Surah An-Nur Shaykh Kamal ElMekki

Glimpses from Sūrat An-Nūr

الحمد لله رب العالمين، والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الأمين، وعلى آله وصحبه أجمعين. أما بعد.

Brothers and sisters in Islam, today we're going to take a look at certain glimpses from Sūrat An-Nūr. And the reason behind that — for one, for us to recognize once again what an amazing book the Qur'an is, and what excellent proof it is to the existence of Allah. And if it were not the book of Allah, then offer us a semi-plausible explanation as to how a book like the Qur'an could ever be written — not just written 1400 years ago, but written even in our times.

The other reason also is so we can get an idea of how the topics in the āyāt are related. A few days ago we were having a conversation, and someone was saying the topics of the Qur'an jump from one place to another. But if you contemplate carefully, it is not a complete jump — there is a link in the theme with the theme before it. But it is a book of contemplation, and that is one of the most important things. The Qur'an is a book of contemplation. And if you're just reading it expecting to read through like a story, you will see that the story jumps from one place to another. But if you're reading it to contemplate, you will find the link between this theme and the one before it.

So with that, we would like to take a quick run through Sūrat An-Nūr — but at the same time, look at certain things that are unique about it as a sūrah, and things that are unique about the Qur'an as a whole.

A Unique Opening

The first thing is, this is the only sūrah in the Qur'an that starts like this — a very unique and, for lack of a better term, strange beginning. Allah says:

"This is a sūrah that We sent down and We made it obligatory upon you — meaning to follow its rules and regulations — and We sent down in it clear āyāt so that you may remember, meaning so that you may take heed."

So the scholars said: why would this sūrah start like this? Every sūrah in the Qur'an is sent down from Allah. Every sūrah in the Qur'an is revealed so that you can obey and follow the laws and the guidelines mentioned in it. There is no sūrah that is sent down for your reading pleasure. Every sūrah is sent down so you can follow it. And Allah is stressing that We made clear āyāt in this sūrah so that you can act upon them, so that you can pay heed and pay close attention and act upon them.

So the scholars said this sūrah in particular began this way by stating what is otherwise the obvious — that it's a sūrah sent down from Allah, that you have to follow what's in it, and that the āyāt have been made clear to you so you can follow them. Every sūrah is like that. But they said because this sūrah deals with so many issues. It deals with issues that are so serious — matters of life and death — and it deals with things as simple as your two-year-old child knocking on your bedroom door before entering. And Allah is reiterating and telling you from the beginning that you have to follow everything: the big and the not as serious.

And what is interesting is when you look at those who have issues with Islam today, all the issues they have are the ones in Sūrat An-Nūr. You find people amongst the Muslims who have a problem with hijab — that's in verse 31 of Sūrat An-Nūr. Those who have a problem with the dealing and the ruling regarding the adulterer — that's in Sūrat An-Nūr. Every issue they have a problem with is in Sūrat An-Nūr, which is the only sūrah that starts by saying you have to obey everything in this sūrah — which is a given. So they chose to, if that's a term, mess with the wrong sūrah.

What Does "Sūrah" Mean?

And Allah called it a sūrah. A sūrah is anything that is elevated — like a wall or a gate, anything higher than the rest. And Allah gave it this name. Even though there are other names for chapters in the Qur'an — in Sahih al-Bukhari, chapters are called abwāb: Bāb kadhā, Bāb al-Ṭahārah, Bāb al-Ṣalāh — but here Allah chose to call His chapters suwar, with a sīn. And a sūrah is any high, elevated position. Allah called His chapters suwar because they have a high, elevated position in the hearts of the believers. A sūrah of the Qur'an is not like any poem or any song — it has a high elevated position. Likewise, the scholars also said they have a high elevated position with Allah, so He named them suwar.

And the word وَفَرَضْنَاهَا — it came down in pieces. And it actually did come in pieces, in many parts of the Qur'an. Other scholars also said a sūrah is from su'r — from the same root as su'r, which is the leftover. So when you drink and you leave some water in the glass, that's a su'r. So they said it's called a sūrah from that, because a chapter is one of the parts of the Qur'an, just like the leftover is part of the water that was in the whole glass.

So Allah, of all the suwar, is telling you from the beginning: listen up, pay attention, and follow what's in this sūrah.

