Surah Az-Zukhruf (43) — Ayah 61

(Ayah 61) ➊ { وَ اِنَّهٗ لَعِلْمٌ لِّلسَّاعَةِ: ’’عِلْمٌ‘‘} refers to a means of knowledge and a sign, that is, the birth of ‘Isa (peace be upon him) and his first coming into the world was a special sign for the Children of Israel, and his second coming will be a sign of the Hour. By his descent, people will know that the Hour is very near. Ibn Kathir (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “By this is meant his descent before the Hour, as Allah the Exalted and Glorious said: «وَ اِنْ مِّنْ اَهْلِ الْكِتٰبِ اِلَّا لَيُؤْمِنَنَّ بِهٖ قَبْلَ مَوْتِهٖ وَ يَوْمَ الْقِيٰمَةِ يَكُوْنُ عَلَيْهِمْ شَهِيْدًا» [ النساء : ۱۵۹ ] ‘And there is none of the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them.’” This meaning is also supported by the other qira’ah {’’وَ إِنَّهُ لَعَلَمٌ لِلسَّاعَةِ ‘‘}, that is, he is a sign and proof of the coming of the Hour. Mujahid (may Allah have mercy on him) said, {’’ وَ اِنَّهٗ لَعِلْمٌ لِّلسَّاعَةِ ‘‘} meaning, one of the signs of the Hour is the coming forth of ‘Isa ibn Maryam (peace be upon them both) before the Hour. The same is narrated from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), Abu’l-‘Aliyah, Abu Malik, ‘Ikrimah, Hasan, Qatadah, and Dahhak (may Allah have mercy on them all), and there are mutawatir ahadith from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he (peace and blessings be upon him) informed of the descent of ‘Isa ibn Maryam (peace be upon them both) as a just and fair Imam before the Hour.” (Ibn Kathir)
Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ وَالَّذِيْ نَفْسِيْ بِيَدِهِ، لَيُوْشِكَنَّ أَنْ يَّنْزِلَ فِيْكُمُ ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ حَكَمًا عَدْلاً، فَيَكْسِرَ الصَّلِيْبَ، وَيَقْتُلَ الْخِنْزِيْرَ، وَيَضَعَ الْجِزْيَةَ، وَ يَفِيْضَ الْمَالُ حَتّٰی لَا يَقْبَلَهُ أَحَدٌ، حَتّٰی تَكُوْنَ السَّجْدَةُ الْوَاحِدَةُ خَيْرًا مِّنَ الدُّنْيَا وَمَا فِيْهَا، ثُمَّ يَقُوْلُ أَبُوْ هُرَيْرَةَ وَاقْرَءُوْا إِنْ شِئْتُمْ : « وَ اِنْ مِّنْ اَهْلِ الْكِتٰبِ اِلَّا لَيُؤْمِنَنَّ بِهٖ قَبْلَ مَوْتِهٖ وَ يَوْمَ الْقِيٰمَةِ يَكُوْنُ عَلَيْهِمْ شَهِيْدًا » ( النساء:۱۵۹ )] [ بخاري، أحادیث الأنبیاء، باب نزول عیسی ابن مریم علیہما السلام : ۳۴۴۸ ] “By Him in Whose hand is my soul! Surely, it is near that the son of Maryam (peace be upon them both) will descend among you as a just ruler, then he will break the cross, kill the swine, abolish the jizyah, and wealth will become so abundant that no one will accept it, until a single prostration will be better than the world and whatever is in it.” Then Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “And if you wish, recite this verse: ‘And there is none of the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them.’” Also, look at the commentary of Surah An-Nisa, verses (158, 159).
➋ The meaning of {’’ وَ اِنَّهٗ لَعِلْمٌ لِّلسَّاعَةِ ‘‘} is also that the existence of ‘Isa (peace be upon him) is a sign and proof of the establishment of the Hour, because he was born without a father, contrary to the usual order, and then, by Allah’s permission, he used to give life to the dead. Both these things are great signs of Allah’s power, that He is surely able to establish the Hour.
➌ Some commentators have taken the pronoun in {’’ هٗ ‘‘} to refer to the Qur’an. Ibn ‘Ashur said: The conjunction of {’’ وَ اِنَّهٗ لَعِلْمٌ لِّلسَّاعَةِ ‘‘} is with {’’ وَ اِنَّهٗ لَذِكْرٌ لَّكَ وَ لِقَوْمِكَ ‘‘}, that is, this Qur’an is a means for you to obtain knowledge of the Hour, by which you are informed of its establishment and the events that will occur in it.” Ibn Kathir has narrated the same view from Qatadah, Hasan al-Basri, and Sa‘id ibn Jubayr (may Allah have mercy on them all), that the pronoun in {’’ هٗ ‘‘} refers to the Qur’an.
➍ {فَلَا تَمْتَرُنَّ بِهَا …:} means the Qur’an informs you of the occurrence of the Hour, so do not doubt it in the least, and follow me; this is the straight path to which I am inviting you.

61. 1. According to most commentators, this means that near the Day of Judgment, their descent from the sky will occur, as is established by Sahih Mutawatir hadiths. This descent will be a sign that the Day of Judgment is near; therefore, some have recited it with a fatha on the 'ain' and 'lam' as (عَلَم), which means sign and indication.

61. And indeed, he (Jesus) is a sign of the Hour [60]. So do not doubt it, and follow Me—this is the straight path.

[60] That is, the birth of Sayyiduna ‘Isa ؑ and his first coming into the world was a sign specifically for the Children of Israel, and his second coming will be a sign of the Hour. With his descent, people will know that the Hour is now very near. Most commentators have taken this as the meaning of this verse. And countless authentic ahadith also support the descent of Sayyiduna ‘Isa ؑ from the heavens, which will occur very close to the Hour. However, it can also be understood from this that the fatherless birth of Sayyiduna ‘Isa ؑ and the miracles granted to him can themselves be signs of the Hour. That is, the Being who, departing from the usual way, can create someone without a father and grant him astonishing miracles, certainly has the power to establish the Hour as well. This meaning seems correct only in the sense that there is nothing in this verse that specifically indicates the second coming of Sayyiduna ‘Isa ؑ or the descent of the Messiah.