Faatir 35:41

"Indeed, Allāh holds the heavens and the earth, lest they cease. And if they should cease, no one could hold them [in place] after Him. Indeed, He is Forbearing and Forgiving."

The Helplessness of the false gods and the Power of Allah

Allah tells His Messenger to say to the idolators:

أَرَءَيْتُمْ شُرَكَآءَكُمُ الَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ

(Have you considered your partners whom you call upon besides Allah) the idols and rivals.

أَرُونِى مَاذَا خَلَقُواْ مِنَ الاٌّرْضِ أَمْ لَهُمْ شِرْكٌ فِى السَّمَـوَتِ

(Show Me what they have created of the earth. Or have they any share in the heavens) meaning, they have nothing at all of that, they do not possess even the membrane covering the stone of a date.

أَمْ ءَاتَيْنَـهُمْ كِتَـباً فَهُمْ عَلَى بَيِّنَةٍ مِّنْهُ

(Or have We given them a Book, so that they act on clear proof therefrom) meaning, `have We revealed to them a Book on which they base their Shirk and disbelief' This is not the case at all.

بَلْ إِن يَعِدُ الظَّـلِمُونَ بَعْضُهُم بَعْضاً إِلاَّ غُرُوراً

(Nay, the wrongdoers promise one another nothing but delusions.) means, they are merely following their own whims, opinions and wishes which are their personal desires, and they are no more than misguidance and falsehood. Then Allah tells us of His mighty power, by which the heavens and the earth stand by His command, and the forces that He has placed between them to hold them. He says:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُمْسِكُ السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضَ أَن تَزُولاَ

(Verily, Allah grasps the heavens and the earth lest they should move away from their places,) means, lest they should shift from where they are. This is like the Ayat:

وَيُمْسِكُ السَّمَآءَ أَن تَقَعَ عَلَى الاٌّرْضِ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِهِ

(He withholds the heaven from falling on the earth except by His leave) (22:65), and

وَمِنْ ءَايَـتِهِ أَن تَقُومَ السَّمَآءُ وَالاٌّرْضُ بِأَمْرِهِ

(And among His signs is that the heaven and the earth stand by His command) (30:25).

وَلَئِن زَالَتَآ إِنْ أَمْسَكَهُمَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّن بَعْدِهِ

(and if they were to move away from their places, there is not one that could grasp them after Him.) means, no one can make them stay and preserve them except Him. He is Ever Most Forbearing and Oft-Forgiving because He sees His servants disbelieving in Him and disobeying Him, yet He is patient and gives them time, He waits and does not hasten the punishment, and He conceals the faults of others and forgives them. He says:

إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَلِيمًا غَفُورًا

(Truly, He is Ever Most Forbearing, Oft-Forgiving.)

Всевышний сообщил о Своем совершенном могуществе, безграничном милосердии, божественной кротости и всепрощении. Он не позволяет небесам и земле сдвинуться с мест, и если бы Он не заботился о Своих творениях, то никому другому не удалось бы удержать небеса и землю в таком положении. Однако Всевышний Аллах пожелал, чтобы Вселенная существовала в том виде, в котором она существует сегодня, дабы люди могли спокойно жить на земле, пользоваться мирскими благами и извлекать полезные уроки из всего, что происходит вокруг них. Аллах пожелал, чтобы Его рабы познали безграничную власть и всемогущество своего Господа и прониклись к Нему почтением, уважением и любовью. Аллах также пожелал, чтобы они познали Его кротость, терпение и всепрощение, благодаря которым Господь дарует отсрочку грешникам и откладывает наказание мучеников. А ведь стоит Ему только пожелать, как небеса засыплют грешников градом камней, а земля проглотит их вместе с их пожитками. Однако Аллах осеняет Своих рабов милостью, всепрощением и кротостью и предоставляет им возможность покаяться. Он отсрочивает наказание неверующих и прощает кающихся.

In the expression: إِنَّ اللَّـهَ يُمْسِكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ (Undoubtedly, Allah holds back the heavens and the earth - 35:41), the 'holding' of the heavens or the skies does not mean that their movement was stopped. Instead, it means holding them from moving askance - as the word: أَن تَزُولَا (an tazula: from leaving their existing state,) bears it out. Therefore, in this verse, there exists no supporting evidence on either side as to the skies move or they are static.

Other English translations

Tafsīr · classical commentary

The Helplessness of the false gods and the Power of Allah