the disbelievers.”

There are many such passages in the Quran.

Section

Concerning His words, Most High:

20:124 “And We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind. He will say, ‘My Lord, why have You gathered me blind when I once could see?’”

There is disagreement over whether this means blindness of insight or blindness of physical sight. Those who understood it as blindness of insight were led to this interpretation by His words:

19:38 “How clearly they will hear and see on the Day they come to Us!”

And His words:

50:22 “You were certainly heedless of this, but We have removed your veil, so your sight today is sharp.”

And His words:

25:22 “On the Day they see the angels, there will be no good tidings that Day for the criminals.”

And His words:

102:6, 7 “You will surely see the Hellfire. Then you will surely see it with the eye of certainty.”

There are other similar passages affirming that they will see in the Hereafter, such as His words, Most High:

42:45 “You will see them brought before it, humbled by disgrace, looking with furtive glances.”

And His words:

52:13, 14 “On the Day they are thrust violently into the Fire of Hell: ‘This is the Fire you used to deny. Is this magic, or can you not see?’”

And His words:

18:53 “The criminals will see the Fire and be certain that they are about to fall into it.”

Those who preferred the interpretation of physical blindness said that the context indicates nothing else, for He says:

20:124 “He will say, ‘My Lord, why have You gathered me blind when I once could see?’”

Yet he never possessed insight while he was a disbeliever. Indeed, by then it will have become clear to him that in this world he was blind to the truth. How, then, could he say, “When I once could see”? And how could he be answered with His words:

20:125 “Thus Our signs came to you, but you neglected them; and thus today you will be neglected.”

Rather, this answer points to physical blindness and indicates that his recompense corresponds to his deeds. When he turned away from the Reminder with which Allah sent His Messenger, and his insight became blind to it, Allah blinded his physical sight on the Day of Resurrection and left him in punishment, just as he had forsaken the Reminder in this world. Thus He recompensed his blindness of insight with blindness of physical sight in the Hereafter; and for his forsaking His Reminder, He left him in punishment.