Page 563
ʾa-lā yaʿlamu man khalaqa wa-huwa l-laṭīfu l-khabīru
Would He who has created not know? And He is the All-attentive, the All-aware.
— Ali Quli Qarai
67Al-MulkالملكVerse 14 of 30
The Sovereignty67. Al-Mulkالملك
al-Mulk
The Sovereignty
MeccanVerse 14 of 30
Surah al-Mulk – Verses 12-14
12. Verily, those who fear their Lord inwardly, theirs shall be forgiveness and a great Reward.
13. Whether you keep your talk secret or disclose it, Verily, He is the Omniscient of what is in the breasts.
14. Is not He Who has created All-Aware of the states of His creatures whereas He is the Most Precise, the All-Aware?
The blessed Verse 12, resuming the discussions raised in the preceding Verses regarding the disbelievers and their fate on the Day of Resurrection, is saying that those who fear their Lord inwardly, their sins shall be forgiven and they shall receive a great Reward. The Arabic word
may connote gaining knowledge as to the Unseen God, Resurrection, or both. Some exegetes also maintain that the blessed verse makes a reference to fearing God Almighty in committing unseen sins, since if man does not conceal his sins, he will not make them apparent in the best possible way. Thus, reference is made of the significance of pure intentions in refraining from committing sins and disobeying Divine Commands, since keeping something secret is more remote than hypocrisy. All theses exegeses are in harmony.
The definite form of
and the phrase
reflect the significance. In other words, such forgiving and Reward is so great that they may not be perceived by anyone. The blessed Verse 13 lays further emphasis in this regard, saying that whether you conceal or disclose your intentions, God Almighty is All-Aware of whatever is in the hearts. Some Qur’an exegetes have narrated an occasion of Revelation for the blessed Verse in question on the authority of Ibn ‘Abbas to the effect that some of the disbelievers or hypocrites talked evil of the Noble Prophet (S) and Gabriel informed the Noble Prophet (S) of their slanders. Some of them said unto each other to conceal their words so that Muhammad’s (S) God may not hear them.
Thus, the blessed Verse was revealed, saying:
The blessed Verse 14 serves as a proof for the preceding blessed Verse, asking:
Numerous possibilities have been mentioned regarding the clause ala ya‘lamu man khalaqa
the best of which is that God Almighty Who has created the entire world of existence is All-Aware of all the secrets of the world. Are man’s secrets concealed from God Almighty Who has created him? The adjective latif, cognate with the nominal form lutf, connotes any delicate point and any rapid movement and delicate body. Thus, the Divine Attribute Latif reflects Divine Omniscience as to the delicacies and secrets of the world of Creation and the Creation of delicate and minute beings. The Attribute implies that God Almighty is All-Aware of innermost secrets concealed in the hearts, the words exchanged at secret sessions, and the sins committed in secret places.
It is narrated in Tafsir Nur al-Thiqalayn from Imam Ridha (as) as saying that the word latif does not imply delicacy and minuteness but the fact that Divine Omniscience penetrates all things, though others may not perceive it.