20:53 Taa-Haa (Taa-Haa)

فقال: { الَّذِي جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْأَرْضَ مَهْدًا } أي: فراشا بحالة تتمكنون من السكون فيها، والقرار، والبناء، والغراس، وإثارتها للازدراع وغيره، وذللها لذلك، ولم يجعلها ممتنعة عن مصلحة من مصالحكم. { وَسَلَكَ لَكُمْ فِيهَا سُبُلًا } أي: نفذ لكم الطرق الموصلة، من أرض إلى أرض، ومن قطر إلى قطر، حتى كان الآدميون يتمكنون من الوصول إلى جميع الأرض بأسهل ما يكون، وينتفعون بأسفارهم، أكثر مما ينتفعون بإقامتهم.{ وَأَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَخْرَجْنَا بِهِ أَزْوَاجًا مِنْ نَبَاتٍ شَتَّى } أي: أنزل المطر { فَأَحْيَا بِهِ الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا } وأنبت بذلك جميع أصناف النوابت على اختلاف أنواعها، وتشتت أشكالها، وتباين أحوالها، فساقه، وقدره، ويسره، رزقا لنا ولأنعامنا، ولولا ذلك لهلك من عليها من آدمي وحيوان

هذا من تمام كلام موسى فيما وصف به ربه عز وجل حين سأله فرعون عنه فقال الذي أعطى كل شيء خلقه ثم هدى ثم اعترض الكلام بين ذلك ثم قال الذي جعل لكم الأرض مهدا وفي قراءة بعضهم مهدا أي قرارا تستقرون عليها وتقومون وتنامون عليها وتسافرون على ظهرها وسلك لكم فيها سبلا أي جعل لكم طرقا تمشون في مناكبها كما قال تعالى "وجعلنا فيها فجاجا سبلا لعلهم يهتدون وأنزل من السماء ماء فأخرجنا به أزواجا من نبات شتى" أي من أنواع النباتات من زروع وثمار ومن حامض وحلو ومر وسائر الأنواع.

The Completion of Musa's Reply to Fir`awn

This is from the completion of Musa's speech concerning the description of His Lord when Fir`awn asked him about Him. He (Musa) said,

الَّذِى أَعْطَى كُلَّ شَىءٍ خَلْقَهُ ثُمَّ هَدَى

(He Who gave to each thing its form and nature, then guided it aright.) Then, Fir`awn attempted to present some argumentative rebuttal during Musa's reply. Yet, Musa continued by saying, "He is the One Who made the earth as a bed for you." Some recited the word as Mihadan and others recited it as Mahdan, which means `a place of rest that you settle down upon.' It also may mean `that which you stand upon, sleep upon or travel upon its back.'

وَسَلَكَ لَكُمْ فِيهَا سُبُلاً

(and has opened ways for you therein.) This means, `He made roads for you to walk upon their shoulders.' This is just as He, the Exalted, said,

وَجَعَلْنَا فِيهَا فِجَاجاً سُبُلاً لَّعَلَّهُمْ يَهْتَدُونَ

(And placed therein broad highways for them to pass through, that they may be guided.) 21:31

وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَخْرَجْنَا بِهِ أَزْوَاجاً مِّن نَّبَـتٍ شَتَّى

(and has sent down water from the sky. And We have brought forth with it various kinds of vegetation.) referring to the various species of plants, such as vegetation and fruits. Some are sour, some are sweet, some are bitter and there are other kinds as well.

كُلُواْ وَارْعَوْا أَنْعَـمَكُمْ

(Eat and pasture your cattle (therein);) meaning, `something that is food for you and a palatable fruit for you, and something that is for your cattle as fodder for them, both green and dry.'

إِنَّ فِى ذلِكَ لأيَـتٍ

(Verily, in this are Ayat.) This means proofs, signs and evidences.

لاٌّوْلِى النُّهَى

(for men of understanding.) meaning those who possess correct and upright intelligence realizing that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah, and there is no true Lord other than Him.

مِنْهَا خَلَقْنَـكُمْ وَفِيهَا نُعِيدُكُمْ وَمِنْهَا نُخْرِجُكُمْ تَارَةً أُخْرَى

(Thereof We created you, and into it we shall return you, and from it We shall bring you out once again.) meaning, `the earth is your beginning. For your father, Adam, was created with dirt from the surface of the earth. You also will be returned to the earth. This means that you will become dirt when you die and decay.' The statement, "And from it We shall bring you out once again," means,

يَوْمَ يَدْعُوكُمْ فَتَسْتَجِيبُونَ بِحَمْدِهِ وَتَظُنُّونَ إِن لَّبِثْتُمْ إِلاَّ قَلِيلاً

(On the Day when He will call you, and you will answer with His praise and obedience, and you will think that you have stayed (in this world) but a little while!) 17:52 This Ayah is similar to Allah's statement,

قَالَ فِيهَا تَحْيَوْنَ وَفِيهَا تَمُوتُونَ وَمِنْهَا تُخْرَجُونَ

(He said: "Therein you shall live, and therein you shall die, and from it you shall be brought out.") 7:25

Musa showed Fir`awn all of the Signs but He did not believe Concerning Allah's statement,

وَلَقَدْ أَرَيْنَـهُ ءَايَـتِنَا كُلَّهَا فَكَذَّبَ وَأَبَى

(And indeed We showed him (Fir`awn) all Our Ayat, but he denied and refused.) This means that the proofs, signs and evi- dences were establi- shed against Fir`awn and he saw them with his own eyes, but he still denied and rejec- ted them due to his disbelief, abstinence and transgression. This is as Allah, the Exalted, says,

وَجَحَدُواْ بِهَا وَاسْتَيْقَنَتْهَآ أَنفُسُهُمْ ظُلْماً وَعُلُوّاً

(And they belied them wrongfully and arrogantly, though they themselves were convinced thereof.) 27:14

He is the One Who made for you as well as for all creatures the earth a cradle a bed and threaded facilitated for you therein ways roads and sent down from the heaven water rain. God exalted be He says as a complement to Moses’s description of Him and as an address to the people of Mecca and therewith We brought forth various kinds species of plants shattā ‘various’ adjectivally qualifies azwājan ‘kinds’ in other words plants of different colours flavours and different in other ways shattā is the plural of shatīt similar in pattern to marīd plural mardā as may be used in a phrase like shatta al-amr ‘the affair has become divided’.

The word ازواج (pairs) used in verse 53 is used here in the sense of "Kinds" or "Species", and the word is the plural of the word which means "different" or "diverse". The verse means that Allah has created so many kinds of plants that they are beyond human reckoning and each of them contains special properties which make them invaluable to man for his well-being. It is impossible for man to comprehend completely all the properties and uses of all the plants created by Allah Ta` ala. For centuries scientists have been working to find out all about them and researches have revealed a great deal about their properties. However it is impossible to claim that whatever we know at present is the last word.