Tafsir of Al-Anbiya' 21:39-40

"If only those who disbelieved knew..."

The apodosis (the "then" clause) of the conditional sentence "If only those who disbelieved knew..." is omitted.

"When they cannot ward off the Fire from their faces, nor from their backs, and they will not be helped"

• "When" (ḥīna) is the object of the verb "knew." The meaning is: If they knew the time they inquire about when they say, "When will this promise be?", a time that is difficult and severe, in which the Fire surrounds them from behind and before, such that they are unable to repel it or prevent it from themselves, and they find no helper to aid them—they would not have remained in that state of disbelief, mockery, and haste. It is their ignorance of that time that makes it seem trivial to them.
• It is also possible that "knew" is used intransitively, meaning: If they possessed knowledge and were not ignorant, they would not be hasty. In this case, "when" is governed by an implied verb, meaning: At the time when "they cannot ward off the Fire from their faces," they will realize they were upon falsehood, and this great ignorance will be dispelled from them.

"Nay, it will come upon them suddenly, so it will confound them"

• "It will come upon them" (ta’tīhim): It will not be warded off; rather, it will surprise them and overcome them. One who is defeated in an argument is called mabhūt (confounded/silenced). From this is the verse: "So the disbeliever was confounded" (fubuhita), meaning Ibrahim (peace be upon him) overcame the disbeliever.
• Al-A‘mash recited it as ya’tīhim (masculine) and fayubhituhum (masculine). The pronoun refers to the "promise" or the "time."
• Question: To what does the feminine pronoun refer in the first reading (ta’tīhim)?
• Answer: To the "Fire," or to the "promise" (as it carries the meaning of the Fire which they were promised), or based on the interpretation of al-‘idda (the promise) or al-maw‘ida. It may also refer to the "time" (as it carries the meaning of the Hour) or to "suddenness" (al-baghta). It is said that in the first reading, the pronoun refers to the Hour.
• Al-A‘mash recited baghtatan with a fatḥa on the ghayn.

"And they will not be granted respite"

• This is a reminder of His granting them respite and delay, and the expansion of time for them to reflect. It means: They will not be granted any more delay after the long delay they have already been given.

"And indeed, messengers were mocked before you, but those who mocked them were surrounded by that which they used to ridicule."