In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

27. Are you more difficult to create than the heaven that He has built?

28. He raised the height and proportioned it,

29. Making its night dark and bringing forth its daylight,

30. After that He spread out Earth,

31. And drew out from it its water and its pastures,

32. And anchored its mountains.

33. A provision for you and your livestock.

34. But when that great calamity comes,

35. On that Day each one will remember what he strove for,

36. And Hellfire will be exposed for all who can see.

37. As for those who transgressed and rebelled

38. And preferred the life of this world,

39. Then surely Hell will be the abode.

40. But for those who dreaded [fear of God] standing before their Lord and restrained their lower self from base desires,

41. Then surely Paradise will be the abode.

42. They ask you about the Hour, “When will it come?”

43. In what [position] are you that you should mention it?

44. Its end is up to your Lord.

45. You are just a warner of those who dread it.

46. When they see that Day, it will seem that they lingered (in this world) for no longer than one evening or (at most until) the following morning.

[79:27] Are you more difficult to create than the heaven that He has built?
The Qur’an addresses those arrogant and empowered people who consider themselves high and mighty: “Have you ever wondered what is more difficult for Us to create: you or the orderly and immense heavens?”

[79:28] He raised the height and proportioned it,
Samak (سمك) translated as “height” can also be understood as “diameter.” Humanity is preoccupied with notions of “time” and “locality.” Even though the Milky Way’s diameter is about 100 million light years, it is considered small compared to other galaxies. Moreover, only God knows the immensity of the universe beyond these galaxies. Do we really know what “time” is or how it is created? We measure time in twenty-four-hour units, but we do not know how it is measured on the Sun or the Milky Way galaxy because their “time” is subservient to different laws. How is “time” measured in other galaxies? Does it connote the same thing there as it does here?
How about “locality?” From our perspective, a location is a spot somewhere on Earth; however, Earth itself is a point in the Milky Way galaxy, and so on and so forth. So how should we understand “locality”? What is “matter”? The deeper it is researched, the more humanity is unable to understand it. Can you see, then, how ignorant and foolhardy it is for us to think that we are the center of such a mindboggling creation when we possess only a shallow understanding of “time,” “location,” and “matter”?

[79:29] Making its night dark and bringing forth its daylight,
In the beginning, there was no light and therefore no night or day. It took millions of years for the masses of gasses to become condensed enough so that their temperature would reach the millions of degrees needed to cause the explosion that converted helium into hydrogen. This development, in turn, caused light to emerge out of darkness. Scientists recently calculated that light originated about 30,000 years after the Big Bang. God created light and thus time, as well as everything else that exists in the universe. Qur’an 57:3 reminds us that God is the First and the Last, the Outward and the Inward. God’s creation is outside the scope of our understanding because we are bound by time and location, whereas God is independent of any and all such limitations. The word duhā (ضحي) does not only connote light, for light is only a small part of it. It is inclusive of the rays in this world that are a product of explosions and radiations of the inner part of the cores of stars.

[79:30] After that He spread out Earth,
Scientists still do not know how the solar system was created. Thus there are different theories, one of which speculates that the Sun and Earth were both molten masses thrown into space as a result of celestial collisions.

[79:31] And drew out from it its water and its pastures,
Once oxygen and hydrogen came into existence, water was created and covered the entire Earth for hundreds of millions of years. There was a great deal of rain and lightning before some form of life on land slowly started to appear. Water began to recede and the earth appeared. Furthermore, storms and lightning caused carbon and ozone to combine, which fostered the growth of simple plants.

[79:32] And anchored its mountains.
If mountains did not exist, the continents would have drifted around like pieces of wood floating on water. Like the anchor of a ship, mountains keep continents “anchored” to specific locations.

[79:33] A provision for you and your livestock.
All of these creations are meant for humans and their beasts of burden to enjoy so that they can have the best quality of life. The Qur’an uses matā‘ (متاع) to underline the perfunctory and temporal nature of these “trifling” blessings and advises people to seek only enough of them to meet their need during this temporary stop. In many chapters, it reminds people that they should not consider Earth their permanent and final abode, for we are similar to travelers who stay in a hotel for a short period of time en route to our permanent destination.

