Surah An-Nazi'at — Verse 43

Word Meanings:

• Feelma (فِيمَ): "In what" or "concerning what" — meaning, in what position or state.
• Min dhikrāhā (مِن ذِكْرَاهَا): "Of the knowledge of its time" — i.e., of knowing when it will occur, or of being able to mention its specific timing.

Explanation of the Verse:

This verse addresses the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) directly, in the context of the disbelievers of Makkah who, out of mockery and denial, kept asking him about the exact timing of the Hour (the Day of Judgment). They would say: "When will this promised Hour come?" — not because they believed in it, but to ridicule and challenge him.

Allah, the Exalted, tells His Prophet: "In what [position] are you regarding the knowledge of it?" — meaning, you have absolutely no knowledge of when the Hour will occur. This is not something that has been revealed to you, nor is it part of your mission to know its precise timing. The knowledge of the Hour is exclusively with Allah alone, as He states elsewhere in the Qur'an: "Indeed, Allah [alone] has knowledge of the Hour" (Luqman 34).

The Prophet's role, and by extension the role of every believer, is not to speculate about when the Hour will come, but rather to prepare for it — to warn people, to call them to faith, and to remind them of the accountability they will face. The verse gently redirects the focus from the "when" to the "what": what matters is not knowing the time, but being ready for that inevitable moment.

This carries a profound lesson for all of us. How often do we occupy ourselves with questions that are beyond our reach — the unseen, the future, the exact details of what Allah has kept hidden — while neglecting what is within our power: sincere repentance, good deeds, and the pursuit of Allah's pleasure? The Prophet (peace be upon him) was told, in essence: "This is not your concern; your concern is to warn and to guide." And so it is for us — our concern is not to know when the end will come, but to live each day as if it could be our last, with hearts full of faith and hands busy with righteousness.

The verse also carries a gentle, loving reassurance: the Prophet was not being blamed for not knowing, nor was he being asked to provide an answer he did not possess. Rather, it is a mercy from Allah to relieve him of a burden that was never his to carry. And in this, there is comfort for every believer who is asked questions about the unseen — we say what the Prophet was guided to say: knowledge is with Allah, and our duty is to submit and prepare.

So let this verse be a reminder to us all: the Hour is real, it is near, and it will surely come. But its timing is a secret that Allah has kept to Himself, so that we may live in a state of readiness — not in fear and anxiety, but in hopeful, active preparation. May Allah make us among those who are prepared to meet Him with a pure heart and a record of good deeds.