15-16 And certainly We have made strongholds in the heaven, and We have made it fair-seeming to the beholders,
وَلَقَدْ جَعَلْنَا فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ بُرُوجًۭا وَزَيَّنَّـٰهَا لِلنَّـٰظِرِينَ (۱۶)
15-17 And We guard it against every accursed devil,
وَحَفِظْنَـٰهَا مِن كُلِّ شَيْطَـٰنٍۢ رَّجِيمٍ (۱۷)
15-18 But he who steals a hearing; so there follows him a visible flame.
إِلَّا مَنِ ٱسْتَرَقَ ٱلسَّمْعَ فَأَتْبَعَهُۥ شِهَابٌۭ مُّبِينٌۭ (۱۸)
15-18a: بُرُوجًۭ – It is the plural of بُرۡج which means star. See 4-78a. The Quran itself has made this meaning clear when in another place instead of بُرُوجًۭ the word used is کواکب : إِنَّا زَيَّنَّا ٱلسَّمَآءَ ٱلدُّنْيَا بِزِينَةٍ ٱلْكَوَاكِبِ وَحِفْظًۭا مِّن كُلِّ شَيْطَـٰنٍۢ مَّارِدٍۢ :Surely We have adorned the lower heaven with an adornment, the stars, and (there is) a safeguard against every rebellious devil (37:6,7). In a third place, the کواکب are called مصابیح : وَلَقَدْ زَيَّنَّا ٱلسَّمَآءَ ٱلدُّنْيَا بِمَصَـٰبِيحَ وَجَعَلْنَـٰهَا رُجُومًۭا لِّلشَّيَـٰطِينِ :And certainly We have adorned the lower heaven with lamps and We make them means of conjecture for the devils (67:5).
رَجِيمٍ – See 3-36a. The meaning of رَجۡم given in Lisan al-Arab is: killing, stoning, to remove, abusing and swearing. It is erroneous to consider that the meaning of رَجِيمٍ is that the devil is actually stoned or attacked by flaming spark and that is why he is called رَجِيمٍ . رَجِيمٍ here is used in the sense of accursed – the one removed from the Mercy of Allah, and this meaning has been accepted in Lisan al-Arab. The Quran has also clarified this in verse 15:34 where Iblis is called رَجِيمٍ due to his being removed from goodness, and not because of anyone stoning him. It has also been accepted that in رُجُومًۭا لِّلشَّيَـٰطِينِ :conjecture for the devils (67:5), as in this verse, human devils are meant, such as diviners etc., who idly conjecture about the unseen. This is the meaning adopted by Ibn Kathir.
ٱسْتَرَقَ – سَرِقَة is to take a thing stealthily that does not belong to the taker, and ٱسْتَرَقَ ٱلسَّمْعَ is eavesdropping (R).
شِهَابٌۭ – It is a burning brand taken from the fire or a shooting star that streaks across the sky (R), as in: إِنِّىٓ ءَانَسْتُ نَارًۭا لَّعَلِّىٓ ءَاتِيكُم مِّنْهَا بِقَبَسٍ :I see a fire; haply I may bring to you therefrom a live coal (20:10).
Devils eavesdropping on angels: In verse 15:16, it is stated that Allah has made stars in the heaven and in verse 15:17 that these stars have been safeguarded from every accursed devil. This topic is repeated again in Surah Al Saffat in almost identical words except that instead of بُرُوجًۭ the word کواکب is used, thereby showing that what is meant by بُرُوجًۭ is stars. The first question is: what is meant by safeguarding heaven or stars from the devils? The second question is: what is meant by him who steals a hearing and what is it that the devils surreptitiously eavesdrop on? The third question is: what is meant by there follows a visible flame?
A hadith in Bukhari forms the basis for the interpretation of these passages by the commentators. The gist of this hadith is as follows: When Allah decides on a particular matter (in another version of this hadith, the wordings are: when Allah orally gives the command to send revelation), the angels show humility and hear Allah’s voice that rings like the sound of a chain hitting a rock. When their fear departs, other angels inquire from them what Allah has commanded and they reply that He has commanded the truth and He is the Supreme, the Great. Meanwhile, the devils who are piled up one upon another and are secretly eavesdropping, overhear some of the conversation. The eavesdroppers are then targeted by flaming stars. Some are destroyed but some escape immediate destruction and successfully pass on what they heard to other devils before they are destroyed by flaming stars. This process of passing the overheard news to other devils before getting destroyed by the flaming stars continues until the message reaches the earth and is put in the mouth of a sorcerer (or a diviner) who mixes the news with a lot of falsehood and communicates it to the public. When a prediction comes true, people think the diviner told the truth.
