This third passage begins by showing the state mankind reached after the generations which witnessed God’s messengers. This is the state God’s last Messenger found them in. They were in dispute over the single truth preached by all God’s messengers.

The sūrah shows people oblivious of the truth the final Messenger put before their eyes. In their ignorance, they were totally unaware of the consequences they were bound to face. By contrast, believers worship God alone, do good deeds and remain apprehensive of what lies before them. They are in awe over the fact that they will inevitably be returned to God. The two situations are in perfect contrast: a believer is alert, cautious and heeding the warnings, while an unbeliever is deep in ignorance, unaware of what lies ahead.

The passage addresses them in different ways, at times denouncing their attitude, and at others discussing their doubts and providing clear answers to them. The passage also addresses their finer nature, pointing out what encourages people to believe, whether it be within themselves or in the universe at large. It also picks up some of what they take for granted, using these as argument against them.

As the passage concludes, it leaves them to their inevitable destiny. It tells the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) that he should continue his efforts, explaining his message. He should not be distressed at their obstinate rejection. He should repel their evil deeds with good ones, and seek refuge with God against Satan who tries hard to lead mankind along the path of error.

But people have divided themselves into factions, each delighting in what they have.

So, leave them alone, lost in ignorance, till a time appointed. Do they think that by all the wealth and offspring We provide for them We hasten to them all that is good? By no means! But they are devoid of perception. (Verses 53-56)

All messengers (peace be upon them all) belonged to a single nation, preaching the same message, worship and pursuing the same direction. But when the messengers had gone, mankind splintered into different groups which could not agree on what line to follow.

The Qur’ān portrays such divergence as people in conflict, splitting into factions, quarrelling and pulling apart from each other. The picture drawn here is full of effort and movement. In the end each faction is left with only a portion of the whole, delighting at their ability to hold on to this. Hence, no faction thinks of anything other than what it supposedly possesses. Each goes its separate way, shutting up all inlets so that no ray of light or fresh breath of air comes through. All live in their isolated quarters, busy with what they have, ignorant of everything else.

Once this image has been drawn, the sūrah addresses God’s Messenger: “So, leave them alone, lost in their ignorance, till a time appointed.” (Verse 54) Let them take their time, preoccupied with their own affairs, until their appointed time inevitably comes, spelling out their destiny.

The sūrah adds a derisive question that highlights their lack of awareness. They think that the time they have been given, and the wealth and offspring they are allowed to enjoy means that they are favoured with blessings. “Do they think that by all the wealth and offspring We provide for them We hasten to them all that is good?” (Verses 55-56) Little do they realize the truth that it is all but a test which they have to go through: “By no means! But they are devoid of perception.” (Verse 56) They simply do not perceive the destiny to which they are heading after having enjoyed what has been given in this life.

By contrast, the believers are always on the alert, taking necessary precautions:

Truly, those who stand in reverent awe of their Lord, and who believe in their Lord’s revelations, and who do not associate any partners with their Lord, and who give away whatever they have to give with their hearts filled with awe, knowing that to their Lord they shall certainly return: these vie with one another in doing good works, and they are the ones who are foremost in them. (Verses 57-61)

Here we see how faith affects hearts, imparting to them a special kind of refinement, sensitivity and aspiration to attain perfection. They are the ones who consider the consequences of their actions. They are always ready and willing to do their duties.

We see that believers are always in awe of their Lord, God-fearing, believing in His revelations and His signs, attributing no share of Godhead to anyone other than Him, fulfilling the duties He requires of them. Beyond all this, they ‘give away whatever they have to give with their hearts filled with awe, knowing that to their Lord they shall certainly return.’ This is a manifestation of their feeling that they actually fall short of what they should do. It is true that they have done their utmost, but they consider it far from adequate.

Islam ensures that its followers’ hearts are always alert. This is an alertness generated by faith right from the moment it settles in a person’s heart. It neither defies human power, nor is too hard for man to sustain. It is a question of sensitivity enhanced by a believer’s bond with God and his watchfulness in all situations, guarding against sin. It is perfectly within people’s power when the light of faith shines in their hearts: “We do not charge a soul with more than it can bear. We have a record that speaks the truth. None shall be wronged.” (Verse 62)

God has established people’s duties as He knows their inclinations and abilities.

