Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: (It is He who created the heavens and the earth)
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Exegesis of His saying, the Exalted: (It is He who created the heavens and the earth)
Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Hadid: 4] He created the seven heavens, and likewise the earth is seven,because of the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Talaq: 12] meaning: similar to them in number. It is not appropriate to say they are similar in quality, because there is a great difference between the heavens and the earth. Therefore, the meaning must be that they are similar to them in number. This has come explicitly in the Sunnah,As in the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): (Whoever cuts off a span of the earth without right, Allah will encircle him with it on the Day of Resurrection from the seven earths).
And his statement:[Al-A'raf 7:54] These days are: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Had Allah willed, He could have created them in an instant,As Allah the Mighty and Majestic said: [Al-Qamar: 50] but He created them in six days for two wisdoms, and Allah knows best. The first wisdom is that created things are arranged one after another, and some originate from others, so they require a duration.
The second wisdom: That His servants should be deliberate in matters, and that the lesson is in perfection, not in speed. If there is a third, fourth, or fifth wisdom, Allah knows best. The important thing is that this is what has become clear to us, and even so, we do not assert it with certainty,And we say: Allah knows best.
(Then): indicates sequence,Meaning: That the creation of the heavens and the earth preceded the rising above the Throne, not the creation of the Throne; because the Throne is before the heavens and the earth. But the rising above it was after the creation of the heavens and the earth. The meaning of (istawa) is: above, because (istawa) in the Arabic language, when followed by (‘ala), means elevation,An example of this is the saying of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He: [Al-Zukhruf: 12-13] meaning: rise above them.
And among that is His saying, Exalted is He, regarding Noah: [Al-Mu’minun: 28] So His saying: (I rose above the ship) means: I was elevated above it.
Therefore: He rose above the Throne,Meaning: He is elevated above the Throne,And if you see someone who says: To say "istawa ‘ala al-‘Arsh" means "he took control of the Throne" is to lie about Allah Mighty and Majestic. Because Allah the Exalted revealed this great Qur'an in the Arabic language, and the Arabic language indicates that (istawa) when followed by (‘ala) means elevation and nothing else. So the one who interprets it as "took control" is a liar about Allah Mighty and Majestic, transgressing against the texts of the Book, distorting them,And his wrongdoing against them is from two aspects: The first aspect: diverting them from their apparent meaning.
The second aspect: Introducing a meaning that their apparent meaning does not indicate.
And this is often found in the books of the Asha'irah, whether they are exegetes or not. But by this—and I swear by Allah, by Allah, by Allah—they have gone astray in a clear error—may Allah grant us safety. Who took control of the Throne when the heavens and the earth were created? If Allah did not take control of it until after the creation of the heavens and the earth, then it belonged to whom before?They are required to say: It belongs to other than Allah. Otherwise, their error has become clear, and they are in error, and praise be to Allah, it is clear.
His statement: [Al-Hadid: 4].
[Saba 34:2] meaning: what enters into it, such as the bodies of the dead, the grains that grow by the permission of Allah, the waters that Allah makes springs in the earth and then brings out, and other insects and such. The important thing is that Allah knows everything that enters the earth.
And our question now is: Does He know the state of the ant when it enters its burrow?We say: (What enters) (what) is a relative pronoun, and the relative pronoun implies generality,Meaning: Everything that enters the earth.
[Saba 34:2] From plants, waters, minerals, and others.
[Saba 34:2] From angels, rains, laws, and others.
[Saba 34:2] meaning: to it. But (in it) came instead of (to it) so that we benefit from two things: the first benefit is ascending,Meaning: rising.
The second benefit: entering, because (in) is suitable for verbs of entering, like "entered the place."
As for "ascends" and "ascend," what is suitable for them is (to). But Allah Mighty and Majestic shifted from saying (ascends to it) to saying: (ASCENDS IN IT) to convey both rising and entering,Meaning: Things do not reach the lowest heaven and stop. They ascend in the lowest heaven until they reach Allah Mighty and Majestic.
