Tafsir of Surah Ya-Sin - Verse 54

The Trumpet Blast of the Resurrection

This will be the third blast of the trumpet, the trumpet blast of the resurrection when people will come forth from their graves. Allah says:

فَإِذَا هُم مِّنَ الاٌّجْدَاثِ إِلَى رَبِّهِمْ يَنسِلُونَ

(and behold from the graves they will come out quickly to their Lord.) Yansilun means they will be walking quickly. This is like the Ayah:

يَوْمَ يَخْرُجُونَ مِنَ الاٌّجْدَاثِ سِرَاعاً كَأَنَّهُمْ إِلَى نُصُبٍ يُوفِضُونَ

(The Day when they will come out of the graves quickly as racing to a goal.) (70:43).

قَالُواْ يوَيْلَنَا مَن بَعَثَنَا مِن مَّرْقَدِنَا

(They will say: "Woe to us! Who has raised us up from our place of sleep.") meaning, their graves, which in this world they thought they would never be raised from. When they see with their own eyes that in which they had disbelieved,

قَالُواْ يوَيْلَنَا مَن بَعَثَنَا مِن مَّرْقَدِنَا

(They will say: "Woe to us! Who has raised us up from our place of sleep.") This does not contradict the fact that they will be punished in their graves, because in comparison to what is to come afterwards, that will seem like a nap. Ubayy bin Ka`b, may Allah be pleased with him, Mujahid, Al-Hasan and Qatadah said, "They will sleep before the Resurrection." Qatadah said, "That will be between the two trumpet blasts, they will say, `Who has raised us up from our place of sleep"' When they say that, the believers will respond. This was the view of more than one of the Salaf.

هَذَا مَا وَعَدَ الرَّحْمـنُ وَصَدَقَ الْمُرْسَلُونَ

((It will be said to them): "This is what the Most Gracious had promised, and the Messengers spoke truth!") Al-Hasan said, "The angels will reply to them in this manner. There is no contradiction because both are possible. And Allah knows best.

إِن كَانَتْ إِلاَّ صَيْحَةً وَحِدَةً فَإِذَا هُمْ جَمِيعٌ لَّدَيْنَا مُحْضَرُونَ

(It will be but a single Sayhah, so behold they will all be brought up before Us!) This is like the Ayat:

فَإِنَّمَا هِىَ زَجْرَةٌ وَحِدَةٌ - فَإِذَا هُم بِالسَّاهِرَةِ

(But it will be only a single Zajrah, when behold, they find themselves (on the surface of the earth) alive (after their death).) (79:13-14),

وَمَآ أَمْرُ السَّاعَةِ إِلاَّ كَلَمْحِ الْبَصَرِ أَوْ هُوَ أَقْرَبُ

(And the matter of the Hour is not but as a twinkling of the eye, or even nearer) (16:77), and

يَوْمَ يَدْعُوكُمْ فَتَسْتَجِيبُونَ بِحَمْدِهِ وَتَظُنُّونَ إِن لَّبِثْتُمْ إِلاَّ قَلِيلاً

(On the Day when He will call you, and you will answer (His call) with (words of) His praise and obedience, and you will think that you have stayed (in this world) but a little while!) (17:52) which means, `We will issue but one command, and all of them will be gathered together.'

فَالْيَوْمَ لاَ تُظْلَمُ نَفْسٌ شَيْئاً

(This Day, none will be wronged in anything,) means, with regard to his deeds.

وَلاَ تُجْزَوْنَ إِلاَّ مَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

(nor will you be requited anything except that which you used to do.)

In verse 52, it was said: قَالُوا يَا وَيْلَنَا مَن بَعَثَنَا مِن مَّرْ‌قَدِنَا (They will say, "Woe to us! Who has raised us from our sleeping place?" ). Though the disbelievers were already having their punishment in their graves with no sign of any relief, yet this punishment will appear as nothing when compared with the punishing circumstances of the day of Qiyamah, therefore, they will cry out as to why they had to be taken out of their graves, for it would have been better if they had stayed right there. A response to this will come from either the angels or the common believers.

This response appears immediately next in verse 52: هَـٰذَا مَا وَعَدَ الرَّ‌حْمَـٰنُ وَصَدَقَ الْمُرْ‌سَلُونَ ("This is what the Rahman had promised, and the messengers had told the truth.) - to which they paid no attention. At this place, a choice has been made in using the word: رَّ‌حْمَـٰنُ (Rahman: The Most Merciful) out of the many attributes of Allah. It serves as an indicator - as for Him, He had already made elaborate arrangements, in His mercy, that you remain safe from this punishment, and that His act of alerting you in advance through His promise and through His Books and Prophets was, in fact, but a dictate of His attribute of mercy.

The final result of man’s deeds (in the present world) will be declared in the Hereafter. One who remained immersed in the pursuance of his petty interests here, will enter the eternal world of the Hereafter empty-handed, unlike those who lived a life of high purpose and who will be very pleased with the good results they achieve.