Surah 18:109

"Say: ‘If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would indeed give out before the words of my Lord would give out, even if We brought (another sea) like it as an extension.’"

Contradictions (1)Christian Footnotes (1)Islamic Commentaries (1)Manuscripts (46)

The Words of the Lord can never be finished Verses 18:109

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Verse 109

قُل لَّوۡ كَانَ ٱلۡبَحۡرُ مِدَادٗا لِّكَلِمَٰتِ رَبِّي لَنَفِدَ ٱلۡبَحۡرُ قَبۡلَ أَن تَنفَدَ كَلِمَٰتُ رَبِّي وَلَوۡ جِئۡنَا بِمِثۡلِهِۦ مَدَدٗا

Say: ‘If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would indeed give out before the words of my Lord would give out, even if We brought (another sea) like it as an extension.’

Allah says: ‘Say, O Muhammad, if the water of the sea were ink for a pen to write down the words, wisdom and signs of Allah, the sea would run dry before it all could be written down.

4even if We brought like it) means, another sea, then another, and so on, additional seas to be used for writing. The Words (of Allah would still never run out. As Allah says:

4And if all the trees on the earth were pens and the sea (were ink), with seven seas behind it to increase it, yet the Words of Allah would not be exhausted. Verily, Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.) [31:27]

Ar-Rabl‘ bin Anas said, “The parable of the knowledge of all of mankind, in comparison to the knowledge of Allah, is that o ' a drop of water in comparison to all of the oceans.” Allah revealed that:

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.

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