Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise

This ayah marks a turning point in the surah, introducing specific rulings of criminal law for the Muslim community.

The command given is clear:

This ruling is جَزَآءً بِمَا كَسَبَا‎ (a recompense for what they earned). The word ‎كَسَبَا‎ expresses that this outcome was earned, that is, deserved, through their own actions.

The ayah then describes this punishment as نَكَٰلًا مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ‎ (a deterrent, exemplary punishment from Allah). The word ‎نَكَال‎ is derived from a root meaning to frighten or to deter.

It is a public penalty that makes others think twice before committing the same crime.

When people witness the severity of the punishment, they are compelled to ask themselves: “Is this theft worth costing me my hand?” This creates a powerful deterrent effect that protects society.

There is a beautiful story that reveals the precision and subtlety of the Qur’an’s language.

Al-Asma’i, the great linguist and scholar of nahw (grammar) who lived in the time of the Caliph Harun al-Rashid, used to give Arabic lessons in Baghdad attended by hundreds of people. His method was extremely meticulous: for every grammatical rule he would bring first an ayah from the Qur’an, then a saying of a Companion, then examples from classical poetry, and finally expressions used by the Arabs.

One day, a Bedouin who lived in the desert attended his lesson. While everyone else there was dressed in scholars’ clothing, everything about this man made it plain that he had come from the desert.

While quickly reciting this ayah as an example, al-Asma’i recited the end of the ayah as وَٱللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ‎; he had said different words instead of the ending found in the Qur’an.

The Bedouin raised his hand and asked, “Who said this?”

The whole audience was stunned: who was this stranger questioning the great scholar al-Asma’i? The shaykh was surprised as well, and replied, “This is the word of Allah.”

The Bedouin objected: “Far from it, He would never say such a thing! Is this from the Qur’an, that is, the word of Allah? That cannot be.”

The Muslim scholars there, thinking the man was denying the Qur’an, nearly went at him. But al-Asma’i, showing his wisdom, stopped them: “Let us first deal with the matter properly. Open the mushaf and show him the ayah. If he still denies it after seeing it, then we will do what is required.”

They opened the Qur’an and showed it to him. The Bedouin looked and said:

“Had I memorized this? No. But when you recited it that way, it did not make sense. You say, ‘The thief, the male and the female, amputate their hands in recompense for what they earned,’ and then you say that Allah forgives them? These two do not fit together!”

This story reveals a profound truth about the Arabs and their understanding of language. They did not know formal grammar rules or methods of technical linguistic analysis; yet they had an innate intuition for how words come together, how meanings connect, and how messages form a coherent whole.

Even without any technical knowledge, the Bedouin could sense that something was wrong in the flow of the ayah.

This story also teaches us that we must pay attention to how ayahs conclude and how ideas connect to one another within their context.

Every choice of word, every grammatical structure and every transitional expression carries a meaning and a purpose.

The ayah ends with two important divine names:

So why are these names in particular mentioned here?

The name ‎عَزِيزٌ‎ (the Exalted in Might) reminds us that this ruling comes from the One who holds absolute authority. In pre-Islamic Arabia, theft was widespread, even an almost ordinary act. Going out and “acquiring” things was considered normal. But Islam cut this behavior off completely with the severest of penalties.

The authority to impose such a strict penal law belongs to Allah alone, and the Muslim community has now been authorized to carry out these punishments.

The name ‎حَكِيمٌ‎ (the Wise), in turn, assures us that this ruling is full of wisdom, whether or not we fully grasp it. Some may see it as brutal or excessive; yet Allah’s rulings exist not to harm us, but to benefit and protect us.

Think of today’s society, where shoplifting and theft are taken lightly. How many murders are committed in connection with incidents that began as “just theft”? How many car chases end with innocent people killed or paralyzed? How many new crimes are born from an act that started as a simple theft?

A person steals, flees from the police, and during the chase crashes into a family’s car, ruining lives forever.

The wisdom contained in this law provides a real deterrent.

What happens to criminals in modern criminal justice systems? They go to prison, where housing is free and meals are served ready-made; and if you have connections, life is not even that hard. Some criminals see it as an occupational hazard; they “do some time,” count it as a plus for their reputation on the streets, and get a new tattoo on their body for every stretch they serve inside.

In fact, we have built systems that feed habitual criminal behavior.

The person who chooses this life gets used to it over time: “I’ll do a bit of time here, no big deal.”

Islam’s approach, on the other hand, places a serious barrier in front of criminal behavior.

At the cost of the one person who commits such a crime and faces this punishment, countless people are protected. That single visible punishment leads society to think before acting. People weigh their choices carefully: “Which do I want more, those few extra grams of gold, or my hand?”

This provides a real environment of safety for societies.