(1–4) “In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. Qāf. By the glorious Quran! Yet they marvel that a warner from among themselves has come to them, and the disbelievers said, ‘This is an astonishing thing. When we have died and become dust, will we be brought back? That is a far-fetched return!’ We certainly know what the earth consumes of them, and with Us is a preserving Record.”

Allah Most High swears by the glorious Quran—that is, the Quran whose meanings are vast and magnificent, whose facets and blessings are many, and whose benefits are immense. Glory denotes vastness and grandeur of attributes, and no speech is more deserving of this description than this Quran. It contains the knowledge of former and later generations, embodies the highest degree of eloquence and the most powerful expressions, and conveys the most comprehensive and excellent meanings. This requires complete adherence to it, [swift] submission to it, and gratitude to Allah for the blessing He has bestowed through it.

Most people, however, do not appreciate Allah’s blessings at their true worth. Hence, He Most High says, “Yet they marvel”—namely, those who deny the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)—“that a warner from among themselves has come to them”; that is, one who warns them against what will harm them and commands them to do what will benefit them. He is one of their own kind, so they can learn directly from him and know his character and truthfulness.

They thus marvelled at something that should not have caused them any wonder. Rather, one should marvel at the reasoning of anyone who marvels at it.

“Then the disbelievers said”—those whose disbelief and denial drove them to say this, not any deficiency in their intelligence or judgment (1).

“This is an astonishing thing,” meaning something they found incredible. Their incredulity admits of two possibilities:

Either they are sincere in [finding it incredible and] being astonished. This indicates the utmost ignorance and feebleness of mind on their part. They are like a madman who finds the words of a rational person astonishing, a coward who marvels at a brave horseman confronting other warriors, or a miser who finds the generosity of generous people astonishing. What harm can befall a person merely because someone in such a state marvels at him? Is that person’s astonishment anything but evidence of his increased ignorance and wrongdoing? Or else their astonishment is feigned while they know that they are wrong, and this is among the gravest and most abhorrent forms of wrongdoing.

He then explained what they found astonishing, saying, “When we have died and become dust, will we be brought back? That is a far-fetched return!” They measured the power of the One Who is powerful over all things and perfect in every respect against the power of a poor servant who is utterly helpless in every respect. They compared one who is ignorant and knows nothing with the One Who knows all things—Who knows how much of their bodies the earth consumes during their stay in the intermediate realm. In His Book, which is with Him and safeguarded against alteration and change, He has recorded everything that happens to them in life and death. This is an argument, based on the perfection and boundless scope of His knowledge—whose full extent none but He encompasses—for His power to bring the dead back to life.