An-Naml · Makki · ayah 35 of 93

An-Naml 27:35

وَإِنِّى مُرْسِلَةٌ إِلَيْهِم بِهَدِيَّةٍ فَنَاظِرَةٌۢ بِمَ يَرْجِعُ ٱلْمُرْسَلُونَ

“But indeed, I will send to them a gift and see with what [reply] the messengers will return."”

Saheeh International

Essence

Rather than fight, the queen sent a gift and awaited her envoys' report: a small test of whether she faced a mere king or more.

A reflection

A small test before a large war

Her chiefs offered her an army. She sent a gift instead.

It was not a white flag. Several commentators preserve an early report of her reasoning. If he accepts the gift, he is a king, and kings can be dealt with. If he refuses it, he is a prophet, and we should follow him. One commentator adds that the ayah shows she was not sure he would accept. She wanted his real aim to come into the open.

That is a well-designed test. Whatever answer comes back, she learns something. A gift costs a little treasure. A war costs a town. She chose the cheaper way to find out the truth.

A restaurant group is thinking of switching to a small olive-oil producer it has never used. The brochure is beautiful and the price is good. The buyer does not sign a five-year contract. She places one small trial order. She watches whether it arrives on time, whether it tastes like the sample, and how the producer handles a complaint. One modest order tells her more than a dozen sales calls.

Many of our worst decisions skip this step. We marry a plan after one exciting conversation. We fight a battle on the strength of a rumour. We commit everything before anything has been tested.

An early commentator admired her judgement. He noted that she knew how much a gift can move people. She used that knowledge as a probe, not a bribe for her own gain.

Before your next big commitment, ask a strategist's question. What is the smallest step that would show me what I am really dealing with? Take that step first, and then wait for the answer.

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.