Quran Garden

Session 285

Chapter 2

Verse 258

Didn’t you see the man who argued with Abraham about his Lord, because God had given him the power to rule? When Abraham said, ‘It is my Lord who gives life and death,’ he said, ‘I too give life and death.’ So Abraham said, ‘God brings the sun from the east; so bring it from the west.’ The disbeliever was dumbfounded: God does not guide those who do evil. (Chapter 2:Verse 258)

In the previous three verses, God the Ever-Living, the Ever-Watchful gave you ample evidence of His Lordship.  He laid before you the case for faith and worship and explained the benefits of having Him as your ally and guardian.  But how about a real-life example? That’s what God gives us in the verse under study.    

By asking ‘Didn’t you see?’  Allah is drawing your attention to a strange event that happened.  It is like how we sometimes say: “didn’t you see what John did in the classroom?”  When you here such an expression, you know that what John did was unexpected.  It entices you to listen to the events attentively. 

The verse starts with: “Didn’t you see the man who disputed with Abraham about his Lord, because God had given him the power to rule?“  Take note that God did not specify the identity of the person who argued with Abraham.  Identifying the person does not concern us, whether it was Nimrod –as some scholars speculated- or someone else.  What concerns us is that this ruler entered into an argument with the Messenger Abraham -peace be upon him-.   By keeping the identity of the ruler anonymous, God made the story applicable to all rulers who are deluded by temporary power and influence.  Had this particular ruler been identified, most people would think that the lessons of the story were only relevant to that particular king.

Similarly, some scholars spend an inordinate amount of time trying to answer questions about the story of the people of the cave from chapter 18 of the Quran.  They want to know where and when the events took place? How many believers were involved? Who were they?  We answer that if any of the answers were specified, it would take away from the moral of the story.  For example, if the time of the events was specified, a person may say: it makes sense that these events happened so long ago, but they do not apply to modern times.  And if the identity of the believers was determined, people may say that such personalities are capable of such behavior, but we cannot match their strength of faith.  Hence, Allah, the All-Wise, left these matters unknown.  The lessons of the story apply to all believers at all times in any land.  

Allah describes this man as the one whom ‘God had given him the power to rule.’  Abraham -peace be upon him- said: ‘It is my Lord who gives life and death.’  Take note of the literary brilliance of the Quran as it does not mention the original question.  He left it to the listener to make that connection.  In other words when you hear our beloved prophet Abraham saying: ‘It is my Lord who gives life and death,’ you conclude that he was asked by the king: “Who is your lord?” 

Abraham’s answer brought forth the main issue that cannot be disputed by anyone:  The issue of life and death.  Even the most ardent disbeliever cannot claim creation.  No one ever said that he or she creates life or can cause natural death.  God is the Creator.  However, the king wanted to enter into a sterile philosophical argument with Abraham.  He answered: ‘I too give life and death.’   The king ordered two prisoners to be brought before him and sentenced one of them to death, and the other to go free. 

Prophet Abraham understood the trick and decided not to fall into the trap of endless argument of the true meaning of life on one hand, and the difference between death and killing on the other.  Abraham wanted to get to the core of the matter, so he replied with a statement which would end the controversy.  He said: ‘God brings the sun from the east; so bring it from the west.’  

Let’s take a few moments to explain the difference between killing –which is what this king did- and death.  It is true that death and killing share one thing: the departure of the soul from the body, but they are inherently very different.  God says:

Muhammad is but a Messenger, and Messengers passed away before him. If, then, he dies or is killed, will you turn back on your heels? Whoever turns back on his heels can in no way harm God. But God will reward the grateful. (3:144)

Take note that God mentioned death and killing as separate events.  It is true that they both end life, but there is a difference between taking the soul without the destruction of the physical body and causing death by destroying the body.  The soul is subject to certain laws.  It can only reside within a matter of very specific characteristics.  If the physical characteristics are violated, the soul departs.  Killing violates the physical characteristics of the body.  God, the grantor of life, is the only one who can cause death without changing the physical.  Many of us have seen footage of a young, perfectly healthy athlete suddenly drop dead for no reason at all.  This is death.  

Here is an example to clarify the interaction between the soul and the body:  suppose that you have a lit light bulb.  What is causing the light bulb to emit light? It is the electricity flowing through it.  If you break the glass, the bulb goes dark, but is the electricity gone? No, the electricity is still there, but it only shines as light under certain physical conditions –such as the vacuum inside a bulb-.  Likewise, the soul manifests as life only in a structure that has special characteristics.  Hence, the killer does not take the soul away; rather he or she only destroys the physical structure making it inhospitable to the soul.  God made it clear: death cannot come to anyone without His permission, and the time of each person’s death is written in a preordained register.  Keeping that in mind, the king who disputed Abraham did not give life to the freed prisoner, nor did he cause death to the prisoner he killed. 

Allah wants to alert you to an important fact about prophets and messengers.  The goal of the prophets when they dispute with their nations is not to triumph in argument; it is not to score points and boast.  The one goal of prophets and messengers is to convey the truth.  Thus, Prophet Abraham -peace be upon him- did not prolong the discussion about life and death, he only wanted to show the king who the true master of the universe is.

The phrase “the man who argued with Abraham about his Lord, because God had given him power to rule’ explains that the source of the king’s stubbornness and tyranny was his power and authority.  Allah has blessed you with countless bounties.  Do you make your kingdom a means of transgression against the One who has bestowed upon you this kingdom? Do you show your gratitude to God by opposing Him? What made this ruler so ungrateful? It was pride.   

In order to deliver God’s message, Abraham changed the topic from the unseen soul to something apparent and visible.  He said: ‘God brings the sun from the east; so bring it from the west.’  The verse continued: ‘The disbeliever was dumbfounded’ translated from the Arabic origin ‘Buhita.’  ‘Buhita’ means to be overwhelmed and become speechless.  The king went through three stages: first, he was surprised that Abraham changed the argument from life and death to the sun making further dispute impossible.  Second, he was perplexed as he could not find a way out of this dilemma.  Lastly, he was speechless and defeated.  

Here you may wonder: why didn’t the king ask Abraham to bring the sun from the west? To answer this question, you should recall the previous verse.  God says:

God is the ally of those who believe: He brings them out of the depths of darkness and into the light. As for the disbelievers, their allies are the power of evil who take them from the light into the depths of darkness

You should not be surprised by the weakness of the king’s case.  As long as he is a disbeliever, he will not receive God’s help.  As for Abraham, he was the friend of the Most Merciful.  God is the ally of the believers; He did not inspire the king to argue further.  Either the king’s mind froze and became speechless, or deep inside, he knew the truth and feared that Abraham’s Lord would bring the sun from the west to support His prophet.  Either way, God is truly the ally of those who believe.   Moreover, ‘God does not guide those who do evil’  to His signs, nor does he support them in an argument.