أَفَأَمِنْتُمْ أَنْ يَخْسِفَ بِكُمْ جَانِبَ الْبَرِّ أَوْ يُرْسِلَ عَلَيْكُمْ حَاصِبًا ثُمَّ لَا تَجِدُوا لَكُمْ وَكِيلًا ﴿۶۸﴾ أَمْ أَمِنْتُمْ أَنْ يُعِيدَكُمْ فِيهِ تَارَةً أُخْرَى فَيُرْسِلَ عَلَيْكُمْ قَاصِفًا مِنَ الرِّيحِ فَيُغْرِقَكُمْ بِمَا كَفَرْتُمْ ثُمَّ لَا تَجِدُوا لَكُمْ عَلَيْنَا بِهِ تَبِيعًا ﴿۶۹﴾ وَلَقَدْ كَرَّمْنَا بَنِي آدَمَ وَحَمَلْنَاهُمْ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ وَرَزَقْنَاهُمْ مِنَ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَفَضَّلْنَاهُمْ عَلَى كَثِيرٍ مِمَّنْ خَلَقْنَا تَفْضِيلًا ﴿۷۰﴾ يَوْمَ نَدْعُو كُلَّ أُنَاسٍ بِإِمَامِهِمْ فَمَنْ أُوتِيَ كِتَابَهُ بِيَمِينِهِ فَأُولَئِكَ يَقْرَءُونَ كِتَابَهُمْ وَلَا يُظْلَمُونَ فَتِيلًا ﴿۷۱﴾

﴾68﴿ Afa amintum any yakhsifa bikum jaanibal barri aw yursila 'alaikum haasiban summa laa tajidoo lakum wakeelaa
﴾69﴿ Am amintum any yu'eedakum feehi taaratan ukhraa fa yursila 'alaikum qaasifam minar reehi fa yugh riqakum bimaa kafartum summa laa tajidoo lakum 'alainaa bihee tabee'aa
﴾70﴿ Wa laqad karramnaa Baneee aadama wa hamalnaahum fil barri walbahri wa razaqnaahum minat taiyibaati wa faddalnaahum 'alaa kaseerim mimman khalaqnaa tafdeelaa
﴾71﴿ Yawma nad'oo kulla unaasim bi imaamihim faman ootiya kitaabahoo bi yameenihee fa ulaaa'ika yaqra'oona kitaabahum wa laa yuzlamoona fateelaa

﴾68﴿ Are you secure from the possibility that Allah might cause you to sink into a part of the land or send upon you a storm of stones, and then you would find no one to protect you
﴾69﴿ Have you become heedless of the possibility that He may return you to the sea once again, then send upon you a fierce, breaking wind, and drown you because of your denial of monotheism? Then you would find no one to hold Us accountable for it
﴾70﴿ And indeed, We have honored the children of Adam and carried them on land and sea, and provided them with good and pure sustenance, and favored them over many of those We have created, with a marked preference
﴾71﴿ And [remember] the Day We will call forth every people with their leader. Then whoever is given their record in their right hand – they will read their book [with joy], and they will not be wronged [even by] as much as the thread of a date seed

[68] In this verse, there is a warning to the polytheist whose condition was mentioned in the previous verse.
The meaning is that even if he is saved from the sea, he cannot escape the punishment on land.
(أَنْ يَخْسِفَ) – refers to being swallowed by the earth, like Qarun.
(يُرْسِلَ) – refers to the sending of a storm or punishment, like what happened to the people of Lot.
Similar warnings are also found in verses (16) and (17) of Surah Al-Mulk.
[69] This too, like the previous verse, is a warning.
The point is that Allah the Exalted may return this person to the sea and drown him—then who is there to save him?
(تَبِيعًا) – refers to someone who takes compensation or revenge from an enemy on behalf of another.
In this context, it means: there will be no supporter or avenger to claim his right or rescue him.
[70] In this verse, there is encouragement, with the mention of four general blessings so that they may show gratitude by accepting monotheism (tawḥīd).
Then, they will be saved from the punishments mentioned earlier.
The first blessing is mentioned with (وَلَقَدْ كَرَّمْنَا) – "Indeed, We have honored the children of Adam."
This honor is general and includes speech, discernment, intellect, upright posture, beautiful form, eating with fingers, and the subjugation of other creatures for their benefit.
It also includes honoring men with beards and women with hair on their heads – all of these are part of this honor.
The second blessing is transportation on land, including railways, cars, camels, horses, mules, donkeys, and the like, and at sea with ships, boats, and other vessels.
The third blessing includes food, drink, and clothing – all kinds of enjoyable and delightful provisions fall under this category.
The fourth blessing is the preference given to humans over many other creatures, including inanimate objects, plants, animals, and – according to some scholars – even angels.
If this preference is outward (worldly), then it includes disbelievers as well.
But if it refers to spiritual superiority, then it is specific to the believers.
[71] After mentioning the general blessings for all people, this verse now describes the distinction between believers and disbelievers in the Hereafter.
Thus, in this verse, there is glad tidings of the Hereafter for the believers.
The meaning of “Imām” is the leader of a people—whether on guidance or misguidance.
The second opinion is that “Imām” refers to the record of deeds, and this is the stronger interpretation.
The third opinion is that “Imām” refers to the Prophet, and Ibn Kathīr narrates from some of the Salaf that the great honor of the people of ḥadīth is that their Imām is the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace).
Interpreting “Imām” as a founder of a school of thought (madhhab) is an unsupported view, and interpreting it as “mother” is a distortion that goes against the clear texts.
This is because the texts clearly indicate that on the Day of Judgment, everyone will be attributed to their father—except for ‘Īsā (peace be upon him).
If someone has no known father, such as a child born out of wedlock, they will be referred to without lineage.