any messenger before you without revealing to him, “There is no god but I; so worship Me” (al-Anbiyāʾ 21:25).

Thus to single out Allah in worship, love, veneration, penitence, trust, seeking help, fear, and all similar acts is the very foundation of the religion.

For that reason the Prophet ﷺ, in the state of alarm that had turned his face red, kept proclaiming “There is no god but Allah,” reaffirming monotheism and steadying people’s hearts. He then warned the Arabs, saying, “Woe to the Arabs from an evil that has drawn near.” The Arabs are the bearers of Islam’s standard, for Allah sent Muhammad ﷺ to the unlettered—namely, the Arabs—“to recite His revelations to them, to purify them, and to teach them the Scripture and wisdom—though before this they were in clear misguidance—and to others besides them who have not yet joined them; and He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise” (al-Jumuʿah 62:2-3). The Prophet ﷺ therefore directed this warning to the Arabs because they carry the banner of Islam.

His words “from an evil that has drawn near” refer to what will befall them at the hands of Gog and Magog. He explained this by saying, “Today a gap the size of this has been opened in the barrier of Gog and Magog,” and he joined his forefinger to his thumb, indicating a tiny opening that nonetheless threatens the Arabs.

From the Prophet’s time until today, the Arabs who have borne the banner of Islam remain threatened by Gog and Magog, those agents of corruption on earth, just as Allah quoted the people of Dhu’l-Qarnayn as saying, “Indeed, Gog and Magog are spreading corruption in the land.” They are people of evil and corruption.

Zaynab then asked, “O Messenger of Allah, will we be destroyed while righteous people are still among us?” He answered, “Yes, when wickedness becomes widespread.” The righteous themselves are not destroyed