Surah 17. Al-Israa, Ayah 55
| وَرَبُّكَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنْ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۗ وَلَقَدْ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۖ وَآتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ زَبُورًا |
| Transliteration | : | wa- rabb -ka aclam bi- man fe as- samaawaat wa- al- 'ard. wa- la- qad fad.d.alnaa bacd. an- nabeyen calaa bacd. wa- 'aataynaa daawod zabor(an) |
| Pickthall | : | And thy Lord is best aware of all who are in the heavens and the earth. And we preferred some of the Prophets above others, and unto David We gave the Psalms. |
| Asad | : | seeing that thy Sustainer is fully aware of [what is in the minds of] all beings that are in the heavens and on earth. But, indeed, We did endow some of the prophets more highly than others63 - just as We bestowed upon David a book of divine wisdom [in token of Our grace]64 . |
| Malik | : | Your Rabb is fully aware of all that is in the heavens and in the earth. We have exalted some prophets above the others and gave Zaboor (the Psalms) to Dawood. |
| Yusuf Ali | : | And it is your Lord that knoweth best all beings that are in the heavens and on earth: We did bestow on some Prophets more (and other) gifts than on others: and We gave to David (the gift of) the Psalms. 2240 2241 |
Note - 63This seems to be an allusion to the role of Muhammad as
the Last Prophet (Zamakhshari, Baydawi): despite his
personal inability to "determine the fate" of the people
to whom he conveyed God's message, that message is
destined to remain alive forever.
|
Note - 64I.e., just as David's "book of divine wisdom" (the
Psalms) had outlived the glory of his earthly kingdom, so
will Muhammad's message, the Qur'an, outlive all the
changing fortunes of his followers.
|
Note - 2240Not only are we not to judge other ordinary men and carp
at them. We are not to set up false standards for judging
the Prophets of Allah. If one was born of the unlearned
Arab race, he yet was a mercy to all the worlds. If one
spoke to Allah as Kalimullah or another's life began with
a miracle; it does not imply superiority. It only means
that Allah's wisdom is more profound than we can fathom.
|
Note - 2241The gifts with which the prophets came may themselves
take different forms, according to the needs of the world
and the times in which they lived, as judged by the
wisdom of Allah. A striking example here given is the
gift of David over others. David was given the Zabur, the
Psalter or Psalms, intended to be for the worship of
Allah and the celebration of Allah's praise. For the Book
of Psalms, see the last part of n. 669 to iv. 163, where
exactly the same words are used about David.
|
Share your thoughts about this with others by posting a comment. Visit our FAQ for some ideas.
Filter Comments 
|
Reply
Email this
 |
This seems to be an allusion to the role of Muhammad as the Last Prophet (Zamakhshari, Baydawi): despite his personal inability to "determine the fate" of the people to whom he conveyed God's message, that message is destined to remain alive forever. |
| |
Not only are we not to judge other ordinary men and carp at them. We are not to set up false standards for judging the Prophets of Allah. If one was born of the unlearned Arab race, he yet was a mercy to all the worlds. If one spoke to Allah as Kalimullah or another's life began with a miracle; it does not imply superiority. It only means that Allah's wisdom is more profound than we can fathom. |
| |
The gifts with which the prophets came may themselves take different forms, according to the needs of the world and the times in which they lived, as judged by the wisdom of Allah. A striking example here given is the gift of David over others. David was given the Zabur, the Psalter or Psalms, intended to be for the worship of Allah and the celebration of Allah's praise. For the Book of Psalms, see the last part of n. 669 to iv. 163, where exactly the same words are used about David. |
