It is authentically established from the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—that this verse is the greatest verse in Allah’s Book, the Qur’an. In it He portrays Himself with affirmative attributes and, at the same time, states five negations.

First: His words,
“There is no deity except Him.”
This affirms His exclusive right to divinity, which necessarily entails His exclusive Lordship: everything besides Him is His servant, dependent on Him; He alone is the Creator and the One worthy of worship. This is an attribute of affirmation.

Second: His words,
“Drowsiness does not overtake Him, nor sleep.”
These words express the perfection of His Life and His Self-subsistence, for drowsiness and sleep are defects in life and self-subsistence. Sleep is the brother of death, and one who sleeps cannot oversee matters. Exalted is He above drowsiness and sleep—a transcendence that necessitates the perfection of His Life and Self-subsistence. Life and Self-subsistence are affirmative attributes.

Third: His words,
“Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission?”
This indicates that no one may intercede with Him unless He permits it, which in turn points to the perfection of His power, His act of creation, and His Lordship, and that nothing else can influence Him in any respect—unlike created beings, who are swayed by those who intercede with them, inducing them to act when previously they would not have. Rather—