This hadith is reported by Tabrani as follows: When Allah speaks for the purpose of sending revelation, the sky trembles and the dwellers of heaven swoon as soon as they hear the speech and fall down in prostration. Gabriel is the first one to arise and Allah tells him whatever He wants to. The angels then ask him, what is it that Allah said, and he replies: الھق و ھو العلی الکبیر (The truth and He is the Supreme, the Great).
One thing that becomes apparent from these ahadith is that when the angels ask Gabriel or enquire from one another what Allah said, the reply is only الھق و ھو العلی الکبیر. There are several problems with accepting this hadith literally. In direct contradiction of the Quran, the hadith states that the devils overhear Allah’s speech whereas the Quran states about Divine revelation that the devils cannot hear it, as in: وَمَا تَنَزَّلَتْ بِهِ ٱلشَّيَـٰطِينُ وَمَا يَنۢبَغِى لَهُمْ وَمَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ إِنَّهُمْ عَنِ ٱلسَّمْعِ لَمَعْزُولُونَ : And the devils have not brought it. And it behooves them not, nor have they the power to do (it). Surely they are far removed from hearing it (26:210-212). The last part of the above verse shows that the devils are far removed from revelation, and they have no power to overhear. If it is argued that these verses are not about Quranic revelation but about other matters, then this argument too is rebutted by the Quran: أَمْ لَهُمْ سُلَّمٌۭ يَسْتَمِعُونَ فِيهِ ۖ فَلْيَأْتِ مُسْتَمِعُهُم بِسُلْطَـٰنٍۢ مُّبِينٍ : Or have they the means by which they listen? Then let their listener bring a clear authority (52:38). Thus, the devils have no means by which they can listen and if they allege otherwise, their listeners should bring clear testimony. This shows that the devils have no secret way to hear confidential conversations about hidden matters. In view of the clear explanation in the Quran, those hadith cannot be accepted. The commentators have also written that before Prophet Jesus there was no restriction on the entry of devils in the heavens but when Prophet Jesus was born, the devils were prohibited from three heavens and when the Holy Prophet was born, they were prohibited from all the heavens. This narration is stated to be by Ibn Abbas, but there is no testimony in the Quran or Hadith to support this view.
If one reflects, it will be seen that in all such verses, by devils are meant diviners and astrologers who claim that they can predict the future by using their knowledge of astrology, or stars. Ibn Kathir also accepts this meaning while interpreting the term رجوماً الشیاطین (67:5) in which by رجوماً is meant conjectures and by الشیاطین is meant sorcerers and soothsayers as has been shown by reference to Lisan al Arab above. Reflection on the words of the Quran supports this interpretation because it says in Surah Al Mulk that مصابیح or stars, are made into رجوماً الشیاطین . If the meaning is that the stars are used to target the devils, then by now heaven would have run out of stars or at least their numbers would have been seriously depleted. Observation proves such an interpretation to be incorrect and literal interpreters have had to admit that the meaning is not using the stars to target the devils, but to take a flame out of the stars to throw at them. Instead of this far-fetched interpretation, why should the simple interpretation not be accepted that رجوماً الشیاطین means the unsound conjectures of astrologers. This is further supported by the use of the word رجم in رَجْمًۢا بِٱلْغَيْبِ :Making conjectures about the unseen (18:22) and the word شیاطین in وَإِذَا خَلَوْا۟ إِلَىٰ شَيَـٰطِينِهِمْ :when they are alone with their devils (2:14) where the words are used in exactly the same meaning as used here.
