Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: "So I swear by what you see, and what you do not see."

Machine translationRead the Arabic original

The Shaykh : This morning, we listened to our imam reciting Surat al-Haqqah, and at the end of it is the saying of Allah (Mighty and Majestic):

فلا أقسم بما تبصرون وما لا تبصرون إنه لقول رسول كريم وما هو بقول شاعر قليلا ما تؤمنون ولا بقول كاهن

[Al-Haqqah 69:38-42]

Complete it, man.
The student:

⁽³⁸⁾ So I swear by what you see ⁽³⁹⁾ And what you do not see ⁽⁴⁰⁾ [That] indeed, the Qur'an is the word of a noble Messenger. ⁽⁴¹⁾ And it is not the word of a poet; little do you believe. ⁽⁴²⁾ Nor the word of a soothsayer; little do you remember. ⁽⁴³⁾ [It is] a revelation from the Lord of the worlds. ⁽⁴⁴⁾ And if Muhammad had made up about Us some [false] sayings, ⁽⁴⁵⁾ We would have seized him by the right hand; ⁽⁴⁶⁾ Then We would have cut from him the aorta.

فَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِمَا تُبْصِرُونَ * وَمَا لَا تُبْصِرُونَ * إِنَّهُ لَقَوْلُ رَسُولٍ كَرِيمٍ * وَمَا هُوَ بِقَوْلِ شَاعِرٍ قَلِيلًا مَا تُؤْمِنُونَ * وَلَا بِقَوْلِ كَاهِنٍ قَلِيلًا مَا تَذَكَّرُونَ * تَنْزِيلٌ مِنْ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ * وَلَوْ تَقَوَّلَ عَلَيْنَا بَعْضَ الْأَقَاوِيلِ * لَأَخَذْنَا مِنْهُ بِالْيَمِينِ * ثُمَّ لَقَطَعْنَا مِنْهُ الْوَتِينَ

[Al-Haqqah 69:38-46]

.

The Shaykh :

So none of you

فما منكم

.
The student:

⁽⁴⁷⁾ And there is no one of you who could prevent [Us] from him. ⁽⁴⁸⁾ And indeed, the Qur'an is a reminder for the righteous. ⁽⁴⁹⁾ And indeed, We know that among you are deniers. ⁽⁵⁰⁾ And indeed, it will be [a cause of] regret upon the disbelievers. ⁽⁵¹⁾ And indeed, it is the truth of certainty. ⁽⁵²⁾ So exalt the name of your Lord, the Most Great.

فَمَا مِنْكُمْ مِنْ أَحَدٍ عَنْهُ حَاجِزِينَ * وَإِنَّهُ لَتَذْكِرَةٌ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ * وَإِنَّا لَنَعْلَمُ أَنَّ مِنْكُمْ مُكَذِّبِينَ * وَإِنَّهُ لَحَسْرَةٌ عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ * وَإِنَّهُ لَحَقُّ الْيَقِينِ * فَسَبِّحْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الْعَظِيمِ

[Al-Haqqah 69:47-52]

.

The Shaykh : Well done, may Allah bless you. Allah the Exalted said:

So I swear by what you see

فلا أقسم بما تبصرون

[Al-Haqqah 69:38]

An oath is the affirmation of a thing by mentioning something of great importance in a specific form. The affirmation of a thing by mentioning something of great importance in a specific form. I will repeat it a third time so I can see who among you has memorized it. The affirmation of a thing by mentioning something of great importance in a specific form. Repeat it, what is it?
The student: ...

The Shaykh : No. No. Sit down, sit down, and pay attention. The left hand is not accepted, man. Take with the right hand and give with the right hand. Tired? Excused? Yes.
The student: The affirmation of a thing.

The Shaykh : Something of great importance.
The student: By mentioning something of great importance in a specific form.

The Shaykh : May Allah bless you. This is the oath. Its letters are three: the letter ba, the letter ta, and the letter waw. Examples of this are known and have been explained previously. Know that Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) commanded His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to swear in three places in the Qur'an. Allah commanded him to swear to something in three places in the Qur'an:
The first place: The saying of Allah the Exalted:

And they ask information of you, [O Muhammad], "Is it true?" Say, "Yes, by my Lord. Indeed, it is truth

ويستنبئونك أحق هو قل إي وربي إنه لحق

[Yunus 10:53]

.
The second place: The saying of Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He):

Those who disbelieve have claimed that they will never be resurrected.

زعم الذين كفروا أن لن يبعثوا

[At-Taghabun 64:7]

After that?

Say: Yes, by my Lord, you will certainly be resurrected.

قل بلى وربي لتبعثن

.
The third place: His saying the Exalted:

But those who disbelieve say, "The Hour will not come to us." Say, "Yes, by my Lord, it will surely come to you

وقال الذين كفروا لا تأتينا الساعة قل بلى وربي لتأتينكم

[Saba 34:3]

. Because these matters are very important, Allah commanded His Prophet to swear to them.
So if someone were to say: Is not the news of Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He) accepted whether Allah swears or does not swear?
The answer is: Yes, but the Noble Qur'an was revealed in the Arabic language. And in the Arabic language, there are affirmations by oath and by other means. If the Qur'an was revealed in the Arabic language, then there is no harm in swearing in important places so that doubt is removed and certainty is achieved.

So I swear

فلا أقسم

Who is the doer?

So I swear by what you see

فلا أقسم بما تبصرون

[Al-Haqqah 69:38]

Who is the doer? Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
So if someone were to say: "La" is a negation,

I do not swear

لا أقسم

so how do you say that this is an oath?
The answer is: That "la" here is for affirmation and is not a negation, so this is affirmation upon affirmation.

⁽³⁸⁾ So I swear by what you see ⁽³⁹⁾ And what you do not see

فلا أقسم بما تبصرون وما لا تبصرون

[Al-Haqqah 69:38-39]

This is one of the most general oaths, because things are either something we see or something we do not see; there is no third option. So it is as if Allah swore by everything.

⁽³⁸⁾ So I swear by what you see ⁽³⁹⁾ And what you do not see

فلا أقسم بما تبصرون وما لا تبصرون

[Al-Haqqah 69:38-39]

To what did He swear? Listen to the answer.

Source alathar.net

The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.

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