This entry brings together 1 instance 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
{It is not for any human being that God should speak to him except by revelation, or from behind a veil, or by sending a messenger who reveals, by His permission, whatever He wills. Indeed, He is Exalted, Wise.}
Reader’s Answer
Question
How does Muhammad Shahrur employ al-Shura 51 in interpreting revelation and describing “Exalted, Wise”?
Shahrur employs the verse to argue that the phrase “God speaks to him” describes the mode by which God’s speech is revealed, and he takes the pronoun in “Indeed, He is Exalted, Wise” to refer, in his reading, to what is revealed, which he identifies as the Qur’an. He then links it to the following verse in order to understand that the revelation to Muhammad encompassed messengerhood and prophethood in the manner stated in verse 51.
Shahrur says that al-Shura 51 addresses the mode of revelation of God’s speech through the phrase “God speaks to him.” He understands “Indeed, He is Exalted, Wise” in al-Shura 51 as referring to what is revealed, and identifies this revealed content as the Qur’an. Shahrur distinguishes between “God’s speech” in the verse and “messengerhood,” maintaining that the verse does not include messengerhood, drawing in his presentation on al-A’raf 144. He links al-Shura 51 with al-Shura 52 to conclude that the revelation to Muhammad of messengerhood and prophethood came by the manner mentioned in verse 51, with messengerhood in the Mother of the Book and prophethood in the Qur’an.
Source and Location
The Book and the Qur’an — p. 187.
Limits of the Reading
- This page records Shahrur’s reading as presented in the cited source; it does not establish that the pronoun in “Indeed, He is Exalted, Wise” refers to the Qur’an as the only or agreed-upon meaning.
- The cited source affirms Shahrur’s link between verses 51 and 52, but does not offer here an independent linguistic or exegetical discussion to prefer this link over other readings.
- The distinction between “God’s speech” and “messengerhood” should not be turned into a conclusion imposed by the verse alone; it is part of Shahrur’s interpretive framework as presented in the source.
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Brief Reading
The verse is cited as evidence for the mode by which God’s speech is revealed, with its description referred back to what is revealed.
Axes
- Faith-based
- Methodological
Related Concepts
- Revelation: 2
Its Place in the Conceptual Network
It is connected to the construction of Shahrur’s conception of revelation in terms of the manner of descent and its description.
Role of the Verse in the Argument
- Foundational: 1
Instances of Use
- The Book and the Qur’an, p. 187: He cites it as evidence for the mode by which God’s speech is revealed, and takes the description “Exalted, Wise” to refer to what is revealed.
- Concept: Revelation
- Function of the verse here: Foundational
- Textual citation: “{It is not for any human being that God should speak to him… Indeed, He is Exalted, Wise.}”
Related Books
This page is presented within the general methodology for constructing the atlas.