What does dead earth do when rain falls?
وَمِنْ ءَايَٰتِهِۦٓ أَنَّكَ تَرَى ٱلْأَرْضَ خَٰشِعَةً فَإِذَآ أَنزَلْنَا عَلَيْهَا ٱلْمَآءَ ٱهْتَزَّتْ وَرَبَتْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَحْيَاهَا لَمُحْىِ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰٓ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ ﴿٣٩﴾
Surah Fussilat · 41:39
Meaning (M. Pickthall, 1930): And of His portents (is this): that thou seest the earth lowly, but when We send down water thereon it thrilleth and groweth. Lo! He Who quickeneth it is verily the Quickener of the Dead. Lo! He is Able to do all things.
The reflection
What does dry, dead earth do the moment the rain touches it?
In the chapter Fussilat, God names among His signs that you see the earth "lowly".
Ibn Kathir and al-Sa'di explain: lowly means lifeless, with nothing growing. But when God sends down the rain, the earth "thrilleth and groweth": it stirs with plants and swells… and brings out beautiful crops of every kind.
Then the verse says: "He who quickeneth it is verily the Quickener of the Dead". Al-Sa'di writes: just as His power did not fail to revive the earth after its death, it will not fail to revive the dead. And God knows best.
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Sources
- Ibn Kathir, Tafsir al-Qur'an al-'Azim
- al-Sa'di, Taysir al-Karim al-Rahman
- Quran text: Tanzil Project (tanzil.net)
- English meaning: M. Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious Koran (1930)
