يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ اتَّقُواْ اللّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ    

O' You who believe:

safeguard yourselves with awareness of Allah,

with reverence due to Him

      Allah addresses Himself specifically to those who believe, i.e., only the believ­ers.  The believers are chosen because the basis for any religion is the Faith.  Therefore the ones with deep faith form the foundation for works for that religion.

Ø   The believers are told to have awareness of Allah, to take it the way Allah should be heeded with reverence due to Him.  A person who heeds Allah will strive to abide by Allah's Directives and apply them well.  Such a person becomes a virtuous, righteous, devout, and productive Muslim.

Ø   To be fully aware of Allah a person has to learn about Allah in detail, hence he becomes awed by Allah's Power and Authority.  Therefore, such a person will do his utmost to gain Allah's satisfaction and win His pleasure.

Ø   By heeding Allah, a new Muslim personality emerges.  It will be a virtuous personality:

§ dedicated to Allah's service,

§ committed to Allah's teachings,

§ devoted to do works for Him on earth, and

§ resolved to carry out the work for Islam.

Said briefly, the welfare of the Islamic Ummah (community) will depend on two firm bases:

1. a believer who is virtuous through knowing, loving, and heeding Allah, who does his best for the service of Islam.

2. to hold dearly to the rope of Allah, Islam, and apply it.

 وَلاَ تَمُوتُنَّ إِلاَّ وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ    

and do not die but as those who have submitted to Him.

      Allah (swt) addresses the believers to heed Him the way He should be heeded, and to do everything in their power to be righteous Muslims, every minute of their lives, as if death will overtake them any moment.  That is why He says, "And die not but as those who have submitted to Him (Muslimoon)."  Thus it behooves us to follow Islam very seriously and work for it diligent­ly.

      In this spirit, we are urged to do our best to live Islamicly, to work for Islam, and be of service to it.  This is to be done constantly and with perseverance.

وَاعْتَصِمُواْ بِحَبْلِ اللّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلاَ تَفَرَّقُواْ   

and hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of Allah,

and don't become disunited. 

The Almighty urges us to hold dearly to the rope of Allah, which is Islam.  By holding to Islam and its lofty ideals we will be strong, will work for it, and be united to promote it.  By observing our Islamic teachings we will:

§ elevate our ethical standard high,

§ become people of virtue and righteousness,

§ build a society second to none.

Ø   Collectively and individual­ly we stand to benefit, and the society is thus elevated to new height of well­being.

Ø   Islam is the invisible rope of Allah, and through it we aim to satisfy Allah and please Him and from this aim springs a united front to build a strong Muslim community.

      By holding to Islam collectively we will be in harmony, full accord, and at peace.  Society stands to reap a rich dividend.

      Brotherhood by way of firmly holding to the rope of Allah will make Islam the common denominator, and through it harmony is attained.

Ø   Division is bad, it leads to discord, hatred, strife, and clashes.  That is why Allah (swt) warns us against being divided.

وَاذْكُرُواْ نِعْمَتَ اللّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ    

And remember Allah's bounty bestowed upon you,

      Allah (swt) wants to remind us of His favors.  Man is a creature of forgetfulness, he is quick to forget.  We are reminded of this special favor in the Ayah that follows.

  إِذْ كُنتُمْ أَعْدَاء فَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ   فَأَصْبَحْتُم بِنِعْمَتِهِ إِخْوَانًا    

when you were enemies and He reconciled your hearts

and through His grace you became like brothers,

      In the early days of Islam Arabia was a primitive country of warring tribes; and discord, disorder, and fighting were the rule.  This was especially true of two tribes in Medina by the name of Aus and Khazraj.  The two were warring off and on for many years in which hatred kept fueling animosity and numerous lives were wasted senselessly.

      When the two tribes learned about Islam and embraced it they became friendly and at peace!  This change was astonishing to any outside observer, seeing such a dramatic change from animosity to brotherhood, from discord to accord, from hatred to love!

      Allah reminds the early Muslims of this phenomenon, and how through Islam they became united, happy, and loving to each other, Islam was their common denominator.

وَكُنتُمْ عَلَىَ شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِّنَ النَّارِ فَأَنقَذَكُم مِّنْهَا َ   

and while you were on the brink of the pit of fire,

He delivered you therefrom.

      A fire burns and destroys and man can be like a moth, attracted by the fire's light, but once in it he may be hurt or destroyed.

      This is true of people who ignore Allah's Directives and Islam.  If they do, such people will respond to temptations and follow their excessive desires (the pit of fire).  They become people of transgression, self-centered, greedy, corrupt, and indecent.

      The greater the number of such people, the bigger the damage and suffering to the society.

      Thus, Allah (swt) tells us that our salvation is by holding to the rope of Allah, Islam, and its teachings.  The rope of Allah is always there, ever present, ever inviting, ever attractive.  To take it, to apply it, and to hold to it takes effort, an effort that should be sustained.  When we hold to it we will be saved, and our society will be at peace and in harmony.

كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللّهُ لَكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُون   

Thus Allah makes His signs clear to you,

so that you may receive guidance.

      Allah wants our well-being, He wants us to overcome our weaknesses, amend our ways, and achieve a true Islamic life.

      Allah directs us about that but leaves the choice to us.  We are on our own, free to choose, so the one who selects wisely will reap well.  To find guidance means to appreciate and understand the Holy Quran and to apply it well.  This is the best of guidance to humanity, it leads to righteousness.

1. heed Him, thus elevate themselves to a high level of righteousness,

2. hold to His rope, to have a sense of direction with a clear path, then says

Let there be among you a people, meaning a special group of people to do specific task.  This task is invite to what is good, be it kindness, friendliness, virtue, and righteousness among others.  The spirit of goodness is catching, other people may join, and the benefits may soon spread.