Thus, by stating that the stars are safeguarded from the devils, it is conveyed that astrologers and diviners have no ability to know the future from the stars, as is also stated elsewhere: أَمْ لَهُمْ سُلَّمٌۭ يَسْتَمِعُونَ فِيهِ ۖ : Or have they the means by which they listen? (52:38) and in أَمْ عِندَهُمُ ٱلْغَيْبُ فَهُمْ يَكْتُبُونَ : Or possess they the unseen, so they write (it) down (52:41). On the other hand by using the term رجوماً الشیاطین it is conveyed that the talk of the diviners and astrologers is pure conjecture and guesses which are allegedly based upon knowledge from the stars. In reality, astrology is mere speculation and they have no access to the stars.
The second question is: what is meant by ٱسْتَرَقَ ٱلسَّمْعَ or steal a hearing, the third question is: what is meant by there follows him a visible flame. Both questions relate to each other. If steal a hearing means that the devils and jinn are actually able to stealthily overhear some of the secrets of Allah, then this is against Allah’s attribute of being All-Powerful. Even humans and governments jealously guard their secrets, so it is ludicrous to allege that the All-Powerful Allah is unable to do so. Any such allegation reduces the Almighty to a level even below that of humans. Furthermore, if we do believe in such stealing, the distinction between the news Allah gives and the news that the devils obtain in this manner is lost, because then it is as if the devils have some control over the news of the unseen. Moreover, despite being targeted by flaming stars, the devils are successful in conveying some the news to the earth. This would mean that not only Allah is unable to protect His secrets from the devils, but when He becomes aware that the secrets have leaked and He takes action against the stealers of the secrets, He is unable to do so successfully. Attributing such acts to Allah is admitting imperfections in His attributes.
Some supporters of the hadith interpretation of these verses back their argument by arguing that Allah’s prophets and righteous servants also suffer afflictions at the hands of their enemies. However, there is no parallel between the two situations and this cannot be an answer to the criticism of their interpretation. The suffering of the righteous at the hands of their enemies is in accordance with the tradition of Allah that messengers are humans who are subject to the same conditions that influence all humans. Allah manifests His attribute of being All-Powerful in their case and saves them even when they fall into the hands of their enemies. However, if the devils are able to hear the secrets that Allah wants to entrust only to His Messengers and other chosen ones, then this will be a deficiency in His perfect attributes, rather than a trial.
It is also erroneous to say, as the commentators have written, that this system of visible flames started from the time of Prophet Jesus because prior to Prophet Jesus, there was no restriction on the devils, and they could get all the information that they wanted. During the time of Prophet Jesus, the devils were prohibited from three heavens and during the time of the Holy Prophet from all the heavens. This is absurd because the phenomenon of shooting stars has existed since our planet was formed. It is meaningless to say that prior to Prophet Jesus the phenomenon of shooting stars had no special purpose, but it became a way to target devils starting from the time of Prophet Jesus. Allah’s laws of nature do not change in this manner. The rationale of shooting stars has to be the same as it has always been.
The strangest interpretation in this discussion is of the verse: وَأَنَّا كُنَّا نَقْعُدُ مِنْهَا مَقَـٰعِدَ لِلسَّمْعِ ۖ فَمَن يَسْتَمِعِ ٱلْـَٔانَ يَجِدْ لَهُۥ شِهَابًۭا رَّصَدًۭا :And we used to sit in some of the sitting-places thereof to steal a hearing. But he who tries to listen now finds a flame lying in wait for him (72:9) which shows that previously the jinn were able to sit in the sitting places and hear the secrets and it is only with the advent of the Holy Prophet that the flames or shooting stars have started to target them. (These jinn are actually humans as will be shown later in its appropriate place). This difficulty is resolved by the Quran in two words يُلْقُونَ ٱلسَّمْعَ : They give ear (26:223) where the party being described are the devils. Thus, these sorcerers and diviners seek to learn some knowledge from the devils. Just as by لقاۓ سمع is not meant listening to the talk of angels, similarly by استراق سمع : steal a hearing, is not meant listening secretly to the talk of the angels. What is called استراق سمع : steal a hearing, in one place is conveyed in another place as إِلَّا مَنْ خَطِفَ ٱلْخَطْفَةَ : Except him who snatches away but once (37:10). By snatching away once is meant a few things randomly turning out to be true. When a person makes random guesses about events in the future, then there is a possibility that one or two of them may turn out to be correct. Just as the messengers have a connection with Allah, diviners and astrologers have a connection with the devils, and these diviners and astrologers claim that they gain knowledge of future events secretly. It is for this reason that these things are called لقاۓ سمع and استراق سمع .
