What is the wisdom behind the use of the plural pronoun in the Qur'an to refer to Allah?
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The questioner : Amira al-Shafi'i, may Allah reward you with good. The questioner says: I tell you that I love you for the sake of Allah. The question is: We see in the Noble Qur'an words like "We brought out," "We created," and "We sent down," but the Exalted did not say "I brought out," "I created," or "I sent down." What is the wisdom behind that?
The Shaykh : The questioner is asking, saying: The pronouns referring to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) come in the plural form, even though Allah is one God. The answer is very easy. The answer is that the plural form of the first-person pronoun is intended to express greatness. There is no doubt that the greatest of the great is Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So when He says "We" or "Us" or the like, it is proof of what? Of the greatness of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Hijr 15:9] This is an expression of greatness in the context of legislation. And He said: [Ya-Sin 36:12] This is an expression of greatness in the context of creation and formation. So Allah the Exalted magnified Himself in His law and in His power, and He (Glorified and Exalted is He) is the greatest of the great. The Christians went astray in this matter and said that Allah the Exalted is the third of three. They argued against us, the Muslims who affirm the oneness of Allah, by saying that in the Qur'an there are pronouns referring to Allah in the plural form. But as Allah (Mighty and Majestic) said about the Christians, that the Christians are the most astray of people, the most foolish of people, and the most ignorant of people. We say to them:
The plural here is for the sake of greatness. How can the plural be for plurality when Allah the Exalted said, "And your God is one God"[At-Taghabun 64:13], and He emphasized the sentence [Al-Baqarah 2:163]? And how can it be for plurality when Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Ma'idah 5:73] But the Christians are fools, shadows, and ignorant. This is with respect to their scholars and rabbis; how much more so with respect to their common people? Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : So the summary of the answer, my brothers, is what? That the plural is for the sake of greatness, and the texts indicating the oneness of Allah the Exalted are too numerous to be counted.
The Shaykh : The questioner is asking, saying: The pronouns referring to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) come in the plural form, even though Allah is one God. The answer is very easy. The answer is that the plural form of the first-person pronoun is intended to express greatness. There is no doubt that the greatest of the great is Allah (Mighty and Majestic). So when He says "We" or "Us" or the like, it is proof of what? Of the greatness of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And Allah the Exalted said:
Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur'an
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا الذِّكْرَIndeed, it is We who bring the dead to life
إِنَّا نَحْنُ نُحْيِي الْمَوْتَىٰThe plural here is for the sake of greatness. How can the plural be for plurality when Allah the Exalted said, "And your God is one God"
there is no deity except Him
لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَAnd your god is one God. There is no deity [worthy of worship] except Him, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
وَإِلَٰهُكُمْ إِلَٰهٌ وَاحِدٌ لَّا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الرَّحْمَٰنُ الرَّحِيمُThey have certainly disbelieved who say, "Allah is the third of three." And there is no god except one God.
لَّقَدْ كَفَرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ ثَالِثُ ثَلَاثَةٍ وَمَا مِنْ إِلَٰهٍ إِلَّا إِلَٰهٌ وَاحِدٌThe questioner : May Allah reward you.
The Shaykh : So the summary of the answer, my brothers, is what? That the plural is for the sake of greatness, and the texts indicating the oneness of Allah the Exalted are too numerous to be counted.
Source
دروس وفتاوى المسجد الحرام لعام 1419هـ - 18 — binothaimeen.net (59:25)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.