most of the reciters of Medina and Basra and some of the reciters of Kufa read ( وَالسَّاعَةُ ) with a rafʿ ending (nominative) as the subject of a new sentence. And most of the reciters of Kufa read it "وَالسَّاعَةَ" with a naṣb ending (accusative), connecting it to His saying ( إِنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ ).
The correct position on this, according to us, is that these are two readings that are widespread in the recitations of the regions, that are linguistically sound in Arabic and close to each other in meaning; with whichever of the two the reciter recites, he has done correctly.
