Omnipresent / Encompassing Everything

2. Surah al-Baqara, Medina 87

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِي عَنِّي فَإِنِّي قَرِيبٌ...

2: 186. When my servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them);

... أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ الدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ...

I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me;

... فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُواْ لِي وَلْيُؤْمِنُواْ بِي لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ ﴿١٨٦﴾

let them also, with a will, listen to My call, and believe in Me; that they may walk in the right way.

C194. These verses 186 and 188 are not foreign to the subject of Ramadhan, but emphasize its spiritual aspect.

- Here we are told of Prayer and the nearness of Allah, and

- in 188 we are asked not to "eat up" other people's substance.

Asad’s Version:

2: 186 And if My servants ask thee about Me – behold ! I am near ; I respond to the call of him who calls, whenver he calls unto Me:

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3. Sura al-Imran

Medina 89 [200 verses]

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

ذُرِّيَّةً بَعْضُهَا مِن بَعْضٍ ...

3: 34. Offspring, one of the other;

C374. The Prophets in the Jewish-Christian-Muslim dispensation form one family literally. But the argument is wider. All men of God form spiritually one family. If you love and obey Allah, love and obey His Messenger; your love, obedience and discipline will be the test of your Faith.

... وَاللّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿٣٤﴾

and Allah heareth and knoweth all things.

إِذْ قَالَتِ امْرَأَةُ عِمْرَانَ ...

3: 35. Behold! a woman of Imran said:

C375. Now we begin the story of Jesus.

As a prelude we have the birth of Mary and the parallel story of John the Baptist, Yahya the son of Zakariya.

Yahya's mother Elisabeth was a cousin of Mary the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:36), and therefore John and Jesus were cousins by blood, and there was a spiritual cousinhood in their birth and career.

Elisabeth was of the daughters of Aaron (Luke 1:5), of a priestly family which went back to Aaron the brother of Moses and son of Imran. Her husband Zakariya was actually a priest, and her cousin Mary was presumably also of a priestly family.

By tradition Mary's mother was called Hannah (in Latin, Anna, and in English, Anne), and her father was called Imran. Hannah is therefore both a descendant of the priestly house of Imran and the wife of Imran,-"a woman of Imran" in a double sense,

... رَبِّ إِنِّي نَذَرْتُ لَكَ مَا فِي بَطْنِي مُحَرَّرًا فَتَقَبَّلْ مِنِّي...

"O my Lord!

I do dedicate unto thee what is in my womb for Thy special service, so accept this of me,

C376. Muharrar: freed from all worldly affairs and specially dedicated to Allah's service.

She expected a son, who was to be a special devotee, a miraculous son of the old age of his parents, but Allah gave her instead a daughter. But that daughter was Mary the mother of Jesus, the chosen one among the women: 3:42.

...إِنَّكَ أَنتَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ ﴿٣٥﴾

for Thou hearest and knowest all things."

إِن تَمْسَسْكُمْ حَسَنَةٌ تَسُؤْهُمْ وَإِن تُصِبْكُمْ سَيِّئَةٌ يَفْرَحُواْ بِهَا...

3: 120. If aught that is good befalls you, it grieves them; but if some misfortune overtakes you, they rejoice at it.

...وَإِن تَصْبِرُواْ وَتَتَّقُواْ لاَ يَضُرُّكُمْ كَيْدُهُمْ شَيْئًا...

But if ye are constant and do right, not the least harm will their cunning do to you,

...إِنَّ اللّهَ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ مُحِيطٌ ﴿١٢٠﴾

for Allah compasseth round about all that they do.

Asad’s Version:

3: 34 and God hear and knows all things.

3:35 for you hear and know all things.

3: 120 But if you are patient in adversity and conscious of God ,their guile cannot harm you at all: for , verily, God encompasses all that they do.

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4. Sura an-Nisa

Medina 92 [Hijra 4]

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

مَّن يَشْفَعْ شَفَاعَةً حَسَنَةً يَكُن لَّهُ نَصِيبٌ مِّنْهَا...   

4: 85.  Whoever recommends and helps a good cause becomes a partner therein:

... وَمَن يَشْفَعْ شَفَاعَةً سَيِّئَةً يَكُن لَّهُ كِفْلٌ مِّنْهَا...  

and whoever recommends and helps an evil cause, shares in its burden:

... وَكَانَ اللّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُّقِيتًا ﴿٨٥﴾

and Allah hath power over all things.

C604. In this fleeting world's chances Allah's providence and justice may not always appear plain to our eyes. But we are asked to believe that if we help and support a good cause, we share in all its credit and in its eventual victory. And conversely, we cannot support a bad cause without sharing in all its evil consequences.

If appearances seem against this faith, let us not be deceived by appearances. For Allah has power over all things.

وَلاَ تُجَادِلْ عَنِ الَّذِينَ يَخْتَانُونَ أَنفُسَهُمْ...   

4: 107. Contend not on behalf of such as betray their own souls:

C622. Own souls are a sort of trust with us. We have to guard them against all temptation. Those who surrender to crime or evil, betray that trust.

We are warned against being deceived into taking their part, induced either by plausible appearances, or by such incentives to partiality as that they belong to our own people or that some link connects them with us, whereas when we are out to do justice, we must not allow any irrelevant considerations to sway us.

... إِنَّ اللّهَ لاَ يُحِبُّ مَن كَانَ خَوَّانًا أَثِيمًا ﴿١٠٧﴾  

for Allah loveth not one given to perfidy and crime.

يَسْتَخْفُونَ مِنَ النَّاسِ وَلاَ يَسْتَخْفُونَ مِنَ اللّهِ...   

4: 108. They may hide (their crimes) from men, but they cannot hide (them) from Allah,

... وَهُوَ مَعَهُمْ إِذْ يُبَيِّتُونَ مَا لاَ يَرْضَى مِنَ الْقَوْلِ...  

seeing that He is in their midst when they plot by night, in words that He cannot approve:

... وَكَانَ اللّهُ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ مُحِيطًا ﴿١٠٨﴾

and Allah doth compass round all that they do.

C623. The plots of sinners are known fully to Allah, and He can fully circumvent them if necessary, according to the fullness of His wisdom.

The word used is: Compass them round.- Muhit: not only does Allah know all about it, but He is all round it: if in His wisdom He allows it, it is not because He has not complete control over it, but because, having it as it were enclosed in a complete circle. He can use it to further His own Plan. Even out of evil He can bring good.

وَللّهِ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الأَرْضِ...   

4: 126. But to Allah belong all things in the heavens and on earth:

... وَكَانَ اللّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ مُّحِيطًا ﴿١٢٦﴾  

and He it is that encompasseth all things.

C635. Muhit: Cf. 4:108, and n. 623.

Asad’s Version:

4: 85 Whoever rallies to a good cause shall have a share in its blessings; and whoever rallies to an evil cause shall be answerable for his part in it: for, indeed, God watches over everything.

4: 107, 108 Yet do not argue in behalf of those who are false to their own selves: verily, God does not love those who betray their trust and persist in sinful ways. They would conceal their doings from men; but from God they cannot conceal them – for He is with them whenever they devise, in the dark of night, all manner of beliefs which He does not approve. And God indeed encompasses [with His knowledge] whatever they do.

4: 126 For, unto God belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth; and, indeed, God encompasses everything.