Sūrat al-Baqarah

Medinan. It consists of two hundred and eighty-six verses.

In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.

Alif-Lām-Mīm.

"Whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth."

It is permissible that this refers to all those whom they have designated as children for Allah, while they are qānitūn (devoutly obedient) to Him.

• Meaning: They are obedient, worshiping, acknowledging His Lordship, while denying what [the polytheists] have attributed to them.

If you ask: How is mā (which is used for non-rational beings) used here, despite the word qānitūn (which is used for rational beings)?

I say: It is like His saying: "Glory be to that (mā) which has subjected these to us."

It is as if He used mā instead of man to belittle them and diminish their status, similar to His saying: "And they have claimed a lineage between Him and the jinn" (al-Ṣāffāt).

"Originator of the heavens and the earth. And when He decrees a matter, He only says to it, 'Be,' and it is."