Surah As-Sajda (32) — Ayah 23

(Ayah 23) ➊ The pronoun of {وَ لَقَدْ اٰتَيْنَا مُوْسَى الْكِتٰبَ فَلَا تَكُنْ فِيْ مِرْيَةٍ مِّنْ لِّقَآىِٕهٖ : ’’ لِقَآىِٕهٖ ‘‘} can refer back to {’’ الْكِتٰبَ ‘‘} or to the word {’’ مُوْسَى ‘‘}. In the first case, it repeats what was stated at the beginning of the surah, that the revelation of this book, in which there is no doubt, is from the Lord of the worlds. The meaning is that before this, We gave Musa (peace be upon him) the book, and now you have received the book, so do not fall into any kind of doubt regarding the receiving of this book. The granting of the book from Us is not a new thing; We have been granting books to messengers before, as He said: «{ قُلْ مَا كُنْتُ بِدْعًا مِّنَ الرُّسُلِ وَ مَاۤ اَدْرِيْ مَا يُفْعَلُ بِيْ وَ لَا بِكُمْ اِنْ اَتَّبِعُ اِلَّا مَا يُوْحٰۤى اِلَيَّ وَ مَاۤ اَنَا اِلَّا نَذِيْرٌ مُّبِيْنٌ }» [ الأحقاف : ۹ ] "Say, I am not something original among the messengers, nor do I know what will be done with me or with you. I only follow what is revealed to me, and I am only a clear warner." Although the primary addressee in this is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), the intended meaning is for every listener, that no listener should have any doubt about the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) receiving the book from Allah Almighty; your receiving the book is just as We gave Musa (peace be upon him) the book, this is not something unprecedented. According to this exegesis, {’’ الْكِتٰبَ ‘‘} does not specifically mean the Torah, but the category of book, i.e., We gave Musa (peace be upon him) the book, so as soon as you receive the book, do not have any doubt. And by {’’لِقَاءٌ‘‘} is meant the receiving of the book, as He said: «{ وَ اِنَّكَ لَتُلَقَّى الْقُرْاٰنَ مِنْ لَّدُنْ حَكِيْمٍ عَلِيْمٍ }» [ النمل : ۶ ] "And indeed, the Qur'an is being given to you from the presence of One who is Wise and Knowing." Although the closest prophet before the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) is Isa (peace be upon him), not all of Bani Israel believed in him, and he too acted upon the laws of the Torah. Therefore, Allah Almighty mentioned the giving of the book to Musa (peace be upon him) instead. Some commentators, in the case of the pronoun referring back to {’’ الْكِتٰبَ ‘‘}, have interpreted it to mean that you should not doubt the receiving of the book by Musa (peace be upon him).

In the second case, that is, when the pronoun of {’’ لِقَآىِٕهٖ ‘‘} refers to Musa (peace be upon him), the meaning will be that you should not have any doubt about your meeting with Musa (peace be upon him), which took place on the night of Mi'raj in Bayt al-Maqdis and on the sixth heaven, as is mentioned in Sahih Bukhari and other books of hadith. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ رَأَيْتُ لَيْلَةَ أُسْرِيَ بِيْ مُوْسٰی رَجُلاً آدَمَ طُوَالاً جَعْدًا ، كَأَنَّهُ مِنْ رِجَالِ شَنُوْئَةَ، وَ رَأَيْتُ عِيْسٰی رَجُلاً مَرْبُوْعًا مَرْبُوْعَ الْخَلْقِ إِلَی الْحُمْرَةِ وَ الْبَيَاضِ، سَبْطَ الرَّأْسِ، وَرَأَيْتُ مَالِكًا خَازِنَ النَّارِ وَ الدَّجَّالَ فِيْ آيَاتٍ أَرَاهُنَّ اللّٰهُ إِيَّاهُ ، فَلاَ تَكُنْ فِيْ مِرْيَةٍ مِنْ لِّقَائِهِ] [بخاري، بدء الخلق، باب إذا قال أحدکم آمین و الملائکۃ في السماء… : ۳۲۳۹ ] "On the night I was taken (on the Night Journey), I saw Musa (peace be upon him), tall, well-built, or with curly hair, as if he was from the men of the tribe of Shanu'a, and I saw Isa (peace be upon him), of medium height, inclined towards redness and whiteness, with straight hair, and I saw Malik, the keeper of Hell, and the Dajjal, among the many other signs that Allah showed him." (In Surah Sajdah, this is also mentioned:) "So do not be in doubt about his meeting."

➋ In {وَ جَعَلْنٰهُ هُدًى لِّبَنِيْۤ اِسْرَآءِيْلَ : ’’ جَعَلْنٰهُ ‘‘}, the pronoun of {’’هٗ‘‘} is for the book, meaning We made the book given to Musa (peace be upon him) a guidance for the Children of Israel. A verse with the same subject has already passed in Surah Bani Isra'il (2).

23-1. It is said that this is a reference to the meeting that took place on the night of Mi'raj between the Prophet and Musa (peace be upon him), in which Musa (peace be upon him) advised to seek a reduction in the number of prayers.

23-2. By 'this', it is meant either the Book (Torah) or Musa (peace be upon him) himself.

23. We gave Moses the Book [24], so (O Prophet!) you should have no doubt about receiving this Book [25]. It was a guidance for the Children of Israel.

[24] In the previous verse, turning away from the signs of Allah was mentioned. In connection with this, the Torah is mentioned here, which, after the Quran, is the most renowned of all the revealed books. The Torah was a book of guidance only for the Children of Israel, whereas this Quran is a book of guidance for the entire human race.
[25] In this sentence, although the address is to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the intended audience is all the believers. Because the Prophet himself is the first to believe in his own prophethood, and then he invites others to believe. Therefore, for the Messenger to doubt the divinely revealed word is impossible. Such a manner of address is generally used for further emphasis, meaning that Muslims should not doubt it under any circumstances. Some scholars have understood the pronoun in "his meeting" in this verse to refer to Musa, and have explained its meaning as: you will certainly meet Musa in this worldly life, and you should not be in doubt about this meeting; and that this meeting with Musa ؑ took place on the occasion of Mi'raj on the sixth heaven.