سورة الإسرَاء
Surah Al-Isrâ’ 17:55
The Night-Journey · Verse 55 of 111
وَرَبُّكَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنْ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۗ وَلَقَدْ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۖ وَآتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ زَبُورًا
Abdul Mannan Omar
And your Lord knows best those that are in the heavens and on the earth. And most surely We have exalted some of the Prophets above others, and it is We Who gave David the Zabûr (- the Psalms).
Abdullah Yusuf Ali
And it is your Lord that knoweth best all beings that are in the heavens and on earth: We did bestow on some prophets more (and other) gifts than on others: and We gave to David (the gift of) the Psalms.
Ahmed Ali
Your Lord knows whoever is in the heavens and the earth. We exalted some of the prophets over the others; and to David We gave the Book of Psalms.
12 more translations
Ali Unal
And your Lord knows best all that are in the heavens and on the earth. Assuredly, We have exalted some of the Prophets above others (some in an absolute sense, and others in some respects); and to David We granted the Psalms.
Daryabadi
And thine Lord is the Best Knower of those who are in the heavens and the earth. And assuredly We have preferred some prophets over some others: and We vouchsafed unto Daud a Scripture.
Faridul Haque
And your Lord knows well all those who are in the heavens and the earth; and indeed among the Prophets We gave excellence to some above others, and We gave the Zaboor to Dawud.
Maulana Muhammad Ali
And thy Lord best knows those who are in the heavens and the earth. And certainly We made some of the prophets to excel others, and to David We gave the Zabur.
Maulvi Sher Ali
And thy Lord knows best those that are in the heavens and the earth. And WE exalted some of the Prophets over others and to David WE gave a Book.
Muhammad Asad
seeing that thy Sustainer is fully aware of [what is in the minds of] all beings that are in the heavens and on earth. But, indeed, We did endow some of the prophets more highly than others - just as We bestowed upon David a book of divine wisdom [in token of Our grace].
Muhammad Musin Khan
And your Lord knows best all who are in the heavens and the earth. And indeed, We have preferred some of the Prophets above others, and to Dawud (David) We gave the Zabur (Psalms).
Muhammad Pickthall
And thy Lord is Best Aware of all who are in the heavens and the earth. And we preferred some of the prophets above others, and unto David We gave the Psalms.
Muhammad Sarwar
We have given preference to some Prophets over others and We gave the psalms to David.
Muhammed ali Shakir
And your Lord best knows those who are in the heavens and the earth; and certainly We have made some of the prophets to excel others, and to Dawood We gave a scripture.
Rashad Khalifa
Your Lord is the best knower of everyone in the heavens and the earth. In accordance with this knowledge, we preferred some prophets over others. For example, we gave David the Psalms.
Shabbir Ahmed
And your Lord is best Aware of all beings who are in the highs and the lows. We caused some Prophets to excel the others. To David We gave a Book of wisdom
Commentary 17:55 Bi-mannبِمَن is the demonstrative “those”. It is used only for living and not for inanimate things. We are told here that there are other living…
وَرَبُّكَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَن فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۗ وَلَقَدْ فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَ النَّبِيِّينَ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ ۖ وَآتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ زَبُورًا
17:55 Bi-mannبِمَن is the demonstrative “those”. It is used only for living and not for inanimate things. We are told here that there are other living creatures in the heavens, and that He knows them all. Fadzdzalnâ Ba‘dza فَضَّلْنَا بَعْضَ - “We have exalted some above others”, refers to the different ranks of Prophets, Saints and Auliyâ – the friends of Allâh (cf. 4:163-165). This is also an allusion to the excellence of the Holy Prophet (pbuh).
Usually the word Zabûrزَبُورً is translated as the Book of Psalms given to David. The origin of this word is zabara jIk, meaning to copy or pelt with stones. Zubur زُبُرis a fragment of iron, piece of iron, lump of iron, mane of iron, or a big piece of metal (Tâj, Lisân). In verse 34:10 we read that Allâh “made iron soft for [David]” (34:10), and in 21:80, Allâh taught David the art of “making coats of mail” (from iron), and his artisans designed them to “fortify and protect his soldiers in war”. Zabûr was a kind of Divine Knowledge given to David. Zabûr was also the Book of Wisdom that contained aside from Divine Commandments, Psalms of Divine Love, and the knowledge of working with iron (cf: 21:80; 34:10).
This verse should be read in continuation of the foregoing verse 17:54, in which we are told that Allâh made different ranks of the Prophets, and David was distinguished in the sense that he received this particular kind of knowledge. Some interpreters of the Holy Qur’ân are of the view that the words وَآتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ زَبُورًا; “We gave David the Zabûr”, as they appear in the context of the verse, mean to say that in the Book given to David, there was a mention about the advent of the Holy Prophet (pbuh).