Verses 97 to 99 of Surah Al-Baqarah, like resplendent gems in the treasury of the Holy Quran, present profound and multifaceted themes such as the revelation of the Divine Message, the role of angels, and the relationship between disbelief and immorality with divine enmity to seekers of truth. These verses, employing an argumentative tenor and eloquent structure, not only defend the status of Gabriel and Michael within the system of revelation but also evoke theological, philosophical, and social reflections by establishing the principle of infallibility and the systematic nature of creation. The present discourse, adopting a scholarly and systematic approach, analyses these verses and, integrating the contents of the lecture series with exegetical analysis, offers a refined text appropriate for expert audiences. The objective is to elucidate Quranic concepts precisely, using a dignified and literary language, and to provide strategies for advancing religious sciences within seminary institutions.
قُلْ مَنْ كَانَ عَدُوًّا لِجِبْرِيلَ فَإِنَّهُ نَزَّلَهُ عَلَى قَلْبِكَ بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ مُصَدِّقًا لِمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَهُدًى وَبُشْرَى لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ
Translation: Say: Whoever is an enemy to Gabriel, then indeed he has revealed it (the Quran) upon your heart by the permission of Allah, confirming what was before it, and as guidance and glad tidings for the believers.
This verse, with an argumentative tone, defends the position of Gabriel against the doubts of certain groups and affirms his role as the intermediary of revelation.
مَنْ كَانَ عَدُوًّا لِلَّهِ وَمَلَائِكَتِهِ وَرُسُلِهِ وَجِبْرِيلَ وَمِيكَالَ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ عَدُوٌّ لِلْكَافِرِينَ
Translation: Whoever is an enemy to Allah, His angels, His messengers, Gabriel, and Michael, then indeed Allah is an enemy to the disbelievers.
This verse links enmity to the infallible beings with enmity to God, emphasising the exalted status of Gabriel and Michael within the system of creation.
وَلَقَدْ أَنْزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ آيَاتٍ بَيِّنَاتٍ وَمَا يَكْفُرُ بِهَا إِلَّا الْفَاسِقُونَ
Translation: And indeed We have revealed clear verses to you, and none disbelieve therein except the defiantly disobedient.
This verse, by emphasising the clarity of the Divine verses, attributes disbelief therein solely to the defiantly immoral and affirms the exalted position of the Holy Quran.
The term Qul in the Holy Quran, like a blazing torch, indicates an argumentative context. Similar to verses such as Qul y ayyuhal-kfirn or Qul huwa Allahu Ahad, this term in verse 97 defends Gabriel, and by extension in verse 98 encompasses God, angels, and prophets, with an emphasis on the immorality of disbelievers in verse 99, forms a coherent argumentative sequence. These verses provide a decisive response to criticisms from some groups, notably the Jews of Medina, concerning Gabriels role in revelation.
In the discussed verses, conjunction without the use of the particles wa or fa operates as an invisible thread linking the topics. This structure, which in Arabic and Persian literary language may manifest with or without commas or conjunctions, avoids unnecessary repetition of conjunction particles, rendering the speech concise and cohesive. Persian, as a mirror of eloquent Arabic, reflects this characteristic and preserves unity and proportion in its literary constructions.
Verse 98, by emphasising enmity towards God, angels, prophets, Gabriel, and Michael, confines absolute obedience to infallible beings. This principle, analogous to the verse Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those vested with authority among you, restricts the authorities to the infallibles (the Imams, peace be upon them). Obedience to non-infallibles, such as just jurists, is subordinate and conditional on justice and jurisprudential diligence. The principle of non-obedience without legitimate proof prevents misuse of religious authority.
فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ مَوْلَاهُ وَجِبْرِيلُ وَصَالِحُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ ظَهِيرًا
Translation: Indeed, Allah is his Guardian, and Gabriel and the righteous believers, and the angels, thereafter, are supporters.
This verse, by positioning the righteous believers between Gabriel and the angels, indicates the exalted status of the infallibles. The righteous believers, interpreted as the infallible Imams, serve as intermediaries of Divine grace and are superior to angels, reflecting their pivotal role in guidance.
Gabriel is cited in verses 97 and 98 of Surah Al-Baqarah and verse 4 of Surah At-Tahrim; Michael only in verse 98 of Surah Al-Baqarah. Angels, mentioned ninety times, reveal the extensive presence of angels in the system of creation. This ratio (three to one and ninety to three) highlights Gabriels prominent role in the revelation.
The proportion between the mentions of Gabriel (4,093) and Michael (473) in the traditions aligns with the three-to-one ratio in the Quran. This concordance attests to the systematic nature of Divine creation, in which each component is created with mathematical precision.
وَلَا تَسْقُطُ مِنْ وَرَقَةٍ إِلَّا يَعْلَمُهَا
Translation: And no leaf falls except that He knows it.
This verse refers to the systematic nature of creation, in which even the falling of a single leaf occurs with Divine knowledge and power. Creation functions as an engine in which every part is precisely positioned, and nothing superfluous or deficient exists.
The book Matl, formerly a reference for meanings, expression, and rhetorical innovation, is no longer taught in
