Tafsir of Nuh 71:14

Surah Nuh (71:14)

"And He has certainly created you in stages (or states)."

Tafsir Notes (Continuing from the previous verse's context):

The phrase is in the accusative case, functioning as a haal (circumstantial clause), as if saying: "Why do you not believe in Allah, while this is your condition—a condition that necessitates belief in Him—'And He has certainly created you in stages'?"

This means: He created you in successive stages (taaraat): first as dust, then as a drop of semen (nutfah), then as a clinging clot ('alaqah), then as a chewed lump of flesh (mudghah), then as bones covered with flesh, and then He brought you forth as another creation (a fully formed being).

A Third Interpretation (My View): The people were greatly mocking and belittling Noah (peace be upon him). Allah commanded them to revere him and cease their mockery. It is as if He said to them: If you revere Noah and cease mocking him, that reverence should be for the sake of Allah. So, why do you not expect waqār (dignity/reverence) for Allah and render it for His sake, out of obedience to Him? For anything a person does for the sake of Allah, he must expect good from it.

A Fourth Interpretation: Al-Waqār (dignity/reverence) comes from the root waqara (to be firm or established). It is as if He said: "What is wrong with you?" (The discourse ends here). Then He follows with a rhetorical question implying denial: "Do you not expect any dignity/reverence for Allah?" (Referencing the preceding verse, 71:13: Mā lakum lā tarjūna lillāhi waqārā).

This means: You do not expect permanence or stability (thabāt and baqā’) for Allah. If you expected His permanence and stability, you would fear Him and would not dare to mock His messengers and His commands. The meaning of tarjūna (expect/hope for) here is ta'taqidūna (believe/hold as true), because one who hopes for something believes in its existence.

Establishing Monotheism (Tawhid) using this verse:

When Allah commanded the glorification of Allah in this verse, He provided proofs for Monotheism (Tawhid):

The First Proof: "And He has certainly created you in stages."

1. First View (Al-Layth): Al-Tawrah means one stage after another, as mentioned: from a drop of semen, to a clot, until the end of these stages.
2. Second View (Ibn al-Anbārī): Al-Tawr means a state or condition. The meaning is: He created you in different types (asnāf) such that no one resembles another.

After mentioning this proof for Monotheism derived from the souls (al-Anfus), He follows it, according to the usual pattern in the Qur'an, with the proof derived from the horizons (al-Āfāq).

The Second Proof for Monotheism is His saying:

"Have you not seen how Allah has created seven heavens in layers, and made the moon therein a light, and made the sun a lamp?" (71:15-16)