Verses 1–10: The Rulings on Zinā

Then the second verse immediately — with no introduction — starts with the punishment for those who commit zinā, illicit sexual relations. And what's also interesting in Sūrat An-Nūr is that in verses 10, 14, 20, and 21, Allah keeps saying:

"And had it not been for the grace of Allah upon you, this would have happened to you. And had it not been for the grace of Allah upon you, He would not have purified you." And the scholars said Allah keeps repeating that so we don't lose track. Because it starts off heavy — with punishment and things that are life-threatening, whipping — but Allah doesn't want you to lose sight of the fact that this is for your betterment and for the betterment of society at large. So He keeps reminding you: had it not been for the grace of Allah. It's not just severe talk, it's not just punishment — but you're reminded of the mercy and the kindness of Allah.

So verse 2 immediately goes into the punishment of zinā. Then verse 3 covers the marital guidelines for those who commit zinā versus those who are still committing it and want to marry someone who is chaste, and all the other examples. One of the interesting things: verse 3 of Sūrat An-Nūr is one of the most disputed verses amongst the Mufassirīn in the entire Qur'an — a huge debate that goes left and right. But basically it's talking about the guidelines for those who commit zinā and how they get married. Then verse 4 deals with those who accuse people of zinā without having the witnesses — what is their punishment? Verse 5 addresses what if they repent from the accusation they made. And from verse 6 until verse 10: what if someone accuses his own spouse and doesn't have the four witnesses? What do they do? And so it mentions this legal procedure known as li'ān, which would be carried out in court.

Verses 11–20: The Incident of Al-Ifk and the Defense of 'Ā'ishah

So from verses 1 to 10 we dealt with zinā. But then verses 11 all the way to 20 deal with the accusation — the incident of al-ifk and the accusation against 'Ā'ishah. And the verses are so powerful and so clear, and the defense of 'Ā'ishah is incredible when you look at the verses in detail.

What is the relationship between verses 1–10 and verses 11–20? The same thing — the same theme. It was the accusation against 'Ā'ishah, it was an accusation of zinā. And so Allah now is going to defend 'Ā'ishah.

The first thing in the wording is that Allah called it al-ifk. The scholars say that al-ifk is something completely flipped over. If I tell you, "Brother Muhammad has a very expensive car, but Brother Muhammad's car is all broken up" — there is some truth, even though I'm lying. The truth is that Brother Muhammad has a car. But if I tell you "Brother Muhammad's car is expensive" and he doesn't have a car, never thought of buying a car, doesn't even have a driver's license — is there any truth whatsoever? That's an ifk. And that's why Allah called the villages of Sodom, the people of Lot, from the same root — it was flipped over.

So Allah didn't even call it a lie, because a lie might have some truth in it. But Allah called it ifk — completely flipped over, not an ounce of any truth in it whatsoever.

And then Allah in the next verse tells you what you should have said out loud — and it's not good enough because I might defend someone out loud but internally I think they did it and I just don't have evidence. But Allah is not leaving any opening. What you should have said and what you should have believed:

The ẓann — "you should have thought well" — that's internal. And "you should have said this is a clear lie" — that's what comes out of the tongue. So internally and externally. Then Allah goes through more of what they should have done legally: if you knew this, you should have brought witnesses. You didn't bring witnesses, then you're liars.

But it's powerful. The Qur'an is the book of Allah, and nobody can challenge this for one second. Nobody. The Qur'an is so powerful and so detailed. Allah says:

"Those — if they didn't bring witnesses — then they are liars with Allah." But what's amazing here is how Allah didn't leave any room or any gap. Because if I see someone committing zinā and the person actually was committing zinā, and I don't have witnesses and I go to court — I don't have three other witnesses with me. I go to court and I say, "Your Honor, this person committed zinā, I saw him with my own eyes, I saw the details." Then legally, am I lying or speaking the truth? According to the court, I am a liar. According to the court, I'm labeled as a liar. Between me and Allah, did I lie or did I really see that? Between me and Allah, I did see that. But because I don't have evidence on this earth, I'm a liar in the court.

But Allah didn't say they're just liars — because they could be liars in court but maybe they saw the truth, and Allah knows they saw the truth. But Allah didn't say they're liars in court. He said فَأُولَٰئِكَ عِندَ اللَّهِ هُمُ الْكَاذِبُونَ — "with Allah they are liars." That means they're liars in court and they're liars with Allah. They didn't see anything, they didn't have any truth. And only the Qur'an can think of such little details like that. No human being can sit down and come up with something so creative and so detail-oriented.

Verse 17: Closing the Door Forever

Then Allah in verse 17 closes the door on this happening to anyone ever again. Some of the Shia, when they saw how powerful these āyāt were and how clearly they defended 'Ā'ishah, came up with a new lie — they said, "Oh, these āyāt weren't about 'Ā'ishah, it was about another mother of the believers." What are you going to do with verse 17?