[79:34] But when that great calamity comes,

[79:35] On that Day each one will remember what he strove for,

[79:36] And Hellfire will be exposed for all who can see.
The topic of the Day of Resurrection, one of the most substantive ones in the Qur’an, comprises about one-third of the Qur’anic text. This Day is about evaluating the quality of one’s life here and assessing if the real purpose of one’s existence was fulfilled. Qur’an 9:49explains that Hell encompasses the disbelievers in the sense that they were surrounded by it even on Earth; however, they remain unaware of its presence until it manifests itself on the Day. This is similar to the condition of a person who has been suffering from stress and deep depression for a long time and then suddenly has a psychological breakdown. Indeed, people will realize that Hell resides within themselves on that Day.
Only on that Day will our inner aspect manifest itself so that we can finally understand how we spent our lives and what “provisions,” namely, virtuous deeds, we sent ahead. Will we be prepared or totally unprepared for it when it arrives? This is similar to a person who becomes aware of the dormant pathogens within his body only when the conducive surrounding environment activates them and they take over his body. Whether or not they prevail depends on how well the body was prepared to handle such an affliction.

[79:37] As for those who transgressed and rebelled

[79:38] And preferred the life of this world,

[79:39] Then surely Hell will be the abode.
The Qur’an warns those who are rebellious and deny the truth that their own actions will shape and determine their destinies. Qur’an 87:16 says that some people chose the life of this world over that of the Hereafter. Qur’an 75:20–21 states that this choice has caused them to bring Hell upon themselves, for they have sent nothing ahead for the Day of Judgment. It should be noted that verse 39 does not say that “We place him in Hell” rather, “Hell is his abode” denoting that such a fate is the result of one’s own deeds.

[79:40] But for those who dreaded [fear of God] standing before their Lord and restrained their lower self from base desires,

[79:41] Then surely Paradise will be the abode.
Once again, it is important to understand that “fear of God” is not meant to convey the profile of a frightening and tyrannical God, but rather to inform us that His authority and “position” is awe-inspiring. Are you afraid of a police officer or the position he holds and the authority that is vested in him? Some students are afraid of their teachers because they know that the profession’s code of ethics require them to be fair in assigning grades. It is true that He is Infinitely Merciful, but at the same time He is Just and a Stern Judge. Those who know God through one or a few of His attributes only deceive themselves. For example, 15:49 proclaims that He alone is truly Oft-Forgiving and Most Merciful, and the following verse reminds us that His punishment for those who failed to restrain their lower animalistic self will be most grievous and painful. The oft-asserted claim that individual or collective reason should be our sole source of guidance is itself a form of surrender to our capricious soul. Such people insist that the rational faculty must govern their affairs and be their “lord,” even though history testifies that the majority of people do not always adopt the most prudent course of action.

[79:42] They ask you about the Hour, “When will it come?”

[79:43] In what [position] are you that you should mention it?
People have always asked when that Day will arrive. The Qur’an addresses the Prophet repeatedly, telling him that he neither knows the nature nor the time of this particular event. For example, 7:187 tells him to respond to those who ask that only God possesses such knowledge. That Day is similar to a fruit that suddenly falls from a tree, but only when it is ripe. It is not important to know when this event will happen, but rather to firmly believe that it will occur in due course and that our fate will be determined on that Day.

[79:44] Its end is up to your Lord.
Human beings are on a journey toward perfection and spiritual growth, a journey that will ultimately lead them to God. This is a journey toward infinity for God is everywhere and yet nowhere specific.

[79:45] You are just a warner of those who dread it.
The Prophet’s sole purpose is to warn and inform people of the consequences on that inevitable and doubtless Day if they continue to ignore their spiritual growth; they should know that the temporal abode that they have built is exposed to floods and will suffer destruction; the people should not become infatuated with this world for it has not shown loyalty to anybody in the past; and that the world is not an eternal abode. He conveyed this message, but without the use of any force or intimidation, by assuring his followers that “this Earth is just a temporary place which we occupy while ‘travelling’ toward our ultimate and permanent destiny.”

[79:46] When they see that Day, it will seem that they lingered (in this world) for no longer than one evening or (at most until) the following morning.
The Qur’an repeatedly reminds us that on the Day of Resurrection we will finally realize and be awakened to the reality of just how short and infinitesimal the duration of our lives here was in comparison to the permanent abode of the Hereafter.

Translator: Mohammad Fani
Editor: Hamid Mavani