This axis 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 WHOEVER EARNS A GOOD DEED, WE WILL INCREASE FOR HIM GOODNESS IN IT…
Reader’s Answer
Question
How does Muhammad Shahrur employ Qur’an 42:23 in explaining the meaning of “His servants”?
Shahrur employs the verse as an example of the “obedient servant”: those to whom God gives glad tidings here are described as having believed and performed righteous deeds. He makes this part of his claim that the term “servant” may refer to both the obedient and the disobedient, rather than offering an independent definition of the verse’s meaning of “kinship.”
Shahrur cites Qur’an 42:23 as evidence for the obedient servant, because the verse describes “His servants” as “those who believe and perform righteous deeds.” In his discussion at the same location, Shahrur maintains that “servant” applies to both the obedient and the disobedient, pairing this example with that of “My servants who have transgressed against themselves” as an example of the disobedient servant.
Evidence and Location
Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation — p. 58.
Limits of the Reading
- The only evidence connected to the verse is from Guide to the Contemporary Reading p. 58, and it establishes its use in dividing the uses of “servant” into obedient and disobedient.
- This reading is limited to the meaning explicitly stated by the evidence in the location mentioned.
- The other evidence, from Towards New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence p. 109, mentions Qur’an 42:11, not Qur’an 42:23, and therefore cannot serve as evidence for this page.
Continue From Here
- Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation
- Towards New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence
Brief Reading
In Shahrur’s reading, servants include obedient people who perform righteous deeds, and the verse is used to broaden the meaning of kinship.
Axes
- Faith-based
- Human and ethical
Related Concepts
- servants: 2
- kinship: 2
Its Place in the Conceptual Network
It is connected to a network of concepts linking obedience to human connection and kinship.
The Verse’s Role in the Argument
- Support: 1
- Example: 1
Instances of Use
- Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation, p. 58: He adduces it to show that servants also include obedient people who perform righteous deeds.
- Concept: servants
- Function of the verse here: Support
- Textual evidence: “And the obedient servant in His saying, exalted be He: { … AND WHOEVER EARNS A GOOD DEED, WE WILL INCREASE FOR HIM GOODNESS IN IT … } (Al-Shura 23).”
- Towards New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence, p. 109: He uses it to establish the meaning of blood kinship and friendship in the uses of the root, before moving to kinship by descent in legal rulings.
- Concept: kinship
- Function of the verse here: Example
- Textual evidence: “– { SAY: I DO NOT ASK YOU FOR ANY REWARD FOR IT EXCEPT AFFECTION IN KINSHIP } (Al-Shura 23).”
Related Books
- Guide to the Contemporary Reading of the Wise Revelation
- Towards New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence
This page is presented within the atlas’s general methodology for constructing the atlas.