The Mufassirīn said, what does it mean when Allah says يَعِظُكُمُ اللَّهُ? Some of them said it means اللهُ يُحَرِّمُ عَلَيْكُمْ — Allah forbids you. Allah didn't say He forbids you from ever mentioning the story of 'Ā'ishah again. Allah didn't say He forbids you from ever accusing 'Ā'ishah again. He said لِمِثْلِهِ — "Don't you ever do this to anyone on earth ever again." Let alone trying to reopen this book and accuse the wife of the Prophet, peace be upon him. Allah forbids you from doing anything like this to anyone ever again.

And it's so sad how lightly we've taken this topic now. People accuse each other left and right. We live here in America and we think it's normal and it's okay — we accuse people of zinā and we give it different names and titles. But this is something that if we were taken to court, our reputation would be destroyed because we didn't have evidence. So beware, brothers and sisters, of speaking casually about these things. Doesn't matter if they're Muslim or non-Muslim. Doesn't matter if they're celebrities or not famous. Don't delve into these types of topics of accusing people of zinā.

Verse 19: The Warning Against Spreading Immorality

Then Allah in verse 19 warns — and there are different tafāsīr here; I will take the most powerful one. Allah says:

"Those who love for the fawāḥish — the illicit sexual acts — to spread amongst the believers." One group said this is talking about those who spread it. But another group of Mufassirīn said Allah is not only threatening those who spread or make up the rumors. Allah is talking about someone who did not spread it, did not make it up, did not share it — he stood far away, but he just loves that it's happening. And Allah is threatening that person — let alone the one who goes around spreading it. Allah is threatening those who love for these kinds of fitan and trials to spread amongst the believers. They are the ones who will have a severe torment in this world and the next.

And then Allah reminds you:

"Had it not been for the grace and the mercy of Allah, a severe torment would have touched you. But Allah is Ra'ūf and He is Raḥīm — merciful and kind."

Verse 21: The Footsteps of Shayṭān

Then it continues. Allah warns us of the footsteps of the Shayṭān. And the scholars said, because the Shayṭān is clever, he works in steps — until you are desensitized, until you get to the big crime that he wanted you to commit initially.

Verse 22: Abū Bakr and the Lesson of Forgiveness

Then Allah goes and deals with Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him. Because the man who explicitly accused 'Ā'ishah was a relative of Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him. He was a poor man, one of the Muhājirīn, and Abū Bakr used to give him money. And he is the one who explicitly mentioned 'Ā'ishah. So Abū Bakr swore that he was not going to give him any more money. So Allah tells him:

"Don't swear to not help the poor and the immigrant and your kinsmen, but continue to give him. Wouldn't you love Allah to forgive you?" And Abū Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, immediately said: "Wallāhi, I will never stop giving him." And in the narration of al-Ṭabarānī, he doubled the amount he was giving him.

Verses 23–26: Returning to Al-Ifk — The Significance of the Pause

But then what's interesting — and we'll end here — is that from verse 11 until 20, Allah dealt with the incident of al-ifk, defending 'Ā'ishah. Then verse 21 warned of following the footsteps of the Shayṭān. Then verse 22 told Abū Bakr: don't swear to not give him, keep giving him, forgive and forget, wouldn't you love Allah to forgive you? And then verses 23 to 26, Allah goes back to the story of al-ifk. So why this pause in the middle?

And this again is what is amazing about the Qur'an. Let's put it this way — for those who are not children: when you were a child, if you did something wrong and your father spoke to you about it, reprimanded you, and then it was over, he never brought it up again. And then another day you did something wrong, your father reprimanded you severely, and then he went and took his nap — and when he woke up, he started reprimanding you again. Which crime is worse? The second one. Meaning, when Allah goes back to the topic, it means: we're not done with it. It's a very serious topic and I'm returning to it again. You thought we were done — I'm returning to it again. This is how much Allah defended 'Ā'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her. And there's even more in the wordings, in the power of the phrasing of the sentences — and this is further proof that the Qur'an is the speech of Allah.

The Qur'an: Our Abandoned Book

But brothers and sisters, our problem is that we have just abandoned the Qur'an. That's our problem. That's why you find people leaving Islam or doubting Islam. If you read this book every day, you will not have any doubt. But the problem is the way we look at the Qur'an. And I'll repeat this story one more time.

