This axis brings together 2 loci where this verse is used in the books of Muhammad Shahrur, linking it to the concepts and arguments that appear around it.
Text of the Verse as Cited
{There is no private consultation among three but that He is their fourth, nor among five but that He is their sixth; nor fewer than that nor more but that He is with them wherever they may be}
Reader’s Answer
Question
Where does Shahrur employ Qur’an 58:7, what is the meaning of the distinction he derives from it, and what function does it serve in his argument?
Shahrur employs the verse on page 147 of Qur’anic Narratives, vol. 1 as evidence of God’s presence in every time and place. In the same context, he links this presence to the meaning of “the All-Aware” at the end of Qur’an 66:3, and treats awareness as indicating presence.
Shahrur adduces Qur’an 58:7 to show that God is present in every time and place. He connects the import of the name “the All-Aware” at the end of Qur’an 66:3 to God’s presence, presenting “awareness” as presence-based in this context.
Citation and Location
Qur’anic Narratives, vol. 1 — p. 147.
Limits of the Reading
- The citation establishes this use in the context of interpreting Qur’an 66:3 and does not provide an independent, detailed explanation of Qur’an 58:7.
- The citation does not explicitly state either a relation of synonymy or a denial of synonymy between “the All-Aware” and other terms.
- The description of presence here is Shahrur’s own formulation in the citation; the page adds no interpretive account beyond this passage.
Continue From Here
Brief Reading
For Shahrur, the verse serves to affirm God’s presence with people in every time and place, supporting a reading of the name “the All-Aware” as perpetual comprehensiveness of knowledge.
Axes
- Theological
- Methodological
Related Concepts
- Divine withness: 2
- Divine presence: 2
Its Place in the Conceptual Network
It is connected to the concept of divine withness and serves to construct a comprehensive conception of divine presence.
The Verse’s Role in the Argument
- Support: 2
Loci of Use
- Qur’anic Narratives, vol. 1, p. 147: He cites the verse to affirm that God is present in every time and place, thereby interpreting the ending of Qur’an 66:3 with the name “the All-Aware.”
- Concept: divine withness
- Function of the verse here: support
- Textual citation: “By indication of His saying, exalted is He: {There is no private consultation … wherever they may be} (Al-Mujadila: 7).”
- Qur’anic Narratives, vol. 2, p. 147: He employs it to establish that God is present with people in every time and place, thereby interpreting the verse’s ending with “the All-Aware.”
- Concept: divine presence
- Function of the verse here: support
- Textual citation: “By indication of His saying, exalted is He: {There is no private consultation among three… wherever they may be} (Al-Mujadila: 7).”
Related Books
This page is presented within the general atlas construction methodology.