Al Baqarah

كَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا فِيكُمْ رَسُولاً مِّنكُمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْكُمْ آيَاتِنَا وَيُزَكِّيكُمْ وَيُعَلِّمُكُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَيُعَلِّمُكُم مَّا لَمْ تَكُونُواْ تَعْلَمُونَ

Even as We have sent among you a Messenger of your own who recites Our revelations to you that purifies you and teaches you the Book and the Wisdom, and teaches you that which you did not know. (2:151).

فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ وَاشْكُرُواْ لِي وَلاَ تَكْفُرُونِ

Therefore, remember Me, and I will remember you; and be thankful to Me, and be you not ungrateful. (2:152).

The subject matter of the first verse is the Messengership of the Prophet of Islam (S) which was in answer to the invocation of Abraham (‘a) who had asked:

Our Lord, send amongst them an Apostle of their own who shall recite unto them Your revelations… (2:129).

Besides, that the Prophet of Islam (S) also repeatedly said:

I am (the fruit of) the very acceptance of my father’s invocation, Abraham . ⁴ (2:129)

Thus, Allah sent a prophet to the people from among themselves who were familiar with their demands, needs, and wishes. He used to communicate with them through their own language, and he lived amongst them.

Even as We have sent among you a Messenger of your own who recites Our revelations to you that purifies you and teaches you the Book and the Wisdom, and teaches you that which you did not know. (2:151)

Through the second verse, Allah has promoted the rank of Man by saying that He and we remember each other.

Therefore, remember Me, and I will remember you... (2:152)

The level and standard of knowledge and understanding of people is different, so, Allah tells a group of servants:

...Remember Allah’s favour on you... (3:103),

while he addresses some others of them thus:

...remember Me... (2:152)

as in the current verse. The remembrance of Allah is a prerequisite to being thankful to Him, hence, it has preceded the term thankfulness. This is an illustration of the consideration of Allah’s honour for Man as a reflection of His Grace unto His servants. On one end of this scale, there is Man with his ignorance, poverty, mortality, and feebleness, while on the other end, there is Allah, the All-Knowing, the All-Sufficient, the Eternal, and the All-Mighty Who wants him to remember Him in order to show his gratitude for the great blessings of the Qiblah and the Messenger of Islam, and He promises to remember him, too.

This very remembrance is also a favour from Allah bestowed upon His servants. No doubt, if a person neglects Allah in life, He, of course, will be heedless towards him, too.

...and be thankful to Me, and be you not ungrateful. (2:152)

Explanation

Here, your attention is attracted to the following descriptions and messages derived from the above verses:

1. The recitation of Divine revelations, the purification of receptive souls, the instruction of the Book and Wisdom, and teaching of people what they do not know, are among the duties of prophets.

2. That leader is successful who is from amongst the people themselves, because he is acquainted with their problems and speaks the same language as theirs.

...a Messenger of your own who recites Our revelation to you... (2:151)

3. Human beings are not able to solve all their scientific problems by themselves. That is why He did not say in the verse / malata’lamun / ‘(He teaches you) what you do not know’, but He said: / malamtakunu ta’lamon / ‘(He teaches you) that which you did not know’ in order to remind us that if the prophets (‘a) had not existed, Man could never have found the answers to many of his problems.

For example, he could not have found out what his future (the next world) will be, or, he could not recognize which path was the true path of felicity and salvation.

4. Prophets were not merely the teachers and leaders of ethics and theology, but they were also the instructors of science. Without their leadership in science, human knowledge would have remained undeveloped in all fields.

...and teaches you that which you did not know. (2:151)

5. The remembrance of Allah is not only the cause for the Grace of Allah, but with the remembrance of Allah the hearts will gain peace and rest. Surah Ar-Ra’d says:

...Certainly! By Allah’s remembrance are the hearts at rest. (13:28).

6. Establishing prayer is the best way to remember Allah, as in Surah Taha, Allah Himself says:

...keep up prayer for My remembrance... (20:14)

Footnotes

1. 4. Al-Amili, by Shaykh Tusi, p. 379.