His saying, exalted and majestic is He: "He brings the living out of the dead and brings the dead out of the living, and He gives life to the earth after its death. And likewise, you will be brought out." "And among His signs is that He created you from dust, then when you are human beings, you spread." "And among His signs is that He created for you from your own selves spouses so that you may find tranquility in them, and He placed between you affection and mercy. Indeed, in that are signs for a people who reflect." "And among His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth and the diversity of your languages and your colors. Indeed, in that are signs for the knowledgeable."

"The living and the dead" in this verse is used literally and metaphorically. The literal meaning is: the sperm comes out from the man, and the egg comes out from the bird, and this is in itself a dead thing that comes out from a living one. This is how Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, interpreted it. Al-Hasan said: the meaning is: the believer from the disbeliever and the disbeliever from the believer.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This meaning was narrated from the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, when Umm Kulthum bint Uqbah ibn Abi Mu'ait spoke to him about Islam. The metaphor is the emergence of green plants from the earth, and the emergence of food from the plants, and what follows this. He likened the revival of the earth after its death to rain.

Then after these decisive examples, the Qadi, by reasoning, brought forth the news that likewise is our coming out from the graves. A group read: "You will be brought out" with a ya from below, and the majority of the reciters read: "You will be brought out" with a ta that is rounded. Al-Hasan, Ibn Wathab, Al-Amash, and Talha read with an opened ta and a rounded ra.

And "from" in His saying, blessed and exalted is He: "And among His signs is that He created you" indicates part of something. And He said: "He created you" in the sense that He created your father Adam, as said by Qatadah. And "you spread" means: you move about and disperse in your affairs and travels.

And His saying, exalted is He: "from your own selves" may imply that He created Hawwa from Adam's rib. This carries over to all women since their mother was created from Adam's self, meaning from his own being. It may also mean: from your kind and your species. And "affection and mercy" is in its well-known sense of mutual love and compassion. This is the eloquent meaning. Mujahid, Al-Hasan, and Ikrimah said: By affection, He means sexual relations, and by mercy, He means children.

Then He drew attention to the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the diversity of languages and colors. This includes whiteness, blackness, and others. It may imply the various types and kinds of human beings, encompassing the individuals of humanity who differ in colors, and it encompasses the languages. The majority of the reciters read: "for the knowledgeable" with a fathah on the lam, while Hafs from Asim read: "for the knowledgeable" with a kasrah on the lam. The first indicates that this verse is applicable to all of the world, while the second means that those who benefit from reflecting upon it are indeed the people of knowledge.