Surah Al-Jathiyah — Verse 24

Word Meanings:

• Ad-Dahr (الدَّهْر): Time, the passage of nights and days, the long succession of years.
• Yadhunnūn (يَظُنُّون): They assume, conjecture, or speculate without certainty or proof.

Tafsir (Explanation):

The polytheists who denied the resurrection and the Hereafter made a bold and empty claim. They said: "There is nothing but our worldly life. We die and we live, and nothing destroys us except time." By this, they meant that life is merely a cycle—some people die while others are born, and that is the end of it. They rejected any notion of a life after death, and they attributed their destruction and death to the mere passage of time—the coming and going of days and nights, the turning of the seasons, and the aging of years. They refused to acknowledge that there is a Creator and Sustainer who gives life and causes death, and who will resurrect all of humanity for final accountability.

This was the belief of the pagan Arabs: whenever calamity struck them, they would blame time itself, saying, "Time has destroyed us," as if time were the active agent of their fate. They did not realize that time is merely a created thing—a measure set by Allah—and that it has no power of its own. It is Allah alone who causes death and gives life, and He does so by His wisdom and decree.

Then Allah responds to their claim with a powerful rebuttal: "And they have no knowledge of that; they only speculate." Their denial of the Hereafter was not based on any evidence, proof, or revelation. It was nothing more than guesswork, illusion, and blind assumption. They spoke without certainty, following their whims and desires rather than truth.

A Call to Reflection and Faith:

O beloved reader, reflect on this verse deeply. These people denied the Hereafter not because they had proof, but because they did not want to face the responsibility of accountability. They preferred to live as if this world were all there is, free from any moral obligation to their Creator. But is it logical to believe that this vast universe, with all its precision and beauty, came into being without a purpose? Is it reasonable to think that the human being—with his intellect, conscience, and longing for justice—was created merely to eat, drink, and die?

The truth is that this world is a test, and the Hereafter is the final destination. Death is not the end; it is a transition to an eternal life where every soul will be recompensed for what it earned. The passage of time is not what destroys us—it is Allah, the All-Mighty, who takes souls at their appointed time. So do not be like those who live in heedlessness, chasing the fleeting pleasures of this world while ignoring the everlasting life to come. Turn to your Lord, believe in His promise, and prepare for the Day when you will stand before Him. That is the path of wisdom, the path of success, and the path of eternal bliss.