There was a troubled young man, and they brought him to talk to me, and he didn't want to come talk to me. And his main argument was: "What's the shaykh gonna tell me? He's gonna tell me to read the Qur'an." You see how we belittle the Qur'an? "There's no solution in it. He's just gonna tell me to read the Qur'an. It's just a solution we throw at people — go read the Qur'an." And I made sure, after sitting with him, to tell him to read the Qur'an. Because that is the solution. You can't tell me not to give you the right answer. What is 1 plus 1? And you can't say 2? I can say 2 — I know the answer is 2. It's the right answer. Now say 2. What do you want me to say? It's the right answer. And reading the Qur'an is the right answer and the solution. There are so many problems — from emotional to depression and beyond — and everyone thinks, "Yeah, the depression is far more complex than you mashāyikh make it out to be." No, it's not complex. Nothing about it is complex. The solutions are in this book. We just ignore it. That's our problem.

Second Khuṭbah: The Flow of the Remaining Verses

الحمد لله رب العالمين، والصلاة والسلام على رسوله الأمين، وعلى آله وصحبه أجمعين. أما بعد.

So just looking at themes only now and no details. Verses 23 to 26 go back to the incident of al-ifk. Then verses 27 to 29 cover the rules of visitation. What's the link? Where does zinā happen? In homes. Before, people didn't ask permission — they would just enter. And what does that look like? It looks like zinā, or it could lead to zinā. So that's why Allah mentioned the rules of visitation, knocking on people's doors, asking permission before going in.

Then verse 30 — lowering the gaze for men. How does it start? Zinā starts with looking. Then verse 31 — lowering the gaze for women, covering, proper attire, and proper behavior for women.

Then it goes into solutions for zinā — getting married. And Allah says:

Those who are al-ayyim — whether divorced, single, whoever doesn't have a spouse — what should you do with them in society? Wed them off. Many people misunderstand this verse: they think it's saying "marry those who are single." No. It's saying marry them off to each other. Wed them off to each other. Then those who can't get married — what is their solution?

Then verse 34 links you back to the beginning. After all these rules and guidelines, Allah is telling you: you have seen in this book, in the Qur'an, what has happened to nations who disobeyed their Lord. So in the beginning of the sūrah — follow and obey what is in this sūrah. In the middle of the sūrah — you have seen what happens to those who disobeyed the rules. So are you going to follow or not?

Then Allah talks about His light — the parable of His light. And you will only understand it well when you see the parable of darkness and the misguidance of the disbeliever. Then verse 47, it gets into the hypocrites — from 47 all the way to 54. What do the hypocrites have to do with anything? Who started the rumor? It was the hypocrites. So that's why Allah deals with them and how they behave and act, and how the righteous believers act.

And then verse 55 — if you obey Allah, here's a promise from Allah: He will give you control of the earth, He will give you safety and security.

Verse 58: Teaching Children to Knock

Then the rest of the verses go into — first we were looking at rules of visitation, the stranger knocking on your door. Now Allah tells you how even within your home, the little children knock on your door. And we'll close with this: verse 58 deals with your little children and teaching them to knock on your bedroom doors at specific times of the day.

One of the Atbā' al-Tābi'īn — from the third generation — was asked: "Has verse 58 of Sūrat An-Nūr been abrogated?" Because since early on, he said, people don't act upon this verse — they don't teach their children these etiquettes. Has it been abrogated? And he said no. He said people simply don't teach that to their children. This is how long ago. So if you go home today and you teach this to your children, you will be of the very few handful on the planet who are acting upon verse 58.

Which takes us to verse 28. One of the early Muslims said — because Allah says:

"When you knock on someone's door, if they say 'I'm busy now, can you come back later?'" — he said for 20 years he would visit his friends hoping they would tell him to go back. Why? So he could live out verse 28 of Sūrat An-Nūr. He said: "I want to one day knock on a friend's house and he says, 'Oh, it's good to see you — I'm so sorry, it's not a good time right now, can you come back another time?'" He said: "I'm just hoping one day someone says it to me so I can live out this verse of the Qur'an."

That's the difference between them and us, brothers and sisters. Today if you came to my house and I said "I'm sorry, it's not a good time" — what kind of shaykh is this? What happened to generosity? I may ruin my reputation in the community because I acted out verse 28. That's the difference. This is an honor and a pleasure.

A Call to Return to the Qur'an

So this is a call and a reminder — to myself first and to all of us — to keep a relationship with the Book of Allah. Read it. Read it with contemplation. Read it with understanding. What is Allah saying to me? And you do that and you will find problem after problem in your life being fixed, by the permission of Allah.

With that, we ask Allah to make us of those who recognize the truth as clear truth and follow the best of it, and to make us of those who recognize falsehood as clear falsehood and abstain from it. We ask Allah to rectify and bring ease to the Muslims in Morocco. We ask Allah to rectify and bring ease to the Muslims in Libya. We ask Allah to accept as martyrs those who have died from amongst them, and to forgive the rest who have died, and to grant their families patience and well-being.