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wa-huwa lladhī jaʿalakum khalāʾifa l-ʾarḍi wa-rafaʿa baʿḍakum fawqa baʿḍin darajātin li-yabluwakum fī mā ʾātākum ʾinna rabbaka sarīʿu l-ʿiqābi wa-ʾinnahū la-ghafūrun raḥīmun
It is He who has made you successors on the earth, and raised some of you in rank above others so that He may test you in respect to what He has given you. Indeed your Lord is swift in retribution, and indeed, He is all-forgiving, all-merciful.
— Ali Quli Qarai
Surah Al-‘An’am, Verse 165
165. " And He it is Who has made you successors in the earth, and raised some of you above others in grades that He may try you in respect to what He has given you. Verily your Lord is swift in retribution, and indeed He is Forgiving, Merciful. "
In this verse, which is the last verse of Surah Al-' An'am, in order to complete the former discussions upon strengthening the foundation of Unity and struggling against paganism, the Qur'an points to the rank of man and his situation in the world of existence. So, firstly it says:
Man is Allah’s vice-regent on the earth, and all the sources of the world are set at his disposal. Allah has issued Man's command and dominion over all these creatures. Such a man must not let himself fall so low that he becomes more degraded than an inanimate thing and then he prostrates before it. Then the verse points to the difference of talents and the various bodily and spiritual merits of human beings, and to the aim of this difference and variation among men. The verse says:
At the end of the verse, the Qur'an refers to man's freedom in; choosing the path of happiness and wretchedness, stating the conclusion of these trials, as follows:
The Difference of Men and the Principal of Justice
No doubt, there are a series of artificial differences among the individuals of humankind which have been emerged as a result of the transgressions and cruelties of some human beings performed upon some other people. For example: some persons are the owners of abundant wealth, but some others are terribly poor. Or, a great deal of people is unsound and sickly weak as a result of deficiency of nutrition and lack of hygiene, while some other people are in the best condition of health, because all possibilities of life are available for them.
These kinds of differences, such as: richness and poverty, knowledge and ignorance, health and sickness, and so on, are often the consequences of colonialism, exploitation, various forms of slavery, and apparent and concealed transgressions. Surely, these kinds of differences cannot be considered as the acts of the system of creation. So, there is no reason for us, to defend the existence of such unacceptable differences. Humankind, all together, form also a society resembled to a great, tall and fruitful tree. Every group, or even an individual, of them is responsible for a particular mission in this huge body, which demands a proportional construction peculiar to it.
That is why the Qur'an says that these differences are as a means of your trial, and the term 'trial', in the divine statements is used in the sense of 'training and education'.
Man's Vicegerency on the Earth!
The Qur'an has repeatedly introduced Man as the 'vicegerent' and 'representative' of Allah on the earth. This introduction, in addition to making clear the position of Man in creation, also explains this fact that properties, wealth, talents, and the whole merits that Allah has bestowed on Man are, in deed, in possession of Allah. Man is merely His representative who has been given leave by Him. It is evident, of course that no representative is independent in his dominations, but his dominations ought to be limited to the leave and permission of the main owner.
This explanation may make this fact clear that, for example, regarding to the question of ownership, Islam keeps distance from both the camp of communism and the camp of capitalism.