al-ʿAzīz al-Ḥamīd as a closing pair
ٱلْعَزِيزِ ٱلْحَمِيدِ
al-ʿazīz al-ḥamīd — the Mighty, the Praiseworthy
In the three verses given, the pair al-ʿazīz al-ḥamīd closes the verse by naming the owner of the path just mentioned, or the one in whom the belief just mentioned is placed, pairing might with praiseworthiness.
The pair al-ʿazīz al-ḥamīd appears in identical form in all three verses given: two masculine singular adjectives in the genitive, in the same order. In (14:1) the pair closes a description of a path: the written decree was sent down so that the addressee may bring people out from the darknesses into the light, to the path of the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. The pair thus stands at the end of the verse bound to the path that is the destination of the move from darknesses to light, and the two names give the path its character — it belongs to one described as mighty and as praiseworthy. In (34:6) the construction is close but not identical: those given knowledge see that what was sent down is the truth and guides to the path of the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. Here the pair again closes the verse and again names the one to whose path the revealed truth guides, so the two verses share both the pair and its attachment to ṣirāṭ (path) in the genitive. The difference is grammatical: in (14:1) the phrase follows a verb of motion (to bring out... to the path), while in (34:6) it follows a verb of guiding (it guides to the path). In (85:8) the pair attaches not to a path but directly to the name Allāh: they took no offense at them except that they believed in Allah, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy. Here the pair closes the verse as an attribute of the one in whom the believers believed, and the context of resentment — the only thing the opponents held against them was the belief itself — gives the names a pointed role: the one believed in is named mighty and praiseworthy against those who took offense.
Where it occurs
- 14:1 Closes the verse by naming the one whose path is the destination of the move from darknesses to light.
- 34:6 Closes the verse by naming the one to whose path the revealed truth guides.
- 85:8 Closes the verse as an attribute of Allah, the one in whom the believers, resented only for their belief, believed.
All Qur'anic expressions