سورة الأنبياء

Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him): Is there not in the traces of the earliest peoples an admonition for you, and in your forefathers who have passed lessons of instruction and insight? Reflection and study concerning the fathers who have departed this world ought to be a lesson and admonition for you, and you ought to take counsel from their circumstances. If you employ your intellect and look with insight, you will observe that those who went before did not return, and the successors and those who came after them did not remain enduring in the world, but all, one after another, set off toward the world of the Hereafter, and no trace of them remained. Allah the Exalted says in the noble Qur'an: كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذائِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ وَ إِنَّما تُوَفَّوْنَ أُجُورَکُمْ یَوْمَ الْقِیامَةِ فَمَنْ زُحْزِحَ عَنِ النَّارِ وَ أُدْخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فازَ وَ مَا الْحَیاةُ الدُّنْیا إِلَّا مَتاعُ الْغُرُور [Every soul tastes death, and you will only be given your rewards in full on the Day of Resurrection. Those who are removed from the Fire (of Hell) and admitted to Paradise have been delivered and are victorious, and the life of this world is nothing but the goods of deception!] (Al Imran/185).

Imam Baqir and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon them): Every town whose people Allah destroyed with punishment will not return in the raj'a (return to this world). This noble verse is therefore the greatest of the verses indicating the raj'a, for none of the Muslims denies that all people — those destroyed by Allah's punishment and those who died otherwise — will be raised at the Resurrection. So Allah's saying in this verse, لا یَرْجِعُونَ [they shall not return], means they will not return in the raj'a; but they will return at the Resurrection so as to enter the Fire.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Every settlement that Allah destroyed with punishment — they will never return.

Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him): As for the refutation of the one who denies the raj'a, it is the saying of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: وَ یَوْمَ نَحْشُرُ مِنْ کُلِّ أُمَّةٍ فَوْجاً مِمَّنْ یُکَذِّبُ بِآیاتِنا فَهُمْ یُوزَعُونَ [(Remember) the Day when We shall gather from every nation a troop of those who denied Our signs, and they shall be kept back so as to join one another] (Naml/83) — that is, [We return them] to the world. As for the meaning of the gathering in the Hereafter, it is the saying of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: وَ حَشَرْناهُمْ فَلَمْ نُغادِرْ مِنْهُمْ أَحَداً [And We shall gather them all, and We shall not leave out any one of them] (Kahf/47). And this verse: وَ حَرامٌ عَلی قَرْیَةٍ أَهْلَکْناها أَنَّهُمْ لا یَرْجِعُونَ — they do not return in the raj'a, but at the Resurrection they do return.

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): وَ حَرَامٌ عَلَی قَرْیَةٍ أَهْلَکْنَاهَا أَنَّهُمْ لَا یَرْجِعُونَ [And it is binding on a town which We destroy that they shall not return] — the people of every town whom Allah has destroyed with punishment will return at the Resurrection, but they do not return at the time of the raj'a (return), even if they had pure faith. As for others, who were not destroyed by punishment — even if they were utter disbelievers — they do return at the time of the raj'a.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Hammad narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said, "What do people say about this verse: [Remember] the Day when We shall gather from every nation a group (Naml/83)?" I said, "They say it refers to the Resurrection." He said, "It is not as they say. It refers to the raj'a (return). Would Allah on the Day of Resurrection raise up a group from every nation and leave the rest? The verse of the Resurrection is the word of Allah: And We shall gather them all together, and We shall not leave out any one of them (Kahf/47). And [regarding] the word of Allah: وَ حَرَامٌ عَلَی قَرْیَةٍ أَهْلَکْنَاهَا أَنَّهُمْ لَا یَرْجِعُونَ [And it is binding on a town which We destroy that they shall not return] — every town whose people Allah destroyed by punishment and who were utter disbelievers will not return at the raj'a, but will return at the Resurrection. As for others besides them, from those who were not destroyed by punishment and who had pure faith or were utter disbelievers, they will return."