(18–20) “Allah bears witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Him—and so do the angels and those endowed with knowledge—as He upholds justice. There is no deity worthy of worship except Him, the Almighty, the All-Wise. Indeed, the religion with Allah is Islam. Those who were given the Scripture differed only after knowledge had come to them, out of mutual envy and aggression. Whoever disbelieves in Allah’s signs—Allah is swift in reckoning. If they dispute with you, say, ‘I have submitted myself wholly to Allah, as have those who follow me.’ And say to those who were given the Scripture and to the unlettered, ‘Have you submitted?’ If they submit, they are rightly guided; but if they turn away, your duty is only to convey the message. Allah is All-Seeing of His servants.”
This is Allah Most High’s affirmation of His oneness through the greatest means that establish it: His own testimony and the testimony of the choicest among creation—the angels and those endowed with knowledge. His testimony consists in the conclusive arguments and proofs He has established for His oneness and for the truth that there is no deity worthy of worship except Him. He has presented many kinds of evidence for this great foundation throughout the universe and within people themselves. Even if the only evidence were that no one has ever upheld His oneness without Him granting that person victory over the polytheist who obstinately denies it, that alone would suffice. Another proof is His immense bestowal of blessings: every blessing His servants possess comes from Him, and none but He averts affliction. All creatures are incapable of securing benefit or averting harm for themselves or anyone else. This constitutes a conclusive proof that affirming His oneness is obligatory and that polytheism is false.
We know of the angels’ testimony through what Allah and His messengers have told us. As for the testimony of those endowed with knowledge, they are ⦗125⦘ the authorities to whom all religious matters are referred, especially the greatest, most sublime, and noblest matter: the oneness of Allah. From first to last, they have all agreed upon it, called to it, and explained to people the paths leading to it. Creation must therefore adhere to this truth to which they have testified and act upon it.
This also proves that the noblest field of knowledge is knowledge of Allah’s oneness, for Allah Himself testified to it and called the choicest of His creation to testify to it. Testimony can arise only from knowledge and certainty comparable to direct visual observation. This indicates that anyone whose knowledge of Allah’s oneness has not reached this level is not among those endowed with knowledge.
This verse demonstrates the nobility of knowledge in many ways. Allah singled out the learned, rather than other people, to testify to the greatest truth. He joined their testimony to His own testimony and that of His angels, which is honor enough. He described them as “those endowed with knowledge,” thus associating them with knowledge because they uphold it and are characterized by it. Furthermore, He made them witnesses and an authoritative proof against people, obliging people to act upon the truth to which they testified. They thereby become a cause of such action, and they receive a share of the reward of everyone who acts upon it. That is Allah’s bounty, which He grants to whomever He wills. Moreover, Allah’s calling the learned to testify entails His commendation of them, His attestation to their integrity, and His declaration that they are trustworthy custodians of what He has entrusted to them.
After affirming His oneness, He affirmed His justice, saying, “as He upholds justice.” That is, He has always been characterized by justice in His actions and His governance of His servants. He follows a straight path in what He commands and prohibits, and in what He creates and decrees. He then reaffirmed His oneness, saying, “There is no deity worthy of worship except Him, the Almighty, the All-Wise.”
Know that this foundational truth—the oneness of Allah and singling Him out for worship—is established by both scriptural and rational evidence, until it has become clearer than the sun to those endowed with insight. The scriptural evidence comprises everything in Allah’s Book and the sunnah of His Messenger that commands and affirms it, speaks of Allah’s love for those who uphold it and His hatred and punishment of those who fail to do so, and condemns polytheism and its adherents. All of this is scriptural evidence for Allah’s oneness, to such an extent that nearly the entire Quran consists of proofs for it.
As for the rational evidence, which is grasped through the mind’s reflection and understanding of matters, the Quran has directed attention to it and highlighted many of its forms. Among the greatest of these is the acknowledgment of Allah’s sole lordship. Whoever knows that He alone is the Creator, Provider, and Governor of all affairs will necessarily conclude that He alone is worthy of worship and that worship is appropriate for none but Him. Since this is among the clearest and greatest truths, Allah frequently uses it as evidence in His Book.
Another rational proof that Allah alone is worthy of worship is that He alone bestows blessings and averts afflictions. Whoever knows that every blessing, outward or inward, small or great, comes from Allah, and that every affliction, hardship, and distress can be removed by Him alone—and that no created being has the power even for himself, let alone anyone else, to bring about a blessing or avert an affliction—will become certain that worshipping anything besides Allah is the falsest of falsehoods. Worship is fitting only for the One who alone brings benefits and averts harms. For this reason, Allah repeatedly draws attention to this proof in His Book.
