Tafheem ul Quran

Surah 14 Ibrahim, Ayat 32-33

اَللّٰهُ الَّذِىۡ خَلَقَ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَالۡاَرۡضَ وَاَنۡزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَاَخۡرَجَ بِهٖ مِنَ الثَّمَرٰتِ رِزۡقًا لَّـكُمۡ​ ۚ وَسَخَّرَ لَـكُمُ الۡـفُلۡكَ لِتَجۡرِىَ فِى الۡبَحۡرِ بِاَمۡرِهٖ​ۚ وَسَخَّرَ لَـكُمُ الۡاَنۡهٰرَ​ۚ‏ ﴿14:32﴾ وَسَخَّرَ لَـكُمُ الشَّمۡسَ وَالۡقَمَرَ دَآئِبَيۡنِ​ۚ وَسَخَّرَ لَـكُمُ الَّيۡلَ وَالنَّهَارَ​ۚ‏ ﴿14:33﴾

(14:32) It is Allah43 Who created the heavens and the earth, Who sent down water from the heaven and thereby brought forth a variety of fruits as your sustenance, Who subjected for you the ships that they may sail in the sea by His command, Who subjected for you the rivers, (14:33) Who subjected for you the sun and the moon and both of them are constant on their courses, Who subjected for you the night and the day,44

Notes

43. That is, it is the same Allah Whose bounties they are repaying with ingratitude and disobedience and with Whom they are setting up equals even though He has been so bountiful to them.

44. The words sakh-khara-lakum of the text in (Ayats 32-33) have misled those people who have translated these into “subjected to you”. So much so that some of them interpret these verses to mean that the main aim of the life of man is to bring the earth and heavens under his subjection, whereas their real meaning is “the earth and heavens are subjected to certain laws and they serve you under these laws.” As a matter of fact Allah has subjected all these things to such laws as are beneficial for man. Had not a ship been subjected to certain physical laws, there could have been no navigation at all. Had not a river been subjected to certain laws, it could not have been possible to take out canals from them. Likewise if the heavenly bodies (the sun and the moon, etc.) and the earth and day and night had not been subjected to certain fixed laws, life could not have been possible, not to speak of civilized life