His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "So he neither believed nor prayed. But he denied and turned away. Then he went to his family, swaggering. Woe to you, so woe! Then woe to you, so woe! Does man think that he will be left neglected? Was he not a drop of sperm emitted? Then he was a clinging substance, and He created and fashioned. And He made from it the two sexes, the male and the female. Is He not able to bring the dead to life?"

All of these verses were revealed about Abu Jahl ibn Hisham. This verse almost explicitly states him in His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "swaggering," for it was the walk of the Banu Makhzum, and Abu Jahl used to frequently walk in that manner. And His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "So he neither believed nor prayed," its meaning is: he did not believe and did not pray. This is similar to the poet's words:

"So which Thursday, for we do not fear our father, and our swords drip with his blood?"

And the words of another:

"If You forgive, O Allah, forgive abundantly, and which of Your servants is not a sinner?"

So "no" in the verse is a negation, not a conjunction. And "believed" means: in the message of Allah and His religion. Some people said it refers to charity, but the first is more accurate. And "swaggering" means: walking with arrogance, and it is a walk with pride. Zayd ibn Aslam said: it was the walk of the Banu Makhzum, and it is derived from "mataa," which means the back, because it bends in it. The Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, said: "When my nation walks with swagger, and they are served by the Romans and Persians, some of them will dominate over others." Mujahid said: this verse was revealed about Abu Jahl ibn Hisham.

And His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "Woe to you, so woe!" is a second warning, then He repeated that for emphasis. The meaning is: woe to you, for you should stop and turn away, and it is derived from "walla." The Arabs use this word as a reprimand, and from it is His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "So woe to them" [Muhammad: 20] "Obedience and good words" [Muhammad: 21]. It is narrated that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, confronted Abu Jahl one day in the valley and said to him: "Indeed, Allah says to you: 'Woe to you, so woe!'" And the Quran was revealed in this manner. And in the poetry of Al-Khansa:

"I intended for myself all the concerns, so woe to my soul, woe to it."

And His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "Does man think" is a reprimand and a stopping point. And "neglected" means: unheeded, neither commanded nor prohibited. Then He reaffirmed, exalted and majestic is He, regarding the state of the son of Adam in the hand of Allah, which if contemplated, no rational person would deny the possibility of resurrection. The majority read: "Was he not" with a 'ya,' while Al-Hasan read: "Was she not" with a 'ta' from above. And "the drop" is a piece of water, which is said for both little and much. And "the sperm" is well known. And Ibn Amer, Hafs from Asim, Abu Amr, and Ibn Muhaysin, Al-Jahdari, Salam, and Ya'qub read: "is emitted" with a 'ya,' referring to the sperm. It is possible that it means "is emitted" from your saying: "the man emitted," and it is possible that it means from your saying: "Allah created the creation." So it is as if He, exalted and majestic is He, said: from sperm He creates. The majority of the seven reciters and the people read: "is emitted" with a 'ta,' referring to the drop. And "emitted" can have both meanings mentioned. And "the clinging substance" is a piece of blood, for blood is the clinging substance.

And His saying, exalted is He: "So He created and fashioned" means: Allah, exalted is He, created from it a human being composed of different things, and He fashioned him into an independent person. In the Mushaf of Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, it is written: "He creates" with a ya, indicating a future action. And "the two kinds" refers to the two types, and it is possible that he means the two pairs of humans.

Then, exalted is He, paused for a rebuke and to establish proof by His saying, exalted is He: "Is that not able to bring the dead to life?" The majority read with a fatḥah on the last ya of "brings to life." Talhah ibn Sulayman and Al-Fayyad ibn Ghazwan read it with a sukoon, and it is omitted from the pronunciation due to the sukoon of the lam in "the dead." It is narrated that the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, when he recited this verse, would say: "Glory be to You, O Allah, and with Your praise, yes," and it is narrated that he would say: "Yes" only.

The interpretation of Surah [Al-Qiyamah] is complete, and all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.