12 - الأجَلُ المُعَلَّقُ وَالأجَلُ المَحتومُ‏

12. Suspended and Sealed Ends

(هُوَ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ مِنْ طِينٍ ثُمَّ قَضَى‏ أَجَلاً وَأَجَلٌ مُسَمّىً عِنْدَهُ ثُمَّ أَنْتُمْ تَمْتَرُونَ) .¹

"It is He who created you from clay, then ordained the term [of your life] - the specified term is with Him - and yet you are in doubt." ²

28.الإمامُ الصّادقُ عليه السلام - في تفسيرِ الآيةِ - : الأجلُ الّذي غَيرُ مُسمّى مَوقوفٌ ، يُقدِّمُ مِنه ما شاءَ ، ويؤخِّرُ مِنه ما شاءَ ، وأمّا الأجَلُ المُسمّى‏ فهُوَ الّذي يَنزِلُ مِمّا يُريدُ أنْ يكونَ مِن ليلةِ القَدْرِ إلى‏ مِثلِها مِن قابِلٍ ، فذلك قولُ اللَّهِ: (إذا جَاء أجلُهم لا يستأخِرونَ ساعةً ولا يستقدِمون)³ . ⁴

28.Imam al-Sadiq (AS) said, interpreting the above verse: 'The first - undetermined - term is suspended; He can expedite and postpone it as He wishes. As for the specified term, that is what He destines during the Night of Ordainment (laylat al-qadr) to occur from that night up to the next year's Night of Ordainment; and that is Allah's statement: "when their time comes, they shall not defer it by a single hour nor shall they advance it".' ⁵