Islam - Its Meaning for Modern Man — Page 354
354 The “grievous chastisement” referred to here may arrive in two stages: “Watch thou for the day when the sky will bring forth a visible smoke that will envelop the people. This will be a painful torment. Then will the people cry: ‘Lord, remove from us the torment; truly we are believers’…. We shall remove the torment for a little while, but you will certainly revert to your evil courses. On the day when We shall seize you with the great seizure, then certainly We shall exact retribution” (44:11 ⎯ 13, 16 ⎯ 17). In this context, attention may also be invited to the following: “An inquirer inquires concerning the chastisement which shall afflict those who believe not, which none can repel. It is from Allah, Lord of Great Ascents…. They see it to be far off, but We see it to be nigh. The day when the sky will become like molten copper and the mountains will become like flakes of wool and a friend will not inquire after a friend, though they will be in sight of one another. A guilty one would fain ransom himself from the torment of that day by offering his children, and his wife, and his brothers, and his kinsfolk, who might give him shelter, and all those who are on the earth, if only thus he might save himself. But no: surely, it is a flame of fire, stripping off the skin, even to the extremities of the body. It will overtake him who turned his back and retreated, and hoarded wealth and withheld it” (70:2 ⎯ 4, 7 ⎯ 19).