14. A noble messenger: the Angel who brought down revelation, as becomes explicit from the following verses. The word of a noble messenger does not mean that the Quran is the word of the Angel himself, but, as the context shows, of Him Who appointed him a messenger. In (Surah Al-Haaqqah, Ayat 40), likewise, the Quran has been called the word of Muhammad (peace be upon him), and there too it does not mean that it is the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) own composition, but describing it as the word of an honorable messenger, it has been made clear that the Prophet (peace be upon him) is presenting it in his capacity as the Messenger of God and not as Muhammad bin Abdullah (peace be upon him). At both places, the word has been attributed to the Angel and to Muhammad (peace be upon him) on the ground that the message of Allah was being delivered to Muhammad (peace be upon him) by the Angel and to the people by Muhammad (peace be upon him). (For further explanation, see (E.N. 22 of Surah Al- Haaqqah).
15. (Surah An-Najm, Ayat 45) deals with the same theme, thus “It is but a revelation which is sent down to him. One, mighty in power, has taught him.” As to what is implied by the mighty powers of the Angel Gabriel is ambiguous. In any case it at least shows that he is distinguished even among the angels because of his extraordinary powers. In Muslim (kitab-al-iman) Aishah has reported the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) saying to the effect: I have twice seen Gabriel in his real shape and form: his glorious being was encompassing the whole space between the earth and the heavens. According to the tradition reported from Abdullah bin Masud in Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi and Musnad Ahmad, the Prophet (peace be upon him) had seen Gabriel with his six hundred wings. From this one can have an idea of his mighty powers.
16. That is, he is the chief of the angels and all angels work under his command.
17. That is, he is not one who would tamper with divine revelation, but is so trustworthy that he conveys intact whatever he receives from God.
18. Your Companion: the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him). Here, making mention of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as the companion of the people of Makkah, they have been made to realize that the Prophet (peace be upon him) was no stranger for them. He was not an outsider but a man of their own clan and tribe; he had lived his whole life among them; even their children knew that he was a very wise man. They should not be so shameless as to call such a man a mad man. (For further explanation, see ( E.Ns 2, 3 of Surah An-Najm).
19. (In Surah An-Najm, Ayats 7-9), this observation of the Prophet (peace be upon him) has been described in greater detail, (For explanation, see (E.Ns 7. 8 of Surah An-Najm).