This locus brings together 2 instances of the use of this verse in Muhammad Shahrur’s books, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
Text of the verse as cited
And there is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them.
Reader’s response
The question
Where does the verse occur in Shahrur’s work, what distinction does he draw from “before,” and what function does it serve in his argument?
The verse occurs in a citation from Qur’anic Stories, p. 128, as an example of qabla (“before”) in the accusative as an adverbial of time. Its function is to support his claim that qabla is an adverb denoting time, rather than to establish that it is governed by a preposition in this verse.
Shahrur includes Al-Nisaʾ 159 among examples of qabla in the accusative with fatha as an adverbial of time, treating it as evidence of its temporal meaning despite the different grammatical states he mentions.
Citation and location
Qur’anic Stories, vol. 2 — p. 128.
Limits of the reading
- The citation does not explain the full meaning of the verse or identify the referent of the pronoun in “his death.”
- The citation does not support describing qabla in Al-Nisaʾ 159 as governed by a preposition; rather, it places it among examples of the accusative adverbial of time.
- There is a discrepancy between the accompanying usage statement, which attributes the passage to volume one and describes the usage as genitive, and the citation, which identifies Qur’anic Stories, vol. 2, p. 128 and describes the example as accusative; this mapping therefore relies on the citation alone.
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Brief reading
Shahrur cites the verse to clarify the use of “before” as a temporal adverb in Qur’anic Arabic, indicating a prior temporal sequence.
Axes
- Linguistic and semantic
- Narrative and historical
Related concepts
- Time: 2
- Priority: 2
Its place in the conceptual network
It contributes to explaining the linguistic usage of the term “before.”
The verse’s role in the argument
- Support: 1
- Example: 1
Usage locations
- Qur’anic Stories, vol. 1, p. 128: he cites it to establish that “before” occurs as a temporal adverb governed by a preposition among the usages of Qur’anic Arabic.
- Concept: time
- Function of the verse here: support
- Textual citation: “As in His saying, exalted is He: {And there is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death…} (Al-Nisaʾ: 159)”
- Qur’anic Stories, vol. 2, p. 128: he cites the verse as an example of qabla occurring in the accusative as an adverb, indicating a prior temporal sequence between belief and death.
- Concept: priority
- Function of the verse here: example
- Textual citation: “As in His saying, exalted is He: {And there is none among the People of the Book but will surely believe in him before his death…} (Al-Nisaʾ: 159)”
Related books
This page is presented within the general atlas-building methodology.