Yunus (Jonas)
Verse 1
109 verses in 11 sections
The Contents of Surah Yunus
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ
In The Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
Surah Yunus is the tenth Surah of the Holy Qur’an which was revealed during the early days of the Prophet’s appointment in Mecca.
This Surah contains 109 verses, and its main topics are about monotheism, the authenticity of the Qur’an, answers to those who deny revelation, inspiring fear in the unbelievers, exposing the glory and magnitude of the act of creation and of the Creator, the lack of permanence of the world as well as calling the attentions of all peoples to the world after death.
The former Surah, that is “Repentance”, dealt with the acts of the hypocrites as well as their punishment, while this Surah refers to the acts of polytheists.
As to the rewards accounted for reciting and reading this Surah, there have been cited some traditions among which is the tradition narrated by Imam Sadiq (as) who said: He who recites Surah Yunus every two or three months may not be of the ignorant and will be of the near-stationed on the Day of Resurrection.1
Note
Section 1: The Qur’an Contains Signs From the All-Wise
Surah Yunus - Verse 1
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ الر تِلْكَ آياتُ الْكِتابِ الْحَكِيمِ (1)
In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful
1. “Alif ‘A’, Lam ‘L’, Ra ‘R’. These are the verses of the Book of Wisdom.”
It is noteworthy that six consecutive suras of the Qur’an begin with abbreviated letters which are recited: Alif, Lam, Ra. These Suras are: Yunus, Hud, Yusuf, Ar-Ra‘d (with an exception, of course), ’Ibrahim, and Al-Hijr. Each of these letters is an indication to the Names of Allah or to some other things which have been explained at the beginning of Surah Al-Baqarah.
The Arabic word /tilka/ refers to the verses that are found in this Surah.
The objective meaning of the Qur’anic phrase /al kitab il hakim/ is the “Protected Tablet” or the Qur’an. Since it contains wisdom and teaches by means of wisdom, it is therefore Wise. In other words; the Qur’an has a high rank, because the Holy Book itself is Wise. Simultaneously, while it contains both teachings of wisdom and is wise in content, it is a judge and an arbitrator as well. It remains intact from hostile elements and history and the passage of time can leave no impact upon it. It is “the Book of Wisdom”.
Footnotes
Tafsir-us-Safi, and Tafsi-i-Burhan ↩