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Ibn Kathir’s The Signs Before the Day of Judgment Part 5
Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
6-24-2025
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A Test for the People at the End of Time
THE Hadîth OF AL-MUGHIRAH IBN SHU’BAH
Al-Mughirah ibn Shubah said, “No-one asked the Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – more questions about the Dajjal than I did. He said, ‘You should not worry about him, because he will not be able to harm you.’ I said, ‘But they say that he will have much food and water! He said, ‘He is too insignificant in the sight of Allah to have all that.’ (Muslim.)
Al-Mughirah ibn Shu’bah said, “No-one asked the Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – more questions about the Dajjal than I did.” One of the narrators said, “What did you ask him?” Al-Mughirah said, “I said, ‘They say that the Dajjal will have a mountain of bread and meat, and a river of water. The Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – said, ‘He is too insignificant in the sight of Allah to have all that.’ (Muslim.)
From these Ahadîth, we can see that Allah will test His servants with the Dajjal and by the miracles which he will be permitted to perform: as we have already mentioned, the Dajjal will order the sky to rain for those who accept him, and will order the earth to bring forth its fruits so that they and their livestock will eat of it, and their flocks will return fat and with their udders full of milk. Those who reject the Dajjal and refuse to believe in him will suffer drought and famine; people and livestock will die, and wealth and supplies of food will be depleted. People will follow the Dajjal like swarms of bees, and he will kill a young man and bring him back to life. This is not a kind of magic; it will be something real with which Allah will test His servants at the end of time. Many will be led astray, and many will be guided by it. Those who doubt will disbelieve, but those who believe will be strengthened in their faith.
Al-Qadi ‘Iyad and others interpreted the phrase “He is too insignificant in the sight of Allah to have all that” as meaning that the Dajjal is too insignificant to have anything that could lead the true believers astray, because he is obviously evil and corrupt. Even if he brings great terror, the word Kafir will be clearly written between his eyes; one report explains that it will be written “Kaf, Fa, Ra,” from which we can understand that it will be written perceptibly, not abstractly, as some people say. One of his eyes will be blind, protruding and repulsive; this is the meaning of the Hadîth: “…as if it were a grape floating on the surface of the water.” Other reports say that it is “dull, with no light in it,” or “like white spittle on a wall,” i e, it will look ugly.
Some reports say that it is his right eye which will be blind; others say that it is his left eye. He could be partly blind in both eyes, or there could be a fault in both eyes. This interpretation could be supported by the Hadîth narrated by al-Tabarani, in which he reports that Ibn ‘Abbas said, “The Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – said, “The Dajjal is curly-haired and white-skinned. His head is like the branch of a tree; his left eye is blind, and the other eye looks like a floating grape. “ One may ask: if the Dajjal is going to cause such widespread evil and his claim to be a “lord” will be so widely believed – even though he is obviously a liar, and all the Prophets have warned against him – why does the Qur’ân not mention him by name and warn us against his lies and stubbornness? The answer is:-
1. The Dajjal was referred to in the Ayah: “… The day that certain of the signs of thy Lord do come, no good will it do to a soul to believe in them then, if it believed not before nor earned righteousness through its Faith…” (al-Anam 6:158)
Abû Hurayrah said, “The Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – said, ‘There are three things which, when they appear, no good will it do a soul to believe in them then, if it believed not before nor earned righteousness through its Faith. They are: The Dajjal, the Beast, and the rising of the sun from the west.’ “
2. Jesus son of Mary will descend from Heaven and kill the Dajjal, as we have already mentioned. The descent of Jesus is mentioned in the Ayat: “That they said (in boast), ‘We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Apostle of Allah; – but they killed him not nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow, for of a surety they killed him not:- Nay, Allah raised him up unto Himself; and Allah is exalted in Power, Wise;- And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in him before his death; and on the Day of Judgement, he will be a witness against them.” (al-Nisa 4:157-9)
We think that the Tafsir (interpretation) of this Ayah is that the pronoun in “before his death” (qabla mawtihi) refers to Jesus; i e, he will descend and the People of the Book who differed concerning him will believe in him. The Christians claimed that he was divine, while the Jews made a slanderous accusation, i.e. that he was born from adultery. When Jesus descends before the Day of Judgement, he will correct all these differences and lies. On this basis, the reference to the descent of the Messiah Jesus son of Mary also includes a reference to the Dajjal (false Mesor Antichrist), who is the opposite of the true Messiah, because sometimes the Arabs refer to one of two opposites and not the other, but mean both.
