Surah Az-Zalzala (99): Read Online and Download - English Translation

The Merits of Surah Az-Zilzal

Sayyidna Anas and Ibn ` Abbas ؓ report that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that Surah Al-Zilzal equals half the Qur'an, Surah Al-Ikhlas equals a third of the Qur'an and Surah Al-Kafirun equals a quarter of the Qur'an. [ Transmitted by al-Tirmidhi, al-Baghawi and a1-Mazhari ].

The Scene of the Day of Resurrection

Verse [ 1] إِذَا زُلْزِلَتِ الْأَرْ‌ضُ زِلْزَالَهَا (When the earth will be trembled with its quake.) It is not clear whether this earthquake refers to the convulsion that will take place in the world before the 'first blowing of the trumpet', as is mentioned in connection with the portents of the Doomsday, or it refers to the quake that will occur after the 'second blowing' when the dead bodies will be resurrected and thrown out of their graves. Narratives and views of the commentators differ on this issue. It is not inconceivable that many quakes and convulsions would occur: first, before the 'first blowing'; and second, after the 'second blowing' at the time of raising the dead. Here it probably refers to the second quake, and the context supports it, because the Surah later on describes the scenes of the Day of Resurrection, such as reckoning, weighing and evaluating of deeds, and recompense. Allah knows best. [ Mazhari ]

Verse [ 2] وَأَخْرَ‌جَتِ الْأَرْ‌ضُ أَثْقَالَهَا (and the earth will bring forth its burdens.) Muslim has recorded in his Sahih from Abu Hurairah ؓ that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

"The earth will throw out the pieces of its liver [ contents ]. Gold and silver will come out like columns. A murderer will come and say: 'I killed for this?' The one who broke the ties of kinship will say: 'For this I severed the ties of kinship?' The thief will say: 'For this I got my hand amputated?' Then they will leave it there, and no one will take anything from it."

Verse [ 7] فَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّ‌ةٍ خَيْرً‌ا يَرَ‌هُ (So, whoever does good [ even ] to the weight of a particle shall see it.) The word 'good' here refers to what is good in terms of Shari` ah, that is, only a good deed done in the wake of faith is recognized by Allah. Any good deed done in the state of disbelief is not recognized, and consequently it will not be rewarded in the Hereafter, though it might have been rewarded in this world. It is argued on the basis of this verse that anyone who has an atom's weight of faith will eventually be taken out of Hell. The reason being that, according to the promise made in this verse, man must reap the fruit of his righteousness in the Hereafter. If he has not done any righteous deeds, faith itself is a great righteousness. Thus no matter how sinful a believer may be, he will not be condemned to Hell for good. On the other hand, if a non-believer has done tons of good deeds, they will be rendered vain in the Hereafter on account of lack of faith. He will, however, receive reward for them here in this world.

Verse [ 8] وَمَن يَعْمَلْ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّ‌ةٍ شَرًّ‌ا يَرَ‌هُ (And Whoever does evil [ even ] to the weight of a particle shall see it.) By 'evil' here is meant the evil for which the evil-doer has not repented. The Qur'an and the Sunnah bear ample testimony to the fact that any sinner who sincerely repents for his sins Allah will most certainly accept his repentance. However, the sins for which the sinners have not repented in this world shall certainly bring their results, no matter how trivial or petty they might have been in their appearance. That is why the Messenger of Allah ﷺ warned Sayyidah ` A'ishah ؓ to beware of the sins that are belittled, for indeed they will be taken account of by Allah." [ Transmitted by Nasa'i and Ibn Majah ].

Sayyidna ` Abdullah Ibn Masud ؓ says that this verse is most robust and comprehensive verse of the Holy Qur'an. Sayyidna Anas ؓ in a lengthy narration reports that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ referred to this verse as الفاذۃ الجامعہ "the unique, most comprehensive verse".

Al-hamdulillah

The Commentary on

Surah Az-Zilzal

Ends here