• An Apostle can produce a Miracle only with the permission of God

• Every nation has a fixed term

• The Mother or the Basic Book with God

• God’s decision irreversible

• Sufficient as a witness of the Truth is God and he with whom is the knowledge of the Book (Qur’an)

Ar-Ra’d (The Thunder) Verses 38 – 43

وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلًا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُمْ أَزْوَاجًا وَذُرِّيَّةً وَمَا كَانَ لِرَسُولٍ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ بِآيَةٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ لِكُلِّ أَجَلٍ كِتَابٌ

And indeed We did send apostles before thee and gave We unto them wives and offspring! and it is not for an apostle to bring or (show) a sign (miracle) but by God’s permission; for every term1there is a book2prescribed. (13:38)

يَمْحُو اللَّهُ مَا يَشَاءُ وَيُثْبِتُ وَعِنْدَهُ أُمُّ الْكِتَابِ

(Of it) Effaceth out God whatever He pleaseth and confirmeth He (Similarly): and with Him is the Mother (Basic Source) of the Book.3(13:39)4

وَإِنْ مَا نُرِيَنَّكَ بَعْضَ الَّذِي نَعِدُهُمْ أَوْ نَتَوَفَّيَنَّكَ فَإِنَّمَا عَلَيْكَ الْبَلَاغُ وَعَلَيْنَا الْحِسَابُ

And We will either show thee a part of what We promised5them or take unto ourselves thy soul (makes no difference), for verily on thee is (incumbent) only the delivery of the message and on Us the calling them to account. (13:40)6

أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا أَنَّا نَأْتِي الْأَرْضَ نَنْقُصُهَا مِنْ أَطْرَافِهَا وَاللَّهُ يَحْكُمُ لَا مُعَقِّبَ لِحُكْمِهِ وَهُوَ سَرِيعُ الْحِسَابِ

See they not that We come7into their land and reduce its borders? Verily, God pronounceth a doom; there is no reverser for His command and He is swift in reckoning. (13:41)

وَقَدْ مَكَرَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ فَلِلَّهِ الْمَكْرُ جَمِيعًا يَعْلَمُ مَا تَكْسِبُ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ وَسَيَعْلَمُ الْكُفَّارُ لِمَنْ عُقْبَى الدَّارِ

And indeed devised plots those before them but God’s is all planning; Knoweth He whatever every soul earneth, and soon will know the disbelievers for whom is the sequel of the eternal abode. (13:42)

وَيَقُولُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَسْتَ مُرْسَلًا قُلْ كَفَىٰ بِاللَّهِ شَهِيدًا بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَكُمْ وَمَنْ عِنْدَهُ عِلْمُ الْكِتَابِ

And say those who disbelieve: “Thou art not an apostle (of God),” Say thou (O’ Our Apostle Muhammad!): “Sufficient is God a witness between me and you and he with whom is the knowledge of the 8Book.” (13:43)9

Commentary

Verse 38

People taunted saying if the Holy Prophet was genuinely an Apostle of God why did he take so many wives. The reply is given in this verse. Many of the Apostles of the ancient times had a greater number of wives, Viz., David, Solomon, etc. Having more than one wife does not at all affect the apostleship or the piety of even an ordinary believer.

Verse 39

For ‘Umm al-Kitab’, i.e., the Mother Book,10 i.e., the Secured Tablet in the heavens in which is put down the will of the Lord.

Ali Ibn Abi Talib, the first Holy Imam says that even if the whole of the Qur’an is made extinct by the forces of evil and if there had not remained a single verse of it, I would have related every thing that would happen until the Day of Judgment.

Similar to the two records of creation, partial and whole, is our view of the universe - A partial view is subject of our scientific investigation which is subject to change and the view of the universe as a whole which is the subject of the metaphysical investigation is based on universal, and the necessary propositions are unimpeachable and final. (A.P.).

Verse 43

By ‘the one who has the knowledge of the Book’ (13:43)

means the one who is divinely endowed with the fullest of the inner as well as the outer meaning of the Word of God. People asked the Holy Prophet as to who the individual is. The Holy Prophet replied, ‘My brother Ali Ibn Abi Talib’11

Ali Ibn Abi Talib said: ‘Ask me about the Holy Qur’an, for I know when each and every verse of it was revealed - for whom it was received in particular and to whom it applies in general.’ No doubt the Holy Prophet was fully justified in declaring ‘I am the City of knowledge and Ali is its Gate.’ Whenever the Caliphs were confronted with any problem they used to refer it to Ali Ibn Abi Talib.

• 1. Age.
• 2. A written record.
• 3. This verse indicates that there are partial books dealing with particular portion of the order of beings. They are subject to effacement or change but besides all these there is a mother Book dealing with all beings as a whole which is unimpeachable and that is with God. (A.P.).
• 4. Refer to verse 3:6.
• 5. Threatened with.
• 6. Refer to verses 10:46 & 40:77.
• 7. Visit - through wrath-like floods - earth quakes, epidemics - which affect the land and the people - which take place in turns.
• 8. Refer to verse 2:1. Qur’an or the Open Book of the Universe or Lauhe Mahfooz see note to verses 13:39 & 13:43.
• 9. Refer to verses 11:17, 4:70, 13:27-40 & 13:43
• 10. See also 3:6.
• 11. See Tafsir al-Husaini, Tafsir al-Tha‘labi, Tarikh al-Khulafa of Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti.