Tafsir of Al-Waqi'ah 56:87

"You return it" (i.e., the soul, to its place). Those who hold the view of [the soul's] immateriality say: "You return its attachment [to the body] as it was at first."

"(If you are) truthful" (in your belief regarding His, the Exalted's, creation of you). Indeed, their denial of His, the Glorified's, creation of them is equivalent to their affirmation of the opposite, according to their doctrine. In al-Bahr and elsewhere: "If you are truthful in your denial and disbelief in the Giver of Life, the Bringer of Death, the Originator, and the Restorer, and in your attribution of the rainfall to the stars rather than to Him, the Mighty and Majestic."

"You return it"—the aforementioned—is the agent of the conditional "if" (idha) in the phrase "when it reaches the throat" (idha balaghat al-hulqum). This is what is incited by the first "why not" (law la), and the second "why not" (law la) is a repetition for emphasis. The first "why not" along with what is contained within its scope serves as evidence for the answer to the first conditional clause—that is, "if you are not subject to a Creator" (in kuntum ghayra madinin). The second conditional is an emphatic confirmation of the first and an exposition of it. One of the two conditionals was placed before "You return it" for the sake of emphasis. The structure is: "Why then do you not return it when it reaches the throat, if you are not subject to a Lord, being truthful in what you claim of false belief? So why do you not return it when it reaches the throat?"

The essence of the meaning is: If you are not subject to a Lord—as your words and deeds suggest—then why do you not return the soul to the body when it reaches the throat, and restore it to how it was by your own power or through medical treatment?

His, the Exalted's, saying: "And you are at that moment looking on" is a circumstantial sentence (jumla haliyyah) describing the subject of "reaches." A nominal sentence coupled with the conjunction "and" (waw) does not require a pronoun for connection, as the "and" is sufficient. Therefore, there is no need to claim that the returning pronoun is contained within "at that moment" (hina'idhin), as the tanwin here acts as a substitute for a sentence. That is: "Why do you not return it at the time of its reaching the throat, while you are looking upon him and the terror of the death throes he is experiencing, despite your affection for him and your deep desire to save him from destruction?"

His, the Glorified's, saying: "And We are nearer..." etc., is a parenthetical clause that emphasizes the rebuke directed at them for manifesting beliefs that indicate a lack of proper faith in their Lord, the Glorified. There is also room for the opinion that it is a circumstantial clause.

Abu al-Baqa' said: "(You return it) is the answer to the first 'why not,' and this suffices for the answer to the second." It has also been said: "The reverse is true."

It has also been said: "If you are" is a conditional clause nested within another conditional clause; therefore, the second is considered to be advanced in the underlying structure—that is: "If you are truthful, [then] if you are not subject to a Lord, return the souls to the bodies." What we mentioned previously is the preference of Jar Allah [al-Zamakhshari]. Regardless, His, the Exalted's, saying...