Surah Yasin — Verse 48

Word Meanings:

• Matā (متى): When — a question of time, used here to express mockery and denial.
• Hādhā al-Waʿd (هذا الوعد): This promise — referring to the Day of Resurrection and the Hour that the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the believers warned them about.
• Ṣādiqīn (صادقين): Truthful — those who claim that the Resurrection will indeed occur.

Tafsir (Explanation):

In this verse, Allah Almighty tells us about the stubborn attitude of the disbelievers who, in their arrogance and denial, mockingly ask: "When will this promise of resurrection come to pass — if you are truly truthful?" They address this to the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his companions, challenging them with sarcasm and disbelief, as if the very idea of being raised from the graves after death is something impossible and absurd in their eyes.

They ask this question not out of genuine curiosity or a desire to learn the truth, but rather to ridicule and belittle the message. They say: "If what you claim is true — that we will be resurrected and held accountable — then tell us when exactly will this happen?" This is the same attitude of every arrogant people throughout history who rejected the messengers and demanded to hasten the punishment or the promised Hour out of mockery, not out of faith.

The believers, on the other hand, know with certainty that the promise of Allah is true, and that He will not fail in His promise. The exact timing of the Hour is knowledge that Allah has kept exclusively for Himself, as He says elsewhere: "They ask you about the Hour: when is its arrival? Say: Its knowledge is only with my Lord. None will reveal its time except Him" (Al-Aʿrāf: 187). The disbelievers' demand to know the precise time is merely a pretext to avoid submitting to the truth.

A Daʿwah Reflection:

Dear reader, notice how the disbelievers of Makkah asked this question with arrogance and haste, as if challenging Allah Himself. Yet, the wise believer does not busy himself with the "when" of the Hour, but rather with the "how" — how to prepare for that Day. The One who created you from nothing and gave you life is certainly able to bring you back to life after death. The same Power that split the sky, spread the earth, and raised the mountains is not incapable of resurrecting the dead. So do not be like those who mock the truth; rather, be among those who hasten to good deeds before that promised Day arrives — for when it comes, no soul will be given another chance. Let this question of the disbelievers be a reminder to you: the Hour is real, its coming is certain, and the wise person is the one who prepares for it today, not the one who asks about its timing out of mockery. May Allah make us among those who believe in the unseen and prepare for the meeting with their Lord.