ভূমিকা
Wherein art thou (concerned) with the declaration thereof? With thy Lord is the limit fixed therefore. You ore but a Warner to him who fears it. It shall seem to them on the day when they behold it, as though they tarred not (in their graves) but an evening or a forenoon. Commentary: Only Allah knows the Final Hour, the Resurrection.
In the aforementioned verses the Hereafter and the destiny of the righteous and the wrongdoers, on that Day, is described and, now, in the following verses the focus is on the common question of the rejecters of the Resurrection. It says: They ask you about the Hour, When will it come to pass?
Answering this question, to make them understand that no one knows when the final Great Event will take place, the Holy Qur'an addresses the Prophet (p.b.u.h.) and says: Wherein art thou (concerned) with the declaration thereof? When the date of the occurrence of the Hereafter is hidden even from the Prophet, then the status of others is obvious. This is of the knowledge which is hidden and exclusively belongs to Allah It is out of reach for all.
It is mentioned, repeatedly, that one of the things that are veiled for everyone is the exact time of the Hereafter whose training effect is not possible save being secret; since, if the exact time appointed for it were revealed and it were far away, everyone would sink deeply in negligence; and if it were near, avoiding sin would be done confusingly and far from free-will and intention, both of which are worthless from the point of training.
There have been other probabilities cited, also, and among them is that: 'you were not appointed in order to tell the time of the occurrence of the Hereafter but, you are appointed to inform others of its existence and that it will certainly happen'. Moreover, 'your appointment shows that the Day of Judgment is coming nearer'. So, the holy Prophet (p.b.u.h.) is reported to have said, showing his two forefingers: My appointment and the Hour are like these.
(1) But the first commentary is the most appropriate.