Al-An'am (The Cattle): (30) And if you could but see when they are made to stand before their Lord...

Issues Discussed Here:

When Allah recounted their denial of resurrection, the Hereafter, and the rising in the previous verse, He clarifies their state on the Day of Judgment in this verse by saying: {And if you could but see when they are made to stand before their Lord}.

Some anthropomorphists (Mushabbihah) seize upon this verse, arguing that its apparent meaning indicates that the people of the Resurrection will stand near Allah and in His proximity. They claim this suggests Allah is a body that is sometimes present in a location and sometimes absent.

This view is incorrect. The apparent meaning of the verse indicates their standing upon Allah (as one stands upon the earth), which implies Allah is physically situated above them. This is unanimously false (i.e., attributing physical location to Allah is false). Therefore, we must resort to interpretation (Ta'wil).

There are several interpretations:

1. First Interpretation: The meaning is: {And if you could but see when they are made to stand before} what their Lord promised them—the punishment for the disbelievers and the reward for the believers, and what He informed them about the Hereafter.
2. Second Interpretation: The meaning of this standing is knowledge/recognition, just as a person says to another, "I have grasped (waqaftu 'ala) your speech," meaning, "I have understood it."
3. Third Interpretation: The meaning is that they are made to stand for the purpose of questioning. The expression is used in the manner customary for a servant standing before his master, intended to convey the meaning through eloquent and eloquent phrasing.

The purpose of this verse is that Allah recounts how they denied the Resurrection in this world (Dunya), and then clarifies that in the Hereafter, they will confess to it. The meaning is that their state of denial will ultimately lead to admission, because they will witness the Resurrection, reward, and punishment. Allah says: {Is this not the Truth?}

Objection: This statement implies that Allah will say to them, "Is this not the Truth?" This seems contradictory to His statement: {And Allah will not speak to them} (Al-Baqarah: 174).

Answer: The contradiction is resolved if we interpret {And Allah will not speak to them} as meaning He will not speak to them with pleasant or beneficial speech.

Furthermore, Allah clarifies that when He asks them, {Is this not the Truth?}, they will reply, "Yes, by our Lord!" The intent is that they will admit its truthfulness, even swearing an oath.

Then, Allah says to them: {So taste the punishment because you used to disbelieve}. The word taste (dhawq) is specified because, in every situation, they will experience it with the intensity of a taster's sensation. And {because you used to disbelieve} means "due to your disbelief."

Know that Allah did not mention this discourse as proof for the validity of resurrection and rising, because that proof was already presented earlier in the Surah in His saying: {It is He who created you from clay, then decreed a term...} (Al-An'am: 2), as we have established and explained. Rather, the purpose of this verse is admonition and deterrence from this doctrine and saying.

{Certainly, those who denied the meeting with Allah have lost, until when the Hour comes upon them suddenly, they will say, "Oh, our regret for what we neglected therein," while they carry their burdens on their backs. Unquestionably, evil is that which they carry.}