From Which Sides Will the People of Hell Be Given Their Books?
It is claimed that there is a contradiction in the verses about the giving of the books of the people of hell on the day of reckoning. The claims, as always, stem from prejudice and ignorance.
A matter or question concerning the Quran must be answered, must find its solution, within the Quran itself. Because the Quran is a whole and is a perfect Book that has the property of interpreting itself.
Let us examine the verses about the giving of the books of the people of hell on the day of reckoning, in which there is claimed to be a contradiction;
And whoever is given his book from behind him, (Surah Al-Inshiqaq, 10)
As for the one whose book is given in his left hand; he says: “If only my book had not been given to me. (Surah Al-Haqqah, 25)
Verse 10 of Surah Al-Inshiqaq speaks of those who are given their book from behind them. Here it is understood that the book of the people of hell is held out to them from behind them.
In verse 25 of Surah Al-Haqqah, on the other hand, it is said that the book will be given in the left hands of the people of hell. There is no contradiction whatsoever between these two verses. In one, the direction from which the book is held out is indicated by the expression ‘’from behind them’’, while the other speaks of the book being given in the left hands of the people of hell. That is, the book of the people of hell will be held out from behind them and given in their left hands. Far from a contradiction, what is said in the two verses complements each other. Because in no verse of the Quran is it written that the book will be given from the right to the people of hell.
Those whose registers are given from the right are mentioned in the Quran as “ashâbu’l-yemîn”; those whose registers are held out from behind them and given from the left are mentioned as “ashâbu’ş-şimal” (Surah Al-Haqqah.19,25; Surah Al-Inshiqaq, /7,10). The register being given from the right is good news, whereas its being given from the left or from behind is a sign of fear and torment.
Moreover, it is also stated in the Quran that not only individuals but also nations and communities have registers of deeds referred to as “book”, and that on the day of reckoning every nation will be called to read its own book. (Surah Al-Jathiyah, /28-29).
The Quran is a book designed so that its consistency can be tested. Allah, with the sentence combinations He has made using very few words, has created a perfect book in such a way that you can find the answers to your questions about the Quran from the Quran itself. And there is never a contradiction in the Quran.