The meaning of His saying, the Exalted: (And the sky We have built with strength, and We are expanding it)
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
[The meaning of His saying, the Exalted: (And the sky We have built with strength, and We are expanding it)]
What is the meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Surah al-Dhariyat: 47] Is the sky expanding now, or not, as is stated in some curricula?
Allah, Mighty and Majestic, says of Himself that He built the sky with strength—Meaning: with power—as He, the Exalted, said: [Surah al-Naba: 12] meaning strong: (And We are expanding it) meaning: We are expanding it; and that is because if you compare the sky to the earth, you will find a vast distance in width between them. The sky is like a dome over the earth, encompassing it from every side, and between it and the earth are distances that none knows but Allah, Mighty and Majestic.This is the meaning of his saying: (And We are expanding it).
As for saying: (Expanding it) in the future, and that it expands with every passing time—this is something we do not know. Rather, the apparent meaning of the text is that Allah has expanded it now. As for whether it expands as time passes, Allah knows best.
The questioner: Is it found now in some curricula that it expands now?The Shaykh: We cannot assert this with certainty; the verse does not indicate this.
What is the meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And the heaven We constructed with strength, and indeed, We are [its] expander.
وَالسَّمَاءَ بَنَيْنَاهَا بِأَيْدٍ وَإِنَّا لَمُوسِعُونَAllah, Mighty and Majestic, says of Himself that He built the sky with strength—Meaning: with power—as He, the Exalted, said:
And constructed above you seven strong [heavens]
وَبَنَيْنَا فَوْقَكُمْ سَبْعاً شِدَاداًAs for saying: (Expanding it) in the future, and that it expands with every passing time—this is something we do not know. Rather, the apparent meaning of the text is that Allah has expanded it now. As for whether it expands as time passes, Allah knows best.
The questioner: Is it found now in some curricula that it expands now?The Shaykh: We cannot assert this with certainty; the verse does not indicate this.