Is it stated in verse 47 of the chapter of adh-Dhariyat that the universe is expanding?

Dear Brother / Sister,

The chapter of adh-Dhariyat, verse 47:

"With power and skill did We construct the Firmament: for it is We Who create the vastness of pace."

The main interpretations related to the statement "For it is We Who create the vastness of pace" are as follows:  

a) We have vastness and power; it should not be thought that something decreases from our power when We ensure this magnificence in the sky; if We wish, We can expand it more. The content and style of the verses 255 of the chapter of al-Baqara and verse 38 of the chapter of Qaf evoke this meaning.  

b) We do not need anything; in addition, we grant many boons to people; we eliminate hardships and expand things for those who are in hardship. (1)

c) We expand the universe. This interpretation is generally made in the light of "the theory of expansion" put forward based on the scientific determination that spatial bodies move away from one another and that the distance among them is expanding gradually. (2)

Acting upon the uses of the word sky in the Quran, the thing that is expanded can be interpreted in the sense of "the universe"(3) and "the whole universe except the world"(4). Razi attributes the fact that the sky is likened to a building and the earth is likened to a bed to the fact that there is no change in the main structure of the sky and the fact that the earth is open to changes like expansion and narrowing and seas are open to changes like being transformed into land. (5)

Footnotes:

1. Shawqani, V, 105; Elmalılı, VI, 4542-4543.
2. See Celal Kırca, Kur'ân-ı Kerîm'de Fen Bilimleri, Istanbul, 1984, p. 62-63. In addition, for some explanations of the scholars of previous ages that support this interpretation, see Celâl Yeniçeri, Uzay Âyetleri Tefsiri, p. 110-115.
3. Asad, III, 1070-1071.
4. Celal Kırca, Kur'ân-ı Kerîm'de Fen Bilimleri, Istanbul, 1984, p. 62.
5. Razi, XXVIII, 225-226; about the creation of the earth and skies, see al-Baqara 2/22 ,29.

(see Diyanet Tefsiri, Kur’an Yolu: V/80-82)

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