Surah 11

Surah 11:6

"(There is) not a creature on the earth but its provision (depends) on God. He knows its dwelling place and its storage place. Everything is (recorded) in a clear Book."
Allah is Responsible for the Provisions of All Creatures Verses 11:6
Show Full Scripture Context (11:6) — 1 Verse
Verse 6

۞وَمَا مِن دَآبَّةٖ فِي ٱلۡأَرۡضِ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱللَّهِ رِزۡقُهَا وَيَعۡلَمُ مُسۡتَقَرَّهَا وَمُسۡتَوۡدَعَهَاۚ كُلّٞ فِي كِتَٰبٖ مُّبِينٖ

(There is) not a creature on the earth but its provision (depends) on God. He knows its dwelling place and its storage place. Everything is (recorded) in a clear Book.

Allah, the Exalted, informs that He is responsible for the provisions of all the creatures that dwell in the earth, whether they are small, large, sea-dwelling or land-dwelling. He knows their place of dwelling and their place of deposit. This means that He knows where their journeying will end in the earth and where they will seek shelter when they wish to nest. This place of nesting is also considered their place of deposit. 'Ali bin Abi Talhah and others reported from Ibn 'Abbas that he said concerning the statement,

{And He knows its dwelling place} that it means where it resides.

In reference to the statement,

{and its deposit.} he (Ibn 'Abbas) said it means where it will die.

Allah informs us that all of this is written in a Book with Allah that explains it in detail. This is similar to Allah's statement,

{There is not a moving creature on earth, nor a bird that flies with its two wings, but are communities like you. We have neglected nothing in the Book, then unto their Lord they (all) shall be gathered.} 6:38, and

{And with Him are the keys of the Ghayb (all that is hidden and unseen), none knows them but He. And He knows whatever there is in the land and in the sea; not a leaf falls, but he knows it. There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record.} 6:59

About this Source & Scholarly Authority (Tafsir Ibn Kathir)

Universal Sunni Consensus: Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim by Hafiz Ibn Kathir (701–774 AH / 1301–1373 AD) is universally regarded across all major schools of Sunni Islam (traditional, Salafi, Ash'ari) as the most authoritative classical exegesis. It is prized because it relies on Tafsir bil-Ma'thur—interpreting the Quran using the Quran itself, authentic Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad, and recorded statements of the early Companions (Sahabah).

Standard English Edition: This text is from the standard 10-volume English abridgment published by Dar-us-Salam Publications (supervised by Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri), which is the official, most widely distributed English Quranic commentary in mosques and Islamic libraries worldwide today.