Therefore: (ASCENDS IN IT) If one of the grammarians asked you: Why did (in) come instead of (to), and the Qur'an is eloquent? What is the answer?We say: (Ascends) includes the meaning of entering, and this inclusion exists in the Noble Qur'an and in the Arabic language,Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Insan: 6] The suitable phrase is (drinks from), as Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Mu’minun: 33] meaning: from it: [Al-Baqarah: 249],And here he said: (DRINKS WITH IT) What is the wisdom?The scholars said: The wisdom is that (drinks) here includes the meaning of "is watered by it,"And it is known that if you say: (is watered by it) So it includes the meaning of (drinks) and more. This inclusion is an important art in the field of rhetoric. A student of knowledge should study it and verify it so that he benefits from it when particles differ with their factors and it does not cause difficulty for him.
[Al-Hadid 57:4] (He) The pronoun refers to Allah Mighty and Majestic. (With you) means: accompanying you,As the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (O Allah, You are the companion in travel, and the successor in the family).
But is this companionship companionship in place, meaning that if we are in a place, Allah is with us? Far be it from that, this is impossible. How can a rational person imagine that Allah is with us in our place, while His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the earth? This is impossible. [The Footstool is the place of the feet] as came from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him). If that is the case, is it conceivable that the Lord of the heavens and the earth, on the Day of Resurrection the heavens will be folded in His right hand, and the earth in His grip, can be with us in our narrow or wide places? It is impossible. So (with you) means: accompanying you, and the companion may be far from you,The Arabs say in their style: We are still traveling and the moon is with us. We are still traveling and the North Star is with us. We are still traveling and such-and-such a mountain is with us. Is it with them in their place? It is known that the moon is in the sky, the star is in the sky, and the mountain may be a distance of days away from you. And yet, the Arabs use the term "companionship" with distance in place,And since we believe that Allah is with us, then: He is aware of us, hearing our words, seeing our actions. He has power over us and authority. He manages us in every sense that companionship requires.
Know that among the misguided are those who say: That Allah is with us in our places—may Allah grant us safety—and they deny that Allah is in the sky, elevated,So they brought forth two great absurdities: 1- Denying the elevation of Allah.
2- Believing that He is in the earth.
Glory be to Allah! Is it conceivable that a rational person, let alone a believer, believes that if he is in the toilet, Allah is with him? I seek refuge in Allah. The one who believes this, I testify by Allah that he is a disbeliever, because the greatest mockery of Allah and the greatest lowering of Allah's status is this,And as they say: Allah is in every place! Meaning He is in the room, in the market, and in the mosque. Then who is with people in the room, and people in the street? Are they two gods? No,And we cannot say: If Allah is not two gods, is He divided, part of Him here and part of Him there? So it means it is invalid to say He is with us by His essence in our places; because either He is multiple or He is divided, and both are invalid. I have stated this because we have now touched upon, among those who come to Makkah, those who hold this belief.
Allah says: [Al-Hadid: 4] Companionship: is accompanying, and accompanying does not necessitate being in the same place,Meaning: Being in the same place is not required. How can Allah the Exalted be with you in your place, while His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the earth? But these who believe this have not valued Allah with His true value, nor have they magnified Him with His true magnification, nor have they known His greatness and majesty,Allah the Exalted said: [Az-Zumar: 67] So how can it be believed that Allah is with us in our place? Therefore, a person must know the favor of Allah upon him for believing in the Qur'an as it is, in its apparent meaning, magnifying Allah with true magnification.
And his statement: [Al-Hadid: 4] meaning: wherever you are; because (where) is an adverb of place,Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Baqarah: 150] Like: [Al-Hadid: 4].
[Al-Hadid: 4] meaning: He is seeing with all the deeds you do. Is the sight here sight of knowledge or sight of vision? It includes both. So He is seeing with sight of vision, seeing us, Mighty and Majestic, and we are not hidden from Him,The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said about his Lord: (His veil is light. If He were to remove it, the radiance of His Face would burn up whatever His sight reaches of His creation) This is sight of vision.
