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In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.

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A brief commentary

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on the book *Identification Cards

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for the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an*

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by Dr. Muhammad ibn Abdul-Aziz ibn Umar Nasif,

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may Allah preserve him.

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Surah Ibrahim.

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In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. All praise is due to Allah,

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and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.

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Continuing with the identification cards, we are now with Surah Ibrahim,

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and I have three points of reflection concerning it.

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The first point of reflection:

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The opening of the surah, in fact,

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is among those openings that begin with disjointed letters.

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One ought to reflect carefully upon what immediately follows these disjointed letters,

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for through it,

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the surah's central theme is largely unveiled.

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The theme of the surah here is bringing mankind out of darknesses into light.

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“Alif. Lam. Ra. (This is) a Scripture which We have revealed unto thee (Muhammad) that thereby thou mayst bring forth mankind from darkness unto light, by the permission of their Lord, unto the path of the Mighty, the Owner of Praise,” (14:1)

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The entire Qur'an,

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indeed, was revealed to bring mankind out of darknesses into the light,

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but this matter is exceptionally explicit in this surah,

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evident from this opening verse

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as well as other verses throughout the surah;

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many of them point directly to this reality,

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to the extent that some scholars

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considered this entire surah an exposition of the verse of Allah: "Allah is the ally of those who believe; He brings them out of darknesses into the light."

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Then, the second point of reflection

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concerns the structural divisions of the surah.

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Here are a few observations. First, there is an error

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in the verse numbering.

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If you read the page: as for the first section—

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of course, sections are mentioned without numbering

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in the diagrammatic tree, but on the preceding page—

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we find that the first section

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spans from verse one to verse eight,

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not verse five;

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that was a typographical printing error.

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The second section spans from verse nine

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to verse forty-one,

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and likewise within the passages of the second section: verse nine,

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then verse nineteen, and so on.

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This becomes obvious upon reflecting on the text written

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regarding the first section, for near its end it states

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that the theme is an explanation that this deliverance is achieved through the messenger,

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summarizing the mission of Moses, peace and blessings be upon him;

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and his call—Moses's call—continues through the eighth

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verse in a summarized fashion.

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Then comes the saying of the Exalted: "Has there not reached you...",

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which will be discussed shortly.

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Thus, the second section begins at verse nine.

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We also note in the second section that the author wrote:

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"an interrogative opening conveying denial," whereas in reality it is

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affirmative/confirmatory, not denouncing.

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However, it seems through

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looking at numerous passages

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throughout his book that he intends

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the functional outcome of the speech rather than technical rhetorical terminology.

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To distinguish between the types of interrogation:

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an affirmative interrogation serves to establish confirmation,

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while a denouncing interrogation serves to convey negation.

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This is the summary of the matter, although the issue is open to scholarly examination

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and warrants further investigation.

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"Has there not reached you," meaning "there has indeed reached you,"

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and this is affirmative interrogation;

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this is explicitly stated in *Tafsir al-Jalalayn*

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as well as *Al-Bahr al-Muhit*: that it is affirmative.

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Furthermore, we observe

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that this second section, which contains

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this affirmative interrogation,

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is composed of passages that all begin

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with an interrogation in the very same manner:

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"Has there not reached you the news of...",

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and this is from the speech of Moses according to what al-Tabari preferred

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and what I endorse here;

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Moses is still speaking—his words were initially concise,

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and then he elaborated here: "Has there not reached you the news of those before you—

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the people of Noah, and 'Aad, and Thamud, and those after them?"

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“Hath not the history of those before you reached you: the folk of Noah, and (the tribes of) A'ad and Thamud, and those after them? None save Allah knoweth them. Their messengers came unto them with clear proofs, but they thrust their hands into their mouths, and said: Lo! we disbelieve in that wherewith ye have been sent, and lo! we are in grave doubt concerning that to which ye call us.” (14:9)

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Then: "Do you not see that Allah created the heavens and the earth in truth?

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If He wills, He can do away with you and bring forth a new creation."

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And: "Have you not seen those who exchanged the favor of Allah for disbelief?"

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Why have I focused on this?

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We noted that the theme of the surah is journeying from darknesses into light,

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and we observe that all these verses open with:

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"Have you not...", "Has there not...", "Have you not...", "Do you not..."

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This style is typically employed

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to alert the listener, especially when phrased as "Do you not see...",

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to bring attention to an illuminating truth that a person has overlooked.

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And we notice that in Surah al-Baqarah,

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the verse containing "Allah is the ally of those who believe"—

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which we noted this surah serves to expound—

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was immediately followed by: "Have you not considered the one who argued with Abraham?"

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And here too: "Do you not see...",

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"Has there not reached you...", "Do you not see...",

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repeated several times; all of them

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direct attention to an illuminating truth that remains obscured to the person.

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Moving to the third point,

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or the third point of reflection, regarding the third section:

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we find it takes the opposite approach:

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"So never think...",

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and before it: "And never think..."

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We notice that the third section has a non-declarative, prohibitive opening.

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In reality, an interrogative opening is non-declarative as well,

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but due to the significance of interrogation, it was specifically designated,

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and because using the term "prohibition" might not seem

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fitting to describe it simply as a prohibitive opening.

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Nevertheless, both interrogation and prohibition

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are forms of demand-based non-declarative discourse (*insha' talabi*),

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to which rhetoricians pay immense attention,

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and with which numerous openings and sections

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in the Qur'an begin.

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This demonstrates that this pedagogical style is highly effective

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in calling people to Allah (*da'wah*),

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and indeed it is,

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because it fosters active engagement.

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A declarative statement is merely informing someone,

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whereas non-declarative discourse—

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and forgive me for delving slightly into rhetorical theory,

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but this is crucial for understanding the Qur'an—

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demand-based non-declarative speech involves active participation,

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because it prompts the listener to answer

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a question, or comply with

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a command, and so on.

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Thus, this non-declarative, prohibitive opening is...

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“Deem not that Allah is unaware of what the wicked do. He but giveth them a respite till a day when eyes will stare (in terror),” (14:42)

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And we observe that here there are two passages;

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previously there were four passages beginning with "Has not...", "Have you not...",

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whereas here there are two passages:

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"And never think..." and "So never think..."

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And if we say that those interrogations were an alerting to the light,

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then these prohibitions are a warning against the darkness.

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Through this,

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the entire surah comes together

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around the theme of darknesses and light:

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The first section, which we may regard as an introduction,

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clarifies that the Qur'an was revealed to bring mankind

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out of darknesses into the light,

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and that Moses was sent to bring mankind

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out of darknesses into the light;

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then the illuminating truths are presented to us in the second section,

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followed by warnings against the darknesses in the third section.

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Thus, the entire surah is permeated

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with the theme of bringing mankind out of darknesses into light.

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An entire specialized study could be written on this,

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delineating the guiding milestones

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for delivering mankind from darknesses into light.

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This is a matter of profound importance for anyone calling to Allah

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or seeking within their own soul

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to transition from darknesses into the light.

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May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions,

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and all praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all creation.