"Did you not see the one who argued with Ibraheem about his Lord, because Allah had given him kingship. When Ibraheem said: "My Lord is the One Who gives life and brings death," he said: "I give life and I bring death." Said Ibraheem: "Allah brings the sun out from the East, now, you bring it out from the West." Here, baffled was the one who disbelieved. And Allah does not put the unjust people on the right path." (2:258)

The verse refers to Namrood, the emperor of Babylon, who denied the very existence of God and had a debate with Sayyidna Ibraheem (a.s.) on this issue. Allah has given him political power over a large territory. He should have been grateful to his Lord. But, on the contrary, his political power inflated him with pride and arrogance; he started denying the very existence of Him. It is in this context that the Holy Qur'an says: 'the one who argued with Ibraheem about his Lord, because Allah had given him kingship.' In the course of argument, he asked Ibraheem (a.s.) about the basic attributes of God. He replied, "My Lord is the One who gives life and brings death." The foolish king did not understand the real nature of 'giving life' and 'bringing death.' Therefore, he argued that he, too, can kill anyone through his order and bring thereby death to him and can also let off a person sentenced to death and give thereby life to him. Obviously, his argument was totally absurd, because 'giving life' means to give life to something lifeless*.

* (And 'bringing death' means power which may remove the life from every living creature without a necessary intervention of an apparent cause.)

When Sayyidna Ibraheem (a.s.) felt that his addressee is unable to understand the real nature of 'giving life' and 'bringing death,' he switched over to another argument and said, "Allah brings the sun out from the East, now, you bring it out from the West." Here the king was baffled and could not answer the Abrahimic argument. But even after the truth became clear to him, he did not accept the guidance. Hence the Qur'anic statement: "And Allah does not put the unjust people on the right path."

Injunctions And Related Considerations

1) It is evident from the words used in the verse that if an infidel is given political power or a high worldly status, there is no harm (for a Muslim) in referring to him as a holder of that position (Qurtubi).

2) The verse also affirms the permissibility of having debate with such an infidel in order to manifest the difference between right and wrong.

3) Some people doubt the validity of the last argument of Sayyidna Ibraheem (a.s.), because Namrood could have refuted it by a counter demand from Ibraheem (a.s.) and could have said, "If there is a God, let Him bring the sun out from the West." But it is obvious that he could not come out with this counterdemand. The reason is that as soon as he heard the argument, he came to the conclusion that (he himself or anybody else cannot bring out the sun from the East or the West and) it is surely a divine function which proves the existence of God. And once it is proved that it is God who brings the sun out from the East, it necessarily follows from it that He has the power to bring it out from the West also. The king also came to the conclusion that Ibraheem (a.s.) is the messenger of Allaah, and if the prayed Allaah to bring out the sun from the West, Allaah will do it, in which case such a miraculous event may bring a revolution against him and he may be deprived of his kingdom. Therefore, he did not make such a demand and having no other answer, was baffled With the argument. (Bayan al-Qur'an) (Ma'ariful Qur'an)

» Posted by Seifeddine-M on 22nd September 2011

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