Allah’s
Messengers
Passage 11
Sura
Al-Baqarah
(2:30-37)
(a)Main Theme:
• Theme of the passage is God’s messengers.
• Passage taken from Surah Al-Baqarah.
• It describes the story of creations of Adam and his especially elevated
status granted by God’s decree.
• As he was honored by the prostration by angels.
• Adam was granted the knowledge of every person and thing.
• This superiority of Adam was duly acknowledged by all angels except
Iblis who showed arrogance (since he was a Jinn, not an angel).
• It marked the enmity between Adam and Iblis.
• Adam and Eve were granted paradise but Iblis maneuvered their exile
from there, out of jealousy and malice.
• On repentance on their mistake Adam and Eve were pardoned by God
who awarded them a new phase of worldly living.
• The Quran mentions this phase at another place as: “it is We, Who
have placed you with authority on earth” (7:10).
(b) Importance:
• Theme of this passage contains important lessons for Muslims.
• They are told the reason for making human being superior over all other creatures.
• God appointed man (by way of Adam) as his vicegerent on earth because of the
knowledge and free will.
• The free will is a test for humans as they can be enticed by Satan to commit sins.
• The Quran warns about this by saying: “for Satan is an avowed enemy to
man” (12:5, Yusuf).
• The passage further tells about God’s mercy and forgiveness as he accepted
repentance by Adam.
• It drives our conscious towards repentance to be accepted by God on our mistakes
and sins.
• The Quran reminds Muslims repeatedly of this attribute of God: “if anyone does
evil, or wrongs his own soul but afterwards seek God’s forgiveness. He will find
God Oft-forgiving and most Merciful” (4:110, Al-Nisa)
Passage 12
Sura Al-An’aam
(6:75-79)
(a)Main Theme:
• Theme of the passage is God’s messengers.
• Passage taken from Surah Al-An’aam.
• This passage outlines the story of Prophet Abraham in search of One
Supreme God.
• Abraham was gradually guided to identify the real Creator and Lord by
way of his creations such as the Sun, the Moon and the Stars.
• He eventually realized that God is eternal and therefore He rejected the
polytheism (shirk) that was the hallmark of the society around him.
• He finally, declared the shahada (proclamation of belief in one God) as a
sign of acquiring internal peace.
• “Abraham was indeed a model devoutly obedient to Allah (and) true in
faith and he joined not gods with Allah ”
• He used different ways and his intellect to guide his nation through clear
signs of God.
(b) Importance:
• Theme of this passage teaches Muslims to refuse Shirk i.e.
associating partners with God and to believe in Tawhid.
• They should learn that celestial bodies merely reflect God’s glory
and are only God’s creatures.
• They should never be worshiped because the Quran categorically
declares: “He has made subject to you the night and the day; the
sun and the moon; and the stars are in subjection by his
command” (16:12, al-Nahl).
• Muslims should also believe God granted prophet-hood to his
messengers by various modes and that all these messengers
preached the universal message of Tawhid
• Prophet Ibrahim’s proclamation of Tawhid was not different from
the shahada taught by the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
• Therefore Muslims should respect all the messengers equally.
