-
Quran 17:59
What has stopped Us from sending signs of punishment is that the earlier generations had denied them. We had given the Thamud a she-camel [in a similar way] as an eye-opening sign but they were unjust [to themselves] and denied it.71 [What then is the use to send signs?] We only send signs to frighten [people before punishing them].72 (58-59)
Why did God send miracles to previous nations then, and not use the same reasoning here that they would just deny it anyway? -
26 Replies
-
Quran 17:59
updated 3 years, 8 months ago
4 Members
·
26
Replies
-
The verse 17:59 is not talking about miracles. This is about signs of punishment that lies ahead for deniers of the truth after culmination of argument (itmam-e-hujjah). The argument being made is that such a sign won’t be given to the addressees of prophet Muhammad SAW because it doesn’t help the deniers, which is evident by the behavior of previous nations.
-
So obviously it didn’t help the deniers of the previous nations either. So why was it sent to them?
-
So that they have no excuses.
The whole purpose of sending prophets is so that people don’t have any excuses on the day of judgement. Please see Quran verse 4:165.
-
Sorry I don’t get it. God says he didn’t send signs of punishment because previous nations denied them and it was of no use. So if this reasoning was given to the nation of Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم – that it will be of no sie- why did God send them to previous nations knowing that it would’ve been of no use?
-
It’s not that hard to understand. An experiment was done and the results were negative. Now there’s no need to repeat the same experiment.
If you nicely say please stop every time your first few children approach fire and they don’t listen, then there’s no need to do that with the next child.
-
That’s what I’m saying. Why did God have to do an experiment?
-
So that they have no excuses.
-
But quraysh also had no excuses despite miracles. The ayah seems to suggest that God sent signs and it didn’t work so he learnt something and didn’t send them the next time أعوذ بالله من الشيىطان الرجيم
-
-
My opinion. Allah wanted to show humans that miracles don’t work. Otherwise he knew in advance that miracles won’t work. This is the same as Allah sending humans to this World for test, otherwise he knew the results in advance. Allah has to show humans otherwise they will complain that if Allah had shown us miracles we would have believed.
-
But they did work for the magicians and bani israel and yunus عليه السلام and who knows how many more?
-
-
That is true. Yes they did work for extremely small number of people. But I feel miracles are not needed. People who are sincere see miracle in everything and they accept Islam as long as the message gets to them. To me everything is a miracle. I also think Quran is the ultimate miracle.
-
I think the primary purpose of miracles would be to prove that a prophet of God is from God.
-
You may be right
-
-
Please see this to understand miracles in the light of the Quran:
-
-
I’m not sure if the video or the other link addresses my latest reply above
-
-
A miracle in this era will not be enough for people to believe as the current era is far advanced and even normal people can do a lot of things which were considered impossible earlier.
I believe, in this era logical arguments with scientific evidences are more convincing rather some super natural activity.
Allah knows best!
-
That’s fine and all. Though it is a bit weird because why should the standards of believing in God change over time. My question is given here: Discussion 41382 • Reply 41397
-
Let me try to put a wrapper around this conversation. If Allah wanted to make a believer of everyone in the World he could have done it in a snap or Allah would have come down and shown himself to everyone ( From Quran). But we must understand that this is not the design. When we are born, he puts it in our subconscious that there is one creator of universe (From Quran). It is our test to accept or reject this guidance. Allah’s responsibility after we are born is perhaps only to have the message delivered to us that contains clues that match with our subconscious memory. But, because if our vanity or other Wordly reasons, people ignore and reject Allah even when their subconscious is screaming otherwise. Eventually they make that voice permanently quiet or if they conyinue on the evil ways, the voice of evil takes over.
Allah just gives us with clues for the sincere ones to match that internal guidance. The same clues either in the universe or in Quran are taken two ways. For sincere ones it guides them to Allah and they infer positive meaning and for those with wrong intention the same clues help them turn away from Allah. Both see the same information, but they take a different meaning.
If anyone is expecting an absolute proof of Allah before accepting him, he/she will never find it by arguments, facts or figures, but only in his/her heart. That is the design based on my understanding of Quran.
-
I and I think @faisalharoon would disagree that the proof for God is not absolute and I don’t think this answers my q
-
To my understsding, Faisal agrees.
This answers your question as miracles were needed in the past for couple of reasons you stated. Now people are smarter, with all kinds of info available on their fingertip and science is advanced enough and we have among us the biggest miracle of all the Quran with all signs and clues for the sincere ones. So no need of miracles any more.
-
That’s not what the ayah says. And the prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not have science nor miracles
-
-
No science or miracle was needed for Prophet’s time but Quran. But Quran is for all times. Now science slso helps.
-
Anyway this has gone a bit off topic. My latest reply to the original post is the question.
-
I don’t think my question was addressed
-
Any ideas?
-
Sponsor Ask Ghamidi
