حَتَّى إِذَا فُتِحَتْ يَأْجُوجُ وَمَأْجُوجُ وَهُمْ مِنْ كُلِّ حَدَبٍ يَنْسِلُونَ ﴿۹۶﴾ وَاقْتَرَبَ الْوَعْدُ الْحَقُّ فَإِذَا هِيَ شَاخِصَةٌ أَبْصَارُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا يَا وَيْلَنَا قَدْ كُنَّا فِي غَفْلَةٍ مِنْ هَذَا بَلْ كُنَّا ظَالِمِينَ ﴿۹۷﴾ إِنَّكُمْ وَمَا تَعْبُدُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ حَصَبُ جَهَنَّمَ أَنْتُمْ لَهَا وَارِدُونَ ﴿۹۸﴾ لَوْ كَانَ هَؤُلَاءِ آلِهَةً مَا وَرَدُوهَا وَكُلٌّ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ ﴿۹۹﴾

﴾96﴿ Hattaaa izaa futihat Ya'jooju wa Ma'jooju wa hum min kulli hadabiny yansiloon
﴾97﴿ Waqtarabal wa'dul haqqu fa-izaa hiya shaakhisatun absaarul lazeena kafaroo yaawailanaa qad kunna fee ghaflatin min haaza bal kunnaa zaalimeen
﴾98﴿ Innakum wa maa ta'budoona min doonil laahi hasabu Jahannama antum lahaa waaridoon
﴾99﴿ Law kaana haaa'ulaaa'i aalihatan maa waradoohaa wa kullun feehaa khaalidoon

﴾96﴿ Until when Gog and Magog are released, and they hasten from every elevation
﴾97﴿ And the true promise will draw near, then suddenly the eyes of those who disbelieved will stare in horror, [saying], Woe to us! Indeed, we were heedless of this; rather, we were wrongdoers
﴾98﴿ Indeed, you and what you worship besides Allah are fuel for Hell; you will surely enter it
﴾99﴿ If these had truly been gods, they would not have entered Hell, and all will abide therein eternally

[96] In this verse, some of the near signs of the Day of Judgment are mentioned, which are confirmed by authentic hadiths—that after the trial of Dajjal, Gog and Magog (Yājūj and Mājūj) will dominate the entire world.
The word ḥattā (“until”) may be an introductory phrase, meaning a new independent statement is beginning, or it may be related to lā yarjiʿūn, meaning: they will not be able to return again until this sign of the Hour appears, and then the Resurrection will be established.
In the phrase (ḥadabin yansilūn), there is an indication that nothing can prevent their coming and domination. It means they will possess many means of travel—both aerial and terrestrial.
The mention of Gog and Magog also appeared earlier in Surah Al-Kahf (94), and both Ibn Jarīr and Ibn Kathīr have cited many hadiths regarding them.
[97] This is evidence that after the coming of Gog and Magog, the Day of Judgment draws very near—because iqtaraba (has drawn near) is connected to futihat (has been opened). In this verse, the awe and terror of the Day of Judgment is described, and something similar was mentioned in Surah Ibrāhīm (43, 42).
The phrase (yā waylanā) is a confession of the sin of polytheism and disbelief, but at that moment, such a confession is of no benefit.
This verse also aligns with the first verse of the surah in terms of theme and meaning.
[98] This is also a warning and a refutation of the polytheists—meaning, those polytheists who hope for salvation from their deities have an incorrect belief, because those very deities will themselves enter the Fire. So how could they offer salvation to anyone?
There is an apparent issue in this verse, as the word mā (what) suggests that all the deities of the polytheists will enter the Fire. Yet, some of the beings worshiped include prophets, saints, and angels—whom some people have worshiped. This objection is reported by the commentators as having been raised by Ibn al-Zibʿarī.
The response to this has several aspects:
1. The first is that the word mā does not definitively indicate total generality; it can imply both general and specific meanings. This kind of analysis is mentioned in Sharḥ al-Mawāqif, Nūr al-Anwār, and others.
Ibn al-Zibʿarī was a polytheist and used deception—he claimed that the word mā implies generality, but in this verse, mā specifically refers to those deities that called people to polytheism and innovation, i.e., false spiritual leaders and misguided scholars.
2. The second is that even if mā is taken as general, in verse (101), the righteous (ṣāliḥīn) have already been excluded.
The word ḥaṣab refers to firewood and similar fuel that is thrown into the fire to be burned, while ḥaṭab refers specifically to wood. Thus, ḥaṣab carries the connotation of humiliation.
[99] This is evidence for the invalidity of the deities besides Allah the Exalted—because they cannot save themselves or their worshippers from Hell, so how can they be considered gods?
Likewise, if their worship were true, then their worshippers would not have entered Hell.
In (mā waradūhā), the pronoun can refer to both the worshippers and the false deities, and similarly in (wa kullun), both groups are intended.