Tafsir of Al-Anbiya' 21:96

(Until, when Ya’juj and Ma’juj are opened...)

This is an inaugural clause, and the speech following it serves as an ultimate limit (ghayah) for what is indicated by the preceding verses. It is as if it were said: They shall persist in their state of ruin until, when the Hour stands, they return to Us and say, "Woe to us," etc. Or, it acts as a limit to the prohibition; meaning: the refusal of their return to repentance shall persist until the Hour stands, at which point they return to it, though returning then will not benefit them. Or, it acts as a limit to their lack of repentance from disbelief; meaning: they shall not turn back from it until the Hour stands, at which point they turn back from it, though that will be a time when such turning back is of no benefit. This is in accordance with the multiplicity of views regarding the meaning of the preceding verse, and the distribution [of these interpretations] is not hidden.

Ibn Atiyyah said: "Until" (hatta) relates to His saying, "They divided their affair among themselves," etc. Abu Hayyan said: "There is some remoteness in this due to the extent of the separation, but in terms of meaning, it is sound." Its essence is that they shall remain divided, not united upon the true religion, until the approach of the coming of the Hour. When the Hour comes, that division shall cease, and everyone shall know that their Master is the Truth and that the religion of salvation was the religion of Monotheism.

Attributing the "opening" to Ya’juj and Ma’juj is metaphorical; it is literal with respect to the Barrier (al-Sadd), or the speech involves the omission of a genitive noun—that is, "the Barrier"—and the placement of the genitive possessor (mudaf ilayh) in its stead. A group read "futtihat" (opened) with a shaddah. The discussion concerning Ya’juj and Ma’juj has already preceded.

(And they...)—meaning Ya’juj and Ma’juj; though it is also said to mean "the people," and it is narrated from Mujahid.

(From every hill...)—meaning every elevated part of the earth, such as a mountain or a mound. Ibn Abbas read it as "jadath" (with a jim and a tha’), which means the grave. This reading supports the reference of the pronoun back to "the people." It has also been read with a jim and a fa’ (jadath), which is a substitution for the tha’ among the tribe of Tamim; this substitution is not exclusive to the end of a word in their dialect, for they say maghthur in place of maghfur.

(They swoop down...)—meaning they hasten. The origin of al-naslan (with two fatha vowels) is the quickening of steps while hastening. It is said that it is positionally reserved for wolves, and upon that, it is metaphorical here. Ibn Ishaq and Abu al-Sumal read it with a damma on the sin.