Ash-Shuraa · Makki · ayah 51 of 53

Ash-Shuraa 42:51

۞ وَمَا كَانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَن يُكَلِّمَهُ ٱللَّهُ إِلَّا وَحْيًا أَوْ مِن وَرَآئِ حِجَابٍ أَوْ يُرْسِلَ رَسُولًا فَيُوحِىَ بِإِذْنِهِۦ مَا يَشَآءُ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ عَلِىٌّ حَكِيمٌ

“And it is not for any human being that Allāh should speak to him except by revelation or from behind a partition or that He sends a messenger [i.e., angel] to reveal, by His permission, what He wills. Indeed, He is Most High and Wise.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Allah speaks to human beings in this life by inspiration, from behind a veil, or through a messenger He sends.

A reflection

God on our terms

A young man at a dinner party says it with a smile. If God exists, let Him speak to me right now, out loud, in this room. Then I'll believe. A few people laugh. Someone changes the subject. The demand hangs in the air.

The ayah begins with a sentence that quietly answers that demand: wa-mā kāna li-basharin an yukallimahu allāhu. It is not for any human being that Allah should speak to him, except in certain ways. The commentators explain mā kāna as: it is not fitting, it is not possible, it does not suit.

The ayah ends with the reason: innahu ʿaliyyun ḥakīm, He is Most High, All-Wise. The root of ʿaliyy has an established image of height: the mountain's summit, and above it the sky. One commentator explains: exalted above the qualities of created things. Another: possessing height over everything, and power.

This is where the ego's demand meets its proper size. We are used to setting the terms of every interaction: the meeting time, the format, the medium. The young man's challenge simply extends that habit to God.

The ayah does not humiliate him. It describes three ways Allah has in fact chosen to speak, and they are generous ways. But it does decline the demand that the Most High appear on human command.

A sceptic may hear this as divine aloofness. The truth is the opposite. The One who could remain silent has chosen to speak, through inspiration, through a voice behind a veil, through messengers. He has spoken more than any human can absorb in a lifetime.

The humble question is not, why won't He speak to me on my terms? It is, have I listened to what He has already said?

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.