"On The Day When the Earth Is Changed into Another Earth, and the Heavens, and They Will Emerge before God, the One, Dominant Lord." (Quran 14:48)

Published in June 22, 2018

Translated by: Ahmed Fathy

Firstly: "On the Day when the earth is changed into another earth..." (14:48):

1- Physical/natural laws known to human beings and the ones which have not been known yet within this physical realm (the universe: earth, heavens, stars, galaxies, etc.) are certainly and totally different from the physical/natural laws (unknown to humanity) of the Barsakh levels of the earth and heavens. Both types of laws will change 100% when the universe is destroyed with its physical and metaphysical realms; this is inferred from this verse: "On the Day when the earth is changed into another earth, and the heavens..." (14:48). This means that this change, when the Hour comes, will include the exact opposite of physical/natural laws of our physical realm; since we know very little about the physical realm around us, we are very ignorant about the description of the Eternal Realm: "...but most people do not know. They know an outer aspect of the worldly life, but they are heedless of the Hereafter." (30:6-7). We know only about the Eternal Realm as per our limited understanding and pondering on the Quranic verses that tackle the Last Day and the Hereafter.   

2- Our limited human minds cannot understand the nature of the Eternal Realm where there is no past nor future. It is impossible to fully imagine this as our perceptions are based on the physical realm around us. The dimension of time is enveloping our existence and it moves forward and it never turns back or stops, until the Hour takes place and the universe will be totally destroyed and return to its zero point.  

3- We notice that the Quranic verses about the Last Day employ the past tense in Arabic – despite the fact that the Last Day has not taken place yet. This usage of past tense (and the passive voice) indicates the fact that these events are bound to occur inevitably as per God's Will and Decree. God says in the Quran: "And the Trumpet was sounded, whereupon everyone in the heavens and the earth were stunned, except whomever God wills. Then it was sounded another time, whereupon they were risen up, looking on. And the earth shone with the Light of its Lord; and the Book was put in place; and the prophets and the witnesses were brought in; and Judgment was passed among them equitably, and they were not wronged." (39:68-69). The succession of the Last-Day events before people enter into either Hell or Paradise will take place in this Eternal Realm, where there is no past or future, as there is only the present eternity and time will seem to be 'frozen'. This is very hard to fathom or to imagine by our limited human minds; we understand only what is physical and perceived by the senses; we cannot until now understand the nature of metaphysical, Barsakh levels that overlap with the physical universe; let alone an Eternal Realm which is yet to come; we will fully grasp it only when it is realized and we live and witness it after our souls are resurrected. God the Omniscient Lord knows the visible and the invisible as well as the future in this world and the next one. The only information we know about the Hereafter is found in the Quran. The past tense is used to indicate the inevitable fate/decree by the Lord God that such events will take place; the Divine Decrees are issued and they are yet to be fulfilled/realized in its predetermined time: "The command of God has come, so do not rush it. Glory be to Him; exalted above what they associate." (16:1).     

4- The Big Bang that has been the commencement of the creation of the heavens and the earth is referred to in the following verse: "Do the disbelievers not see that the heavens and the earth were one mass, and We tore them apart? And We made from water every living thing. Will they not believe?" (21:30). This resulted into two realms/universes which are opposite to each other; i.e., a universe and its counter-universe (like positive and negative or [+/-]), and we infer this from these verses: "We created all things in pairs, so that you may reflect and ponder." (51:49); "Glory be to Him who created all the pairs; of what the earth produces, and of their own selves, and of what they do not know." (36:36). This universe and its counter-universe move into two opposite direction within an oval or elliptic orbit; the universe is expanding all the time: "We constructed the universe with power, and We are expanding it." (51:47). The Hour will take place and the universe is destroyed totally when the universe and the counter-universe will converge and collide with one another; this fact is inferred from this verse: "On the Day when We fold the heaven, like the folding of a book. Just as We began the first creation, We will repeat it - a promise binding on Us. We will act." (21:104). This collusion will bring the end of the universe and it will return to its zero point. This is the meaning of the Hour when it occurs.

5- God's calculations include that 50 thousand years will be the duration between the creation of the universe and the Hour. These 50 thousand years are NOT as per the human calculations of years. We never know how much this duration is as per the human perception of time on earth; we never know when the universe has been created and what is left from the 50 thousand years mentioned in the Quran as per God's calculations; we know only that the Hour is very near; God has said the following 14 centuries ago: "The Humankind's judgment has drawn near, but they turn away heedlessly." (21:1); "A questioner questioned the imminent torment. For the disbelievers; none can repel it. From God, Lord of the Ways of Ascent. Unto Him the angels and the Spirit ascend on a Day the duration of which is fifty thousand years. So be patient, with sweet patience. They see it distant. But We see it near." (70:1-7).    

6- Human beings now use the unit of (light years); the speed of light is 300 thousand km/s and this means that light moves 18 million km per minute; this is known as (the light minute); the distance covered by light within one light year is 9,460,730,472,580,800 meters; i.e., 9,461 trillion km. The distances in the outer space in the universe are so vast and they are measured in billions of light years. Let alone speeds and distances within the Barsakh levels known only to God and never known to humanity? God says in the Quran: "Certainly the creation of the heavens and the earth is greater than the creation of humanity, but most people do not know." (40:57).

Secondly:"...and they will emerge before God, the One, Dominant Lord." (14:48):

1- God manages the universe using His angels; this fact is expressed in the Quran using the earthly time: "He regulates all affairs, from the heavens, to the earth. Then it ascends to Him on a Day the length of which is a thousand years by your count. That is the Knower of the Invisible and the Visible, the Powerful, the Merciful." (32:5-6). We notice the usage of the present tense here; God is, of course, High above time and space/locality. Human beings cannot know the future; God is the Only Omniscient Lord: "He knows what penetrates into the earth, and what comes out of it, and what descends from the sky, and what ascends to it. He is the Merciful, the Forgiving." (34:2); "With Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them except He. And He knows everything on land and in the sea. Not a leaf falls but He knows it; and there is not a single grain in the darkness of earth, nor is there anything wet or dry, but is in a clear record." (6:59).

2- Angels who manage the universe include Gabriel and angels with him who descend upon the earth with fates annually during the Night of Decree each Ramadan; Gabriel contacted prophets/messengers with God's Revelation; this stage/era ended when the Quran was revealed and Muhammad, the seal of all prophets, died. Of course, there are angels that record deeds/words of human beings and there are the angels of death. On the Last Day, both human beings and angels will be judged; these verses are about the judgment of the angels: "And you will see the angels hovering around the Throne, glorifying their Lord with praise. And it will be judged between them equitably, and it will be said, "Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds."" (39:75); "On the Day when the Spirit and the angels stand in row. They will not speak, unless it be one permitted by the Most Merciful, and he will say what is right. " (78:38). This means that the angels enjoy freedom of actions, words, and choice; we are to remember that Iblis was an angel in the Upper Realm who refused to obey the command of the Lord God to kneel before Adam and he was cursed and distanced into the lowest Barsakh of earth with the jinn and devils; he became Satan.   

3- The Day of Judgment is when human beings meet with their Lord God; real, pious believers long for this meeting; the heedless disbelievers never think of this meeting as they disbelieve in it and deny it, because they deny the Last Day.

4- God uses human-related words here in the contexts of the Last-Day events (and about Himself) to make us grasp and understand what will occur. Let us exemplify this.

4/1: "No - when the earth is leveled, pounded, and crushed. And your Lord comes, with the angels, row after row." (89:21-22).

4/2: "To your Lord on that Day is the settlement." (75:12); "To your Lord on that Day is the drive." (75:30).

4/3: "They will emerge before God, altogether..." (14:21); "... and they will emerge before God, the One, Dominant Lord." (14:48).

4/4: "They will be presented before your Lord in a row..." (18:48).

  Within all of the above points, we cannot imagine the time and place within the Eternal Realm.

5- God will create new angels on the Last Day that will accompany His Presence/Manifestation; these angels will not be judged and will be absolutely obedient to Him: "And your Lord comes, with the angels, row after row." (89:22). There will be various types of angels as per the points below. 

5/1: The ones standing on their legs in the elevated location between Hell and Paradise: "And between them is a partition, and on the Elevations are men who recognize everyone by their features. They will call to the inhabitants of the Garden, "Peace be upon you." They have not entered it, but they are hoping. And when their eyes are directed towards the inmates of the Fire, they will say, "Our Lord, do not place us among the unjust people." And those of the Elevations will call to men they recognize by their features, saying, "Your hoardings did not avail you, nor did your arrogance." "Are these the ones you swore God will not touch with mercy?" "Enter into Paradise; you have nothing to fear, and you will not grieve."" (7:46-49). More about these angels are found in our book titled "Will the Sinning Muslims Get out of Hell to Enter into Paradise?".

5/2: The ones who arrange/align the human beings into rows and scold those who get out of the rows; they are mentioned by God here: "By the aligners aligning. And the scolders scolding." (37:1-2).

5/2/1: Those aligning angels include those who force sinners/disbelievers into Hell while rebuking them severely for their rejecting the Book of God: "On the Day when We gather from every community a group of those who rejected Our Verses; and they will be restrained. Until, when they arrive, He will say, "Did you reject My revelations without comprehending them? Or what is it you were doing?" The Word will come down upon them for their wrongdoing, and they will not speak." (27:83-85); "The Day when God's enemies are herded into the Fire, forcibly." (41:19).

