An-Najm · Makki · ayah 31 of 62

An-Najm 53:31

وَلِلَّهِ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ لِيَجْزِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسَـٰٓـُٔوا۟ بِمَا عَمِلُوا۟ وَيَجْزِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَحْسَنُوا۟ بِٱلْحُسْنَى

“And to Allāh belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth - that He may recompense those who do evil with [the penalty of] what they have done and recompense those who do good with the best [reward] -”

Saheeh International

Essence

Everything in the heavens and the earth is Allah's, so nothing anyone does slips through, and the ones who did beautifully receive what is most beautiful.

A reflection

The car on the drive belongs to the finance company

Every Sunday morning a man washes his car on the drive. He waxes the bonnet, polishes the wheels, and steps back to admire it. Neighbours admire it too. In a drawer inside the house is the paperwork. The car is on a lease. Legally, it belongs to a finance company in another city. He is its keeper for three years.

Wa-lillāhi mā fī al-samāwāti wa-mā fī al-arḍi: 'And to Allah belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth.' One commentary presses the meaning to its full extent. It belongs to Him in the most complete way, by creation and by ownership, and to no one else at all. Not independently. Not in partnership.

Another commentary explains why the ayah says this here, just before speaking of recompense. It points to His perfect self-sufficiency and power. Someone who knows what people deserve, but has no power, cannot reward or punish. Allah knows, as the previous ayah said, and He owns and controls everything, so His recompense is certain.

This cuts through human pride very cleanly. Almost everything we are proud of is on a lease. The car, the house, the strength in our legs, the sharpness of our minds, the children who seem to be ours. The paperwork is in a drawer we rarely open, but it says the same thing on every page: held in trust, for a time.

A sceptic may ask whether such total ownership is tyranny. The Quran's answer is that the Owner is also free of all need and judges with justice. His ownership is what makes justice possible at all. Nothing escapes it.

The man may keep washing his car. It is good to care for what we are given. He only needs to remember whose name is on the paperwork.

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.