Has the Report of the Overwhelming Come to You? — The Question That Awakens You
tadabbur
Level: basic
akhirah
td-066
وُجُوهٌ يَوۡمَئِذٍ خَٰشِعَةٌ عَامِلَةٌ نَّاصِبَةٌ
— الغاشية 2
Verse: "Has the report of the Overwhelming come to you? Faces that day will be humbled, laboring, weary." (88:1-3)
"The Overwhelming": The Day of Judgment — it overwhelms and envelops all people from every direction. No escape, no exception.
"Humbled, laboring, weary": These tired themselves in this world but not for what pleases Allah — they worked but lost their compass. Labor without benefit on Judgment Day.
Lesson: Effort alone is not enough — effort in the right direction is what transforms exhaustion into eternal rest.
Source: Ibn Kathir (8/388); Al-Sadi; Al-Qurtubi (20/24)
Question: What does "laboring, weary faces" mean in Surah Al-Ghashiya?
Answer: Faces that labored in this world but with work that did not please Allah — wasted effort leading to toil without reward on Judgment Day.