Islam’s Concept of Judgment Day

The Purpose of Warning: Reality vs. Fear

When the news is telling you, there's an earthquake or there's a flood, there's a tsunami coming, there's a tornado coming, it's bad news. But you know what? The purpose of that message in the weather report is not to scare you. The purpose is to give you an awareness of reality so you can act accordingly.

That's the whole point of it. Don't confuse the message of reality with a message of fear. They're two different things.

The purpose of fear is to control someone. Actually, the purpose of fear is what? Control someone. The Qur'an refuses to control human beings.

The Qur'an keeps saying:

Look, I've told you the reality. Whoever wants, they can believe. Whoever wants, they can disbelieve.

Go ahead, up to you. What you're watching is just a short clip from our full deeper look series on Surah Al-Muddathir, which is now being released exclusively on Bayyinah TV in the deeper look section, featuring a very deep dive into the surah's key themes, ayah by ayah breakdowns, lessons and reflections, which you can now watch on demand via your mobile or on desktop and even cast to your living room TV now and enjoy with the entire family. Don't forget to visit the resources tab on Bayyinah TV to download the workbook for this surah to help you study as you go along.

Understanding the Meaning of Warning (Nadhir)

I was telling you about the meanings of نَذَر and I kind of mentioned them in passing, but I do want to read these notes just so they're on record. النَذَر ما يَجِبُ فِي الْجِرَاحَاتِ مِنَ الدِّيَاتِ يُقَالُ لِي قِبَلَ فُلَانٍ نَذَر - نَذَر is what you owe in damages or, you know, blood money and things like that. So you can say, I have, somebody owes me a نَذَر.

وَالَّذِي جَاءَ فِي الْقُرْآنِ مِنْ الْتَحْرِيمِ وَالنَّذَر إِيجَابُ شَيْءٍ عَلَى النَّفْسِ - نَذَر is also when you make a pledge to Allah and you mandate something on yourself. وَالإِنذَار Now, this is the word that Allah is being using, the word for warning. Listen to this meaning. الإِنذَار بِمَعْنَى تَحْذِير مِنْ مَكْرُوهٍ سَيَقَع - إِنذار means to let somebody know, to be careful about some bad thing that's going to happen.

So for example, you have your brother and he's, you know, at home watching Netflix or something and he has an exam tomorrow, and you say, man, come on, you haven't even started your review yet. You just did a warning about something bad that's going to happen, that's also إِنذار. So what I was getting at before is just because the Qur'an says warn does not necessarily mean, oh, your God is a God of fear, our God is a God of love.

Warning Out of Love

No, the Qur'an is giving you... warning is done out of love also. And the words المُدَّثِّر already had love in them. But warning is something more. Just, you know, because you love someone, you don't want them to feel bad.

That's not this religion. Because you love someone, you want them to be aware of reality. I love my... You know, my dad had... Allah preserve his health.

My dad had quadruple bypass surgery a few years ago. Alhamdulillah, he's in great health now. It was the scariest thing.

And before he had that surgery, you know, we take him to the doctor and he says, look, you have a few clogged arteries. This is pretty bad. We need to, you know, get a stent and then maybe even consider surgery.

And my dad comes out of the doctor's appointment. I love him to death. But, you know, there's a thing in Pakistan.

Like, doctors give you bad news, so we don't like doctors. Unless our children are a doctor giving other people bad news, then it's good. But... So, my dad says, He's like, I'm just going to eat some bananas. It's going to be fine. Like, this is the ancient Pakistani people. If you don't know, if you have a heart problem, just eat bananas.

But... So I have a friend who's a doctor. He's a cardiologist, but he's not nice. He's just not nice.

And he got tired because, you know, you have to have bedside manner when you're a doctor. So people come to him and they're not taking care of their diet. They're not exercising.

And they're like, they're 30 years old and he's going into heart surgery, etc. And he comes out, he's going to start smoking again and eating those cookies and biscuits and all this stuff again. So, you know what my doctor, that doctor tells his patient, he goes, listen, I bought you this pack of chocolates and these donuts. I want you to finish them in the next two hours because I'm tired of seeing you. This is the one way I can solve this problem quickly. You'll be happy and I'll be happy.

So he does this, like, reverse psychology thing with his patients. Mostly it works. There are some patients like, okay, oh, oh, oh, you know.

