they call upon G o d , exhibiting the pure religion unto him; but when he
bringeth them fafe to land, there is of them who halteth between the true faith
and idolatry. Howbeit, none rejeð our figns, except every perfidious, ungrateful
perfon. O men, fear your L o r d , and dread the day whereon a father
fhall not make fatisfadlion for his fon, neither (hall a fon make fatisfaftion
for his father at a ll: the promife of G od is afifuredly true. Let not this
prefent life, therefore, deceive you 5 neither let the deceiver * deceive
you concerning G o d . Verily the knowledge of the' hour of judgment is
with G od : and he caufeth the rain to defcend, at his own appointed time ; and
he knoweth what is in the wombs of females. No foul knoweth what it (hall
gain on the morrow ; neither doth any foul know in what land it (hall die b |
but G od is knowing and folly acquainted with all things.
a fh e deceiver;] viz. The devil.
b In this palfage five things are enumerated
which are known to G od alone: v iz . The
time of the day of judgment; the time of rain >
what is forming in the womb, as whether it be
male or female, & e. what fhall happen on the morrow
; and where any perfon fhall die. Thefe
the Arabs, according to a tradition of their prophet,
call tbe Jive keys o f fecret knowledge. The
paffage, it is faid, was occafioned by al Hareth
Ebn Amru, who propounded queftions of this
nature to Mohammed.
As to the laft particular, dlBeidawi relates the
following ftory. The angel of death palling
once by Solomon in a vifible fhape, and looking
at one who was fitting with him, the man asked
who he was, and upon Solomon's acquainting
him that it was the angel of death, faid, He
feems to want.me j wherefore order the wind to
carry me from hence into India: which being accordingly
clone, the angel faid to Solomon, 1 looked
fo earneftly at the man out of wonder; becaufe I
was commanded to take his foul in India, and
found him with thee in Palejline.
C H A P . XXXII.
Infilled, Adorationa ; revealed at Mecca.
In the name of the moft merciful God.
A. L. M \ THe revelation of this book, there is no doubt thereof, is
from the L ord of all creatures. Will they fay, M ohammed hath forged
it? Nay, it is the truth from thy L o r d , that thou mayeft preach to a
people, unto whom no preacher hath come before theee ; peradventure they
will be direfted. It is G od who hath created the heavens and the earth, and
whatever is between them, in fix days; and then afcended his throne. Ye
have no patron or interceffor befides him. Will ye not therefore confider?
He governeth all things from heaven even to the earth: hereafter (hall they
recurn unto him, on the day whofe length fhall be a thoufand yearsi, of
thofe
* T h e t it le is ta k e n f r om th e m id d le o f th e c S e e c h a p . 28 . p . 3 2 1 .
c h a p t e r , w h e r e th e b e lie v e r s are fa id to f a l l down d A tbouf&nd years j] A s ito tfie r e co n c ilia tio n
adoring. o f th is p a lfa g e w i t h a n o th e r l , w h ic h feems
S e e th e P r e l im . D i f c . § . I I I . p . 5 9 , &c.
x Chap. 70.
thofe which ye compute. This is he who knoweth the future, and the prefent;
the mighty, the merciful. It is he who hath made every thing which he hath
created exceeding goodand firft created man of clay, and afterwards
made his pofterity of an extraft of delpicable water *; and then formed him
into proper fhape, and breathed of his fpirit into him ; and hath given you
the [enfes of hearing and feeing, and hearts to underftand, How fmall thanks
do ye return ! And they fay, When we (hall lie hidden in the earth, (hall
we b eraifed thence a new creature? Yea, they deny the meeting of their L ord
at the refurretlion. Say, The angel of deathb, who is fet over you, (hall
caufe you to die: then fhall ye be brought back Unto your L o r d . If jhou
couldeft fee, when the wicked (hall bow down their heads before their L o r d ,
faying, O L o r d , we have feen, and have heard : fuffer us therefore to return
into the world, and we will work that which is right; fince we are now certain
of the truth of what hath been preached to us: thou wouldft fee an amaz~
ing fight. If we had pl.eafed, we had certainly given unto every foul its di-
reftion : but the word which hath proceeded from me muft necefiarily be fulfilled,
when I faid, Verily I will fill hell with genii and men, altogether c.
Tafte therefore the torment prepared for you, becaufe ye have forgotten the
coming of this your day: we alfo have forgotten you ; tafte therefore a
punilhment of eternal duration, for that which ye have wrought. Verily
they only believe in our figns, who, when they are warned thereby, fall
down adoring, and celebrate the praife of their L o r d , and are not elated
with pride : their (ides are raifed from their beds, calling on their L o r d
with fear and with hope ; and they diftribute alms out of what we have bellowed
on them. No foul 11 knoweth the complete fatisfaftion • which is
fecretly prepared for them, as a reward for that which they have wrought.
Shall he therefore, who is a true believer, be as he who is an impious tranf-
greffor ? They (hall not be held equal. As to thofe who believe, and do
that which is right, they (hall have gardens of perpetual abode, an ample re-
compenfe for that which they (hall have wrought : but as for thofe who im-
X x 2 pioufly
contradictory, fee the Preliminary Difcourfe,
§. IV. p. 84.
Some, however, do not interpret the palfage be-
fore us of the refurrettion, but fuppofe that the
words here defcribe the making and executing of
the decrees of God, which are fent down from
heaven to earth, and are returned (or afcend,
as the verb properly fignifies,) back to him, after
they have been put in execution, and prefent
themfelves, as it were, fo executed, to his
knowledge, in the Ipace of a day with God, but
with man, of a thoufand years. Others imagine
this fpace to be the time which the angels,
who carry the divine decrees, and bring them
back executed, take in defcending and reafcend-
ing, becaufe the diltance from heaven to earth is
a journey of five hundred years : and others fancy
that the angels bring down at once decrees
for a thoufand years to come, which being expired,
they return back for frelh orders, & c I .
a An extra ft o f defpicable water j] i. e. Seed.
b See the Prelim. Difc. §. IV. p. 72.
c See chap. 7. p. 118. and chap. 11. p. 187.
d No fou l»] Not even an angel of thofe wlio
approach neareft G od’s throne, nor any prophet
who hath been fent by him
e The complete fatisfaftion ;] Literally, Tbe
joy o f tbe eyes. The commentators fail not, on
occalion of this palfage, to produce that faying
of their prophet, which was originally none of
his own} Go d faith, I have prepared fo r my
righteous fervants, what eye bath not feen, nor bath
ear beard, nor bath entred into tbe heart o f man
to conceive.