Al-Isra · Makki · ayah 107 of 111

Al-Isra 17:107

قُلْ ءَامِنُوا۟ بِهِۦٓ أَوْ لَا تُؤْمِنُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ أُوتُوا۟ ٱلْعِلْمَ مِن قَبْلِهِۦٓ إِذَا يُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ يَخِرُّونَ لِلْأَذْقَانِ سُجَّدًا

“Say, "Believe in it or do not believe." Indeed, those who were given knowledge before it[777] - when it is recited to them, they fall upon their faces in prostration,”

Saheeh International

Essence

Believe in it or not, the Quran stands; those who already knew revelation fell on their faces in prostration the moment it was recited.

A reflection

Your vote does not move the river

In a village hall one autumn evening, the residents vote twenty-three to four that the river will not flood this winter. The motion is carried. Everyone goes home pleased. The river did not attend the meeting.

That is the tone of qul āminū bihi aw lā tuʾminū: say, believe in it or do not believe. The commentaries explain it plainly. Whether you believe in it or not, one says, it is true in itself. Another puts it in terms of wealth. Your belief will not add to the treasuries of Allah's mercy, and your refusal will not reduce them. A third says your faith adds no perfection to it, and your disbelief leaves it no flaw.

This lands hard on a modern habit. We have grown used to things becoming real by our endorsement. A song matters if it trends. A claim feels true if enough people share it. A person counts if they are followed. Without noticing, we can treat the Quran the same way. We imagine it waiting for our approval, a little anxious about our verdict.

The ayah turns that around. The Quran is not on trial before us. We are being shown ourselves by how we respond to it. Pride hates that position. It wants to be the judge, not the one judged.

Is it arrogant for Allah to speak this way? Arrogance is claiming a greatness you do not have, or needing others to confirm it. Here it is the opposite. The One who needs nothing is saying so, plainly. 'You are the ones in need of Allah, and Allah is the Free of need, the Praiseworthy' (35:15).

Think of a doctor who says the diagnosis stands whether or not you take the treatment. She is not arrogant. She is honest about what your opinion does and does not change.

And there is mercy folded into the sentence. If belief added to Him, His invitation might be for His own sake. Because it adds nothing, every invitation He makes is for ours. The river will rise or not, regardless of the vote. The only question the vote settles is who has sandbags at the door.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.