So I had him speak to my dad about the dangers of not doing the surgery because surgery is terrifying. I don't blame my dad, but it's terrifying. But he needs to be aware of the reality of the situation and what can happen and how devastating it can be, etc.

And that's giving, having that really ugly conversation with him is not anything but love. That's entirely out of love. So now understand, okay, we understand Abu Jahl and Abu Lahab and Walid and these kinds of people.

Two Types of Warnings

When they're being warned, they're actually committing crimes. They're actually hurting human beings. They're actually, you know, burying baby girls alive. They're doing sick things. They're stealing from people. They're doing all these kinds of stuff. And so when they're being warned, they know deep inside their conscience, they already know what's wrong.

It's amazing that the Qur'an is teaching even now that there is such a thing as a human conscience and human beings know when something is wrong. So Allah says, warn and even if you don't tell them, what crime are they being warned about? They already know. They already know what they're doing wrong. Their conscience doesn't let them go.

But then what about someone like Abu Bakr al-Siddiq? To understand that, I want you to understand the two sides of warnings. You warn someone for something bad that's going to happen. Or you can warn someone if they're going to miss out on something good. There's two kinds of warnings.

Like for example, you really want to go to this match. You know, there's a world cup final or something and you have tickets and your wife, I don't know why for the first time, she's getting late, getting ready. She's never late getting ready. But today for some reason, she's getting late. You're like, there's five minutes left. We gotta go. You're warning her about the time but not because of some evil that's going to happen. It's because you're going to miss out on something you really want to get.

Now, let me give you another scenario before we come to the likes of Abu Bakr al-Siddiq. You can have a friend. You're a Muslim. He's a Muslim. You guys used to pray together on campus. You used to hang out together. You used to learn some things about Islam together. You used to go to Jumu'ah together, etc. And this guy started slipping.

I'll call you later. I don't have time. Bro, I don't know. I'm busy. He starts and then you see him and he's doing something that you know is off. And then you sit him down and say, bro, you're losing yourself. I'm telling you, I know what's going on. I'm not your judge, but I'm your brother. I love you. I don't want you to go down this road. Let me help. Aren't you also warning? Isn't that also warning?

But you're warning him and you're saying, if you keep going down this road, you're going to lose the good you have inside you. I know there's good in you. I know you feel bad when you do this stuff. You're going to lose the fitrah you have inside. You're killing it. Don't let it die. You know, and you're restoring that in that person.

So warning is not just about you're going to go to hell. That's the worst case scenario. Warning is also about you are missing out on something good. Warning is also about something even bigger.

The Three Pillars: Allah, People, and Judgment Day

Now, the ultimate, the great warning in the Quran is Judgment Day. So on this point, I need you to understand three pieces of the puzzle. There are three things that Allah Azza wa Jal highlights in the Quran. If you want to think of them as, especially even in this surah, there's belief in Allah, a relationship with Allah, and number two is how you are with people. And number three is Judgment Day. And I want to show you a logical connection between these three.

A relationship with Allah, the relationship with people, and then Judgment Day. And of these, Allah highlights Judgment Day. Why? Because Judgment Day is the end. And let's understand what the relationship between that and warning is really.

Islam's Unique Concept of Judgment Day

Obviously, warning on Judgment Day, everybody understands. Do different religions have different concepts of Judgment Day? Do Christians have a concept of Judgment Day? Yeah. Do Jews have a concept of Judgment Day? Sure. Do even Hindus have a concept of some kind of reincarnation and afterlife? Absolutely. The Quran also has a concept of Judgment Day, but none of these other religions have a concept in which no human being will be wronged.

Allah will not wrong anyone on Judgment Day. This is a day of absolute justice. Absolute justice. Whoever does even this much good will see it. This much bad, they will see it. Nobody will be wronged at all. Absolute justice.

And what Allah keeps emphasizing is, you cannot pay your way out of it. This is a court, and you cannot give a fine and then get away with it. You cannot bribe anybody. You cannot have a special connection to the judge and say, no, no, no, go easy on me. None of those things are going to work. No shafa'ah, no khullah, no bay'ah, nothing.

But in this life, if you had a... Imagine you're being called into court 30 days from now. And say, either you pay this fee or you show up to court. Most people will do what? Pay that, I don't want to go to court. But imagine if the court says, okay, you can't pay, there's no fee. You have to show up to court. Now you're like, do I have any connections in the government? Does anybody know this judge? Does anybody... Can I figure out what's going on? Can I find some side way to get to meet this judge and go easy? And maybe you can, you know, put in a good word and etc.

