Juz 19
This portion of the Qur'an is constituted of the latter half of Surah al-Furqaan, the whole of ash-Shu'araa and part of an-Naml.
al-Furqaan
The subject matter of this Makkan surah reflects the title Furqaan. Criterion (one of the names of the Qur'an)?¢‚Ǩ¬¶distinguishing right from wrong, good from bad righteousness from sin, spiritual development from degeneration, truth from falsehood and good from bad.
- Opens with reference to revelation, Allah's sovereignty and humanness of Prophets. (1-9)
- Response to challenges posed to issue of Day of Judgment, to the mission of Messengers and their Message (10-34). Particular mention of Prophets Moses, Nuh, Hud, Saleh and the opposition they too endured (35-44)
- Reference to the marvelous and systematic workings of nature, presented to convince reader/listener of manifestation of Allah's superb handiwork. (45-49)
- Concludes (63-77) by identifying 12 essential qualities of Believers?¢‚Ǩ¬¶
- Humility
- Not indulge in impropriety with the uncouth
- Worship sincerely in private as in public
- Put trust in Allah
- Worship none but Allah
- Value life and the living
- Guard chastity and modesty
- Be honest and truthful
- Shun profanity
- Attentive to Allah's commands
- Pray for well-being of future generations
- Aspire to be models of excellence
Ash-Shu'araa'
Main theme of this Makkan surah is reiteration of Qur'an as a continuation of previous scripture and the culmination of Divine revelation.
- Prophet encouraged by Allah not to be disheartened by opposition to the Message. Many do not listen just as so many observe the signs of Allah in creation and yet do not reflect. (1-9)
- History of various Prophets detailed in 180 verses (10-191)
- Moses, his struggle with Pharoah
- Ibrahim and his struggle in inviting others to awheed
- Nuh and his call for shunning evil
- Hud and his appeal for following true guidance
- Saleh and his plea for obedience to Allah
- Lut and his request for abstention from deviant and natural behavior
- Shua'aib and his emphasis on just in economic dealings
- Quran is tanzeel /revelation, conveyed through agency of ruh-ul-ameen / truthful spirit (Gabriel), revealed on to the qalb /?¢‚Ǩ¬ùheart?¢‚Ǩ¬ù of the Prophet, to serve as an admonition/ mundhereen , in a (living) language clearly/ mubeen understood. Revelation is not poetry from the pen/mind of a fallible human writer, but revelation from the Almighty (192-227)
An-Naml
This Makkan surah focuses on the spiritual truths that underlie the prophetic missions. Specific reference is made to the mission of the prophets Moses, Solomon, Saleh and Lut.
- Role of the Qur'an as a source of guidance and of the practice of believers as those who pursue spiritual, moral and economic welfare. Contra-distinction between the attitude of Believers and disbelievers (1-6)
- Despite the capacity of Moses to take on all the challenges posed to him and the miracles he performed, people still did not believe (7-14)
- Prophet Sulayman's unique ability to understand various levels of non-human communication is highlighted as well as a particular incident when his army came in the vicinity of a colony of ants and the humility Prophet Sulayman displayed despite his power and authority. [The surah takes it's title from his incident]. Prophet Sulayman's communication with the Queen of Sheba (in Yemen ) is recorded as well. (15-44)
- Stubbornness and arrogance of the Thamud people and the people of Prophet Lut are mentioned as well as the Thamud's plot to assassinate Prophet Saleh (45-58)