Envision a wise and powerful ruler who governs a vast and diverse realm. This king, deeply invested in the well-being and direction of his kingdom, opts to execute his commands through carefully selected envoys tasked with fulfilling his directives. These envoys, acting on the king’s behalf, meticulously implement his will throughout the kingdom.
Agents responsible for distribution gather and deliver the king’s provisions to the populace precisely as mandated by the king. The military operates under direct orders, executing strategies and missions in alignment with the ruler’s specific commands. Furthermore, royal messengers convey the king’s messages to designated individuals and communities, ensuring the king’s words reach their intended recipients. Any dissent against any of these envoys’ actions is regarded as direct defiance of the king himself.
This scenario underscores the critical nature of the agent-principal dynamic, illustrating how the sovereign extends authority, guidance, and protection to his people. It serves as a metaphor for how God carries out and communicates His divine will and directives to humanity, emphasizing the seamless extension of divine intention through various representatives of His choosing.
Principal & Agent
The law of agency is a legal doctrine concerning the relationship between two parties: the principal and the agent. The principal authorizes the agent to act on their behalf to perform tasks or make decisions, creating a legal relationship between the two. The agent’s actions under this authority are considered as if they were carried out by the principal directly, and any legal action taken against the agent is as if it were against the principal.
In the context of the Quran, the law of agency can be applied to understand certain concepts and narratives between God and His respective agents. The result is that God’s agents can carry out God’s plan on His behalf. Through these agents, God distributes provisions, carries out His commands, communicates His messages, and directs humanity according to His will. The actions, decisions, and messages of God’s agents are thus viewed as extensions of God’s divine will.
We
The most common use of divine agency depicted in the Quran is the use of the term “we.” Throughout the Quran, God often uses the word “we” or “our” to refer to the actions He carries out. The first time this is used is in the following verse.
2:3 who believe in the unseen, observe the Contact Prayers (Salat), and from what we provided them, they give to charity.
We read in the footnote of this verse by Dr. Rashad Khalifa the following:
**2:3 When God uses the plural tense, this indicates that other entities, usually the angels, are involved. When God spoke to Moses, the singular form was used (20:12- 14). See Appendix 10.
Provisions
We see that in the context of provisions, God is the one who controls all provisions.
34:36 Say, “ My Lord is the One who controls all provisions; He grants the provisions to whomever He wills, or reduces them, but most people do not know.”
34:39 Say, “ My Lord is the One who controls all provisions; He increases the provisions for whomever He chooses from among His servants, or reduces them. Anything you spend (in the cause of God), He will reward you for it; He is the Best Provider.”
Yet, God commands the believers to spend from the provisions given to them.
2:215 They ask you about giving: say, “The charity you give shall go to the parents, the relatives, the orphans, the poor, and the traveling alien.” Any good you do, GOD is fully aware thereof.
So, the one who receives the provisions may, in the worldly sense, obtain them from another person, but ultimately, all provisions come from God.
Additionally, we see that God is the One who sends down the provision of water from the sky, while this same task is also stated, “we send down the water from the sky.”
16:65 GOD sends down from the sky water to revive the land after it had died. This should be (sufficient) proof for people who hear.
We see that God also uses the angels to play a crucial role in this process.
77:1 (Angels) dispatched in succession.
77:2 To drive the wind.
77:3 Stir up clouds.
77:4 Distribute the provisions.
77:5 Deliver messages.
77:6 Good news, as well as warnings.
This shows that while God is the doer of everything, He can choose to fulfill His commands through the agents He assigns to carry out the task.
Punishment
In addition to provisions, we see that God doles out punishment in a similar manner by means of agents. When the believers were engaged in battle against the disbelievers, God sent angel reinforcements.
8:12 Recall that your Lord inspired the angels: “I am with you; so support those who believed. I will throw terror into the hearts of those who disbelieved. You may strike them above the necks, and you may strike even every finger.”
These angels were conducting God’s decree through the believers, yet while the believers were going through the motions, God informed us that He was the ultimate doer of the actions.
8:17 It was not you who killed them; GOD is the One who killed them. It was not you who threw when you threw; GOD is the One who threw. But He thus gives the believers a chance to earn a lot of credit. GOD is Hearer, Omniscient.
Even though God is the ultimate doer of everything, the Quran informs us that this is one of the mechanisms by which God can choose to punish the disbelievers.
9:14 You shall fight them, for GOD will punish them at your hands, humiliate them, grant you victory over them, and cool the chests of the believers.
In another example, when Jesus’ disciples requested that He provide provisions from the sky, God said He would fulfill this request, but with a contingency that if they disbelieved after that, He would punish them.
