Exegesis of the verse from Surat al-Anbiya: (The Day We will fold the sky like the folding of a scroll for the books, as We began the first creation, We will repeat it. A promise binding upon Us; indeed, We were going to do it.)

Question:
The blessed verse in Surat al-Anbiya, in the saying of the Truth, Blessed and Exalted is He, I seek refuge in Allah from Satan the accursed: {The Day We will fold the sky like the folding of a scroll for the books, as We began the first creation, We will repeat it. A promise binding upon Us; indeed, We were going to do it}.

Answer:
Answer: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. In this verse, Allah mentions that on the Day of Resurrection, He will fold the sky, some of it into some, with His Hand—Glorified and Exalted is He—just as He said—Exalted and Majestic is He—in Surat al-Zumar: {And the heavens will be folded up by His Hand}. So the heavens, despite their greatness, vastness, and strength, will be folded by Allah—Exalted and Majestic is He—just as the pages in a register are folded. The register is that in which the pages are gathered and contained; they are inside it. This is an analogy of folding to folding, and it indicates the greatness of Allah—Exalted and Majestic is He—since He folds these heavens and the earth—Glorified and Exalted is He—with His noble hands. {The Day We will fold the sky like the folding of a scroll for the books}. Then He said—Exalted and Majestic is He—{as We began the first creation, We will repeat it}. The resurrection is easy for Allah, Glorified is He. So the One who was able to begin the creation is able to repeat it, a fortiori, in the view of reason. Otherwise, nothing defeats Allah—Exalted and Majestic is He. But in the view of reason, He—Glorified and Exalted is He—finds nothing difficult if He wills it. His command, when He wills a thing, is only to say to it, "Be," and it is. {And the heavens will be folded up by His Hand} {The Day We will fold the sky} means the Day of Resurrection. {Like the folding of a scroll for the books} {as We began the first creation, We will repeat it}. So the One who was able to begin the creation is able to repeat it, as He said—Exalted and Majestic is He—{And it is He who begins the creation and then repeats it, and that is easier for Him. And to Him belongs the highest example in the heavens and the earth. And He is the Exalted, the Wise}. Then He said—Exalted and Majestic is He—{A promise binding upon Us}. This is a promise that Allah—Exalted and Majestic is He—has made, and Allah does not break His promise. So what He has promised must come to pass. So Allah—Exalted and Majestic is He—is able, just as He was able to begin the creation, to repeat it, a fortiori. And in this is a refutation of the materialists who deny the resurrection and claim that the dead do not return to life, forgetting the power of Allah—Exalted and Majestic is He—which nothing defeats. {A promise binding upon Us; indeed, We were going to do it}. {Indeed, We} is an emphasis, [saying] "We were going to do it" for this appointment that Allah promised.