He will hold them to account on the basis of what they do within their ability. He neither charges them with what they cannot bear, nor dismisses any little thing they do. All their deeds are documented in a ‘record that speaks the truth,’ highlighting it in its full value. Needless to say, God is precise in His reckoning.

People, however, tend to overlook the truth because their hearts are not touched by its invigorating light. Hence, they remain preoccupied with petty concerns, lost in a perpetual maze. They are only awakened when faced with inevitable doom, looking at the suffering that awaits them and enduring a humiliatingly and strong reproach:

Nay, their hearts are blind to all this. But apart from all that, they have deeds which they will continue to commit. Then, when We shall have overwhelmed with suffering those of them that live in luxury, they cry out in belated supplication.

[But they will be told:] Do not cry out this day, for from Us you shall receive no help. Time and again were My revelations recited to you, but every time you would turn about on your heels, revelling in your arrogance, and talking senselessly far into the night. (Verses 63-67)

Thus, the reason for their headlong pursuit of worldly affairs is nothing like being burdened with what they cannot bear. It is simply that their hearts are blinded, unable to see the truth as clearly stated in the Qur’ān. They are wont to follow a line different from the course charted by the Qur’ān: “They have deeds which they will continue to commit.” (Verse 63)

The sūrah then paints a picture of their being awakened by a sudden calamity:

“When We shall have overwhelmed with suffering those of them that live in luxury, they cry out in belated supplication.” (Verse 64) People who live in luxury are indeed the ones who are most preoccupied with life’s comforts, totally oblivious to what lies ahead.

Now they find themselves suddenly overtaken by suffering, and they cry out for mercy, making a passionate appeal for it to be lifted. It is a picture that contrasts with the life of luxury and arrogance they lead in this world. Hence, they receive a strong reproach: “Do not cry out this day, for from Us you shall receive no help.” (Verse 65) The scene is described as though it is taking place now. They are strongly reproached, made certain of having no support, and reminded of what they used to do in life:

Having shown the unbelievers this scene of reproach in the hereafter, the sūrah takes them back to this world, questioning them about their attitude: what stops them from accepting what they are told by God’s Messenger, whom they know to be a man of trust? What doubts do they have to prevent them from following divine guidance? Why do they turn away from it, ridiculing it when it represents the absolute truth?

Have they, then, never tried to understand this word [of God] Or has there come to them something that never came to their forefathers of old? Or do they not recognize their Messenger, and so they deny him? Or do they say that there is in him a touch of madness? Nay, he has brought them the truth; and the truth do most of them detest.

Had the truth been in accord with their desires, the heavens and the earth, together with all that lives in them, would surely have been in utter corruption. Nay, We have given them all that brings them glory. Yet from this their glory they turn away. Or do you ask of them any recompense? But the recompense given by your Lord is best, since He is the best of providers. Most certainly, you call them to a straight path. But those who will not believe in the life to come are bound to deviate from the right path.

(Verses 68-74)

The message Muhammad, God’s Messenger, preached could not be rejected by anyone who looks at it carefully, using his reason. It is a model of beauty, perfection, consistency and attraction. It fits with human nature, addresses people’s minds and hearts, outlines a course to elevate human life, and lays down a fine constitution to follow and a perfect code of justice. It also includes what answers the needs of human nature and what helps its development and advancement. “Have they, then, never tried to understand this word (of God]?” (Verse 68) This is, then, the secret behind their attitude.

“Or has there come to them something that never came to their forefathers of old?” (Verse 68) If so, it would have been strange for them and for their forefathers that a messenger came to call on them to believe in God’s oneness. But the history of divine messages proves that messengers followed one another, and all of them preached the same message advocated by Muhammad, God’s last Messenger.

