Other than an apostle He has chosen, when He makes a sentinel walk in front of him and a sentinel behind,
Except to His chosen Noble Messengers – so He appoints guards in front and behind him. (Allah gave the knowledge of the hidden to the Holy Prophet – peace and blessings be upon him.)
save only to such a Messenger as He is well-pleased with; then He despatches before him and behind him watchers,
unless it be to an apostle whom He has been pleased to elect [there for]: and then He sends forth [the forces of heaven] to watch over him in whatever lies open before him and in what is beyond his ken –
Save Unto an apostle chosen. And then He causeth to go before him and behind him a guard.
Except to a Messenger (from mankind) whom He has chosen (He informs him of unseen as much as He likes), and then He makes a band of watching guards (angels) to march before him and behind him.
Except to a Messenger of His choosing. He then dispatches guards before him and behind him.
other than to a Messenger whom He chooses (for the bestowal of any part of the knowledge of the Unseen), whereafter He appoints guards who go before him and behind him,
Except to a Messenger whom He has chosen, and then He makes a band of watching guards to march before him and behind him.
Save unto every messenger whom He hath chosen, and then He maketh a guard to go before him and a guard behind him
except to an apostle He approves of. Then He dispatches a sentinel before and behind him
except only to a Messenger that He has chosen, and He sends guardians before him and behind him,
Except whom He has approved of messengers, and indeed, He sends before each messenger and behind him observers
He causes angelic guards to march before and after him.
Except to him whom He chooses as an apostle; for surely He makes a guard to march before him and after him,
Ill<u>a</u> mani irta<u>da</u> min rasoolin fainnahu yasluku min bayni yadayhi wamin khalfihi ra<u>s</u>ad<u>a</u><b>n</b>
except the messenger whom He has chosen. He sends down guardians who walk before them and behind them,
"Except a messenger whom He has chosen: and then He makes a band of watchers march before him and behind him,
إِلَّا مَنِ ٱرْتَضَىٰ مِن رَّسُولٍ فَإِنَّهُۥ يَسْلُكُ مِنۢ بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِۦ رَصَدًا
Except for a messenger whom He, may He be glorified, selects and then discloses to him what He wishes. He sends guards from the angels to go before the messenger and protect him so that no one besides the messenger gains access to this.
Except for a messenger whom He, may He be glorified, selects and then discloses to him what He wishes. He sends guards from the angels to go before the messenger and protect him so that no one besides the messenger gains access to this.
<p>Difference between 'Knowledge of the Unseen' and 'Reports of the Unseen Events'</p><p>The exception made here is the response to the doubt raised by unintelligent people. The negation of the total knowledge of the Unseen does not necessarily entail absolute negation of every unknown secret. For the office of risalah, a Messenger needs a certain amount of knowledge of unseen things which Allah grants him through revelation. When Allah sends down the revelation to His Holy Prophet ﷺ ، He sends it down under His special protection, and is completely secure against being distorted or tampered with by devils. First of all, the word rasul [ Messenger ] determines the type of knowledge granted to a Prophet or a Messenger. Evidently, it is the knowledge of the sacred laws and injunctions in its totality, and of the unseen events according to the exigency of time. The next statement states the heavily protected manner in which the unseen knowledge is granted. It is sent down through angels around whom are posted other angels as sentinels. This explanation clarifies the point that the exceptive sentence that affirms the unseen knowledge granted to a Holy Prophet ﷺ and a Messenger is a specialized unseen knowledge which is essential and relevant to the proper functioning of a Prophetic office.</p><p>Technically, this 'exception', in Arabic grammar, is referred to as istithna' munqati` which may be defined as the exceptive sentence in which the exception is severed from, or wholly different in kind from, the general description given before. In this sense, whilst the basic sentence negated total Unseen Knowledge in general terms for anyone besides Allah, the exceptive sentence does not affirm it. It merely affirms specialized acquaintance with some reports of the unseen events which the Qur'an frequently describes as anba'ul ghaib أَنبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ , thus, for instance:</p><p>تِلْكَ مِنْ أَنبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ نُوحِيهَا إِلَيْكَ</p><p>'These are some reports from