Tafseer of The Beneficent · Ar-Rahmaan · 55:7
And the heaven He raised and imposed the balance
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.
His statement وَالسَّمَاءَ رَفَعَهَا ("And the heaven — He raised it") (55:7) — the Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: and the heaven He has raised above the earth.
His statement وَوَضَعَ الْمِيزَانَ ("and He established the balance") — He says: and He established justice (al-ʿadl) among His creatures upon the earth.
And it has been mentioned that in the recitation of ʿAbdullāh it reads: خَفَضَ المِيزَانَ ("He laid down the balance"); and "laying down" (al-khafḍ) and "establishing/placing" (al-waḍʿ) are close to each other in meaning in the language of the Arabs.
And in accordance with what we have said concerning this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us; and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us — both of them — on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, concerning His statement وَوَضَعَ الْمِيزَانَ, he said: justice.
