فَفَتَحنا أَبوابَ السَّماءِ بِماءٍ مُنهَمِرٍ

Then We opened the gates of the sky with pouring waters.

EXEGESIS

Munhamir (pouring) comes from the verb hamara which means profuse outpour of tears or water.[1] It has also been used when an animal’s udder is milked to the last drop.[2]

Regarding the letter bāʾ in bi-māʾin, there are two possibilities as to what is intended. The first is that it means ‘with/through’, and thus the verse would literally mean: Then We opened the gates of the sky with/through the pouring waters. This is similar to how it is said: ‘I opened the lock with the key.’ This creates a beautiful metaphor as if the water opened the gates of the sky. The second meaning is ‘accompanied by’ and thus the meaning would be: Then We opened the gates of the sky accompanied by pouring waters.[3] In both cases, the metaphor of ‘opening the gates of the sky’ is a strong hyperbole indicating the magnitude of the outpour.  

EXPOSITION

Responding to the supplication of Prophet Noah (a), God states that He opened the gates of the sky, which is a metaphor to indicate extremely heavy rainfall.[4] It is as if all the rainwater was stored and locked away behind the gates of the sky and by opening those gates it was let loose and poured down all at once.[5]

According to others, this is a metaphor to indicate that all barriers and obstacles were removed in order to facilitate the easy pouring of the rain. In this sense, opened the gates is equivalent to alleviating barriers.[6]

However, it seems that Ibn Abbas understood the verse more literally. According to him, unlike any other day in history, on that day the rain poured directly from the gates of the sky and not from clouds. [7] This phrase means that it was a type of rainfall that happened without any clouds, and thus this phrase is an indication to its miraculous nature.[8]

Some exegetes maintain that the people of Prophet Noah (a) had been experiencing severe drought for several years and were thus hoping for rainfall,[9] and it is fascinating how they were punished by the exact thing for which they had been praying.[10] However, these rains were not of mercy, but carried the wrath of Allah.

[1] Mizan, 19/68.
[2] Amthal, 17/309.
[3] Razi, 29/296; Muhit, 10/38.
[4] Safi, 5/101.
[5] Mizan, 19/68.
[6] Sharīf al-Raḍī, Talkhīṣ al-Bayān, p. 318.
[7] Alusi, 14/81.
[8] Suyuti, 6/134.
[9] Amthal, 17/309; Razi, 29/295.
[10] Muhit, 10/38.