قُل لَّا يَعْلَمُ مَن فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ٱلْغَيْبَ إِلَّا ٱللَّهُ ۚ وَمَا يَشْعُرُونَ أَيَّانَ يُبْعَثُونَ 65
Translations
Say, "None in the heavens and earth knows the unseen except Allāh, and they do not perceive when they will be resurrected."
Transliteration
Qul lā ya'lamu man fī as-samāwāti wa-al-ardi al-ghayba illā Allāh; wa-mā yash'urūn ayyān yub'athūn
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah establishes that knowledge of the unseen (al-ghayb) belongs exclusively to Allah alone, and no creature in the heavens or earth knows when the Hour of Resurrection will occur. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi emphasize that this verse refutes all claims to knowledge of the unseen, whether by false prophets, fortune-tellers, or those who speculate about the timing of the Day of Judgment. The ayah underscores human limitation and divine exclusivity in matters of ultimate reality.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah An-Naml, a Meccan chapter primarily concerned with refuting polytheism and affirming divine attributes. The broader context addresses the disbelievers' skepticism toward the Resurrection, and this verse responds to their questioning about the Day of Judgment by reminding them that such knowledge is divinely sealed.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said: 'The keys of the unseen are five, none knows them but Allah' (referencing Surah Luqman 31:34, which lists five types of hidden knowledge). Also, 'Whoever claims knowledge of the unseen has disbelieved in Allah' (Tafsir Al-Tabari). See Sahih Bukhari and related collections.
Themes
Key Lesson
Believers should recognize the limits of human knowledge and avoid arrogance in claiming to know what only Allah knows, particularly regarding the future and the unseen. This cultivates humility, trust in divine wisdom, and freedom from anxiety about unknowable matters, allowing us to focus on our present responsibilities rather than speculating about the unseen.
Related Ayahs
وَمَكَرُوا۟ مَكْرًا وَمَكَرْنَا مَكْرًا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ
And they planned a plan, and We planned a plan, while they perceived not.
وَكَانَ فِى ٱلْمَدِينَةِ تِسْعَةُ رَهْطٍ يُفْسِدُونَ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَا يُصْلِحُونَ
And there were in the city nine family heads causing corruption in the land and not amending [its affairs].
وَيَوْمَ يُنفَخُ فِى ٱلصُّورِ فَفَزِعَ مَن فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَن فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ إِلَّا مَن شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ ۚ وَكُلٌّ أَتَوْهُ دَٰخِرِينَ
And [warn of] the Day the Horn will be blown, and whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth will be terrified except whom Allāh wills. And all will come to Him humbled.
إِنَّمَآ أُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَعْبُدَ رَبَّ هَـٰذِهِ ٱلْبَلْدَةِ ٱلَّذِى حَرَّمَهَا وَلَهُۥ كُلُّ شَىْءٍ ۖ وَأُمِرْتُ أَنْ أَكُونَ مِنَ ٱلْمُسْلِمِينَ
[Say, O Muḥammad], "I have only been commanded to worship the Lord of this city, who made it sacred and to whom [belongs] all things. And I am commanded to be of the Muslims [i.e., those who submit to Allāh].