لَهُم مِن فَوقِهِم ظُلَلٌ مِنَ النّارِ وَمِن تَحتِهِم ظُلَلٌ ۚ ذٰلِكَ يُخَوِّفُ اللَّهُ بِهِ عِبادَهُ ۚ يا عِبادِ فَاتَّقونِ
There will be canopies of fire above them, and [similar] canopies beneath them. With that Allah deters His servants. So, My servants, be wary of Me!
EXEGESIS
Ẓulal is the plural of ẓill, meaning shadow, shade, and canopy.
My servants could refer to all human beings in general, or it could refer to the believers and good-doers in particular. The second meaning is more likely here; it is commonly used in the Quran, and it complies with the trend and context of these verses. Of course, God’s threat and deterrence is for everyone, but it is His special servants that benefit from them and take heed of their Lord.
EXPOSITION
Such individuals will be completely embraced and enveloped by canopies of fire. This expression (shadows of fire, ẓulal) may refer to several aspects of the punishment in the hereafter: 1. They will be in a dark, closed, and constricted state, without any freshness, light, or joy (56:43-44). 2. They will suffer extreme heat from every side and direction (77:30-32). 3. They are completely cut off from every hope, and remain in an utterly helpless situation. Indeed hell will besiege the faithless on the day when the punishment envelopes them, from above them and from under their feet (29:54-55; see also 9:49); They shall have hell for their resting place, and over them shall be sheets [of fire], and thus do We requite the wrongdoers (7:41).
Based on the previous verse, canopies of fire above them could be a result of their submission to any being, force, or system other than God; and canopies beneath them could be a representation of their delusion of their families and subordinates. It could also be that canopies of fire above them, and [similar] canopies beneath them is an expression for punishment from every side, in accordance with their encompassment by various vices and evils in this world, such as ignorance, conceit, disbelief, heedlessness, greed, etc.
With that Allah deters His servants. So, My servants, be wary of Me. This statement is full of kindness and compassion, and shows that there is an underlying mercy behind God’s threats, warnings, and punishments. God is saying that the aforementioned severe punishments were only described so that you may take heed and avoid their occurrence, and I do this because you are My servants and I am your Lord. It also follows that you should be wary of Me and fear My punishment alone because you are My servants. Nothing else deserves to be feared (2:40-41, 3:175, 6:80, 16:2, 16:50-51, 23:52, 33:39). Despite this, some people do not pay heed. Not only that, but these warnings only increase them in their wrongdoings: We deter them, but it only increases them in great rebellion (17:60). The command be wary of Me implies that God-wariness is the key to deliverance from the punishment of hell, as emphasised in several verses in the Quran.
The above verses can be closely matched with this verse: And say: ‘[This is] the truth from your Lord: let anyone who wishes believe it, and let anyone who wishes disbelieve it.’ Indeed We have prepared for the wrongdoers a fire whose curtains will surround them [on all sides]. If they cry out for help, they will be helped with a water like molten copper which will scald the faces. What an evil drink, and how ill a resting place! (18:29).
REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE
Since this verse identifies the described punishment as a means of deterrence, it might be argued that the descriptions of punishments (and rewards) in the Quran are not meant literally. This could confirm the claim that the otherworldly pains and pleasures are spiritual rather than physical, and that any physical description of them is only to make them more tangible to the reader, for all practical purposes an example of instrumentalism.
After quoting the above, the late Mughniyyah has answered that the Quran and the Sunna should be interpreted according to their apparent meaning, and diverted from that only if the apparent meaning would involve a rational impossibility or contradiction. However, there is no such impossibility concerning physical otherworldly rewards and punishments. Hence, these are real descriptions of the hereafter.
It should be added that our intellect admits that it cannot encompass the reality of the affairs in the hereafter and how our next life will be. Therefore, assuming these descriptions in their strictly worldly physical sense could also be too simplistic. Nevertheless, the important thing is to take God’s warnings seriously and to act upon them precisely, for He is the truth and speaks the truth. Hence, even if He expresses a supernatural reality in natural terms due to our limited comprehension and capacity, it would be the most accurate representation of that reality.
Since I’m talking to a child,
I shall be simple and mild.
[1] Razi, 26/434.
[2] Razi, 26/434.
[3] Kashif, 6/401.
[4] Qaraati, 8/155.
[5] Kashif, 6/401.
[6] Rūmī, Mathnawī, v. 4, line 2578.