تِلْكَ آيَاتُ اللّهِ نَتْلُوهَا عَلَيْكَ بِالْحَقِّ وَإِنَّكَ لَمِنَ الْمُرْسَلِينَ  تِلْكَ الرُّسُلُ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَى بَعْضٍ مِّنْهُم مَّن كَلَّمَ اللّهُ وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَهُمْ دَرَجَاتٍ وَآتَيْنَا عِيسَى ابْنَ مَرْيَمَ الْبَيِّنَاتِ وَأَيَّدْنَاهُ بِرُوحِ الْقُدُسِ وَلَوْ شَاء اللّهُ مَا اقْتَتَلَ الَّذِينَ مِن بَعْدِهِم مِّن بَعْدِ مَا جَاءتْهُمُ الْبَيِّنَاتُ وَلَـكِنِ اخْتَلَفُواْ فَمِنْهُم مَّنْ آمَنَ وَمِنْهُم مَّن كَفَرَ وَلَوْ شَاء اللّهُ مَا اقْتَتَلُواْ وَلَـكِنَّ اللّهَ يَفْعَلُ مَا يُرِيدُ (٢٥٢-٢٥٣)

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ أَنفِقُواْ مِمَّا رَزَقْنَاكُم مِّن قَبْلِ أَن يَأْتِيَ يَوْمٌ لاَّ بَيْعٌ فِيهِ وَلاَ خُلَّةٌ وَلاَ شَفَاعَةٌ وَالْكَافِرُونَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ (٢٥٤)

اللّهُ لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ لاَ تَأْخُذُهُ سِنَةٌ وَلاَ نَوْمٌ لَّهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الأَرْضِ مَن ذَا الَّذِي يَشْفَعُ عِنْدَهُ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِهِ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ وَلاَ يُحِيطُونَ بِشَيْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِ إِلاَّ بِمَا شَاء وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضَ وَلاَ يَؤُودُهُ حِفْظُهُمَا وَهُوَ الْعَلِيُّ الْعَظِيمُ (٢٥٥)

لاَ إِكْرَاهَ فِي الدِّينِ قَد تَّبَيَّنَ الرُّشْدُ مِنَ الْغَيِّ فَمَنْ يَكْفُرْ بِالطَّاغُوتِ وَيُؤْمِن بِاللّهِ فَقَدِ اسْتَمْسَكَ بِالْعُرْوَةِ الْوُثْقَىَ لاَ انفِصَامَ لَهَا وَاللّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ (٢٥٦)

اللّهُ وَلِيُّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ يُخْرِجُهُم مِّنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّوُرِ وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ أَوْلِيَآؤُهُمُ الطَّاغُوتُ يُخْرِجُونَهُم مِّنَ النُّورِ إِلَى الظُّلُمَاتِ أُوْلَـئِكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ (٢٥٧)

أَلَمْ تَرَ إِلَى الَّذِي حَآجَّ إِبْرَاهِيمَ فِي رِبِّهِ أَنْ آتَاهُ اللّهُ الْمُلْكَ إِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ رَبِّيَ الَّذِي يُحْيِـي وَيُمِيتُ قَالَ أَنَا أُحْيِـي وَأُمِيتُ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ فَإِنَّ اللّهَ يَأْتِي بِالشَّمْسِ مِنَ الْمَشْرِقِ فَأْتِ بِهَا مِنَ الْمَغْرِبِ فَبُهِتَ الَّذِي كَفَرَ وَاللّهُ لاَ يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ (٢٥٨)

أَوْ كَالَّذِي مَرَّ عَلَى قَرْيَةٍ وَهِيَ خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَى عُرُوشِهَا قَالَ أَنَّىَ يُحْيِـي هَـَذِهِ اللّهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا فَأَمَاتَهُ اللّهُ مِئَةَ عَامٍ ثُمَّ بَعَثَهُ قَالَ كَمْ لَبِثْتَ قَالَ لَبِثْتُ يَوْمًا أَوْ بَعْضَ يَوْمٍ قَالَ بَل لَّبِثْتَ مِئَةَ عَامٍ فَانظُرْ إِلَى طَعَامِكَ وَشَرَابِكَ لَمْ يَتَسَنَّهْ وَانظُرْ إِلَى حِمَارِكَ وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ آيَةً لِّلنَّاسِ وَانظُرْ إِلَى العِظَامِ كَيْفَ نُنشِزُهَا ثُمَّ نَكْسُوهَا لَحْمًا فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ قَالَ أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ اللّهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ (٢٥٩)

وَإِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ رَبِّ أَرِنِي كَيْفَ تُحْيِـي الْمَوْتَى قَالَ أَوَلَمْ تُؤْمِن قَالَ بَلَى وَلَـكِن لِّيَطْمَئِنَّ قَلْبِي قَالَ فَخُذْ أَرْبَعَةً مِّنَ الطَّيْرِ فَصُرْهُنَّ إِلَيْكَ ثُمَّ اجْعَلْ عَلَى كُلِّ جَبَلٍ مِّنْهُنَّ جُزْءًا ثُمَّ ادْعُهُنَّ يَأْتِينَكَ سَعْيًا وَاعْلَمْ أَنَّ اللّهَ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ (٢٦٠)

These are the verses of God which We are reciting to you in all truth, and doubtless, you are one of God’s Messengers. [The Israelites very well know this, but do not accept it because] among these messengers We have exalted some above others such that to some God spoke directly1, others He raised to a lofty status in some other capacity and [at the end] gave Jesus, son of Mary, manifest signs and helped him through the Holy Spirit2. [Consequently, it was because of this relative superiority of one messenger to the other that the followers of one started to reject the other3], and if God wanted, these who have succeeded them would not have fought against one another after manifest signs had been given to them. But [God did not want to force people to the right path, so] they disagreed among themselves; thus some among them professed faith [in these messengers] and some rejected them. [They are rejecting you, O Prophet, for this same reason] and had God pleased they would not have fought against one another but God [according to His wisdom] does what He pleases4. (252-253)

Believers [leave them to themselves and] spend of what We have given you [for the cause of God] before that day arrives when there shall be no bargaining, neither shall friendship [with someone] be of use nor shall intercession be of any avail. And [the fact is that] the rejecters [of that Day] are the one’s who wrong their souls. (254)

[On that day, man will have to face God only.] God, there is no god but He, the Living, the Sustainer5. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him6. All that is in the heavens and the earth belong to Him. Who can intercede with Him for someone except by His permission?7 He knows what lies before them and what is after them and without His will they cannot grasp any part of His knowledge8. His dominion9 prevails in the heavens and the earth, and their protection does not weary Him in the slightest way10 and He is the Exalted and the Glorious One11. (255)

[Let them adopt whatever path they want]; there is no compulsion [from God] in religion. The fact is [that after this Qur’an], guidance is now totally distinct from error. So he who renounces Satan12 and believes in God, it is as if he grasps a strong rope which can never break and [this is because] God hears all and knows all. (256)

[If they want to be guided] God helps the believers. He leads them from darkness to light13. [On the other hand], it is the devils who help the disbelievers, they lead them from light to darkness. It is these who are the inmates of the Fire. They shall abide in it forever14. (257)

[If you want to understand God’s law of providing guidance, there are several examples that can be cited]. Have15 you not seen the person who argued with Abraham about his Lord merely because God had bestowed sovereignty upon him16 when Abraham said [to him]: “My Lord is the One who gives life and death”.17 He replied: “I too have this power”.18 Abraham at once remarked: “God brings out the sun from the east; you bring it out  from the west”.19 The unbeliever was confounded [at this remark]. And [in reality] God does not guide such evil-doers.20 (258)

Or21 the example of him22, who was passing by a city which had fallen on its roofs23. He remarked with wonder: “After being destroyed in such a way, how can God give life to this city?”24 Thereupon, God made him die for a hundred years and then brought him back to life. [Upon his revival, He] asked: “How long did you stay in this state?”. “A day or a part of it” he replied. God said: “No you were in this state for a hundred years; look at your food and drink: they have not rotted. And [on the other hand] take a look at your ass how We bring it back to life so that you become certain that this city will be brought back to life and so that we make you a sign for mankind25, and see how We raise the bones and clothe them with flesh.” And when in this manner, the truth became manifest to him, he said: “[I have no apprehension]; I know that God has power over all things.”26 (259)

And [in this regard, another] incident should be kept in consideration27 when Abraham said: “Show me, Lord, how You will raise the dead?” He replied: “Do you have no faith?” “Yes, but just to reassure my heart” said Abraham. God said: “Take four birds28 and tame them29, and [cut their bodies to pieces] and place a piece of them on each mountain-top, then call them back. They will [come back to life and] come swiftly to you, and [for the future] fully understand that God is mighty and wise.”30 (260)

1. This refers to Moses’ direct conversation with God. It makes him superior to other Prophets in this particular aspect.

2. In the previous scriptures, the words رُوحُ الْقُدُس refer to archangel, Gabriel. The explanation that Jesus (sws) was helped by Gabriel owes to the fact that the Jews ignominiously alleged that the miracles worked by Jesus (sws) were because he was helped by Beelzebub, the chief of the evil spirits.

3. The implication is that in whichever prophet or messenger people professed faith, they would give him absolute reverence over other prophets. Thus acknowledging some pre-eminence for any prophet was regarded as contrary to faith; so much so, they started to deny other prophets of God. The Israelites behaved no differently. They thought that if they accepted Muhammad (sws) as a prophet, they would have to accept him to be the source of the final guidance of God; this would be tantamount to accepting his superiority to their own prophets.

