| Jonah: (107) And if Allah touches you...

Issues Discussed:

Know that the Almighty has established at the end of this Surah that all contingent beings depend upon Him, all creatures are in need of Him, intellects are bewildered by Him, and grace, bounty, and existence flow forth from Him.

A thing is either harmful, or beneficial, or neither harmful nor beneficial. These latter two categories share the name of "good" (khayr).

1. Regarding Harm (ḍurr): Since harm is an existing reality, He said: {And if Allah touches you with harm} (wa in yamsaskallāhu bi-ḍurrin).
2. Regarding Good (khayr): Since good can be either an existing reality or a non-existence (absence of harm), He did not use the term "touching" (yamsas) but said: {And if He intends for you good} (wa in yurīdka bi-khayrin).

This verse indicates that both harm and good occur by the power and decree of Allah. This encompasses disbelief and faith, obedience and disobedience, joy and afflictions, blessings and pains, pleasures and injuries.

The Almighty clarifies that if He decrees evil for someone, no one can remove it except Him. If He decrees good for someone, no one can repel His bounty.

A Subtle Point in the Verse: Allah has prioritized the aspect of good over the aspect of harm in three ways:

1. When mentioning the touching of harm, He stated that no remover exists except Him. This implies that Allah removes harms. (This is based on the principle that an exception from a negation establishes the opposite). When mentioning good, He did not say that He repels it, but rather that {no repeller of His bounty} exists. This indicates that good is desired intrinsically (bi-dhātih), whereas harm is desired incidentally (bi-l-ʿaraḍ). This aligns with the Prophet's narration from the Lord of Glory: "My Mercy has preceded My Wrath."
2. Regarding good, He said: {He causes it to strike whom He wills of His servants} (yuṣību bihi man yashā’u min ʿibādih). This suggests that the aspect of good and mercy is stronger and more prevalent.
3. He followed this by saying: {And He is the Forgiving, the Merciful} (wa huwa l-ghafūru r-raḥīm). This also points to the strength of the aspect of mercy.

The essence of this verse is that the Almighty has singled Himself out for creation, origination, formation, and innovation. There is no creator besides Him, and none is worthy of worship except Him. Furthermore, He indicated that good is intrinsically intended, while harm is incidentally intended. There are deep secrets under this heading. This is what we say regarding this verse.

The commentators state that since the previous verse established that idols neither harm nor benefit, this verse clarifies that they also lack the power to repel harm coming from others or to bring about good coming from others.

Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said regarding {And if Allah touches you with harm, no one can remove it except Him}: This means if He afflicts you with sickness or poverty, no one can repel it except Him.

Regarding {And if He intends for you good}: Al-Wahidi said this is an inversion (maqlūb), meaning "And if He intends good for you." However, since each concept is connected to the other, it is permissible to substitute one for the other in expression.

I argue that the precedence in wording indicates greater care. Thus, the phrasing {And if He intends for you good} suggests that the human being is the primary objective, and all other goods are created for his sake. This subtlety is only derived from this specific construction.

< { Say: O people, the truth has come to you from your Lord. So whoever is guided, he is guided for his own self; and whoever strays, he strays to his own detriment. And I am not over you a guardian. } >