The Secret of Placing Dust Before Bones in the Verse of al-Saffat
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
This is the first message received from the listener: Abdul Jalil Abdullah al-Hajjaj from Qatif, Taroout. His message contains two questions:
His first question says: Allah the Exalted said in the Noble Qur'an: [al-Saffat: 16]. He asks: Why was the word "dust" placed before "bones," when it is the bones that turn into dust? Is there a rhetorical secret in that or not?
Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
Regarding this question, I do not know a clear meaning by which I can be certain about the precedence of dust over bones. However, it may be said—and Allah knows best, and knowledge is with Allah —that dust was placed first because dust is more severe in the miracle; for restoring one who was dust is greater than restoring one who is bones, whose state has not yet changed from bones. So he began with the more severe, which is dust, over the lighter, which is bones. Restoring one who is bones is easier on the surface than restoring one who has passed away and become dust. This is the most apparent view, and Allah knows best.
As for certainty, it belongs to Allah , who is the most knowledgeable of all things. But this is the apparent view: that the secret of beginning with the more severe in power and the greater in... is to indicate that the One who restores this human being is capable of everything , for restoring one who was dust is more severe on the surface than restoring one who was merely bones.
When this and that are mentioned, it falls under the category of explaining the perfection of His power . Yes.
The point is: they asked about this; because one who was dust is more severe, they began with dust; because restoring one who was dust is more severe and more indicative of power, of the perfection of power, than one who has not yet ceased to be bones. Yes.
This is the first message received from the listener: Abdul Jalil Abdullah al-Hajjaj from Qatif, Taroout. His message contains two questions:
His first question says: Allah the Exalted said in the Noble Qur'an:
When we die and become dust and bones, are we indeed to be resurrected?
أَئِذَا مِتْنَا وَكُنَّا تُرَابًا وَعِظَامًا أَئِنَّا لَمَبْعُوثُونَAnswer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and peace upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
Regarding this question, I do not know a clear meaning by which I can be certain about the precedence of dust over bones. However, it may be said—and Allah knows best, and knowledge is with Allah —that dust was placed first because dust is more severe in the miracle; for restoring one who was dust is greater than restoring one who is bones, whose state has not yet changed from bones. So he began with the more severe, which is dust, over the lighter, which is bones. Restoring one who is bones is easier on the surface than restoring one who has passed away and become dust. This is the most apparent view, and Allah knows best.
As for certainty, it belongs to Allah , who is the most knowledgeable of all things. But this is the apparent view: that the secret of beginning with the more severe in power and the greater in... is to indicate that the One who restores this human being is capable of everything , for restoring one who was dust is more severe on the surface than restoring one who was merely bones.
When this and that are mentioned, it falls under the category of explaining the perfection of His power . Yes.
The point is: they asked about this; because one who was dust is more severe, they began with dust; because restoring one who was dust is more severe and more indicative of power, of the perfection of power, than one who has not yet ceased to be bones. Yes.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.