4. The implication is that the Almighty does whatever His profound knowledge and wisdom deem appropriate. No one’s desires can change His intentions. Hence, He deemed it fit that in this matter He give human beings the freedom to choose good or evil. Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:

This is a reference to God’s practice about giving guidance to man, which has been mentioned in the Qur’an at various places. As per this practice, He has not forced guidance or misguidance on a person. If this were the case, then undoubtedly it would not have been possible for any person to forsake belief and accept disbelief. On the contrary, He allowed people to select and choose the path they want to tread. He left it to them to accept belief or disbelief. If they tread the path of belief, they shall be rewarded, and if they tread the path of disbelief, they shall face its consequences. (Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur-i Qur’an, 2nd ed., vol. 1 (Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1986), 583)

5. The Qur’anic word used is الْقَيُّومُ. It connotes someone who exists of his own accord and is also instrumental in keeping others into existence. Through this word and the attribute الْحَيُّ before it, the Qur’an has negated all deities, which are neither alive nor are able to keep others alive, which neither exist of their own accord nor can keep others into existence; on the contrary, their own existence is dependent on Someone Who is the Living and sustains others.

6. This statement completely negates all forms of sleep. The implication is that the Almighty is aware of each and every thing and is absolutely free of any distraction which impairs His knowledge.

7. The implication is that when no one shares His dominion, then who can dare intercede for someone before Him without His permission.

8. The implication is that when the Almighty is fully aware of the past and future of a person and when no one can even grasp this knowledge about the past and future without His permission, then on what basis shall a person intercede for someone? Will anyone intercede to increase the knowledge of God?

9. The Qur’anic word used is ُكرْسِيُّ. This word in the Arabic language, like most other languages, refers to power and authority.

10. Consequently, the Almighty does not need any help in looking after the heavens and the earth, and it is thus baseless to assume that there is need for others to assist Him in this task

11. Thus His knowledge and power should not be judged on the limited scales of human intellect. Whatever He discloses about His attributes is what is required to be believed in. No one should say something about this from his own self. For it is such indulgence that opens doors to meaningless philosophical discussions, polytheism and religious innovations.

12. The Qur’anic word used is الطَّاغُوت. It refers to someone who is arrogant and rebellious towards the Almighty. There is no difference between it and الشَّيْطَان. These words are used synonymously in the Qur’an.

13. The Qur’anic words used are يُخْرِجُهُم مِّنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّوُرِ. Here the word لنُّوُر ا is singular and الظُّلُمَات is plural. The reason for this is that the light mentioned here is the light of one’s faith, intellect and character. It is obvious that its source is one – the Almighty and there is no disparity in this source. On the other hand, the various types of darkness that come because of a lack of faith, intellect and character come from various sources and there is also great disparity among these sources as well.

14. The law of guidance that is mentioned in this verse is explained by Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi in the following words:

The real thing in the law of guidance is whether a person seeks it from the Almighty or from someone else. If he holds on to the Almighty for this purpose, the Almighty guides and helps him, and His grace gradually takes him out from the desolate darkness of base desires and hypocrisy, religious innovation and polytheism and places him on the path that leads to faith and monotheism. However, if a person turns away from the Almighty and seeks someone else, he ends up with Satan and his progeny; Satan then leads him astray and deprives him of the light of his intellect and guidance. It is said that an empty mind is the devil’s playground; quite similarly, a heart which is devoid of faith becomes the devil’s playground and then these devils misguide and mislead these people forever. (Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur-i Qur’an, 2nd ed., vol. 1 (Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1986), 598)

15. This incident of Abraham’s (sws) life is also mentioned in the Talmud. It is evident from that account that the Pharaoh he debated with was Nimrod. Perhaps the reason that this debate took place about God is that the kings of those times considered themselves to be the incarnate of God. It is mentioned in ancient scriptures that the sun was worshipped by the people of Nimrod as the chief deity. Nimrod must have been regarded as an incarnate of the sun-god. It is in this background that the debate took place once after Abraham (sws) called Nimrod to the belief of monotheism. Nimrod must have said that as an incarnate of the sun-god, he is the God, and who is it that Abraham (sws) is calling him towards while disregarding him.

16. The Qur’anic words used are: أَنْ آتَاهُ اللّهُ الْمُلْكَ. As per the linguistic principles of Arabic, an ellipses of the letter ب has occurred before أَنْ. The implication is that the political authority which the Almighty had blessed Nimrod with became a test for him and instead of thanking God for it, he started presenting himself as the incarnate of God.

17. This statement by Abraham (sws) could have been the most clear one about the description of the Almighty. Undoubtedly, if a person has not lost his senses, even a perfunctory deliberation on the question of life and death forces him to believe in God.

18. The implication is that he can have any person executed and he can also spare the life of any person he likes.

19. The answer given by Nimrod was quite foolish; however, since prophets of God don’t confront people in debates, and are true preachers, Abraham (sws) did not give him any further opportunity to argue in this hair-splitting manner, and proceeded to state an attribute of God for which Nimrod could have had no answer. Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi, while pointing to another aspect of the argument presented by Abraham (sws) writes:

Here this subtle point should be kept in consideration that Abraham (sws) specifically mentioned the vanquishing of the sun, which was regarded as the chief-deity by Nimrod, and he regarded himself to be an incarnate of it. This is a beautiful example of both a sound argument and a subtle sarcasm. (Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur-i Qur’an, 2nd ed., vol. 1 (Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1986), 600)

20. This is a mention of the real objective for which the incident of Abraham (sws) and Nimrod has been narrated. Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:

The word الظَّالِمُونَ in this verse needs special deliberation. In the terminology of the Qur’an, الظَّالِمُونَ are those who abuse the favours, abilities and capabilities given to them by God and who instead of regarding these blessings as favours of God, regard them to be their right, who instead of being grateful to the Almighty for these favours become proud and conceited and show arrogance like Satan, who instead of worshipping and showing obedience to God start behaving as gods themselves. The Almighty says that those who are guilty of such oppression never receive guidance. However evident is the truth to these people, they try to avoid it and needlessly argue against it. So much so, if they don’t find a way out, they do express their awe and become speechless like Nimrod, but still do not accept the truth. (Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur-i-Qur’an, 2nd ed., vol. 1 (Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1986), 600)

21. The first example was regarding devils leading a person into darkness. This is the second example in which those people are referred to whom the Almighty leads to light from darkness.

22. These are probably the visions showed to Ezekiel before he set about in the effort to reform the Israelites and revive them. The Bible records these visions in the following words:

The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’ ” So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’ ” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. (Ezekiel 37:1-11)

23. The Qur’anic words used are: خَاوِيَةٌ عَلَى عُرُوشِهَا. This is a portrayal of a settlement whose buildings have been destroyed such that their roofs have collapsed to the ground and the walls have fallen over them.

24. While commenting upon the nature of this question, Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi writes:

This question raised by him … does not reflect denial; it in fact expresses surprise. Sometimes, a person accepts a thing because sense and reason vouch for its truth; however, since the thing itself is of miraculous nature, the question about it happening keeps coming to mind again and again. This question does not have the motive of denial behind it; the real motive is the zeal to find out the reality behind it, and such a question specially arises even more vehemently when a person encounters a view which greatly shakes him from inside. This question also is not against one’s faith; on the other hand, it springs from faith itself which is based on sense and reason. This is an exercise in one’s spiritual journey – a path that every seeker of the truth treads and this journey of increase in faith continues right up to his death. In this journey, although each day makes a person even more firmer in faith so much so that each day is so bright than the previous, that the previous day appears to be dark in relation to it. (Islahi, Amin Ahsan, Tadabbur-i Qur’an, 2nd ed., vol. 1 (Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1986), 601)

25. The Qur’anic words used are: وَانظُرْ إِلَى حِمَارِكَ وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ آيَةً لِّلنَّاسِ.

   An ellipsis of words to the effect كََيفَ نُحْيِيْهِ has occurred after وَانظُرْ إِلَى حِمَارِكَ. Similarly, before the words وَلِنَجْعَلَكَ آيَةً لِّلنَّاسِ a conjugate clause has been ellipsed. The way I have translated it gives the picture that where the objective of showing this vision to Ezekiel was to give him inner satisfaction on the issue of life after death, part of this objective was to make this vision a sign from God for the Israelites, as a result of which they could find in themselves the trust that the Almighty has full power to revive them once again as a nation. Consequently, the excerpt of the Bible quoted above ends on the following words:

Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’ ” (Ezekiel 37:11-14)

26. The implication is that God has power to keep intact edibles from rotting away in a hundred years, and also to reassemble in the wink of an eye the decayed and decomposed bones of the donkey.

27. This is another example which depicts that God helps those who believe in Him, and does not deprive His people of inner satisfaction and comfort who sincerely seek them. So much so, if it is not against His wisdom, He even shows His special people such extra-ordinary visions to pacify their anxieties.

28. This directive was probably given so that when four birds from all four directions come flying in towards Abraham (sws), it would portray before him the picture of the dead being resurrected at the sound of the trumpet and running towards the Almighty.

29. The purpose of this directive was that Abraham (sws) clearly recognizes them as the very ones whom he had slaughtered to pieces and placed on the mountain. Moreover, it would show that as soon as people wake up on the Day of Judgement they would remember the details of the worldly life they had spent, so much so that tamed birds would recognize the voices of their masters the way they used to in their previous life.

30. Consequently, whenever He wants, He would bring back people to life, and would definitely do so because His wisdom entails it.