Flames coming after the devils: The last issue to resolve is what is meant by شِهَابٌۭ مُّبِينٌۭ or شِهَابٌۭ ثَاقِبٌۭ (37:10). According to the dictionary شِهَابٌۭ means any flame, and also flaming stars or meteorites that streak across the sky. What is the nature of a meteorite? These are rocks that are floating in space much like the other stars. When one of these rocks enters the earth’s atmosphere, it begins to flame on account of the friction with the air created by its high speed. Most of the meteorites burn completely before they reach the surface of the earth but sometimes a part of it may land on the earth. It may be that Allah has some other secret purpose for these rocks as well, which is not possible for humans to presume. If the targeting of the devils is one of their purposes, that is within the realm of possibility. It appears that there were copious meteor showers during the lifetime of the Holy Prophet and during the lifetime of Prophet Jesus. This may be why commentators have reasoned that the devils were restricted from three heavens during the time of Prophet Jesus with a total prohibition from all heavens with the advent of the Holy Prophet. (Interestingly, those who believe in the physical ascension of Prophet Jesus place him in the fourth tier of heaven, which according to the theory espoused here, was not a prohibited level for the devils).
The real question is whether by شِهَابٌۭ is meant the physical shooting stars, and the Quranic verse that throws light on this is: وَأَنَّا كُنَّا نَقْعُدُ مِنْهَا مَقَـٰعِدَ لِلسَّمْعِ ۖ فَمَن يَسْتَمِعِ ٱلْـَٔانَ يَجِدْ لَهُۥ شِهَابًۭا رَّصَدًۭا : And we used to sit in some of the sitting-places thereof to steal a hearing. But he who tries to listen now finds a flame lying in wait for him (72:9). These flames existed in prior times as well, however the verse states that previously the astrologers practiced their profession freely, and now they are treated differently. It is thus made clear that by شِهَابٌۭ here is meant not the physical shooting stars but the word is used in a metaphorical sense to mean a light that removes the darkness of the eavesdropping of the diviners. The few things that turned out to be correct out of the random guess work of the diviners and soothsayers previously had a deep impact upon the public, because there was nothing to dispel their deceit and hence the public was greatly impressed by them. Then the revelation from Allah dispelled the effect of their deceit. This flaming light is specific to the coming of the Messenger while the shooting stars have no specific relation with the Messenger. So, the شِهَابٌۭ mentioned here are the clear prophecies by the Messenger that negate the confused and blurred prophecies of the astrologers. This is what is specific to the Messenger. There can be no other meaning of this verse. The use of the word شِهَابٌۭ in this sense is not farfetched. The Holy Prophet has been referred to in the Quran as نجم الثاقب . Further, commentators accept that by نجم in وَٱلنَّجْمِ إِذَا هَوَىٰ : By the star when it sets (53:1) and in فَلَآ أُقْسِمُ بِمَوَٰقِعِ ٱلنُّجُومِ : But nay, I swear by revelation of portions (of the Quran) (56:75) is meant portions of the Quran. The meaning of شِهَابٌۭ must therefore be taken as portions of the Quran here, as evidence does not support the use of the literal meaning.
The context supports this meaning because the last section mentioned the protection of the Quran against its enemies, which included political power and the power of astrologers and soothsayers, who had overawed the public with their evil works. It was necessary therefore to state that their evil influence will be removed. Accordingly, it is a fact that astrology, sorcery and soothsaying that were rampant in Arabia, similar to the prevalence of idol worship, were totally eliminated as a result of the advent of the Holy Prophet and the land was purified of this filth.
15-19 And the earth — We have spread it out and made in it firm mountains and caused to grow in it of every suitable thing.
وَٱلْأَرْضَ مَدَدْنَـٰهَا وَأَلْقَيْنَا فِيهَا رَوَٰسِىَ وَأَنۢبَتْنَا فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ شَىْءٍۢ مَّوْزُونٍۢ (۱۹)
15-20 And We have made in it means of subsistence for you and for him for whom you provide not.a
وَجَعَلْنَا لَكُمْ فِيهَا مَعَـٰيِشَ وَمَن لَّسْتُمْ لَهُۥ بِرَٰزِقِينَ (۲۰)
15-20a: مَن لَّسْتُمْ لَهُۥ بِرَٰزِقِينَ – According to Mujahid this means animals. The meaning is that there are benefits in it both for humans and for animals who are under human control, but it is Allah Who provides their feed and not humans.
