Ar-Room (The Romans)

19. “He brings forth the living from the dead and brings forth dead from the living, and gives life to the earth after its death, and thus shall you be brought forth.”

There are many examples and expansions mentioned in the commentary books concerning the Qur’anic sentence saying:

“He brings forth the living from the dead and brings forth dead from the living…”,

among them are: man produced from sperm drop and producing sperm drop from man; a faithful child from unfaithful parents and vice versa, all of which are the signs of absolute power of Allah in the world, and His ability in producing the Hereafter and Revivification of the creatures.

However, in this holy verse again the Qur’an returns to the subject of Resurrection and, in another way, it answers the doubt of the deniers of it, as follows:

“He brings forth the living from the dead and brings forth dead from the living, and gives life to the earth after its death, and thus shall you be brought forth.”

That is, ‘the scene of Resurrection’ and ‘the scene of the end of the world’, one of which is ‘coming out the living from the dead’ and the other is ‘coming out the dead from the living’ is constantly repeated before your eyes. Therefore, it is not surprising that at the end of the world all living beings pass away and, in Resurrection, all human beings return to a new life.

Then, as for the ‘coming out the living from the dead’ concerning the dead lands, which is repeatedly emphasized on in the Holy Qur’an for the subject of Resurrection, is clear for everybody that the land turns to be dead in winter when neither there grows any plant on it nor does any flower smile, nor does any blossom blow.

But in spring, with the change of weather, and by falling the life giving drops of rain, there will be a movement in the land: plants grow everywhere, flowers smile, and blossoms will appear on the trees; and this is the scene of Resurrection that we see in the world.

Then, as for coming out the dead from the living, which is not any thing concealed, either. It is seen that over the globe always the trees change into bare wood, or human beings and animals lose their life and become dead bodies.

But, concerning ‘coming out the living from the dead’, some commentators have rendered it into as coming out men and animals from sperm drop, while some others of them have rendered it into the birth of believers from disbelievers, and some into waking up from sleep.

But the outward of the verse denotes that the main meaning of the verse is none of these meanings, because sperm drop itself is a living creature; and the subject of faith and disbelief is something from the parts inside of the holy verse not outward of it.

The outward of the verse means that Allah brings forth the living creatures from the dead and He changes the dead into living creatures.

According to the assured science of today, at least in the laboratories and daily observations of human beings, there have been seen no instances that living creatures would be produced by inanimate beings, but the living beings always are produced from egg, seed or sperm drop of other living beings.

But certainly at the beginning, when this dust globe was wholly a fiery globe, there existed no living creature. Later, in some particular conditions, that science has not properly discovered it yet, by a great evolution, some living creatures come into being from some inanimate things.

This matter, of course, cannot be seen in the present conditions of the earth as far as it is available in man’s knowledge. (Yet, under some conditions in the depth of oceans this evolution may occur at the present time, too.)

But what is sensible and completely tangible for us is that the inanimate beings are constantly absorbed to become as a part of living creatures’ bodies and wear the clothing of life.

Neither of water and food we have is a living being, but when they arrive inside our body they change into some living beings, and some new cells are added to the cells of our body and, for example, by this very way a little child changes into a powerful young man with a strong body.

Is this not bringing forth the living from inside of the dead, or the living from dead?

Therefore, it can be said that in the system of the world of nature ceaselessly life comes out from death and death comes out from life. For this very reason the Lord, Who is the Creator of nature, is able to give life to the dead in the next world.

Of course, as we said before, the abovementioned verse have some other commentaries, too, from the spiritual point of view, including: the birth of some believers from disbelievers, disbelievers from believers, coming forth of learned ones from ignorant one, and ignorant ones from learned ones, and good doers from evildoers, and evildoers from good doers. These meanings have been mentioned in some of the Islamic narrations, too.

Again, these meanings may be among the innate meanings of the verse, because we know that the verses of the Qur’an have both outward and inward meanings. And, also, death and life may have a vast and conclusive meaning which encompasses both the material aspect and the spiritual aspect.

Upon the commentary of the Qur’anic sentence:

“…gives life to the earth after its death…”

Imam Musa-ibn-Ja‘far (as) through a tradition says:

“The purpose of it is not that He will make the land alive by the rain, but Allah will raise some men to establish justice and the earth will become alive by means of justice. (Do know that) the establishment of justice in the earth is more beneficial than forty days of rainfall.”1

It is clear that when the Imam (as) says the purpose is not rainfall, it is a negation of exclusiveness; that is, the verse should not be limitedly rendered into rain, because the spiritual giving life to the earth by means of justice is also more significant than rainfall.