5:112 Recall that the disciples said, “O Jesus, son of Mary, can your Lord send down to us a feast from the sky?” He said, “You should reverence GOD, if you are believers.”
5:113 They said, “We wish to eat from it, and to reassure our hearts, and to know for sure that you have told us the truth. We will serve as witnesses thereof.”
5:114 Said Jesus, the son of Mary, “Our god, our Lord, send down to us a feast from the sky. Let it bring plenty for each and every one of us, and a sign from You. Provide for us; You are the best Provider.”
5:115 GOD said, “ I am sending it down. Anyone among you who disbelieves after this, I will punish him as I never punished anyone else. “
Yet, we see that this punishment can happen through agents under the decree of God.
5:14 Also from those who said, “We are Christian,” we took their covenant. But they disregarded some of the commandments given to them. Consequently, we condemned them to animosity and hatred among themselves, until the Day of Resurrection. GOD will then inform them of everything they had done.
In another example, regarding the Children of Israel, we see that God sent servants to do His bidding.
17:5 “When the first time comes to pass, we will send against you servants of ours who possess great might, and they will invade your homes. This is a prophecy that must come to pass.
One of the inevitable outcomes for every soul is death. In the following verse, we see that God is the One who puts the souls to death.
39:42 GOD puts the souls to death when the end of their life comes, and also at the time of sleep. Thus, He takes some back during their sleep, while others are allowed to continue living until the end of their predetermined interim. This should provide lessons for people who reflect.
Yet, we also see that the mechanism by which God puts the souls to death is by means of His angels.
16:28 The angels put them to death in a state of wronging their souls. That is when they finally submit, and say, “We did not do anything wrong!” Yes indeed. GOD is fully aware of everything you have done.
The clearest example of the principal-agent relationship with God is between Him and His messengers. This is best encompassed in the following verse, where we are commanded not to make a distinction between God and His messengers.
4:150 Those who disbelieve in GOD and His messengers, and seek to make distinction among GOD and His messengers, and say, “We believe in some and reject some,” and wish to follow a path in between;
4:151 these are the real disbelievers. We have prepared for the disbelievers a shameful retribution.
4:152 As for those who believe in GOD and His messengers, and make no distinction among them, He will grant them their recompense. GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful.
God informs us that sending a messenger is one of the three ways He communicates with us.
42:51 No human being can communicate with GOD except through inspiration, or from behind a barrier, or by sending a messenger through whom He reveals what He wills. He is the Most High, Most Wise.
God’s messengers are authorized to deliver His messages.
14:10 Their messengers said, “Do you have doubts about GOD; the Initiator of the heavens and the earth? He invites you only to forgive your sins, and to give you another chance to redeem yourselves.” They said, “You are no more than humans like us, who want to repel us from the way our parents used to worship. Show us some profound authority. “
14:11 Their messengers said to them, “We are no more than humans like you, but GOD blesses whomever He chooses from among His servants. We could not possibly show you any kind of authorization, except in accordance with GOD’s will. In GOD the believers shall trust.
Therefore, when human beings speak as authorized messengers of God, they are mouthpieces for the God who sent them.
21:25 We did not send any messenger before you except with the inspiration: “There is no god except Me; you shall worship Me alone.”
21:26 Yet, they said, “The Most Gracious has begotten a son!” Glory be to Him. All (messengers) are (His) honored servants.
21:27 They never speak on their own, and they strictly follow His commands.
The following verses give us further assurances that if any of God’s messengers spoke falsehood on behalf of God, God would have terminated their lives.
69:44 Had he uttered any other teachings.
69:45 We would have punished him.
69:46 We would have stopped the revelations to him.
69:47 None of you could have helped him.
This does not mean that messengers are not susceptible to error. Since messengers are also human, they can make mistakes, either out of weakness or unintentionally. Yet the Quran’s examples show that God corrects these mistakes when they happen.
60:1: Abraham prayed for forgiveness for this father
21:87: Jonah abandoned his mission
12:42: Joseph implored his prison mate to get out
28:15: Moses killed someone
7:22: Adam approached the tree
38:31: Solomon got distracted by his horses
66:1: Muhammad prohibited something God did not prohibit to please his wives
33:36-39: Muhammad was trying to avoid marrying Zaid’s divorced wife
This is why the believers are commanded to obey God and His messenger.
4:64 We did not send any messenger except to be obeyed in accordance with GOD’s will. Had they, when they wronged their souls, come to you and prayed to GOD for forgiveness, and the messenger prayed for their forgiveness, they would have found GOD Redeemer, Most Merciful.