“They will say, ‘We stayed a day, or part of a day; so ask those who kept the count.’” In other words: “Question those among us who used to tally the days, for we do not think we stayed except a day—or even part of a day.”

Allah, Exalted be He, will reply, “You remained only a little while,” meaning: you spent but a brief span in the worldly life, yet now you have arrived at the Hereafter in which you will dwell for all eternity, suffering everlasting punishment.

He will also say, “You stayed only a little—if only you had known.” That is, had you possessed true knowledge you would have realized the magnitude of your rejection of the messengers and of the deeds you forfeited.

“Did you then think that We created you in vain, and that to Us you would not be returned?” They did indeed entertain that notion, but Allah rebukes them for it. Could it accord with the Divine wisdom to bring this creation into being, send it messengers, and reveal to it scriptures, only for everything to end in death and extinction—without resurrection or return? Impossible. Yet such was the supposition of the disbelievers: “So woe to those who disbelieve because of the Fire” (Sad 38:27).

The Almighty then says, “Exalted, then, is Allah, the Sovereign, the True—there is no deity but He, Lord of the Noble Throne.” “Exalted” means He is utterly above every deficiency and every evil, and He has risen above His Throne in His very Essence. “The Sovereign” is the One who possesses dominion, authority, and majesty; “the True” indicates that His sovereignty and kingdom are real, not illusory. “There is no deity but He” affirms that none deserves worship in truth except Allah, “Lord of the Noble Throne.”

“And whoever invokes another god alongside Allah, for which he has no proof…”—and so on until the end of the surah.