(48–50) “We certainly gave Moses and Aaron the Criterion, a light, and a reminder for the God-fearing—those who fear their Lord in private and are apprehensive of the Hour. And this is a blessed reminder that We have sent down. Will you then deny it?”
Allah Most High often mentions together these two glorious Books, the likes of which the world has never known—none better, more renowned, more blessed, or greater in guidance and exposition—[namely, the Torah and the Quran]. (1) He informs us that He gave Moses primarily, and Aaron as his follower, “the Criterion”: the Torah, which distinguishes truth from falsehood and guidance from misguidance. It was also “a light”—a light by which those who seek guidance are guided, which those who tread the path follow, through which rulings are known and the lawful is distinguished from the unlawful, and which illuminates the darkness of ignorance, religious innovations, and error—and “a reminder for the God-fearing,” by which they remember what benefits and harms them and discern good from evil. He singles out “the God-fearing” because they are the ones who benefit from it in knowledge and practice.
He then explains who the God-fearing are: “those who fear their Lord in private”—that is, they fear Him when they are alone and no one sees them, so they are all the more mindful of Him when others are present. They therefore refrain from what He has forbidden and fulfill what He has made obligatory. “And they are apprehensive of the Hour”—that is, they are fearful and anxious because of their perfect knowledge of their Lord. Thus, they combine righteous conduct with fear. The conjunction here joins distinct attributes that apply to the same thing and the same persons.
“And this”—that is, the Quran—“is a blessed reminder that We have sent down.” He thus describes it with two glorious qualities. First, it is a reminder through which everything one needs to know may be recalled: knowledge of Allah through His names, attributes, and deeds; the qualities and circumstances of the messengers and righteous servants; the rulings of the Sacred Law concerning acts of worship, transactions, and other matters; and the rulings concerning recompense, Paradise, and Hellfire. Through it, matters and their rational and revealed proofs are recalled. He calls it a reminder because it reminds people of what Allah has implanted in their minds and innate dispositions: affirming truthful reports, commanding what reason recognizes as good, and forbidding what reason recognizes as evil.
Second, its being “blessed” entails the abundance of its benefits (2) and their growth and increase. Nothing possesses greater blessing than this Quran, for every good, blessing, and increase—whether religious, worldly, or pertaining to the Hereafter—comes through it and results from acting upon it. Since it is a blessed reminder, it must be received with acceptance, submission, and obedience. Allah must be thanked for this magnificent gift, its due must be fulfilled, and its blessings must be drawn forth by learning its words and meanings. To respond to it in the opposite manner—by turning away from it, casting it aside, denying it, and refusing to believe in it—is among the gravest forms of disbelief and the most extreme ignorance and injustice. Allah Most High therefore rebukes those who deny it, saying: “Will you then deny it?”