Connections. You can tell people how to use connections. If you're from the Muslim world, you know what that's about. Use connections to get to the judge. If you can't, then you know that this court date is coming and you have to show all your financial documents. And there's no way you can escape the justice that's coming. This is the only way that the next 30 days for you will change.

Because if the court date is in 30 days and you can pay off the judge, you have a relaxed 30 days. If the court is in 30 days and you paid the fee, you're chilling. But if there's no escape and you better produce all your documents and you only have 30 days, you know what you're going to do next? You're going to find the best possible lawyer that understands the documents you need to make the best possible case. You'll do everything you can to present yourself on the court date, the day you will be judged.

Other Religious Concepts of Judgment

The Quran's concept of judgment day is not like the Jewish concept. The Jewish concept is the Jews are special people. God will be good to them, like he's good to them all the time. They deserve the best in this world. Everybody else is supposed to be serving them. They're supposed to be leading mankind. And because they got the best in this world, they're already guaranteed the best in the next world.

In fact, even in the story of Adam alayhis salaam, the Jews' interpretation of the story of Adam alayhis salaam is, we make mistakes, things happen, no problem. In fact, he didn't even ask for forgiveness because God loves him too much. It's okay. And that's the same way God is with us. That's their interpretation. Okay. And that's their concept of judgment day. If you have that concept of judgment day, do you have any fear of meeting Allah? No. You already have a reservation in heaven.

The Christians don't have an ethnic concept of judgment day. The Christians have an affiliate concept of judgment day. We don't have to face God. Who's going to face God? Jesus. So long as you're good with Jesus, I got connections. I don't have to show up to court. Who's going to show up to court? Jesus. He's going to be like, They're with me. That's their idea. Remember you killed me for them? So I already paid for them. I already paid with my blood for them. That's their idea. So you're safe.

And if you have this concept, are you worried about meeting Allah on judgment day? You're not really worried about meeting Allah on judgment day. The mushrikoon have these idols. And they say, These gods that we worship and we make them happy, they are daughters of God. And daughters, our fathers have soft corners for daughters. So these daughters of God will go to their father, God. And even if God is mad at us, they'll calm him down for us. That's their idea.

Quran comes along and says, No daughters, no sons, no connections, no ethnicities. Everyone will have to show with their own record. Nobody's off. Not even prophets. Even prophets have to present themselves. For the same trial as the rest of humanity. Isn't that what Quran is saying? If the Quran is saying that, you know what that immediately does? Oh my goodness. I need to be ready for this. There's no escape. I need to change my behavior.

The Purpose-Driven Life

Now that is your ultimate. Everything is leading up to that meeting. Everything is leading up to that court trial. So now every day of my life is a preparation for that court trial. And Allah says, you want to be ready for that trial? There's two things you need to do. One, you worship Allah. Two, you be good to people. That's it.

The entire religion can be summarized like that. It's either you're being good to Allah, you're doing right by Allah, and you're doing right by people. The inheritance laws in Islam, doing right by people. The rights of parents, doing right by people. Giving dawah, doing right by people. Taking care of your neighbor, doing right by people. Read the Quran, you will either find either good to Allah or good to... These two things. So long as you do these two things, you'll be fine on Judgment Day. That's it. These two things. There's a connection between them.

Now you have... Everything is working towards a final purpose. So when Allah gives this warning, the warning is, whether you're a good person or a bad person, whether you're Abu Jahl or Firaun or you're Abu Bakr, all of you are heading to the same court. All of you.

Now, some people are closer to the green, or they're already somewhat in the green. And when they get the warning, they want to go deeper into the green. And some people are in the red, and they want to start making their journey towards the green. Some people are on the border, and they're like, ooh, I better get on the right side. Some part of me is still in the red. You understand? So the warning applies to different people differently, but the warning doesn't mean our God is a God of fear.

The Qur'an is not a message of fear. The Qur'an is a message of facing reality. My dad is scared of surgery. But when the doctor is talking to him about how scary, if he doesn't do it, what's going to happen? He's not giving him a message of fear. He's helping him understand reality.

Allah says, In this surah, whoever wants, they can step forward. And whoever wants, they can step back. Up to them. Your choice. The Prophet is being told, You're not in control over them. You're not in control. This is their choice.

This is the Qur'an. It expects a level of maturity from people that are following it. It's not forcing them to follow anything. It's just making them aware of reality. That's why there's an emphasis on the concept of Judgment Day. Because purpose comes from the finish line.

The Importance of Having the Right Finish Line

Why is someone driven to practice every day? Because there's a tryout happening. That's their finish line. So they're practicing every day. Why is someone studying so hard? There's an exam date. The finish line. And the level of your motivation and commitment is determined by the finish line.

Allah gave us so much emphasis in the early Qur'an on Judgment Day. So that every human being understands what the finish line is. So they live a life full of purpose.

Now, without that, without Judgment Day, what happens? Well, then you have to have some finish line. If Judgment Day is not your finish line, then you have to have some other finish line. For some people, I want to make 10 million dollars. That's my finish line. I want to have a billion followers on TikTok. That's my finish line. I want to be the greatest YouTuber ever. My finish line.

People come up with different finish lines, don't they? I want to make my... I'm going to become a doctor. And I'll be a better doctor than my brother. My mom will know that she loved the wrong kid. That's my finish line.

And some people, they set a finish line for themselves. A goal. This is what I need to achieve. This is success. Because Qur'an saying Judgment Day is success and failure. But if you don't have that, you have to have some definition of success and failure.

So some people that are very driven say, you know what? When I get here, I'll be successful. So they get there. There are people who set a goal for themselves and they got it. There are singers. I met a singer. I'm not going to tell you her name because celebrities are sensitive.

You know, she met me and she started crying. And she said, when I was a teenager, all I wanted to do was be a famous singer. And now I'm here. I have millions of followers. Millions. I go anywhere. Girls see me and they start crying. They start crying. I want to be just like you. You're my icon. You're my hope. You're this. You're my that. And I thought once I'm here, I'm going to be so happy. I tell you, I think about suicide all the time. What do I do? What do I do?

You know why? Because she set a finish line, but she set the wrong finish line. And now when she got there and it's empty. Now what? Now what do I do? Where do I go? People become millionaires. Then they're like, no, no, no. I guess I was going to feel like I got it. But I need to become a 10 millionaire. Then I need to become 100 million.

Once they got it, they got, they got two helicopters. They got three Ferraris. They got an island. They got, they got it all. Guess what? The helicopter is boring. The Ferrari. You know what? I want to get on a satellite. Go into space. Because I don't know what else to do. I don't, I don't know what else to do. Everything in the world is. Where do I set my goal? The goals in the world weren't enough. There's nothing here that's keeping me going. I need something more, something more, something more.

And eventually these same people. They just lose it. The richest people do the craziest things. They do the dumbest things. How many multimillionaires, billionaires dying of drug overdoses? Why? Because there's nothing to look forward to. There's no end goal.

The God Complex

You know? And of course, when you're that rich and you're that powerful. Then everybody else in your life. Your brother, your friend from school, your workers, your partners. Everybody's less than you. In a sense, you're the God. Everybody's job is to make you happy. Everybody comes to you hoping they can, you can give them some money. Everybody wants something from you. You're the raazik for all of them.

So you start developing the God complex. Everybody wants me. Everybody wants me to. Everybody wants to get my attention. Everybody has an agenda for me. You know what? I should decide how the world thinks. I should decide which way. I'll buy social media companies to redirect where they go. I want to shape the entire. I want to shape humanity in my own image. Because I mean, I am pretty amazing.

When there's no judgment day. Then there's, then the only God left is you. And when you get so bored with no having no purpose for yourself. Then your only other purpose is let's enslave humanity. So you turn your direction to everybody else. Let's do that.

Islam: The Solution for Humanity

These concepts that are so basic to us in Islam. They are not basic concepts. These are extremely powerful ideas that can be. These are the, this is the only religion that can save humanity from itself. I'm telling you, we have something that is not just for us. This is the only thing that can save humanity from itself. This is them.

Hey guys, you just watched a small clip of me explaining the Quran in depth. As part of the deeper look series. Studying the Quran in depth can seem like a really intimidating thing. That's only meant for scholars. Our job at Bayyinah is to make deeper study of the Quran accessible and easy for all of you. So take us up on that challenge. Join us for this study. The deeper look of the Quran. For this surah and many other surahs on bayyinahtv.com under the deeper look section.