“They will be shown one another. The criminal will wish to ransom himself from the punishment of that Day with his children (11), his wife and his brother (12), his clan that shelters him (13), and everyone on earth altogether, if only that would save him (14). No indeed! It is the Blazing Fire (15), stripping away the extremities (16).”

Regarding His saying, “And no intimate friend will ask after an intimate friend,” al-Bazzi, transmitting from Ibn Kathir, recited it in the passive: “No intimate friend will be asked,” with the initial ya pronounced with dammah; that is, no intimate friend will be asked about his intimate friend, nor will he be told, “Where is your intimate friend?” The others recited it in the active, meaning that no relative will ask after another relative, because he is preoccupied with his own condition.

“They will be shown one another”: they will see one another. On the Day of Resurrection, every creature among the jinn and humankind will be in plain sight of his fellow. A man will see his father, his brother, and his relatives, yet he will not ask after them; he will see his intimate friend, yet he will not speak to him, being preoccupied with himself.

Ibn Abbas said, “They will recognize one another for an hour of the day, then will no longer recognize one another thereafter.”

It was also said that “They will be shown one another” means that they will be made to recognize one another: one intimate friend will be made to recognize the other, yet despite recognizing him, he will not ask about his condition, being preoccupied with himself.

Al-Suddi said, “They will be made to recognize one another: the believer by the whiteness of his face, and the disbeliever by the blackness of his face.” “The criminal” means the polytheist. “With his children; his wife,” that is, his spouse; “and his brother; and his clan,” that is, his tribe from which he was separated. Mujahid said, “His tribe.” Others said, “His nearest relatives.” “That shelters him,” meaning, that takes him in and to which he resorts. “And everyone on earth altogether, if only that would save him”: that ransom from the punishment of [your Lord] (1).

“No indeed!” Nothing can save him from Allah’s punishment. Then He began a new statement: “It is Laza,” the Blazing Fire, which is one of the names of Jahannam. It was also said that it is the second level of Hell, so named because it blazes fiercely. “Stripping away the extremities”: Hafs, transmitting from Asim, recited “stripping away” in the accusative, as a circumstantial qualifier and a syntactically detached description. The others recited it in the nominative, meaning: it is one that strips away the extremities—namely, [the extremities] (2): the hands and feet [and the rest of] (3) the extremities. Mujahid said, “The scalps.” Ibrahim ibn Muhajir narrated from him: “[It strips] (4) the flesh, leaving the bones.”