“Or do they not recognize their Messenger, and so they deny him?” (Verse 69) Could this have been the reason for their insolent rejection? Yet they knew their Messenger well. They knew his birth and ancestry. They also knew his character, honesty and integrity. Long before he received his message, they nicknamed him al-amīn, which means ‘the trustworthy’.

“Or do they say that there is in him a touch of madness?” (Verse 70) Some of the lowest in their ranks used to say this about him, knowing full well that he was the wisest and most reasonable person among them. They never knew him slip once.

None of such possibilities had any foundation whatsoever. The fact is that most of them hated the truth because it deprived them of their false values and contradicted their desires and preferences: “Nay, he has brought them the truth; and the truth do most of them detest.” (Verse 70)

These unbelievers are people who have lost their way and no longer benefit from the tests to which they are exposed, be they tests of plenty and affluence or those of hardship. Hence, when they are tested with favour “they think that by all the wealth and offspring We provide for them We hasten to them all that is good?” (Verses 55-56) Even if they are tested with difficulty and hardship, their hearts are not softened, nor are their consciences awakened. They do not turn back to God, appealing to Him to remove their hardship. They remain in such a condition until, on the Day of Judgement, they are visited with an even greater suffering. Then they will be truly desperate and bewildered.

Even were We to show them mercy and remove whatever distress might afflict them, they would still persist in their overweening arrogance, blindly stumbling to and fro.

Indeed, We took them to task, but they neither humbled themselves before their Lord, nor do they submissively entreat [Him]. Yet when We open before them a gate of truly severe suffering, they will plunge in despair. (Verses 75-77)

These are common features among such people. They are hard hearted, oblivious of their duties to God, and they deny the hereafter. The idolaters who opposed the Prophet when he delivered his message were of the same type.

Showing humility at a time of hardship, and turning to God, entreating Him and recognizing Him as the only refuge and resort are indicative of a change of heart and a returning to faith. A heart which establishes such links with God is bound to soften.

Reflection and remembrance then provide protection against further slips and errors.

Thus, hardship brings about real benefit. But the person who persists in arrogance is a lost case, without hope. He is left to his destiny when he will be overwhelmed with suffering in the life to come. He will then plunge into despair, finding neither refuge nor support.

The sūrah then takes the unbelievers on a further round of reflection, in the hope that their hearts will awaken when they see the pointers to faith within themselves and in the universe at large:

It is He who has endowed you with hearing, and sight, and minds. How seldom are you grateful. And He it is who caused you to multiply on earth; and to Him you shall be gathered. And He it is who grants life and causes death; and to Him is due the alternation of night and day. Will you not, then, use your reason? (Verses 78-80)

Indeed if man would only reflect on his own form and constitution, the multi- faceted potential he has been given, and the faculties of perception with which he has been blessed, he would certainly acknowledge God. His guidance would be all these great faculties within him that testify to God’s oneness. No one other than God Almighty could produce such a creation with all these miraculous aspects, large and small. For example, how does our sense of hearing function? How are sounds picked up and distinguished? How does our eyesight function, sorting out shapes and shades of light? And then, what about our mind and how it works? How does it recognize forms and things? How does it understand meanings, concepts, values, feelings and physical forms?

The sūrah now stops its argument with the unbelievers, and reports their claims about resurrection and reckoning in the life to come. This discussion follows a long list of signs and pointers confirming God’s oneness and His being the only Creator who causes life and death.

But they say like the people of old times used to say. They say: ‘What! After we have died and become dust and bones, shall we be raised to life? This we have been promised before, we and our forefathers! This is nothing but fables of the ancients.’ (Verses 81- 83)

Their claims sound exceptionally singular after the sūrah has enumerated many of the signs that testify to God’s elaborate planning and His definite purpose of creation. It is He who has granted man his hearing, eyesight and mind, so that he is responsible for his deeds. He will thus earn a generous reward for his good actions or punishment for his bad ones. True reckoning and reward occur in full in the life to come. What we see in this life is that reward, whether good or bad, does not take place on earth. These are left until they fall due in the life to come.

God grants life and causes death. Hence, resurrection is by no means difficult. Life is breathed into beings at every moment, and it is only God who knows where it originates.

