Al-Baqarah 260: Abraham said to his Lord “Oh My Lord! Show to me how you resurrect the dead”. His Lord said to him “I know your desire to see how I resurrect the dead”. Abraham said “(I want to see it) so that my heart is assured”. “Catch four birds, take them to you, then (cut them into pieces and) put their pieces into the top of each mountain. Then call them to you; they will come back to you rushing. Know that Allah is Azeez (Exalted) and Hakeem (Ultimately-Wise).

260. I think we left off at verse 260, if I am not mistaken, verse 260 of Surah Al-Baqarah. If I am wrong, warn me that it is wrong. Abraham had said to his Lord: My Lord, show me how You give life to the dead. Abraham (peace be upon him) wants to see how the dead are brought to life.

Yet it is not that Abraham did not believe. (?) Abraham had believed in the oneness of Allah Almighty from a young age and was a hanif who associated no partner with Him. Hanif means one who, even at a young age, associates nothing with Allah and stays on a straight path. In this respect, too, he is the close friend of Allah Almighty. Yes. His wish to see the dead brought to life, to leave a beautiful remembrance for the worlds, was so that Allah Almighty, by showing how He brings the dead to life, would remind people how, in the hereafter, people will be brought to life. And our Lord fulfils Abraham's wish.

What does Abraham say? He had said to his Lord: My Lord, show me how You give life to the dead. His Lord said to him: Do you not believe, then? He knows, He knows that he believes, and yet: Do you not believe, then? A conversation in mutual affection, he said. Abraham said: No, I believe. Since Allah knows the secrets of hearts, does He not know that he did not believe? Does He not know that Abraham, too, said it with his heart and his tongue and (?) it in his heart? There is not a single living being to come until the Day of Judgment of which Allah Almighty does not know what it will not do. Yes, he said: I wanted to see it so that my heart may be at rest. So that my heart may be at rest.

That is: I believe fully, but let me also see it. He said: Then catch four birds, take them to you, then cut them and tear them to pieces, put a piece of them on top of every mountain, and then call them to you; they will come to you running. Know that Allah is Mighty, Wise, and has power over all things. Because the only one who has the power to create from nothing is Allah. Abraham wonders how the dead will be brought to life and asks Allah Almighty to show this to him. This verse was revealed for this. Of course, in the course of this, to show people how Allah will bring people, or the living beings He created, back to life, to leave them a remembrance, that Allah has power over all things, to those who come after, that His Being is Ever-Living, that Allah Almighty is living, that He gives life to all His creatures and encompasses the worlds with knowledge: it is among the miracles He created to show this.

This event.

Yes.

Abraham had said to Allah Almighty: My Lord, show me how You give life to the dead. My Lord said to him: Do you not believe, then? Do you not believe? Does He not know? (?) He knows, of course.

We say it is not that He does not know what passed through the heart of Abraham (peace be upon him). He knows. Allah Almighty. In a way, by speaking with Abraham (peace be upon him), it is to show people how He gives life to the dead. Yes. For Allah Almighty makes His verses known to His prophets by revelation and teaches them what they do not know. By revelation He makes the verses known, and He also teaches what they cannot grasp. And He also speaks with His servants by inspiration. By inspiration. Yet most people do not know inspiration, He says. They do not know inspiration.

Yes.

So in this situation Abraham (peace be upon him) said: No, I believe. I wanted to see it so that my heart may be at rest. To his Lord. So they speak with Allah Almighty. He speaks. Yet from a young age Abraham knew that there is only one God. He did not associate partners with Allah. He did not worship idols. His wish here to see the dead revived was to see the miracles that his Lord would leave as a remembrance for the worlds. To see His miracles that would leave a remembrance for the worlds, and to have it proven to people once more that Allah has power over all things.

And Allah Almighty commands Abraham (peace be upon him) to catch four birds from each mountain and tear them to pieces, and to place each piece of them separately on the hilltops. Thereupon Abraham (peace be upon him) catches the birds and cuts them. He places their pieces on top of each hill. Then he calls them by Allah's permission. That is: qum bi-idhnillah. Rise by Allah's permission. Come, qum bi-idhnillah. He sees that the birds come to life, and he sees that the birds return to their former state. According to the narrations, these birds are a peacock, a crow, a rooster and a pigeon, according to the narrations. With the appearance of this event, in the human world, leaving no room for doubt, that is, leaving no room for doubt in this worldly realm, it is a proof of how Allah brings the dead back to life.

Accordingly, that after this world there is life in the hereafter, that in the hereafter Allah Almighty will bring people and animals back to life: it is His displaying His miracles before every person who has reason. Allah Almighty displays His miracles before the person who has reason and thinks.

Yes.

That the inevitable end will appear, that is, every soul shall taste death. According to His verse that says your return is to your Lord, in the hereafter the mizan, the scale, will be set up. At the Great Court Allah Almighty, as Alaysallahu bi-ahkami'l-hakimin, will call people to account. An inevitable end. Yes.

That the inevitable end will appear, that is, that in the hereafter He will bring people back to life, gather them in His presence on this day of reckoning, and that people will be called to account for what they did in the material world: it is His showing this. Yes, so Allah Almighty, through His verses, sometimes gives people examples. What does He say? We do not refrain from giving people examples with a mosquito and what is bigger than it. We said earlier that Allah Almighty has the attribute of being Allah. No one will be able to question Him. The reason, the reason: all the questions people would ask will have become manifest.

The questions they would ask. In that situation people will in no way be able to question Allah Almighty. This is Allah Almighty's attribute of being Allah.

Truly Allah is Mighty. He is most exalted. He is Wise. In His presence no one is wronged even by the smallest atom. What do we say? Truly Allah is Mighty. He is most exalted. He is Wise. In His presence no one is wronged even by the smallest atom. This corresponds to this verse: Today is a day on which no one will be wronged and everyone will be called to account for what they earned. Yes. Because Allah Almighty is Alaysallahu bi-ahkami'l-hakimin. He is the judge of judges, and He wrongs no soul. And if a soul suffers wrong, it has wronged itself. Allah is the judge of judges. And the soul will see the recompense of what it did.