كِرامًا كاتِبينَ
Noble writers.
EXPOSITION
Just as the Lord is noble or generous (karīm) (verse 6) so are the angels who record man’s deeds; they are Noble (kirām) writers. God’s angels are also referred to as noble in 21:26 and 80:16. The faithful are also described as being noble and possessing dignity (kirām) in 25:72.
There are several reasons why these angels are described as Noble. Firstly, it is so that man may realise that he is not just being watched by ordinary creatures but by beings that are highly deserving of reverence. Just as a decent human being feels greater shame in doing wrong in the presence of someone he holds in high regard, these Noble angels further act as a deterrent to one who realises how honourable and worthy of reverence they are. Secondly, it is to emphasise their being infallible and faithful in discharging their trust to keep perfect record in every sense. Thirdly, it also, indirectly, magnifies the importance of the Day of Accounting because God has chosen to keep such detailed record of man’s actions by such eminent beings. And lastly, it is because they truly are noble in their love for good and wanting success for the person to whom they are assigned and their dislike of seeing him fail in the hereafter. This nobility on their part is highlighted by Fayḍ Kāshānī who explains: ‘They are noble because they rush to write your good deeds and hesitate to write your sins, perchance you may repent and seek forgiveness. It has been said that when they write a good deed, they ascend with it to the heavens and show it to Allah, the exalted, and they bear witness to that, saying: “Your servant so-and-so has done such-and-such a good deed!” And when they write a person’s sin, they ascend with it to the heavens with grief and sorrow. Allah, the exalted, asks: “What has My servant done?” But they remain silent until Allah asks a second and a third time. Then they say: “My Lord! You are the concealer and have commanded Your creatures to conceal their shameful deeds. Conceal their shameful acts, for You are the knower of all that is hidden!” And it is for this reason that they are called Noble writers, who know whatever you do [verses 11-12].’
And they have been called writers (kātibīn) to emphasise that these noble angels are not satisfied with simply watching and committing to memory. They also record man’s actions to the ultimate degree of detail so that it can be reproduced as proof for or against him on the Day of Retribution.
The manner in which they write and the nature of the book they write into is not as humans understand; verses such as 17:13-14 should not be interpreted literally because these angels record everything: words, actions, feelings, intentions, motives, thoughts, and all that the human being produces. This record is, quite likely, in a form that can be reproduced on the Day of Judgement so precisely that it will be impossible for man to deny. When he reads his book he might sense he is travelling back in time and reliving the past. This book transcends time and space and nothing, not even the minutest of actions, escapes it. The book will be set up. Then you will see the guilty apprehensive of what is in it. They will say: ‘Woe to us! What a book is this! It omits nothing, big or small, without enumerating it.’ They will find present whatever they had done, and your Lord does not wrong anyone (18:49). For more on the nature of this book and what it represents see the Exposition of 45:29.
INSIGHTS FROM HADITH
- The Prophet has said: ‘The two watchers of Ali ibn Abī Ṭālib boast that during the entire time of their existence as watchers, they have never ascended to God with anything that would displease Him, the glorified and exalted.’
- From Imam al-Kāẓim (a): ‘When a faithful falls sick, Allah, the mighty and glorious, reveals to the angel on the left: “Do not write any sin against My servant whilst he is under My imprisonment and bound [by his illness].” And He reveals to the angel on the right: “Write for My servant what you used to write for him of good deeds when he was healthy.”’
Note: Imam Ali (a) is reported to have said to a companion who was ill: ‘May Allah make your illness a means for writing off your sins, because there is no reward for sickness but that it erases sins and makes them fall like leaves. Reward lies in speech and action. And certainly Allah admits into paradise by virtue of sincere intention and purity of heart whomsoever He pleases from amongst His creatures.’ Such traditions that point out that illness erases sins but does not earn a person spiritual reward do not contradict the earlier tradition from Imam al-Kāẓim (a) because he is not saying that there is reward only for being sick. Rather, the angel is commanded to write for a man the good he already used to practice when healthy but is unable to practice now due to sickness. So the good written for him whilst sick is not just for being sick, per se.
[1] Safi, 5/296.
[2] Qummi, 1/364; Ilal, 8/5.
[3] Kafi, 3/114, h. 7.
[4] Nahj, saying 42.