The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 286
CH. 13 AR-RA'D PT. 13 وَيُسَبِّحُ الرَّعْدُ بِحَمْدِهِ وَالْمَلَكَةُ مِنْ And the thunder glorifies. 14 Him with His praise "and خِيفَتِهِ وَيُرْسِلُ الصَّوَاعِقَ فَيُصِيبُ likewise do the angels for awe بِهَا مَنْ يَّشَاءُ وَهُمْ يُجَادِلُونَ فِي اللهِ وَهُوَ شَدِيدُ الْمِحَالِ of Him; and "He sends the thunderbolts, and smites therewith whom He wills, yet they dispute concerning Allah, while He is severe in punishing. 1625 E "16:51; 42:6. 24:44. and not the possession of worldly riches and material prosperity; for, without goodness of heart these things may, instead of proving useful to the people who possess them, prove their ruin. 1625. Important Words: J (punishment) is derived from which is again derived from J. They say i. e. the town had no rain and became affected with drought and dearth. able means, he devised a plan or hatched a plot against him; he showed enmity towards him, the other doing the same in return. J means, plan or device; power or might; quarrel or disputation; enmity; punishment or torment; severity; destruction (Aqrab). Commentary: Disbelievers are here told that they should give up hugging the fond hope that the present afflictions and trials of Muslims (hinted at in the words "thunders" and "thunderbolts") would bring about the latter's ruin. Not all lightning is destructive nor are all clouds the source of unmixed good. Their afflictions cannot bring about the ruin of believers. On the contrary, they will bring about their moral and spiritual advancement, for they bring into play their hidden faculties and bring them nearer to God. Thunder and lightning are after all the creation of God and are meant to glorify Him. They cannot therefore, cause the destruction of God's faithful servants, whom He has promised to protect, for that would be against His glory- fication. So existing thunders and the and tribulations only contribute to the dark clouds of temporary miseries progress and prosperity of the Faithful. 1494 The verse further points out that thunder and clouds are under the control of God's angels, who are the first cause, and have been created to serve and advance the cause of God's Messengers. Why then, should the believers fear the thunder and clouds of adversity that are now bursting upon them? They would only destroy those who seek to frustrate the purpose of God. The words, they dispute concerning Allah, intended to point out that it is no law of nature that is being discussed here are