Who is "we" referring to in the verse 41:12?

Sources

• ✓ 41:12 · Fussilat

  41:12 · Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall

  فَقَضَىٰهُنَّ سَبْعَ سَمَٰوَاتٍۢ فِى يَوْمَيْنِ وَأَوْحَىٰ فِى كُلِّ سَمَآءٍ أَمْرَهَا ۚ وَزَيَّنَّا ٱلسَّمَآءَ ٱلدُّنْيَا بِمَصَٰبِيحَ وَحِفْظًۭا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ ٱلْعَزِيزِ ٱلْعَلِيمِ

  Then He ordained them seven heavens in two Days and inspired in each heaven its mandate; and We decked the nether heaven with lamps, and rendered it inviolable. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Knower.

• ✓ Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 41:12

  Sunni

  Tafsir Ibn Kathir · 41:12

  This is a repudiation from Allah directed at the polytheists who associated partners with Him, even though He alone is the Creator, the Subduer, and the One who ordains all things. The verse commands: “Say: Are you indeed ungrateful to Him who created the earth in two days and assign equals to Him?” That is, you worship other beings alongside Him—partners and likenesses—though He is the Lord of all worlds, i.e., the Creator of all things and the Lord over all the worlds. This verse provides a detailed explanation related to Allah’s earlier statement: “He created the heavens and the earth in six days” (al-A'raf 7:54). Here the focus is on the creation of the earth, differentiating it from the heavens. The earth was created first because it is the foundation; logically, one begins with the base before constructing the upper levels. This aligns with the verse: “He it is who created for you all that is on earth, then directed Himself to the heaven, and fashioned it into seven heavens” (al-Baqarah 2:29). Regarding the passage: “Are you more difficult to create, or is the heaven which He constructed? He raised its ceiling and proportioned it, darkened its night and brought forth its brightness” (an-Nazi'at 79:27-30), it indicates that the spreading (dahya) of the earth — explained as the bringing forth of its waters and pastures — occurred after the creation of the heavens. The spreading included producing the earth’s water, vegetation, and mountains as provision for humans and livestock. Thus, the creation of the earth’s basic form happened before the heavens, but the earth’s spreading and furnishing with things happened later. Ibn Abbas explained similarly in a hadith mentioned by al-Bukhari regarding this verse. He was asked about apparent contradictions in the Qur’an and responded that certain verses describe events in different contexts, such as resurrection, leading to differences in how they are interpreted. He stated that in the first trumpet blast, all lineages cease and people do not question one another, but at the second trumpet blast, there is questioning among people (referring to different stages of the afterlife). When people say, “We were never polytheists,” Allah seals their mouths and their own hands will testify against them, showing that Allah does not conceal any statement. “All things” were created by Allah in stages: the earth in two days; then the heavens; then He established Himself over the heaven and fashioned it into seven heavens in two other days; then He spread out the earth and brought forth water, pasture, mountains, and all elements therein in two further days, thus the earth and its contents took four days, and the heavens two days. The expression “And Allah was Forgiving, Merciful” is Allah naming Himself by His attributes, affirming that He never fails in His intendments. The Qur’an cannot contradict itself as all is from the Almighty, the Exalted. Regarding the “two days” during which the earth was created, it is said these were Sunday and Monday, followed by the next two days when mountains and sustenance were formed, then the creation of the heavens and celestial bodies occurred on the following two days, Thursday and Friday. Mujahid and Ikrimah explained that Allah designated specific sustenance for each land which cannot be grown elsewhere—examples include certain plants native to Yemen or Persia. As for the verse “Then He directed Himself to the heaven when it was smoke and said to it and to the earth: ‘Come willingly or unwillingly,’ they said: ‘We come willingly,’” Ibn Abbas said this reflects how the heavens and earth responded obediently to Allah’s command. Some scholars interpret the earth here as the place of the Kaaba and the sky as what encompasses it. Hasan al-Basri said: if they had refused, Allah would have punished them severely. Ibn Jarir narrated that Allah completed the creation of the seven heavens in two days (Thursday and Friday). He also said that He revealed the commands in each heaven, appointed angels, adorned the lowest heaven with bright stars as protection from devils seeking to listen to the higher assembly. The phrase “That is the decree of the Almighty, the Knowing” means Allah, the All-Powerful who has dominion over all things, determined and fashioned the creation precisely and knowledgeably. Ibn Jarir narrated from Ibn Abbas that when Jews asked the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ about the creation of the heavens and earth, he explained the creation timeline: the earth was created Sunday and Monday; mountains and their benefits on Tuesday; trees, water, cities, civilization, and ruins on Wednesday; the heavens on Thursday; stars, sun, moon, and angels on Friday; and Adam in the final hour of Friday. The Jews inquired what happened next, and he said Allah then established Himself over the Throne, which the Jews accepted if only he had said that fully. Other narrations from Abd Allah ibn Rawaf via Abu Hurayrah report a slightly different creation sequence but with the same structure. Al-Bukhari noted these reports’ authenticity variably and preferred the one from Ka'b al-Ahbar as stronger. In summary, this ayah rebukes those who disbelieve in the One who created the earth in two days and set for it mountains from above, blessed it, and measured provisions within it during four days, while the heavens were fashioned in two days, all as a clear sign of Allah’s mighty, wise decree. No contradiction exists in this precise and glorious act of creation.