Al-Hadid (The Iron): (22) Whatever strikes...

Issue 1:

This verse indicates that all earthly occurrences, before entering existence, are written in the Preserved Tablet. The theologians stated that all this was written for several reasons:

1. So that the angels may deduce from that writing that the Almighty is Knower of all things before they occur.
2. So that they may know the wisdom of God, as He created and sustained them despite knowing they would commit those sins.
3. So that they may be warned against similar sins.
4. So that they may thank God for granting them success in obedience and protecting them from disobedience.

The philosophers said that the angels whom God described as those who manage affairs ({who manage the affair}) and distribute matters ({who apportion the affair}) are only the origins for the occurrence of events in this lower world, via celestial movements and planetary conjunctions. Their perception of these causes leading to their effects is what is meant by {except that it is in a Book}.

Issue 2:

The majority of the People of Monotheism (Ahl al-Tawhid) use this verse as evidence that the Almighty knows things before they happen, contrary to Hisham ibn al-Hakam. The evidence is that since God wrote these things in the Book before they occurred, and they came in conformity with that writing, we know that God knew them all.

Issue 3:

The phrase {nor in your own selves} encompasses all calamities affecting souls, including their disbelief and sins. Thus, the verse indicates that all their actions, in detail, are written in the Preserved Tablet and established in God's knowledge. Therefore, abstaining from those actions would have been impossible, because God's knowledge of their existence contradicts their non-existence, and combining two contradictory things is impossible. Since knowledge of their existence has occurred, and this knowledge is impossible to cease, combining their non-existence with God's knowledge of their existence is impossible.

Issue 4:

The Almighty did not say that all occurrences are written in the Book because the movements of the inhabitants of Paradise and Hellfire are infinite, making their inscription in the Book impossible. Furthermore, He specified this to the Earth and the souls, and did not include the conditions of the heavens. Also, He specified this to the calamities of the Earth and souls, not their blessings. In all these specifications there are signs and secrets.

As for {before We bring it into being} (or create it), there are differing opinions:

• Some said: Before We create these calamities.
• Others said: Rather, it refers to the souls.
• Others said: Rather, it refers to the Earth itself.

All are plausible because the mention of all these preceded. However, the closest meaning is the calamity itself, as it is the primary subject. Others said: It means before We create the creatures. Although the creatures were not explicitly mentioned before, their prominence allows the pronoun to refer back to them, as in {Indeed, We have sent it down} (Yusuf: 2).

Then the Almighty said: {Indeed, that is easy for Allah}. There are two opinions regarding this:

1. That preserving all of that is easy for Allah.
2. That establishing all of that, despite its vastness, is easy for Allah, even if it is difficult for the servants.

A similar verse is His saying: {No one is granted a long life, nor is his life shortened, except that it is in a Book. Indeed, that is easy for Allah} (Fatir: 11).