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Surah 78 · Makkah · 40 āyāt
Phase 04 · Ṭāʾif, al-Isrāʾ and the final Makkan years(c. 5–1 BH) — view in timelineAn-NabaʾThe Great News
النبأ
Opens with the question the Makkans were disputing over: the Great News — the resurrection they denied. The surah answers with a survey of Allah's design in creation as evidence of His power to resurrect, then a vivid description of the Day of Decision: the trumpet, mountains vanishing like a mirage, Hell as an ambush for the transgressors, and Paradise as reward for the righteous, closing with the disbeliever's despairing wish that he were mere dust.
Why it was revealed
The Qurʾān records that the Makkan disbelievers were 'disputing' among themselves about the resurrection — some denying it outright, others uncertain — and the surah opens directly addressing that dispute as 'the great news' about which they differ.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 78:6–16; al-Ṭabarī on 78:2; Ibn Kathīr on 78:1–2; Ibn Kathīr on 78:17–20; Ibn Kathīr, introduction to Sūrat an-Nabaʾ, citing Mujāhid on 78:1–2
Mujāhid and other early exegetes explained that 'the great news' refers to the resurrection after death, over which the people of Makkah were in open disagreement, some rejecting it as impossible and others doubting it; the surah was revealed to settle the matter decisively with signs from creation and a description of the Day itself.
Cited toIbn Kathīr, introduction to Sūrat an-Nabaʾ, citing Mujāhid on 78:1–2; al-Ṭabarī on 78:2
In the Prophet's ﷺ life
Dispute over the resurrection in Makkah
The Makkan disbelievers argued among themselves about whether resurrection after death was possible, some denying it and others uncertain.
Recalled in āyah 1, 2, 3
عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ
About what are they asking one another?
عَنِ ٱلنَّبَإِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ
About the great news -
ٱلَّذِى هُمْ فِيهِ مُخْتَلِفُونَ
That over which they are in disagreement.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:1–2
- Madd — 2 vowels
- Madd — 2, 4 or 6 vowels
- Madd — 6 vowels (lāzim)
- Madd — 4 or 5 vowels (wājib)
- Ghunnah — 2 vowels
- Qalqalah
- Ikhfāʾ
- Ikhfāʾ shafawī
- Idghām shafawī
- Idghām with ghunnah
- Idghām without ghunnah
- Idghām mutajānisayn
- Idghām mutaqāribayn
- Iqlāb
- Hamzat al-waṣl
- Lām shamsiyyah
- Silent letter
Tajwīd markup and colour convention: Quran.com API (v4) — text_uthmani_tajweed. Recitation audio: Quran.com / Quran Foundation Audio API (v4).
The Great News they were disputing over
About what are they asking one another? About the great news, over which they are in disagreement. No! They are going to know. Then, no! They are going to know.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 78:4–5; Ibn Kathīr on 78:1–2
عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ
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About what are they asking one another?
عَنِ ٱلنَّبَإِ ٱلْعَظِيمِ
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About the great news -
ٱلَّذِى هُمْ فِيهِ مُخْتَلِفُونَ
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That over which they are in disagreement.
From the tafsīr
'The great news' is identified as the resurrection, described as 'great' because of its magnitude and the seriousness of what follows it — reckoning, reward and punishment — matters far weightier than the worldly disputes the Makkans usually occupied themselves with.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:1–2
The repeated warning 'no, they are going to know' twice is explained as intensifying the threat, addressed first perhaps to the disbelieving general public and then more specifically to their leaders who spread the denial.
Cited toAl-Ṭabarī on 78:4–5
Key takeaways
- The resurrection is named 'the great news' due to what follows it — an eternal reckoning far outweighing worldly concerns.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 78:4–5; Ibn Kathīr on 78:1–2
- Denial does not remove certainty; repeated warning that 'they will know' underscores the inevitability of the truth being confirmed.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 78:4–5; Ibn Kathīr on 78:1–2
- Disputing over the Hereafter without knowledge is a pattern the Qur'an repeatedly corrects with evidence, not mere assertion.
Drawn fromAl-Ṭabarī on 78:4–5; Ibn Kathīr on 78:1–2
Reflect
What worldly disputes occupy your attention more than the 'great news' that will outlast them all?
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Question 1 of 2
What is 'the great news' in 78:2 according to Ibn Kathīr?
Question 2 of 2
Why is the warning 'no, they will know' repeated twice in 78:4–5?
Signs in creation as proof of resurrection
Have We not made the earth a resting place, and the mountains as stakes? And We created you in pairs, and made your sleep for rest, and made the night as a covering, and the day for livelihood. And We built above you seven strong [heavens], and placed therein a burning lamp, and sent down from the rain-clouds pouring water, that We may bring forth thereby grain and vegetation, and gardens of thick foliage.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 78:6–16; Ibn Kathīr on 78:7
أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ ٱلْأَرْضَ مِهَـٰدًا
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Have We not made the earth a resting place?
وَٱلْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا
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And the mountains as stakes?
