Tafsir of Hud 11:105

"The day it comes, no soul shall speak..."

[Linguistic Note] It is recited as yawma ya’ti (the day it comes) without the ya (at the end of ya’ti). Similar to this is their saying la adri (I do not know), as reported by al-Khalil and Sibawayh. Dropping the ya and sufficeing with the kasra is frequent in the dialect of Hudhayl.

[The Subject of 'Comes'] If you ask: "What is the subject of ya’ti (comes)?" I say: It is Allah (Mighty and Majestic is He), as in His sayings: "Do they wait for anything but that Allah should come to them?" (Al-Baqarah: 210), "Or that your Lord should come" (Al-An'am: 158), and "And your Lord comes" (Al-Fajr: 22). This is supported by the recitation wa ma yu’akhkhiru (and He does not delay) with a ya, and His saying "by His permission."

It is also permissible that the subject is a pronoun referring to "the Day" itself, as in His saying: "That the Hour should come upon them" (Yusuf: 107).

[The Grammatical Status of 'The Day'] If you ask: "What governs the accusative case of the adverbial yawma (the day)?" I say: It is either governed by la takallamu (no soul shall speak), or by an implied udhkur (remember!), or by the omitted limit in His saying: "except for a numbered term" (Hud: 104)—meaning: the term ends on the day it comes.

[Clarification] If you ask: "If you make the subject a pronoun referring to the Day, you have made the Day the time for the coming of the Day, thus defining a thing by itself." I say: The intent is the coming of its terrors and hardships.

[No Soul Shall Speak] La takallamu means: no soul shall speak. It is analogous to His saying: "They will not speak, except for him whom the Most Merciful has permitted."

[Reconciling Contradictory Verses] If you ask: "How can this be reconciled with His saying: 'The day every soul will come, arguing for itself' (An-Nahl: 111), and His saying: 'This is a day they will not speak, nor will it be permitted for them to offer excuses' (Al-Mursalat: 35-36)?" I say: That is a long day with many stations and places. In some, they argue for themselves; in others, they are restrained from speech and not permitted to offer excuses; in others, they are permitted and they speak; and in others, their mouths are sealed, and their hands speak and their feet bear witness.

[The Categorization of People] Faminhum (Then among them): The pronoun refers to the people at the gathering place. They were not explicitly mentioned because it is understood, and because His saying "no soul shall speak" points to them. Furthermore, the mention of "people" has already passed in His saying: "a day for which the people will be gathered" (Hud: 103).

The shaqi (wretched) is the one for whom the Fire is decreed due to his evil deeds, and the sa'id (happy/blessed) is the one for whom Paradise is decreed due to his good deeds.

"As for those who were wretched, they will be in the Fire. For them therein is sighing and wailing. Abiding therein as long as the heavens and the earth endure, except what your Lord wills. Indeed, your Lord is a doer of what He intends."