5/2/2: Those angels will rebuke severely those sinners/disbelievers while they are thrown into Hell through its gates like rubbish bags: " Those who disbelieved will be driven to Hell in throngs. Until, when they have reached it, and its gates are opened, its keepers will say to them, "Did not messengers from among you come to you, reciting to you the Verses of your Lord, and warning you of the meeting of this Day of yours?" They will say, "Yes, but the verdict of torment is justified against the disbelievers." It will be said, "Enter the gates of Hell, to abide therein eternally." How wretched is the destination of the arrogant ones." (39:71-72); "That God may distinguish the bad from the good, and heap the bad on top of one another, and pile them together, and throw them in Hell. These are the losers." (8:37); "Then they will be toppled into it, together with the seducers. And the soldiers of Satan, all of them." (26:94-95).

5/3: There are angels who will drive good souls into Paradise through its gates: "And those who feared their Lord will be led to Paradise in throngs. Until, when they have reached it, and its gates are opened, its keepers will say to them, "Peace be upon you, you have been good, so enter it, to abide therein eternally."" (39:73).

5/4: There are angels inside Hell who oversee Hell-dwellers and their torment: "O you who believe! Protect yourselves and your families from a Fire, whose fuel is people and stones. Over it are angels, fierce and powerful. They never disobey God in anything He commands them, and they carry out whatever they are commanded." (66:6).

5/4/1: These angels are guardians of Hell who rebuke its dwellers: "When they are thrown into it, they will hear it roaring, as it seethes. It almost bursts with fury. Every time a batch is thrown into it, its keepers will ask them, "Has no warner come to you?" They will say, "Yes, a warner did come to us, but we disbelieved, and said, 'God did not send down anything; you are very much mistaken.'"" (67:7-9).

5/4/2: This rebuke will be uttered by them when the dwellers of Hell demand a respite or a temporary relief: "And those in the Fire will say to the keepers of Hell, "Call to your Lord to lessen our suffering for one day." They will say, "Did not your messengers come to you with clear signs?" They will say, "Yes." They will say, "Then pray, but the prayers of the disbelievers will always be in vain."" (40:49-50).

5/4/3: Those angels include Malik, the main keeper of Hell: "And they will cry, "O Malik, let your Lord finish us off." He will say, "You are staying." We have given you the Truth, but most of you hate the Truth." (43:77-78). Would disbelievers/polytheists among the Muhammadans be warned by all this? Would they stop believing in devilish hadiths and stop rejecting the Quran?

5/4/4: Some of the angels in Hell take part in tormenting some of the Hell-dwellers and prevent their escaping this torment: "...As for those who disbelieve, garments of fire will be tailored for them, and scalding water will be poured over their heads. Melting their insides and their skins. And they will have maces of iron." (22:19-22); "But as for those who transgressed, their shelter is the Fire. Every time they try to get out of it, they will be brought back into it, and it will be said to them, "Taste the suffering of the Fire which you used to deny."" (32:20).

5/5: There are angels who greet Paradise-dwellers inside Paradise: "Everlasting Gardens, which they will enter, along with the righteous among their parents, and their spouses, and their descendants. And the angels will enter upon them from every gate. "Peace be upon you, because you endured patiently. How excellent is the Final Home."" (13:23-24).

6- Hell and Paradise have NOT been created yet; God will manifest Himself on the Last Day and all human beings will be made to stand before Him; He will create and bring forth Hell and Paradise on the Day of Judgment: "And Paradise will be brought near for the pious ones. And Hell will be displayed to the deviators." (26:90-91); "And Hell will be displayed to whoever sees." (79:36); "And on that Day, Hell is brought forward. On that Day, man will remember, but how will remembrance avail him?" (89:23).

Lastly:

1- God says the following about His Dominance and Control on the Day of Resurrection: "They have not esteemed God as He ought to be esteemed. The entire earth is in His grip on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens are folded in His right. High above is He and Transcendent beyond the associations they make. And the Trumpet was sounded, whereupon everyone in the heavens and the earth were stunned, except whomever God wills. Then it was sounded another time, whereupon they were risen up, looking on. And the earth shone with the Light of its Lord; and the Book was put in place; and the prophets and the witnesses were brought in; and Judgment was passed among them equitably, and they were not wronged." (39:67-69). The use of the passive voice here indicates that human beings lose their freedom of action on the Last Day during Resurrection, Gathering, Judgment, etc. They lose their freedom once the moment of their dying comes. The winners who are Paradise-dwellers retrieve their freedom for eternity; losers/sinners who are Hell-dwellers will continue losing their freedom for eternity inside Hell. Hence, those who misuse their freedom in this transient world and lead a life of sinning, disbelief, aggression, transgression, and committing injustices as long as they are alive and awake will lose their freedom while dying, and while being resurrected and judged, and while being tormented inside Hell forever as the fate they deserve.   

2- Would disbelievers be warned by all this?