Grammar and Rhetoric in a Qur'anic Phrase
A student translates the phrase 'إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَظْلِمُ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ' and argues: 'Since Allah does not wrong even an atom's weight, the word مِثْقَالَ must be mansub as the direct object of يَظْلِمُ.' A second student says مِثْقَالَ is a zarf or maf'ul mutlaq. The teacher asks you to parse the sentence, identify the rhetorical device in the negation, and rule on both students' claims.
1. Give the full i'rab of the key words and rule on the students' claims.
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إِنَّ: harf tawkid wa-nasb. اللَّهَ: ism inna, mansub, lafz al-jalala. لَا: harf nafy. يَظْلِمُ: fi'l mudari' marfu', fa'il = huwa (Allah). مِثْقَالَ: maf'ul bihi mansub, muda f ilayh = ذَرَّةٍ (majrur).
Ruling: Student 1 is correct in i'rab (مِثْقَالَ is the direct object) but the reasoning is incomplete - the object is what is wronged, so 'does not wrong [even] an atom's weight' is the correct sense. Student 2 is wrong: مِثْقَالَ is not a zarf (it is not a time/place) nor a maf'ul mutlaq (it is not a masdar reinforcing the verb). The judgment tested: distinguishing maf'ul bihi from zarf and maf'ul mutlaq by function.
2. Identify the rhetorical device in 'لَا يَظْلِمُ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ' and explain its effect.
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The device is takhyir/istithna' ma'nawi - actually al-tamthil wa-al-mubalagha via the smallest unit (ذرة). By negating wrong even at the atom's weight, the verse uses mubalagha (hyperbole) and kinaya (implication): if the smallest wrong is negated, all larger wrongs are negated bi-al-awla. The rhetorical effect is ta'kid al-'adl al-ilahi - establishing divine justice absolutely. This is not literal atom-measuring; it is tamthil (exemplification) for emphasis.
3. A third student says 'لَا' here is **la al-nahiya** (prohibitive). Refute or support this.
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Refute. لَا الناهية governs the mudari' in the majzum form (e.g., لَا تَفْعَلْ). Here the verb يَظْلِمُ is marfu' (dammeh on the final letter), so the particle is لَا النافية (negating), not prohibitive. The refutation rests on the i'rab of the verb: raf' proves nafy, jazm would prove nahy. The judgment tested: using verb endings to classify particles, not memorized labels.