And He, Exalted, says:

“Are the disbelievers among you any better than those [destroyed before you], or do you have a writ of immunity recorded in the scriptures?” [Q 54:43] (43)

“Or do they say, ‘We are a united host, sure to prevail’?” [Q 54:44] (44)

“Their host will be routed, and they will turn their backs in flight.” [Q 54:45] (45)

“Rather, the Hour is their appointed time—and the Hour is far more calamitous and more bitter.” [Q 54:46]

He mentioned all of this in the surah that opens with iqtarabat ("The Hour has drawn near")—the surah in which He speaks of the moon’s splitting, of their turning away from the signs, of their saying: hādhā siḥr mustamir (this is continual sorcery), of their denial, and of their following their whims. Thus He, Exalted, says:

“The Hour has drawn near and the moon has split.” [Q 54:1] (1)

“Yet whenever they see a sign, they turn away and say, ‘Persistent magic.’” [Q 54:2] (2)

“They denied and followed their desires, although every matter has its appointed outcome.” [Q 54:3] (3)

Then He said:

“Indeed, there has come to them such news as ought to deter them.” [Q 54:4]

That is, reports from the unseen; what He has conveyed contains an admonition—something that should restrain them from disbelief—for within those accounts lies proof of the Messenger’s truthfulness and a warning that whoever rejects him will be punished just as the earlier peoples were punished. For this reason He says immediately afterwards