لِلّٰهِ To Allah (belongs) مَا whatever فِی (is) in السَّمٰوٰتِ the heavens وَ الْاَرْضِ ؕ and the earth اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah هُوَ He الْغَنِیُّ (is) Free of need الْحَمِیْدُ the Praiseworthy وَ لَوْ And if اَنَّمَا whatever فِی (is) in الْاَرْضِ the earth مِنْ of شَجَرَةٍ (the) trees اَقْلَامٌ (were) pens وَّ الْبَحْرُ and the sea یَمُدُّهٗ (to) add to it مِنْۢ after it بَعْدِهٖ after it سَبْعَةُ seven اَبْحُرٍ seas مَّا not نَفِدَتْ would be exhausted كَلِمٰتُ (the) Words اللّٰهِ ؕ (of) Allah اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah عَزِیْزٌ (is) All-Mighty حَكِیْمٌ All-Wise مَا Not خَلْقُكُمْ (is) your creation وَ لَا and not بَعْثُكُمْ your resurrection اِلَّا but كَنَفْسٍ as a soul وَّاحِدَةٍ ؕ single اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah سَمِیْعٌۢ (is) All-Hearer بَصِیْرٌ All-Seer
(31:26) All that is in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allah.46 Verily He is All-Sufficient, Immensely Praiseworthy.47
(31:27) If all the trees on earth become pens, and the sea replenished by seven more seas were to supply them with ink, the Words of Allah would not be exhausted.48Verily Allah is Most Mighty, Most Wise.
(31:28) To create all of you or to resurrect all of you is to Him like (creating or resurrecting) a single person. Verily Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.49
46. The fact of the matter is not simply that God is the Creator of the heavens and earth, but rather that He is also the Owner of all that exists in the heavens and on earth. It would be idle to fancy that God, after having created the Universe, simply abandoned it, leaving others to claim its ownership, whether wholly or partially, if they so wished. In point of fact it is God Alone Who is the Sole Owner of all that He has created. All that exists in the Universe is solely His, and He alone is invested with Divine authority.
47. For its explanation see n. 19 above.
48. “Words of Allah” here stand for the wonders of God’s creation and the marvels of His power and wisdom. The same idea is expressed in Surah al-Kahf 18:109. At the first instance, one might feel that this statement — that were all the trees on earth to become pens and the seas replenished by seven more seas were to supply them with ink, the Words of Allah would not be exhausted - is an exaggeration. However, on further reflection one realizes that there is not the least exaggeration in this statement. For quite literally, if all the trees on earth were to become pens, and the seas, replenished by seven more seas so as to. supply them with ink, even this would be insufficient to make a bare catalogue of all that exists in the world, let alone suffice to describe God’s power and wisdom. When it is impossible to simply record all that exists on earth, how can we even conceive that man will ever be able to record all that exists in the vast Universe? This statement drives home the fact that, when compared with Almighty God Who brought this enormous Universe into existence and Who constantly controls it, the puny beings whom people set up as their deities’ pale into utter insignificance. It is not only that they have no part in the governance of this Universe, but they lack even partial knowledge, let alone have full knowledge of even a small part of God’s dominion.
Hence, how can it be conceived that they will ever be invested with even a limited share of Divine powers that would enable them to answer prayers and make or mar the destinies of others?
49. God hears all voices and all sounds quite distinctly at one and the same time. He does so in such a way that none of the sounds or voices make Him oblivious of others. In like manner, He simultaneously observes the entire Universe and all objects and events in it in the minutest detail.
Yet the observation of these objects does not absorb Him totally so as to” prevent Him from observing other objects and events. The same holds true about His causing the birth of human beings and raising them to — life after they die. God has the power to resurrect all those who were ever born, right from the beginning of human life until the Last Day.
His creating some does not prevent Him from simultaneously creating others. For Him, it is all the same whether He creates a single person or billions of them.