إِنَّ رَبَّكَ يَقْضِى بَيْنَهُم بِحُكْمِهِۦ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْعَلِيمُ · فَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ إِنَّكَ عَلَى ٱلْحَقِّ ٱلْمُبِينِ
inna rabbaka yaqḍī baynahum bi-ḥukmih, wa huwa'l-ʿazīzu'l-ʿalīm · fa-tawakkal ʿala'llāh, innaka ʿala'l-ḥaqqi'l-mubīn
"Your Lord will decide between them by His own judgement. He is the Mighty, the Knowing. So rely upon God; you stand upon the manifest truth."
These two names had occurred earlier in the sūra as well, and the comparison is a datum of the text:
| Verse | The names | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | ḥakīmin ʿalīm | The opening — the source of the Book |
| 9 | al-ʿAzīzu'l-Ḥakīm | The call to Moses |
| 78 | al-ʿAzīzu'l-ʿAlīm | The statement of judgement |
I record this as an observation: the sūra uses these three names in three different contexts, two at a time. And the last pair (ʿAzīz–ʿAlīm) comes after the sentence about judgement: the one who judges both has the power and knows.
بِحُكْمِهِ — the word order must be recorded: the judgement is given by His own judgement. The measure does not come from outside.
The root و-ك-ل: to refer a matter to another, to appoint an agent. The root was treated in the discussion of al-Shūrā at 42/36, and there was a finding there: reliance and consultation stood in the same list. I rely on that treatment.
And the place of the command must be recorded, and I give this as my own reading: the command fa-tawakkal comes immediately after it has been reported that the judgement belongs to God. The particle fāʾ conveys consequence. Reliance is thus commanded not as a consolation but as what a ruling requires.
I record this as an observation about the word order: the sentence does not say "you are right" — it says ʿala'l-ḥaqq, that is, as a ground one stands upon. The preposition (ʿalā) conveys standing on top of something.
And the adjective al-mubīn is from the same root as the kitābin mubīn of the sūra's first verse (ب-ي-ن). The root occurs six times in the sūra: 1 (kitābin mubīn), 13 (siḥrun mubīn), 16 (al-faḍlu'l-mubīn), 21 (sulṭānin mubīn), 75 (kitābin mubīn), 79 (al-ḥaqqi'l-mubīn).
The distribution of the six occurrences is worth recording, and I give it as an observation: the same adjective is used for a book, an accusation of sorcery, a favour, a proof, a record and the truth. The adjective thus takes no side — it conveys plainness. Indeed at verse 13 those who deny use the same adjective: hādhā siḥrun mubīn.