AND IF My servants ask thee about Me - behold, I am near;

By: Maged Taman

2:186 AND IF My servants ask thee about Me - behold, I am near; I respond to the call of him who calls, whenever he calls unto Me: let them, then, respond unto Me, and believe in Me, so that they might follow the right way.
وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِي عَنِّي فَإِنِّي قَرِيبٌ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ الدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُواْ لِي وَلْيُؤْمِنُواْ بِي لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ (2:186)

1- God tells Muhammad that if his servants or worshipers ask about me I am near. He did not chose in this verse Muslims, believers or people but worshipers or servants since God is near to them because they are serving him and asking about him.
2- Being near to them he invites them to call on him and he affirms that he responds to them.
3- As a return he asks them to respond to him and believe in him.
4- The consequence is that they will follow the right way if they believe and respond to his commands.
5- Thus every part of this verse lead to the next part they ask, he is near, they call him he responds, so they to respond to him and believe in him and follow the right way. This right way will make them close servants and they will ask him again and the cycle is repeated over and over and by this way they build a close relationship with God.
6- The brilliance of the language is the verse is formed of small sentences that lead to one another. There is harmony in choosing the lead words and shortest sentences besides the harmony of the meanings.
7- Spirit of the verse is the short leads They are asking about God and he is near. The sentence is short God did not answer by large sentence but small and very near to the inquirer, similarly the next sentences come close to one another short and eloquent. Thus the spirit of the verse could be well conducted to our souls , though we did not entertain this explanation. It just reach your heart because the one who created you know and understands you more than yourself.
8- Though you find big mercy in the words for God is being near available to the callers and ready to respond in the same time he still maintains his glory and control. The latter is illustrated by my servants, I respond, let them.
9- God give it back to us that the right way is the reward of God since it will benefit us not him, as he chose rightly the word might. This is the theme of the Quran worshiping and obedience are for our interest. Imagine he did not call us through the prophets and we followed our desires ending by being spiritually empty and materialistically contentious. Meanwhile we did not diminsh any of his possessions of the great universe. Thus if he choose to hide from us we are the losers. When he reach to us through his messages it is our interest to build our relation with him and be close to him.
10- God is near when we ask about him or call him, if not he is far away and may even look absent. It is us who will determine our relation. Many times we feel or want him near to us when we are in trials or close to death. It is better to be near to him all time and not only when you need him most. Pharaoh believed in God when he was dying he believed in what Beno Israel believed in, but was to late for God.

10:90 And We brought the children of Israel across the sea; and thereupon pharaoh and his hosts pursued them with vehement insolence and tyranny, until [they were overwhelmed by the waters of the sea. And] when he was about to drown, [pharaoh] exclaimed: "I have come to believe that there is no deity save Him in whom the children of Israel believe, and I am of those who surrender themselves unto Him!"
وَجَاوَزْنَا بِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ الْبَحْرَ فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ وَجُنُودُهُ بَغْيًا وَعَدْوًا حَتَّى إِذَا أَدْرَكَهُ الْغَرَقُ قَالَ آمَنتُ أَنَّهُ لا إِلِـهَ إِلاَّ الَّذِي آمَنَتْ بِهِ بَنُو إِسْرَائِيلَ وَأَنَاْ مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ (10:90)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpnDV6j9l60

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