As for the sight of knowledge: So it is known that our actions may be visible, like movements, or audible, like words. The audible is not seen with the eye, but it is heard. So seeing the audible is knowledge,And with this we say: [Al-Hadid: 4] It includes knowledge and sight by vision.
Allah the Exalted said:
It is He who created the heavens and earth in six days and then established Himself above the Throne
هُوَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِIt is Allah who has created seven heavens and of the earth, the like of them
اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ وَمِنَ الْأَرْضِ مِثْلَهُنَّAnd his statement:
Indeed, your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and earth in six days and then established Himself above the Throne. He covers the night with the day, [another night] chasing it rapidly; and [He created] the sun, the moon, and the stars, subjected by His command. Unquestionably, His is the creation and the command; blessed is Allah, Lord of the worlds.
فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍAnd Our command is but one, like a glance of the eye.
وَمَا أَمْرُنَا إِلَّا وَاحِدَةٌ كَلَمْحٍ بِالْبَصَرِThe second wisdom: That His servants should be deliberate in matters, and that the lesson is in perfection, not in speed. If there is a third, fourth, or fifth wisdom, Allah knows best. The important thing is that this is what has become clear to us, and even so, we do not assert it with certainty,And we say: Allah knows best.
and then He rose above the Throne
ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى عَلَى الْعَرْشِand has made for you of ships and animals those which you mount. (13) That you may settle yourselves upon their backs and then remember the favor of your Lord when you have settled upon them
وَجَعَلَ لَكُمْ مِنَ الْفُلْكِ وَالْأَنْعَامِ مَا تَرْكَبُونَ * لِتَسْتَوُوا عَلَى ظُهُورِهِ ثُمَّ تَذْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ رَبِّكُمْ إِذَا اسْتَوَيْتُمْ عَلَيْهِAnd among that is His saying, Exalted is He, regarding Noah:
And when you have boarded the ship, you and those with you, then say, 'Praise to Allah who has saved us from the wrongdoing people.'
فَإِذَا اسْتَوَيْتَ أَنْتَ وَمَنْ مَعَكَ عَلَى الْفُلْكِ فَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي نَجَّانَا مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَTherefore: He rose above the Throne,Meaning: He is elevated above the Throne,And if you see someone who says: To say "istawa ‘ala al-‘Arsh" means "he took control of the Throne" is to lie about Allah Mighty and Majestic. Because Allah the Exalted revealed this great Qur'an in the Arabic language, and the Arabic language indicates that (istawa) when followed by (‘ala) means elevation and nothing else. So the one who interprets it as "took control" is a liar about Allah Mighty and Majestic, transgressing against the texts of the Book, distorting them,And his wrongdoing against them is from two aspects: The first aspect: diverting them from their apparent meaning.
The second aspect: Introducing a meaning that their apparent meaning does not indicate.
And this is often found in the books of the Asha'irah, whether they are exegetes or not. But by this—and I swear by Allah, by Allah, by Allah—they have gone astray in a clear error—may Allah grant us safety. Who took control of the Throne when the heavens and the earth were created? If Allah did not take control of it until after the creation of the heavens and the earth, then it belonged to whom before?They are required to say: It belongs to other than Allah. Otherwise, their error has become clear, and they are in error, and praise be to Allah, it is clear.
His statement:
He knows what penetrates into the earth and what emerges from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends therein
يَعْلَمُ مَا يَلِجُ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَمَا يَخْرُجُ مِنْهَا وَمَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَمَا يَعْرُجُ فِيهَاwhat penetrates into the earth
مَا يَلِجُ فِي الْأَرْضِAnd our question now is: Does He know the state of the ant when it enters its burrow?We say: (What enters) (what) is a relative pronoun, and the relative pronoun implies generality,Meaning: Everything that enters the earth.
and what emerges from it
وَمَا يَخْرُجُ مِنْهَاwhat descends from the heaven
وَمَا يَنْزِلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِand what ascends therein
وَمَا يَعْرُجُ فِيهَاThe second benefit: entering, because (in) is suitable for verbs of entering, like "entered the place."
