You will—with faith and guidance—and humble whom You will with disbelief and misguidance. It was also said: “You honor whom You will through obedience and humble whom You will through disobedience.” And it was said: “You honor whom You will with victory and humble whom You will by subjugation.” And it was said: “You honor whom You will with wealth and humble whom You will with poverty.” And it was said: “You honor whom You will with contentment and satisfaction, and humble whom You will with covetousness and greed.”

“All good is in Your Hand,” meaning: both good and evil are in Your Hand; only one of the two is mentioned. Allah, Exalted is He, says: “Garments that protect you from the heat” (al-Nahl, 81)—that is, from both heat and cold—yet only one of the two is mentioned. “Indeed, You are fully capable of all things.”

“You cause the night to enter into the day, and cause the day to enter into the night; You bring forth the living from the dead and bring forth the dead from the living; and You provide for whom You will without measure.” (27)

Regarding His saying, Exalted is He, “You cause the night to enter into the day”: that is, You bring the night into the day, until the day becomes fifteen hours and the night nine hours. “And You cause the day to enter into the night,” until the night becomes fifteen hours and the day nine hours. Whatever decreases from one of them increases in the other.

“And You bring forth the living from the dead, and bring forth the dead from the living.” The people of Madinah, Hamzah, al-Kisa’i, and Hafs from ‘Asim read “the dead” with the ya’ doubled here, as well as in al-An‘am, Yunus, and al-Rum; also, in al-A‘raf, “for a dead land,” and in Fatir, “to a dead land.” Nafi‘ additionally read, “Or was one dead, then We gave him life” (al-An‘am, 122); “the flesh of his dead brother” (al-Hujurat, 12); and “the dead land—We gave it life” (Ya-Sin, 33), with the ya’ doubled. The others read it without doubling. Ya‘qub doubled the ya’ in “He brings forth the living from the dead” and in “the flesh of his dead brother.”

Ibn Mas‘ud, Sa‘id ibn Jubayr, Mujahid, and Qatadah said: The meaning of the verse is that He brings forth the animal from the sperm-drop, which is dead, and brings forth the sperm-drop from the animal.

‘Ikrimah and al-Kalbi said: He brings forth the living from the dead—that is, the chick from the egg—and brings forth the egg from the bird. Al-Hasan and ‘Ata’ said: He brings forth the believer from the disbeliever and brings forth the disbeliever from the believer. The believer is alive at heart, whereas the disbeliever is dead at heart. Allah, Exalted is He, says: “Or was one dead, then We gave him life” (al-An‘am, 122).

Al-Zajjaj said: He brings forth fresh, tender vegetation from the dry grain, and brings forth dry grain from the living, growing plant.

“And You provide for whom You will without measure”: that is, without restriction [or stinting] (1).

Abu al-Qasim ‘Abd Allah ibn Muhammad al-Hanafi informed us; Abu Bakr Ahmad ibn al-Hasan al-Hiri informed us; Abu Ja‘far ‘Abd Allah ibn Isma‘il ibn Ibrahim al-Hashimi informed us; Muhammad ibn ‘Ali ibn Zayd al-Sa’igh informed us; Muhammad ibn Abi al-Azhar informed us; al-Harith ibn ‘Umayr informed us; Ja‘far ibn Muhammad informed us from his father, from his grandfather, from ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, who said: