وَقَالُوٓا۟ أَءِذَا ضَلَلْنَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ أَءِنَّا لَفِى خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍۭ ۚ بَلْ هُم بِلِقَآءِ رَبِّهِمْ كَـٰفِرُونَ 10
Translations
And they say, "When we are lost [i.e., disintegrated] within the earth, will we indeed be [recreated] in a new creation?" Rather, they are, in the meeting with their Lord, disbelievers.
Transliteration
Wa qalū a-idhā dalallanā fil-ardi a-innā lafī khalqin jadīd. Bal hum biliqāi rabbihim kāfirūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
The disbelievers mockingly question how they could be resurrected in a new creation after being scattered in the earth, denying the possibility of resurrection. The ayah responds that their true problem is not intellectual doubt but rather their rejection of meeting their Lord on the Day of Judgment—their disbelief in the meeting with Allah (liqā' ar-Rabb) is the root of their denial of resurrection. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi emphasize that the ayah exposes their fundamental spiritual disease: kufr (disbelief) rooted in rejecting accountability before Allah.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah As-Sajdah, a Meccan surah that addresses the fundamental Islamic beliefs of Tawheed (monotheism) and the Hereafter. The context is the Meccan disbelievers' mockery and rejection of the concept of resurrection, which was one of the primary points of contention between the Prophet Muhammad and the pagan Arabs of Mecca.
Related Hadiths
Related to the theme of resurrection: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The most miserable person is he who fears the Hour (Day of Judgment)' (Tirmidhi). Also relevant: 'The Hour will be established and some people will not yet have left the gathering' (Sahih Muslim 2958), emphasizing the certainty of resurrection.
Themes
Key Lesson
True disbelief stems not merely from intellectual objection but from the human heart's rejection of accountability before Allah; rejecting the meeting with one's Lord is the spiritual disease underlying all denials of truth. For believers, this ayah reminds us that firm belief in meeting Allah and standing before Him should be the compass guiding our conduct in this life.