The Hour Has Drawn Near

From the power and eloquence of the Qur’ān

أَزِفَتِ الْآزِفَةُ

Sūrat an-Najm:57

Just these two words draw a powerful picture…

أَزِفَ - To draw near (in time)

الْآزِفَةُ - The imminently approaching event

It carries the meaning of something extremely close — about to occur very soon.

In Arabic, one may say:

أَزِفَ الاخْتِبَارُ

“The exam has drawn near,”

meaning it is very close and imminent.

So the ayah:

أَزِفَتِ الْآزِفَةُ

Means:

“The imminently approaching (Hour) has drawn near.”

It refers to the Day of Judgement.

Notice that the verb is used in the past tense (أَزِفَت), even though it refers to something yet to occur. This is why it is often translated as:

“The Hour has drawn near.”

The use of the past tense here is for emphasis — indicating certainty.

Meaning: it is so certain to occur, that it is spoken of as though it has already happened.

Furthermore, the pairing of the verb and its derived noun intensifies the meaning even more — as though the nearness is being reinforced twice within the same brief phrase.

In just these two words, a profound meaning is conveyed:

• urgency..

• inevitability..