As for "ascends" and "ascend," what is suitable for them is (to). But Allah Mighty and Majestic shifted from saying (ascends to it) to saying: (ASCENDS IN IT) to convey both rising and entering,Meaning: Things do not reach the lowest heaven and stop. They ascend in the lowest heaven until they reach Allah Mighty and Majestic.
Therefore: (ASCENDS IN IT) If one of the grammarians asked you: Why did (in) come instead of (to), and the Qur'an is eloquent? What is the answer?We say: (Ascends) includes the meaning of entering, and this inclusion exists in the Noble Qur'an and in the Arabic language,Allah the Exalted said:
A spring of which the [righteous] servants of Allah will drink; they will make it gush forth in force [and abundance].
عَيْناً يَشْرَبُ بِهَا عِبَادُ اللَّهِ يُفَجِّرُونَهَا تَفْجِيراًHe eats of that from which you eat and drinks of what you drink.
يَأْكُلُ مِمَّا تَأْكُلُونَ مِنْهُ وَيَشْرَبُ مِمَّا تَشْرَبُونَBut they drank from it, except a [very] few of them.
فَشَرِبُوا مِنْهُ إِلَّا قَلِيلاً مِنْهُمْand He is with you wherever you are
وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْBut is this companionship companionship in place, meaning that if we are in a place, Allah is with us? Far be it from that, this is impossible. How can a rational person imagine that Allah is with us in our place, while His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the earth? This is impossible. [The Footstool is the place of the feet] as came from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him). If that is the case, is it conceivable that the Lord of the heavens and the earth, on the Day of Resurrection the heavens will be folded in His right hand, and the earth in His grip, can be with us in our narrow or wide places? It is impossible. So (with you) means: accompanying you, and the companion may be far from you,The Arabs say in their style: We are still traveling and the moon is with us. We are still traveling and the North Star is with us. We are still traveling and such-and-such a mountain is with us. Is it with them in their place? It is known that the moon is in the sky, the star is in the sky, and the mountain may be a distance of days away from you. And yet, the Arabs use the term "companionship" with distance in place,And since we believe that Allah is with us, then: He is aware of us, hearing our words, seeing our actions. He has power over us and authority. He manages us in every sense that companionship requires.
Know that among the misguided are those who say: That Allah is with us in our places—may Allah grant us safety—and they deny that Allah is in the sky, elevated,So they brought forth two great absurdities: 1- Denying the elevation of Allah.
2- Believing that He is in the earth.
Glory be to Allah! Is it conceivable that a rational person, let alone a believer, believes that if he is in the toilet, Allah is with him? I seek refuge in Allah. The one who believes this, I testify by Allah that he is a disbeliever, because the greatest mockery of Allah and the greatest lowering of Allah's status is this,And as they say: Allah is in every place! Meaning He is in the room, in the market, and in the mosque. Then who is with people in the room, and people in the street? Are they two gods? No,And we cannot say: If Allah is not two gods, is He divided, part of Him here and part of Him there? So it means it is invalid to say He is with us by His essence in our places; because either He is multiple or He is divided, and both are invalid. I have stated this because we have now touched upon, among those who come to Makkah, those who hold this belief.
Allah says:
And He is with you
وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْThey have not appraised Allah with true appraisal, while the earth entirely will be [within] His grip on the Day of Resurrection, and the heavens will be folded in His right hand
وَمَا قَدَرُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ قَدْرِهِ وَالْأَرْضُ جَمِيعاً قَبْضَتُهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَالسَّمَاوَاتُ مَطْوِيَّاتٌ بِيَمِينِهِAnd his statement:
Where are those
أَيْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْSo turn your face toward al-Masjid al-Haram. And wherever you [believers] are, turn your faces toward it [in prayer]
فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنْتُمْ فَوَلُّوا وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُWhere are those
أَيْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْAnd Allah, of what you do, is Seeing.
وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌAs for the sight of knowledge: So it is known that our actions may be visible, like movements, or audible, like words. The audible is not seen with the eye, but it is heard. So seeing the audible is knowledge,And with this we say: