Why are Creation and Sustenance Mentioned Together in the Quran?

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – Creation and sustenance are mentioned together. Sheikh Ibnu Athaillah As Sakandari explained this in his book, At Tanwir.

Allah says in Surah Ar Rum, verse 40:

Allâhulladzî khalaqakum tsumma razaqakum tsumma yumîtukum tsumma yuḫyîkum

It is Allah who created you, then provided for you, then He will cause you to die, then He will bring you back to life.

According to Sheikh Ibnu Athaillah, this verse states that creation and the provision of sustenance are intertwined or equal. In other words, if you accept that Allah is the Creator, you will not claim to be able to create. Similarly, if you accept that Allah is the Provider, then do not claim that you can provide sustenance.

Just as Allah is unique in creation, He is also unique in the matter of providing sustenance. Creation and the provision of sustenance are mentioned together as an argument and a prohibition for His servants, so that they do not believe that the sustenance and good things they receive come from creatures or others. Just as Allah creates without intermediaries or causes, He also provides sustenance without depending on intermediaries or causes.

Secondly, the phrase “He who created you and provided for you,” explains that sustenance has been established and confirmed from eternity. Allah’s decree (Qadha) is not renewed every time sustenance is given, nor does it change over time. However, what is renewed is the manifestation of sustenance, not its decree.