3. The Dajjal is not mentioned by name in the Qur’ân because he is so insignificant: he claims to be divine, but he is merely a human being. His affairs are too contemptible to be mentioned in the Qur’ân. But the Prophets, out of loyalty to Allah, warned their people about the Dajjal and the tribulations and misguiding miracles he would bring. It is enough for us to know the reports of the Prophets and the many reports from the Prophet Mohammad – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam -.
One could argue that Allah has mentioned Pharaoh and his false claims, such as “I am your Lord, Most High” (al-Naziat 79:24) and “O Chiefs! No god do I know for you but myself …” (al-Qasas 28:38), in the Qur’ân.
This can be explained by the fact that Pharaoh and his deeds are in the past, and his lies are clear to every believer. But the Dajjal is yet to come, in the future; it will be a Fitnah and a test for all people. So the Dajjal is not mentioned in the Qur’ân because he is contemptible; and the fact that he is not mentioned means that it will be a great test. The facts about the Dajjal and his lies are obvious and do not need further emphasis. This is often the case when something is very clear. For example, when the Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – was terminally ill, he wanted to write a document confirming that Abû Bakr would be the Khalifah after him. Then he abandoned this idea, and said, “Allah and the believers will not accept anyone other than Abû Bakr.” He decided not to write the document because he knew of Abû Bakr’s high standing among the Sahabah (Companions) and was sure that they would not choose anyone else.
Similarly, the facts about the Dajjal are so clear that they did not need to be mentioned in the Qur’ân. Allah did not mention the Dajjal in the Qur’ân because He – subhânahu wa Ta’âla – knew that the Dajjal would not be able to lead His true servants astray; he would only increase their faith, their submission to Allah and His Messenger, their belief in the Truth, and their rejection of falsehood.
For this reason the believer whom the Dajjal overpowers will say, when he revives him, “By Allah, it has only increased my understanding that you are the one-eyed liar about whom the Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – spoke.”
MORE Ahadîth ABOUT THE DAJJAL
The Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – said, “The Dajjal will emerge in a land in the east called Khurasan. His followers will be people with faces like hammered shields.” Asma’ bint Yazid al-Ansariyyah said, “The Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – said, ‘During the three years just before the Dajjal comes, there will be one year when the sky will withhold one third of its rain and the earth one-third of its fruits. In the second year the sky will withhold two-thirds of its rain, and the earth two-thirds of its fruits. In the third year the sky will withhold all of its rain, and the earth all of its fruits, and all the animals will die. It will be the greatest tribulation: the Dajjal will bring a Bedouin and say to him, “What if I bring your camels to life for you? Will you agree that I am your lord?” The Bedouin will say “Yes.” So devils will assume the forms of his camels, with the fullest udders and the highest humps. Then he will bring a man whose father and brother have died, and will ask him, “What do you think if I bring your father and brother back to life? Will you agree that I am your lord?” The man will say “Yes,” so the devils will assume the forms of his father and brother. Then the Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – went out for something, and then returned. The people were very concerned about what he had told them. He stood in the doorway and asked, ‘What is wrong, Asma’? I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, you have terrified us with what you said about the Dajjal. He said, ‘He will certainly appear. If I am still alive, I will contend with him on your behalf; otherwise Allah will take care of every Muslim on my behalf.’ I said, ‘O Messenger of Allah, we do not bake our dough until we are hungry, so how will it be for the believers at that time? The Prophet – sallallâhu ’alayhi wa sallam – said, ‘The glorification of Allah which suffices the people of Heaven will be sufficient for them.’
Footnotes: First published on : http://www.islamworld.net/hour/
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