وَخَلَقْنَـٰكُمْ أَزْوَٰجًا
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And We created you in pairs
وَجَعَلْنَا نَوْمَكُمْ سُبَاتًا
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And made your sleep for rest
وَجَعَلْنَا ٱلَّيْلَ لِبَاسًا
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And made the night as clothing [i.e., cover]
وَجَعَلْنَا ٱلنَّهَارَ مَعَاشًا
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And made the day for livelihood.
وَبَنَيْنَا فَوْقَكُمْ سَبْعًا شِدَادًا
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And built above you seven strong [heavens]
وَجَعَلْنَا سِرَاجًا وَهَّاجًا
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And made [therein] a burning lamp
وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلْمُعْصِرَٰتِ مَآءً ثَجَّاجًا
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And sent down, from the rain clouds, pouring water
From the tafsīr
Each sign listed — the earth's stability, the mountains as pegs, human pairs, sleep, the night-day cycle, the sky's structure, the sun, and rain producing crops — is presented as something the disbelievers already witnessed and relied upon daily, making their denial of resurrection inconsistent with their own acceptance of these greater wonders.
Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 78:6–16
Mountains as 'stakes' (awtād) are explained as stabilising the earth against violent movement, a detail of precise engineering in creation offered as evidence of a Designer capable of also re-creating life after death.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:7
Key takeaways
- The same power that ordered sleep, day, night, mountains and rain is more than capable of resurrection.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 78:6–16; Ibn Kathīr on 78:7
- Disbelief in the resurrection while accepting these everyday wonders is shown to be logically inconsistent.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 78:6–16; Ibn Kathīr on 78:7
- Ordinary phenomena — sleep, rain, sunlight — are framed by the Qur'an as continuous proofs, not merely background facts of life.
Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 78:6–16; Ibn Kathīr on 78:7
Reflect
Which of these 'ordinary' signs — sleep, rain, sunlight — have you stopped noticing as evidence of a Designer?
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Question 1 of 2
What role do the mountains play as described in 78:7?
Question 2 of 2
What logical inconsistency does al-Saʿdī highlight regarding the disbelievers?
The Day of Decision
Indeed, the Day of Decision is an appointed time — the Day the trumpet is blown and you come forth in multitudes, and the sky is opened and becomes gateways, and the mountains are moved and become a mirage. Indeed, Hell has been lying in wait — a home for the transgressors, remaining therein for ages, tasting therein neither coolness nor drink except boiling water and pus, a fitting recompense, for indeed they did not expect an account, and denied Our signs, denying totally, while We have enumerated everything in a record.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:21–23; Ibn Kathīr on 78:17–20; Ibn Kathīr on 78:27–28
إِنَّ يَوْمَ ٱلْفَصْلِ كَانَ مِيقَـٰتًا
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Indeed, the Day of Judgement is an appointed time
يَوْمَ يُنفَخُ فِى ٱلصُّورِ فَتَأْتُونَ أَفْوَاجًا
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The Day the Horn is blown and you will come forth in multitudes
وَسُيِّرَتِ ٱلْجِبَالُ فَكَانَتْ سَرَابًا
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And the mountains are removed and become as a mirage.
إِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ كَانَتْ مِرْصَادًا
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Indeed, Hell has been lying in wait
لَّا يَذُوقُونَ فِيهَا بَرْدًا وَلَا شَرَابًا
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They will not taste therein [any] coolness or drink
إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا لَا يَرْجُونَ حِسَابًا
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Indeed, they were not expecting an account
وَكُلَّ شَىْءٍ أَحْصَيْنَـٰهُ كِتَـٰبًا
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And all things We have enumerated in writing.
From the tafsīr
The mountains 'becoming a mirage' (sarāban) describes their total disintegration into scattered particles that appear from a distance like a mirage, showing the complete undoing of what once seemed the most permanent features of the earth.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:17–20
Hell 'lying in wait' (mirṣādan) is explained as an ambush prepared specifically for the transgressors along the path they must cross, emphasising that punishment is neither accidental nor disproportionate but a fitting recompense for what they earned.
Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 78:21–23
The root cause of their punishment is named explicitly: not expecting an account and denying the signs outright — showing that heedlessness about the Hereafter, not merely specific sins, is what invites this fate.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:27–28
Key takeaways
- What seems most permanent — mountains — will be entirely undone on that Day.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:21–23; Ibn Kathīr on 78:17–20; Ibn Kathīr on 78:27–28
- Hell is described as prepared and waiting specifically for the transgressors, not an arbitrary punishment.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:21–23; Ibn Kathīr on 78:17–20; Ibn Kathīr on 78:27–28
- Heedless disregard for accountability is named as the root cause of ruin, more than any single sin.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:21–23; Ibn Kathīr on 78:17–20; Ibn Kathīr on 78:27–28
Reflect
Do you live and plan as though an account is truly expected, or as this passage describes the transgressors — not expecting one at all?
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Question 1 of 2
What happens to the mountains on the Day of Decision per 78:20?
Question 2 of 2
What is named as the root cause of the transgressors' punishment in 78:27–28?
