Al-An'am 62

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This axis brings together 1 instance of the use of this verse in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.

Text of the Verse as Cited

Then they are returned to God, their true Master. Unquestionably, judgment belongs to Him, and He is the swiftest of reckoners.

Reader’s Answer

Question

How does Muhammad Shahrur employ God’s saying, “Then they are returned to God, their true Master. Unquestionably, judgment belongs to Him,” in his discussion of human knowledge of God?

Shahrur employs the verse to establish the distinction between the reality of God, as “the Truth,” and human conceptions of Him. In his view, human thought develops and its abstractions increase, but any human conception—ancient or modern—does not correspond to the reality of God’s existence as it is outside human consciousness. In this context, the phrase “Unquestionably, judgment belongs to Him” serves to affirm God as the final point of reference; it does not establish that all human knowledge of God is invalid, or that human knowledge in all fields is conjectural.

Shahrur cites Al-An’am 62 in his discussion of the lack of correspondence between human conceptions of God and the reality of His existence. He holds that human conceptions of God change as thought develops and may become more abstract, yet they remain incongruent with divine reality as it exists outside human consciousness.

Citation and Location

The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought — p. 36.

Limits of the Reading

  • The citation does not offer an independent linguistic or detailed interpretation of the verse’s wording; rather, it cites it in support of a philosophical line of argument about human knowledge of God.
  • This passage should not be generalized to Shahrur’s theory of knowledge as a whole, because the text confines the discussion to human conceptions of God.
  • The phrase “Unquestionably, judgment belongs to Him” is not elaborated in the citation as a legislative or political ruling; the connection presented is to its relation to the final authority of divine truth.

Continue From Here

Brief Reading

The verse is used to affirm that final judgment belongs to God, while human knowledge remains approximate and conjectural.

Axes

  • Methodological
  • Faith-related
  • Judgment: 2
  • Human knowledge: 1
  • Conjecturality: 1

Its Place in the Conceptual Network

It supports the distinction between divine authority and the limits of human perception.

Role of the Verse in the Argument

  • Support: 1

Usage Instances

  • The Qur’an in Contemporary Thought, p. 36: He uses it in the context of explaining that final judgment belongs to God, while human knowledge remains approximate and conjectural.
    • Concept: Judgment
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “- {Then they are returned to God, their true Master…} (Al-An’am 62)”

This page is presented within the general atlas-building methodology.

Graph View

Muhammad Shahrur Atlas