15-21 And there is not a thing but with Us are the treasures of it, and We send it not down but in a known measure.
وَإِن مِّن شَىْءٍ إِلَّا عِندَنَا خَزَآئِنُهُۥ وَمَا نُنَزِّلُهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِقَدَرٍۢ مَّعْلُومٍۢ (۲۱)
15-21a: This shows that the treasures of everything that humans use for their benefit are with Allah, since their creation is in His power. Then Allah makes those things available to humans in a known measure in accordance with his natural laws. One of the meanings of انزال and تَنۡزِیِیۡل is to provide the means for obtaining that thing or to give guidance on how to obtain it (R) even though that it is already present on earth.
15-22 And We send the winds fertilizing, then send down water from the clouds, so We give it to you to drink; nor is it you who store it up.
وَأَرْسَلْنَا ٱلرِّيَـٰحَ لَوَٰقِحَ فَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءًۭ فَأَسْقَيْنَـٰكُمُوهُ وَمَآ أَنتُمْ لَهُۥ بِخَـٰزِنِينَ (۲۲)
15-22a: لَوَٰقِحَ – It means لِقِاح ماء الفحل and لَقِحَت is used to describe a camel when it becomes pregnant and its use has been extended to a woman as well. لواقِح is the plural of لاقِح and its indicates pregnant winds, so called because of the life giving water the clouds carry. The opposite is ٱلرِّيحَ ٱلْعَقِيمَ or barren or destructive wind (51:41) in which there is no water, and no benefit and is meant as a punishment (LA).
خَـٰزِنِينَ – خَزۡن literally means to protect a thing by storing it but its use has expanded to mean protection. The word خَزَآئِنُ in the statement عِندَنَا خَزَآئِنُهُۥ which appears in the last verse indicates that Allah brings into existence whatever he wants through His Divine power. In لَّآ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ عِندِى خَزَآئِنُ ٱللَّهِ : I say not to you, I have with me the treasures of Allah (6:50), خَزَآئِنُ is His Divine powers, His bountifulness and His prowess. The meaning of خازن here can be interpreted in two ways: those who guard thankfully or that it is Allah Who stores it safely in the clouds, as is also stated elsewhere: أَفَرَءَيْتُمُ ٱلْمَآءَ ٱلَّذِى تَشْرَبُونَ ءَأَنتُمْ أَنزَلْتُمُوهُ مِنَ ٱلْمُزْنِ أَمْ نَحْنُ ٱلْمُنزِلُونَ : See you the water that you drink? Do you bring it down from the clouds, or are We the Bringer? (56:68-69) (R).
15-23 And surely it is We, Who give life and cause death, and We are the Inheritors.a
وَإِنَّا لَنَحْنُ نُحْىِۦ وَنُمِيتُ وَنَحْنُ ٱلْوَٰرِثُونَ (۲۳)
15-23a: Just as the moisture laden winds give life to the earth, revelation gives spiritual life to a spiritually dead earth, and just as the light of a flame dispels the darkness, the Quran dispels the darkness of diviners and soothsayers. The verse refers to this type of life and death.
15-24 And certainly We know those among you who go forward and We certainly know those who lag behind.a
وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْنَا ٱلْمُسْتَقْدِمِينَ مِنكُمْ وَلَقَدْ عَلِمْنَا ٱلْمُسْتَـْٔخِرِينَ (۲۴)
15-24a: ٱلْمُسْتَقْدِمِينَ – These are people who passed away before ٱلْمُسْتَـْٔخِرِينَ and some have taken it to mean people who come after. It has also been taken to mean those who are foremost in doing good and also those who get left behind because of their transgressions (IJ). The context shows that the first meaning is correct because the mention here is of those people who gain spiritual life from Allah’s revelation and go forward or remain behind, buried in darkness and ignorance.
15-25 And surely thy Lord will gather them together. He indeed is Wise, Knowing.
وَإِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ يَحْشُرُهُمْ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ حَكِيمٌ عَلِيمٌۭ
Bayan-ul-Quran 