Surah An-Nahl (16) — Ayah 2

(Ayah2) ➊ { يُنَزِّلُ الْمَلٰٓىِٕكَةَ بِالرُّوْحِ مِنْ اَمْرِهٖ :} By "angels" is meant Jibreel (Gabriel), peace be upon him, and with him the angels who protect the revelation. Only Jibreel, peace be upon him, can also be meant, because sometimes a plural word is used for a great personality. By {’’اَلرُّوْحُ‘‘ } is meant that thing by which life is obtained; here it means revelation, because true life is obtained through it, both the life of the heart and the life of the Hereafter, as He said: «{ وَ كَذٰلِكَ اَوْحَيْنَاۤ اِلَيْكَ رُوْحًا مِّنْ اَمْرِنَا}» [ الشوریٰ : ۵۲ ] "And thus We have revealed to you a spirit of Our command." Here too, by {’’ رُوْحًا ‘‘ } is meant revelation. {’’ اَمْرِهٖ ‘‘} means that the angels do not descend except by His command. See Surah Maryam (64).

➋ { عَلٰى مَنْ يَّشَآءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهٖۤ :} It is understood that prophethood is a gifted thing which is granted solely by Allah's will and His selection, as He said: «{ اَللّٰهُ يَصْطَفِيْ مِنَ الْمَلٰٓىِٕكَةِ رُسُلًا وَّ مِنَ النَّاسِ }» [ الحج : ۷۵ ] "Allah chooses messengers from among the angels and from among the people." And He said: « { اَللّٰهُ اَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهٗ }» [ الأنعام : ۱۲۴ ] "Allah knows best where to place His message." This is not something that can be attained by one's own spiritual exercises or seclusion, as claimed by the Qadiani deceiver and some misguided people.

➌ { اَنْ اَنْذِرُوْۤا اَنَّهٗ لَاۤ اِلٰهَ اِلَّاۤ اَنَا فَاتَّقُوْنِ :} In this part of the verse, the purpose of sending the angels with revelation to all His messengers is stated: that they should call to Allah's oneness, to avoiding any kind of association with Him, and to fearing Him alone, as He said: «{ وَ مَاۤ اَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ مِنْ رَّسُوْلٍ اِلَّا نُوْحِيْۤ اِلَيْهِ اَنَّهٗ لَاۤ اِلٰهَ اِلَّاۤ اَنَا فَاعْبُدُوْنِ }» [ الأنبیاء : ۲۵ ] "And We did not send any messenger before you except that We revealed to him that there is no deity except Me, so worship Me."

2. 1. By "رُوْح" is meant revelation (wahy), as is mentioned at another place in the Quran. (وَكَذٰلِكَ اَوْحَيْنَآ اِلَيْكَ رُوْحًا مِّنْ اَمْرِنَا ۭ مَا كُنْتَ تَدْرِيْ مَا الْكِتٰبُ وَلَا الْاِيْمَانُ) (42:52) "Thus We have revealed to you, by Our command, a revelation; you did not know what the Book was, nor what faith was before this."
2. 2. The meaning is the Prophets (peace be upon them) upon whom revelation is sent down. Just as Allah has said (اَللّٰهُ اَعْلَمُ حَيْثُ يَجْعَلُ رِسَالَتَهٗ) (6:124) "Allah knows best where to place His message, and He sends down revelation by His command upon whichever of His servants He wills, so that he may warn the people of the Day of Meeting (the Day of Resurrection)."

2. He sends down the angels with revelation [3] by His command upon whom He wills of His servants, (saying): Warn that there is no deity except Me, so fear only Me.

[3]
The Different Meanings of "Ruh" (Spirit):

The word "Ruh" has been used in the Quran in the following three meanings:
1. Ruh meaning that subtle essence which is present in a living being, and due to which the organs and limbs of that being move, and when this Ruh departs, the living being becomes lifeless or dies. Just as the reality of this Ruh has been given very little knowledge to mankind, similarly, encompassing the meanings of Ruh is also beyond human reach. [17: 85]
2. Ruh meaning angel, as stated: ﴿فَاَرْسَلْنَآ اِلَيْهَا رُوْحَنَا فَتَمَثَّلَ لَهَا بَشَرًا سَوِيًّا﴾ [ 17: 19] (i.e., We sent Our Ruh or angel to Maryam, who appeared before her as a well-proportioned man). Ruh here can mean a general angel or Jibreelؑ. However, when the term Ruh al-Qudus or Ruh al-Amin is used, it refers only to Sayyiduna Jibreelؑ.
3. Ruh meaning the message which the angel brings from Allah Almighty, and by this is meant revelation (wahy) or the entire Quran. When the words "min al-amr" or "min amri" come with Ruh, it refers specifically to revelation, as is the case at this place: "bil-ruh min amrihi," and at another place it is said: ﴿وَكَذٰلِكَ اَوْحَيْنَآ اِلَيْكَ رُوْحًا مِّنْ اَمْرِنَا﴾ At this place, Ruh refers to the entire Quran. Also, at another place, it has come in the meaning of revelation or messengership as follows: ﴿يُلْقِي الرُّوْحَ مِنْ اَمْرِهٖ عَليٰ مَنْ يَّشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهٖ﴾ That is, Allah Almighty sends down His message upon whomever He wills among His servants. And at this place, the word Ruh has been used for revelation because just as the body needs Ruh for life—if there is no Ruh, life ends—similarly, for a righteous way of life or system of living, divine revelation is needed, without which a righteous system cannot be established at all. And if one does not act according to divine revelation, the system falls apart and some other corrupt system takes its place.

[4] ﴿الملئكة﴾ is a plural form, but here it refers to only one angel, i.e., Jibreelؑ, because he is the chief of the angels who deliver messages and convey revelation. In Arabic idiom, the plural form is used for a chief or leader. There are other examples of this in the Noble Quran, and this is also the saying of Ibn Abbasؓ. In this sentence, two objections of the polytheists of Makkah have been answered: one is the objection that if this Prophet is true, then why has punishment not come upon us, and by this they meant to deny the Prophet. Their second objection was that if Allah had to make someone a Prophet, were the chiefs of Makkah and Ta'if dead, that only this man was found by Allah for Prophethood? [سوره زخرف آيت 31]

Allah Almighty answered this by saying that I do not need your consultation in this matter. I Myself know best who is deserving of Prophethood and what qualities are necessary for it. Therefore, I bestow this favor upon whomever I will, so that they may warn the people that I alone am the deity, so you should fear only Me.