And it is He who sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby the growth of all things. We produce from it greenery from which We produce grains arranged in layers. And from the palm trees - of its emerging fruit are clusters hanging low. And [We produce] gardens of grapevines and olives and pomegranates, similar yet varied. Look at [each of] its fruit when it yields and [at] its ripening. Indeed in that are signs for a people who believe.
(O mankind! Have Taqwa of your Lord, Who created you from a single person, and from him He created his mate, and from them both He created many men and women.)4:1 Allah said,
فَمُسْتَقَرٌّ وَمُسْتَوْدَعٌ
(Mustaqar and Mustawda`) Ibn Mas`ud, Ibn `Abbas, Abu `Abdur-Rahman As-Sulami, Qays bin Abu Hazim, Mujahid, `Ata', Ibrahim An-Nakha`i, Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah, As-Suddi and `Ata' Al-Khurasani and others said that,
The contents of this verse present a unique concern for thematic order. It will be noticed that three kinds of universes have been mentioned here: The low, the high and the atmosphere - that is, what generates in what we know as the Biosphere. The description was initiated with the mention of that which is on the lower level because it is closer to us. Then, it was split in two parts. One part of the statement covered vegetation which grows on the land, plants and trees and gardens. The other part featured life forms as beasts, human beings and animals. The first part was given precedence because it is more obvious as compared to the other. Then comes the case of that which has been made to come after, the other part. This is different. It has Ruh, soul or spirit. It is deep, depends on progression from the sperm to its various stages and attending conditions, something allied with the comprehension, diagnosis and judgment of physicians - contrary to the case of vegetation which, in its growth, flowering and ripening etc., is observable commonly. Then, mentioned there was the atmosphere and its life support system, the morning and the evening. Then, came the mention of what is higher, the sun, the moon, and the stars. After that, since what is at the lower level is observed more frequently, the subject was repeated and made the concluding statement. But, firstly it was taken up briefly, now it was taken up in detail - yet, in the order of this detail, the order of brevity was reversed by giving precedence to life forms and succession to the mention of vegetation. Perhaps, its basis is that the detailed statement highlights the expression of gratitude for blessings which, in that status, makes the blessed - being the intended recipients - deserving of being given precedence. As for vegetation, the previous order stays as the status of the donees, that is, of seeds and pits, remains preceded. That rain has been mentioned in between is subservient to the mention of vegetation. Incidentally, there might be another element of refinement here - in that rain has different states. In terms of its origin, it comes from the high; and in terms of its destination, it comes down to the low; and in terms of the distance covered, it is part of the atmosphere.
Tazkirul Quran
Maulana Wahiduddin KhanOn ayahs 99–101
Earth, or mud, is apparently a dead and inert thing. Then rain falls on it. Soon after the absorption of water, a new lush green world springs out of the earth. Sundry varieties of crops and different kinds of fruit-bearing trees come forth from it. This event also is an example of the coming world after this world. As soon as water permeates the earth, the emergence of a fresh, beautiful and fragrant carpet of colours from the earth indicates the potential which the Creator of the World has implanted here. The righteous deeds which a man performs in this world of today are on a parallel with this. When God’s grace rains down, this potential will become a reality—flourishing and producing the burgeoning crops of the Hereafter. Man, in the beginning, is nurtured in the womb of his mother and thereafter makes his entry into the present world. The grave is also, so to say, a sort of ‘womb’, to which man is ultimately consigned. Thereafter, he opens his eyes in another, future world, so that he may be sent to Heaven or Hell according to his deeds. Glimpses of and arguments in favour of the unseen hidden world, which man must necessarily accept, are already there in the present tangible and visible world. But only that person will accept it who is already mentally prepared to do so. It is only when a man has travelled half the distance along the path towards Faith (iman) that it is possible for the call to the faith to enter freely into his mind and to be acceptable to him. Exhortations to believe in God will not in any way benefit a man who has been travelling in a direction opposite to that of Faith.
Uthmani text of the Madinah mushaf (King Fahd Complex). Translation: Saheeh International. Tafsir via Quran.com.