the unseen [ events ] which We reveal to you. [ 11:49] '</p><p>Some unintelligent people do not grasp the distinction between 'Knowledge of the Unseen' and 'reports of the unseen events'. As a result, they attempt to prove 'total knowledge of the Unseen' for the Prophets of Allah, especially for the Last Prophet ﷺ . They believe that the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، like Allah, is omniscient - having knowledge of every particle of the universe. This is clearly shirk - assigning to the Holy Prophet ﷺ the status of Godhead, God forbid! If any person discloses a secret to a friend of his, of which no one else has that piece of knowledge or information, such a friend cannot be described as omniscient. Likewise, Allah has granted thousands of pieces of information of the unseen world through revelation to His Holy Prophets ﷺ ، but it is not true to say that they are omniscient. The ignorant laity do not understand the difference between the concepts. When they are told that the Holy Prophet ﷺ is not omniscient, they understand this statement to imply that the Holy Prophet ﷺ [ God forbid!] did not have any information about anything unseen. No believer in the world ever holds such a belief, nor can he ever do so because if anyone does so the whole structure of nubuwwah and risalah would come crumbling down. It is not possible for any believer to behave in this way.</p>
Difference between 'Knowledge of the Unseen' and 'Reports of the Unseen Events'The exception made here is the response to the doubt raised by unintelligent people. The negation of the total knowledge of the Unseen does not necessarily entail absolute negation of every unknown secret. For the office of risalah, a Messenger needs a certain amount of knowledge of unseen things which Allah grants him through revelation. When Allah sends down the revelation to His Holy Prophet ﷺ ، He sends it down under His special protection, and is completely secure against being distorted or tampered with by devils. First of all, the word rasul [ Messenger ] determines the type of knowledge granted to a Prophet or a Messenger. Evidently, it is the knowledge of the sacred laws and injunctions in its totality, and of the unseen events according to the exigency of time. The next statement states the heavily protected manner in which the unseen knowledge is granted. It is sent down through angels around whom are posted other angels as sentinels. This explanation clarifies the point that the exceptive sentence that affirms the unseen knowledge granted to a Holy Prophet ﷺ and a Messenger is a specialized unseen knowledge which is essential and relevant to the proper functioning of a Prophetic office.Technically, this 'exception', in Arabic grammar, is referred to as istithna' munqati` which may be defined as the exceptive sentence in which the exception is severed from, or wholly different in kind from, the general description given before. In this sense, whilst the basic sentence negated total Unseen Knowledge in general terms for anyone besides Allah, the exceptive sentence does not affirm it. It merely affirms specialized acquaintance with some reports of the unseen events which the Qur'an frequently describes as anba'ul ghaib أَنبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ , thus, for instance:تِلْكَ مِنْ أَنبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ نُوحِيهَا إِلَيْكَ'These are some reports from the unseen [ events ] which We reveal to you. [ 11:49] 'Some unintelligent people do not grasp the distinction between 'Knowledge of the Unseen' and 'reports of the unseen events'. As a result, they attempt to prove 'total knowledge of the Unseen' for the Prophets of Allah, especially for the Last Prophet ﷺ . They believe that the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، like Allah, is omniscient - having knowledge of every particle of the universe. This is clearly shirk - assigning to the Holy Prophet ﷺ the status of Godhead, God forbid! If any person discloses a secret to a friend of his, of which no one else has that piece of knowledge or information, such a friend cannot be described as omniscient. Likewise, Allah has granted thousands of pieces of information of the unseen world through revelation to His Holy Prophets ﷺ ، but it is not true to say that they are omniscient. The ignorant laity do not understand the difference between the concepts. When they are told that the Holy Prophet ﷺ is not omniscient, they understand this statement to imply that the Holy Prophet ﷺ [ God forbid!] did not have any information about anything unseen. No believer in the world ever holds such a belief, nor can he ever do so because if anyone does so the whole structure of nubuwwah and risalah would come crumbling down. It is not possible for any believer to behave in this way.