in the forenoon; and whichever of the two comes first, the other will follow close behind.”

This is Muslim’s wording.

Imam Ahmad’s narration adds: “Abdullah—who used to read the Scriptures—said: ‘I believe the first of them to emerge will be the sun rising from the west.’” (1)

Indeed, al-Hāfiz Ibn Hajar reconciled the claim that the False Messiah would be first with the claim that the sun’s rising from the west would be first. He said: “What appears most likely from all the reports taken together is that the emergence of the False Messiah will be the first of the major signs heralding a change in general conditions across most of the earth, culminating in the death of Jesus, peace be upon him. The sun’s rising from the west will be the first of the major signs heralding a change in the celestial realm, culminating in the onset of the Hour. Perhaps the Beast will emerge on the very day the sun rises from the west.”

He then said: “The wisdom behind this is that when the sun rises from the west, the gate of repentance will be closed. The Beast will then emerge and distinguish the believer from the unbeliever, thereby fulfilling the purpose of closing the gate of repentance. The first sign heralding the onset of the Hour will be the Fire that gathers the people.” (2)

Al-Hāfiz Ibn Kathīr holds that the Beast’s emergence will be the first of the terrestrial signs that