The point with these unbelievers is not that they fall short of appreciating God’s wisdom and ability to resurrect life. They also ridicule the promises of resurrection and reward, saying that the same promise was given to their forefathers, but nothing of the sort has yet occurred. “This we have been promised before, we and our forefathers! This is nothing but fables of the ancients.” (Verse 83) Resurrection will certainly occur at the time and place God has set for it in His elaborate plan. It will be neither brought forward nor put back at anyone’s request, or in response to the ridicule of anyone who is unable to see the truth.

The Arab idolaters of old were muddled in their faith. They did not deny God.

Nor did they deny that He is the Creator of the heavens and earth or that He is always in full control of everything in the universe. But they, nevertheless, assigned to Him partners and claimed that they worshipped those partners so that they could bring them closer to God. They also claimed that He had daughters. Exalted is God above all such claims. Hence the sūrah puts to them the facts that they acknowledge in order to set the record straight and bring them back to the true faith based on God’s absolute oneness. This is the logical conclusion to the premises they acknowledge. Indeed, they would have arrived at this conclusion themselves had they not deviated from their uncorrupted nature:

Say: To whom belongs the earth and all that lives therein? [Tell me] if you know.’ They will reply: ‘To God.’ Say: ‘Will you not, then, reflect?’ Say: ‘Who is the Lord of the seven heavens, and the Lord of the Supreme Throne?’ They will reply: ‘ [They all belong.’ to God.’ Say: ‘Will you not, then, fear Him?’ Say: ‘In whose hand rests the sovereignty of all things, protecting all, while against Him there is no protection?

Having refuted all the idolaters’ claims about God, taking to Himself a son or partners, the sūrah states in all clarity the true principle of God’s oneness as explained by His Messenger, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him):

Nay, We have revealed to them the truth; and yet, they are certainly lying. Never did God take to Himself any offspring, nor has there ever been any deity alongside Him.

Had there been any, each deity would surely have taken away his own creation, and they would surely have tried to establish superiority over one another. Limitless in His glory is God, far above all that which they attribute to Him. He knows all that is beyond the reach of human perception, and all that can be witnessed. Sublimely exalted is He above anything they associate as partner with Him. (Verses 90-92)

Note how this statement employs different methods and styles. First, all argument with the idolaters is closed, and an emphatic assertion of their lying is given: “Nay, We have revealed to them the truth; and yet, they are certainly lying.” (Verse 90) Then follow some of the details of their lies: “Never did God take to Himself any offspring, nor has there ever been any deity alongside Him.” (Verse 91) Irrefutable proof is then stated rendering all their claims false and showing the absurdity of pagan beliefs based on associating partners with God: “Had there been any each deity would surely have taken away his own creation.” (Verse 91) Each deity would stress his independence and conduct the affairs of his creation according to his own law. Thus, every part of the universe, and every group of creatures would have a different basis and laws. There would be no common code applying to them all. Hence, those deities “would surely have tried to establish superiority over one another.” (Verse 91) Such superiority could take the form of a more sophisticated law operating in a particular part of the universe. However, the universe as a whole cannot function properly unless it is subject to a single law that applies to all its parts and all creatures living in it.

None of this multiplicity is found in the universe, where consistency of structure proves the oneness of its Creator, and inner harmony testifies to its being run by a single will. Indeed, we clearly see that all parts of the universe function in perfect harmony: “Limitless in His glory is God, far above all that which they attribute to Him.” (Verse 91)

“He knows all that is beyond the reach of human perception, and all that can be witnessed.” (Verse 92) None other than God has any authority over any part of His creation, knowing anything that is unknown to God. “Sublimely exalted is He above anything they associate as a partner with Him.” (Verse 92)

At this point, the sūrah stops addressing or speaking about them. It now turns its attention to God’s Messenger, commanding him to appeal to God so that he is not placed with such people, if he ever witnesses the fulfilment of the warnings of suffering they have been given. He is further instructed to seek refuge with His Lord from the evil ones, satans, so as not to be irritated by or become fed up at what the unbelievers claim: