(25–29) “And on the Day when the heaven splits apart with clouds and the angels are sent down in successive descent, true sovereignty on that Day will belong to the Most Merciful. It will be a difficult Day for the disbelievers. And on the Day when the wrongdoer bites his hands, he will say, ‘If only I had taken a path with the Messenger! Woe is me! If only I had not taken so-and-so as an intimate friend! He led me away from the Reminder after it had come to me.’ Satan has ever been one to desert man.”
Allah Most High tells of the immensity of the Day of Resurrection, its hardships and anguish, and the things that strike terror into hearts. He says: “And on the Day when the heaven splits apart with clouds.” That cloud, in which Allah descends, will come down from above the heavens. The heavens will burst and split open at its coming, and the angels of every heaven will descend and stand rank upon rank. They will either form a single rank surrounding all creatures, or the angels of each heaven will form a rank, followed by those of the next heaven in another rank, and so on.
The point is that the angels—despite their immense numbers and strength—will descend surrounding creation, submissive to their Lord’s command. None among them will speak except with Allah’s permission. What, then, do you think will become of the frail human being—especially one who openly defied his Master with grave offenses, dared to commit deeds that incurred His displeasure, and then came before Him laden with sins and misdeeds of which he had never repented? The true Sovereign will judge him with a judgment containing neither injustice nor so much as an atom’s weight of wrong. Hence He says: “It will be a difficult Day for the disbelievers,” because of its extreme hardship and because its events will be so difficult for them. By contrast, it will be easy for the believer and light to bear.
“On the Day We gather the God-fearing before the Most Merciful as a delegation, and drive the criminals to Hell, parched with thirst.”
His statement, “True sovereignty on that Day”—meaning the Day of Resurrection—“will belong to the Most Merciful,” means that no created being will retain any sovereignty or even the semblance of it, as they did in this world. Kings and their subjects, the free and the enslaved, the noble and all others will be equal. One of the things that brings comfort to the heart, sets the soul at rest, and brings ease to the ⦗582⦘ breast is that He ascribes sovereignty on the Day of Resurrection to His Name, “the Most Merciful,” whose mercy encompasses all things, embraces every living being, fills all existence, and causes both this world and the Hereafter to flourish. Through it every incomplete thing is perfected and every deficiency removed. His Names denoting mercy prevail over those denoting wrath, and His mercy precedes and overcomes His wrath. Thus, precedence and predominance belong to mercy. He created this frail human being, ennobled and honored him, so that He might complete His favor upon him and envelop him in His mercy. They will stand before Him in a station of abasement, submission, and humility, awaiting His judgment concerning them and what will befall them, while He is more merciful to them than they are to themselves and than their own parents are to them. What, then, do you think His treatment of them will be? None perishes before Allah except one who is doomed, and none falls outside His mercy except one overcome by wretchedness and against whom the word of punishment has come due.
“And on the Day when the wrongdoer”—through his polytheism, disbelief, and denial of the messengers—“bites his hands” in regret, remorse, sorrow, and grief. “He will say, ‘If only I had taken a path with the Messenger!’” That is, a path of believing in him, affirming his truthfulness, and following him.
“Woe is me! If only I had not taken so-and-so”—meaning either a human or jinn devil—“as an intimate friend!” That is, as a beloved and devoted companion. I treated as an enemy the one who was most sincere in counseling me, kindest to me, and gentlest with me, while taking as my ally my bitterest enemy, whose friendship brought me nothing but misery, loss, disgrace, and ruin.
“Indeed, he led me away from the Reminder after it had come to me,” for he made the misguidance he followed seem attractive through his deception and false enticements. “Satan has ever been one to desert man”: he makes falsehood seem attractive and truth repellent, holds out vain hopes to him, and then abandons and disowns him. Thus he will say to all his followers once the matter has been decided and Allah has finished judging creation:
“And Satan will say when the matter has been decided, ‘Allah made you a true promise. I too made you a promise, but I broke it. I had no authority over you except that I called you and you responded to me. So do not blame me; blame yourselves. I cannot rescue you, nor can you rescue me. I disavow your having associated me with Allah before.’” This continues to the end of the verse.
Let the servant therefore look to his own soul while he still has the opportunity, and remedy what he can before remedy is no longer possible. Let him befriend the one in whose friendship lies his happiness, and oppose the one whose enmity benefits him and whose friendship harms him. Allah is the One who grants success.