Gardens and the reward of the righteous
Indeed, for the righteous is attainment — gardens and grapevines, and full-breasted companions of equal age, and a full cup, wherein they will hear no vain talk or lying — a reward from your Lord, a gift sufficient, from the Lord of the heavens and earth and whatever is between them, the Most Merciful; none will have power of speech before Him except one whom the Most Merciful permits, and he will say what is correct. That is the True Day; so whoever wills may take a return to his Lord. Indeed, We have warned you of a near punishment, the Day when a man will see what his hands have sent forth, and the disbeliever will say: oh, I wish I were dust!
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:38; Ibn Kathīr on 78:35; Ibn Kathīr on 78:40
إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ مَفَازًا
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Indeed, for the righteous is attainment -
لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ فِيهَا لَغْوًا وَلَا كِذَّٰبًا
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They will not hear therein any ill speech or lying -
يَوْمَ يَقُومُ ٱلرُّوحُ وَٱلْمَلَـٰئِكَةُ صَفًّا لَّا يَتَكَلَّمُونَ إِلَّا مَنْ أَذِنَ لَهُ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ وَقَالَ صَوَابًا
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The Day that the Spirit 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.
إِنَّآ أَنذَرْنَـٰكُمْ عَذَابًا قَرِيبًا يَوْمَ يَنظُرُ ٱلْمَرْءُ مَا قَدَّمَتْ يَدَاهُ وَيَقُولُ ٱلْكَافِرُ يَـٰلَيْتَنِى كُنتُ تُرَٰبًۢا
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Indeed, We have warned you of a near punishment on the Day when a man will observe what his hands have sent forth and the disbeliever will say, 'Oh, I wish that I were dust!'
From the tafsīr
'They will hear no vain talk or lying' contrasts Paradise directly with the empty, harmful speech of this world, describing an environment of speech purified entirely of falsehood and idle chatter.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:35
'The Spirit and the angels will stand in rows' describes their arrangement before Allah on that Day, with speech permitted only to whom Allah allows and who then speaks only truth — a scene of complete order and awe replacing worldly commotion.
Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 78:38
The disbeliever's wish to be mere dust is explained by some reports as arising even for the animals, who will be returned to dust after judgement between them, provoking the human disbeliever's envy that he was not spared existence altogether — the ultimate expression of despair.
Cited toIbn Kathīr on 78:40
Key takeaways
- Paradise is described as free from vain and false speech, unlike much of worldly conversation.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:38; Ibn Kathīr on 78:35; Ibn Kathīr on 78:40
- Even the angels' speech before Allah on that Day is only by His permission and only in truth.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:38; Ibn Kathīr on 78:35; Ibn Kathīr on 78:40
- The disbeliever's final wish — to be dust — reveals the depth of despair reserved for denial, worse than non-existence itself.
Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 78:38; Ibn Kathīr on 78:35; Ibn Kathīr on 78:40
Reflect
How much of your daily speech would qualify as the vain talk Paradise is described as free from?
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Question 1 of 2
What is distinctive about speech in Paradise according to 78:35?
Question 2 of 2
What does the disbeliever's wish to be 'dust' in 78:40 reveal?
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Roots from this surah
Learn the three-letter root and you unlock every word built from it — across the whole Qur'an, not just this surah.
ن ب أ
āyāt 2news, report
- ٱلنَّبَإِthe news
- نَبِيّprophet (bearer of news)
- أَنۢبَأَhe informed
و ت د
āyāt 7stake, peg
- أَوْتَادًاstakes
- وَتَدa peg
ز و ج
āyāt 8pair, spouse
- أَزْوَٰجًاpairs
- زَوْجspouse
ل ب س
āyāt 10to wear, clothe
- لِبَاسًاclothing
- لَبِسَhe wore
ف ص ل
āyāt 17to separate, decide
- ٱلْفَصْلِthe Decision
- فَصَلَhe separated/decided
ن ف خ
āyāt 18to blow
- يُنفَخُis blown
- نَفْخَةa blowing
ر ص د
āyāt 21to lie in wait, watch
- مِرْصَادًاa place of ambush
- رَصَدَhe watched/lay in wait
ح س ب
āyāt 27to reckon, account
- حِسَابًاan account
- حَاسَبَhe called to account
ف و ز
āyāt 31to succeed, attain
- مَفَازًاattainment
- فَازَhe succeeded
ل غ و
āyāt 35vain, idle speech
- لَغْوًاvain talk
- لَاغِيَةidle speech
ت ر ب
āyāt 40dust, soil
- تُرَٰبًۢاdust
- تُرَابsoil
Carry this with you
- The resurrection is called 'the great news' because of the magnitude of reckoning, reward and punishment that follows it.
- Everyday phenomena — sleep, night, day, rain — are presented as continuous proofs of a Creator capable of resurrection.
- What appears most permanent, such as mountains, will be entirely undone on the Day of Decision.
- Hell is described as an ambush prepared specifically for the transgressors, a fitting recompense, not an arbitrary fate.
- Paradise is described as free of vain talk and lying, an environment of purified speech.
- The disbeliever's final wish to be mere dust reveals the depth of despair reserved for denial of the Hereafter.
Where this surah connects
Cross-surah threads
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An-Nabaʾ · The Day of Decision
What is named as the root cause of the transgressors' punishment in 78:27–28?
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