Al-Ankaboot (The Spider)

53. “And they demand of you to hasten the chastisement! And had not a term been appointed, the chastisement would certainly have come to them; but it shall certainly come upon them suddenly when they are not aware.”

54. “They demand of you to hasten the chastisement! And verily Hell encompasses the unbeliever.”

The disbelievers, who were threatened to divine punishment because of disbelief or mockery, or that they frequently asked their prophet for a sudden punishment, have been referred to in the Qur’an in several occurrences, and this haste of pagans has been criticized in all instances.

In the delay of Divine chastisement, of course, there are some bounties, including:

1- It is an opportunity for repentance.

2- There may come forth some righteous children from deluded fathers.

3- People are examined in religiousness and resistance, (perseverance).

However, the grace or wrath of Allah is wisely, accurate, and has order, so that it does not change with the haste of this one and that one. But the fall of man’s thought is so horrible that he agrees to be annihilated, but not to accept the truth.

In this holy verse, the third kind of their seeking pretext is pointed out. It implies that they hasten for the punishment and demand it from the Prophet (S) to fall swiftly.

The verse says:

“And they demand of you to hasten the chastisement!…”

They say if the punishment of Allah (s.w.t.) is right and encompasses the pagans, then why does it not come to them? In reply to their statement, the Qur’an delivers three answers.

At first, it says:

“…And had not a term been appointed, the chastisement would certainly have come to them…”

This appointed time is for the sake that the essential aim, i.e., vigilance, or the argument should be completed to them. Allah never makes haste in His Affairs when it is against His Wisdom.

The second is that those who say this statement, how much are they certain that every moment the Divine punishment may seize them?

The verse continues saying:

“…but it shall certainly come upon them suddenly when they are not aware.”

The proper time of coming punishment is, indeed, defined and appointed, but the expedience is in this that they should not be aware of it and it comes suddenly. If its time were known, the pagans and sinners would become rather bold and they might continue their infidelity and committing sins until the last moment, and when the last moment of the appointed time of punishment was approaching, they would return toward the truth.

The educational philosophy of these punishments requires that their time should be concealed in order that the fear and terror of them in all moments may become an impedimental factor.

By the way, it becomes clear from what was said that the purpose of the Qur’anic sentence: /wa hum layaš‘urun/ (when they are not aware) is not that they do not perceive the principle of the existence of punishment, else the philosophy of punishment would be vanished, but the purpose of it is that they do not discriminate the moment of its occurrence and its preliminaries.

In other words, the punishment suddenly, and like lightning, comes over them, attacking unawares.

It is well understood from the different verses of the holy Qur’an that this pretext seeking was not confined to the pagans of Mecca, but many other nations persisted on the hastening of punishment, too.

The third answer has been stated in the next verse, where the Qur’an says:

“They demand of you to hasten the chastisement! And verily Hell encompasses the unbeliever.”

The worldly punishment may be postponed, but the punishment of Hereafter is one hundred percent certain.

It is so certain that the Qur’an mentions it as an existing thing at the present time, and says:

“…verily Hell encompasses the unbelievers”.

As the result of being polluted by infidelity and sin, they burn in the Hell which they themselves have provided for them i.e. the Hell of war and blood, the Hell of conflict and discord, the Hell of insecurity, the Hell of injustice and oppression, and the Hell of evil passions and ungovernable desires.