يَوْمَ يَقُومُ ٱلرُّوحُ وَٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةُ صَفًّا ۖ لَّا يَتَكَلَّمُونَ إِلَّا مَنْ أَذِنَ لَهُ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ وَقَالَ صَوَابًا 38
Translations
The Day that the Spirit [i.e., Gabriel] and the angels will stand in rows, they will not speak except for one whom the Most Merciful permits, and he will say what is correct.
Transliteration
Yawma yaqoomu ar-roohu wa-al-mala-ikatu saffan, la yatakallamu illa man adhina lahu ar-rahman wa-qala sawaban
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the Day of Judgment when the Ruh (Spirit—understood by most scholars as Jibril or the collective angels) and the angels will stand in rows, maintaining complete silence except for those whom Allah the Most Merciful permits to speak, and only those who speak truth. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, this depicts the gravity and majesty of that Day, where even the angels remain silent in reverence, illustrating the absolute sovereignty of Allah and the weightiness of divine judgment.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah An-Naba, a Meccan surah that focuses on the certainty of the Day of Judgment and the resurrection. The surah emphasizes eschatological themes and divine signs. This particular ayah reinforces the theme of the orderly, awe-filled nature of the final day and the silencing of all creation before Allah's majesty.
Related Hadiths
The hadith in Sahih Bukhari (3344) from Abu Hurairah describes the scenes of the Day of Judgment when people will be grouped, and the Prophet ﷺ mentioned the standing of creation before Allah. Additionally, the hadith about the intercession of the Prophet ﷺ (Sahih Bukhari, 7510) relates to the theme of who will be permitted to speak on that Day.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds us of the solemnity and absolute authority of Allah on the Day of Judgment, where even the mightiest angels stand speechless in reverence. It teaches us that on that Day, only truth will be permitted to be spoken, encouraging us to speak with integrity and truth in this life, knowing that all will stand silent before divine justice.