Another rational proof is what Allah has stated concerning the objects worshipped besides Him: they possess no power to bring benefit or harm, cannot aid others or even themselves, and have neither hearing nor sight. Even if it were assumed that they could hear, they would be of no avail whatsoever. Other such attributes demonstrate their utter deficiency. In contrast, He has informed us of His own sublime attributes and beautiful acts—His power, irresistible might, and the other qualities known through both revealed and rational evidence. Whoever truly knows this will know that worship is fitting and proper only for the magnificent Lord, to whom belong all perfection, glory, praise, power, and grandeur—not for created beings that are themselves governed, deficient, deaf, dumb, and devoid of understanding.
Another rational proof is what servants have witnessed with their own eyes, both in ancient and recent times: those who affirm Allah’s oneness are honored, while the adherents of polytheism are humiliated and punished. This is only because Allah has made the affirmation of His oneness a means of attaining every good and averting every religious and worldly evil, while He has made associating partners with Him and disbelieving in Him causes of religious and worldly punishments. Thus, when Allah relates the stories of the messengers and their peoples—the obedient and the disobedient—and tells of the punishment of the disobedient and the deliverance of the messengers and their followers, He says after each account, “Indeed, in that is a sign.” That is, it contains a lesson for those who take heed, through which they know that affirming His oneness leads to salvation, while abandoning it leads to destruction.
These are among the great rational and scriptural proofs establishing this foundational truth. Allah has presented them frequently in His Book and set them forth in varied forms, so that whoever lives may live upon clear proof and whoever perishes may perish upon clear proof. To Him belong all praise, gratitude, and acclaim.
Having established that He is the true God who alone deserves worship, He explained the worship and religion by which He must be worshipped and obeyed: Islam. Islam is submission to Allah by affirming His oneness and obeying Him in the manner called for by His messengers and urged by His Books. It is the only religion He accepts from anyone. It entails devoting love, fear, hope, repentance, and supplication sincerely to Him alone, and following His Messenger in all of this. This is the religion of all the messengers, and everyone who follows them is upon their path.
The People of the Scripture differed only after their scriptures had come to them, urging them to unite upon Allah’s religion. Their disagreement arose from mutual envy, wrongdoing, and aggression on their own part, even though they had been given the greatest cause requiring them to follow ⦗126⦘ the truth and abandon discord. This constituted disbelief on their part. Allah Most High therefore says, “Those who were given the Scripture differed only after knowledge had come to them, out of mutual envy and aggression. Whoever disbelieves in Allah’s signs—Allah is swift in reckoning.” He will recompense everyone for what they have done, especially those who abandon the truth after recognizing it. Such people deserve the severe warning and painful punishment.
Allah then commanded His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, whenever the Christians and others who prefer a religion other than Islam dispute with him, to say to them, “I have submitted myself wholly to Allah, as have those who follow me.” That is: I and those who follow me have acknowledged, testified, and submitted ourselves wholly to our Lord. We have abandoned every religion other than Islam and are certain of its falsehood. This cuts off the hopes of anyone who seeks to sway you, renews your commitment to your religion whenever doubts are presented, and serves as proof for anyone confused about the matter.
It has already been stated that Allah called those of His servants who possess knowledge to testify to His oneness so that they might serve as proof for others. The foremost, best, and most knowledgeable of them is our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, followed by his followers according to their differing ranks and degrees. They possess sound knowledge and mature judgment that no other people can equal or even approach. Once Allah’s oneness and His religion have been firmly established by clear proofs and upheld by the most perfect and knowledgeable of creation, certainty is attained and every doubt, uncertainty, and objection is removed. It then becomes known that every religion besides it is false.
For this reason, He says, “And say to those who were given the Scripture”—the Christians and Jews—“and to the unlettered”—the polytheists among the Arabs and others—“Have you submitted? If they submit”—in the same manner as you have—“they are rightly guided,” just as you are rightly guided. They become your brothers, possessing the same rights and bearing the same obligations as you. “But if they turn away” from Islam and remain content with religions that contradict it, “your duty is only to convey the message.” Your reward from your Lord is assured, and the proof has been established against them. Nothing then remains but for them to be punished in recompense for their crime. Hence He says, “Allah is All-Seeing of His servants.”