Quran Garden

Session 404

Chapter 3

Verse 77, a continuation

Those who sell out God's covenant and their own oaths for a small price will have no share in the life to come. God will neither speak to them nor look at them on the Day of Resurrection- He will not cleanse them of their sins- agonizing torment awaits them.

(Chapter 3: Verse 77)

The phrase "God's covenant" could be referring to one of two pledges.  The first is the covenant of instinct and creation.  God instilled within each of us a drive towards faith, and He took an oath from entire humankind to seek His path.  We all experience this drive through our instinct to search for higher power and seek our Creator.  It is a documented drive across cultures, generations, and continents.  God says,

And when your Lord took out the offspring from the loins of the Children of Adam and made them bear witness about themselves, He said, "Am I not your Lord?" and they replied, "Yes, we bear witness." So you cannot say on the Day of Resurrection, "We were not aware of this." (7:172)

             The second pledge is the one Allah took from His prophets and messengers to inform their nations of the coming of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.  They pledged to support him and ask their followers to believe in him when he arrives, as mentioned in the following verse:

God took a pledge from the prophets, saying, "If, after I have bestowed the Scripture and wisdom upon you, a messenger comes confirming what you have been given, you must believe in him and support him. Do you affirm this and accept My pledge as binding on you?" They said, "We do.' He said, "Then bear witness and I too will bear witness." (3:81)

So anyone who dismisses these pledges in exchange for worldly gain has sold God's covenant for a small price.  What a great loss! Such people, whether they sold God's signs for food, money, power, or the opposite sex, all share the common outcome of having "no share in the life to come. God will neither speak to them nor look at them on the Day of Resurrection- He will not cleanse them of their sins- agonizing torment awaits them.

Let's take a few moments to study the phrase "God will neither speak to them nor look at them on the Day of Resurrection." Some people pointed out other verses in the Quran that seem to contradict the above statement.  God says,

They will say: "Our Lord! Our wretchedness prevailed over us, and we were people lost in error.  Our Lord! Take us out of this suffering. Then, if we ever revert to evil, we will indeed be wrongdoers."  He will say, "Away with you! In you go! Do not speak to Me!" (23:106-108)

So, on the Day of Judgement, does God speak to the people who sold out His covenant or not? We answer that it could be that Allah will not address them with any words of mercy, or He may only speak to them indirectly through the angels.

The verse continues with "nor looks at them." Whenever you run across an attribute of God that is shared by humans, such as eyesight, you should refer the matter to the following verse:  God says in the 11^th verse of chapter 42,

There is nothing whatever like Him.

When you dislike a person and run into them walking down the street, you turn your head the other way.  On the other hand, when you fall in love, you stare into your lover's eyes.  Thus, the gazing of the eye shows interest, while turning away shows resentment.  

We cannot apply the same example to Allah because He is exalted above all similarities and analogies.  When the matter is related to the Almighty, we believe that "There is nothing whatever like Him," and this is how we understand the phrase "God will neither speak to them nor look at them on the Day of Resurrection." God will ignore those who sell His covenant for worldly gain; He will not care for them, and He will distance them from His mercy.

The verse continues with, "He will not cleanse them of their sins." The verb "cleanse" is translated from the Arabic origin يُزَكِّيهِمْ (Yuzakeehm).  التزكية (Tzakia) means purification, praise, and growth.  This is the root from which the word Zakat, almsgiving, is derived.  Zakat is meant to purify and grow wealth.  Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said, "A man's wealth will never decrease from Charity."

The fact that God will not speak to those who forgo His teachings for worldly gains, nor look at them or purify them from their sins, is only an introduction to what they will suffer on that day.  God says, "agonizing torment awaits them."  Why did God specify the final destination?  Because some people may think:  Well, it is not a big deal if God does not look at or speak to me.