Tafseer of The Mount · At-Tur · 52:38
Or have they a stairway [into the heaven] upon which they listen? Then let their listener produce a clear authority.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
And His word: أَمْ لَهُمْ سُلَّمٌ يَسْتَمِعُونَ فِيهِ ("Or do they have a ladder by which they listen?"). He says: or do they have a ladder by which they ascend to heaven, upon which they listen in to the revelation, so that they claim that they have learned there from Allah that what they hold to is the truth, and they therefore cling to that which they hold to?
And His word: فَلْيَأْتِ مُسْتَمِعُهُمْ بِسُلْطَانٍ مُبِينٍ ("then let their listener come with a clear authority"). He says: if they claim that, then let the one who claims that he has listened in to it and heard it come with a clear authority (sulṭān mubīn), that is to say: with a proof that demonstrates that it is the truth — just as Muḥammad ﷺ came with it in confirmation of the truth of his word and in attestation of his truthfulness in that which he brought to them from Allah. Al-sullam in the language of the Arabs means: the means and the stairway; to this belongs the word of Ibn Muqbil:
"The far reaches of the land do not protect the man, nor are ladders built for him into the heavens." (1)
And to this belongs his saying: "I have made so-and-so a sullam for my need" — when one makes him a means to it.
