There is no god except...
لَآ إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا
lā ilāha illā — there is no god except
The Qur'an uses this fixed negation-plus-exception frame repeatedly, and what fills the slot after illā varies systematically: pronouns, a name, or descriptive participles and verbs, so that most occurrences attach a specific characterization to the claim of exclusive divinity.
The frame consists of a negated noun (lā ilāha, "there is no god") followed by the exception marker illā ("except"), and the Qur'an fills what follows with a changing set of elements. Most often the filler is the pronoun huwa ("Him"), as in (2:163), (3:2), (4:87), (20:98), (27:26), (44:8), (59:23), (6:106), and (7:158), where the frame is anchored to a subject named or described in its context. In (37:35) the filler is the name Allah itself, and the verse reports that when this statement was said to certain people, they acted arrogantly — the frame is presented as a message that meets rejection. In (16:2) the filler is the first-person pronoun anā ("Me"), placed in a warning that the frame's speaker issues in His own voice: "there is no god except Me; so be wary of Me." In (21:87) the filler is the second-person anta ("You"), in a cry from within the darknesses. In (10:90) the filler is a relative clause, "the One in whom the Children of Israel have trusted," spoken by Pharaoh at the moment drowning overtook him. Beyond pronouns, the frame is regularly followed by descriptive terms: al-Raḥmān al-Raḥīm (2:163), Lord of the tremendous Throne (27:26), the Living, the qayyūm (3:2), the Mighty, the Wise (3:6), the Sovereign and following terms (59:23), "He gives life and causes death" (44:8; 7:158), and "He has encompassed every thing in knowledge" (20:98). The frame thus functions as a hinge: it excludes all gods and then attaches whatever characterization the context supplies to the one who remains.
Where it occurs
- 10:90 Pharaoh, overtaken by drowning, fills the slot with a relative clause: "the One in whom the Children of Israel have trusted."
- 16:2 The slot is filled by the first-person pronoun "Me," within a warning the angels deliver on God's command.
- 20:98 The frame with "Him" is followed by "He has encompassed every thing in knowledge."
- 21:87 The man of the fish fills the slot with the second-person "You" in his cry from the darknesses.
- 27:26 The frame with "Him" is followed by "Lord of the tremendous Throne."
- 2:163 The frame with "Him" follows "your god is one God" and precedes "the All-Merciful, the Ever-Merciful."
- 37:35 The slot is filled by the name Allah; the verse reports hearers acting arrogantly when it was said to them.
- 3:2 The frame with "Him" is followed by "the Living, the qayyūm."
- 3:6 The frame with "Him" follows a description of God shaping people in the wombs, and precedes "the Mighty, the Wise."
- 44:8 The frame with "Him" is followed by "He gives life and causes death — your Lord and the Lord of your earliest forefathers."
- 4:87 The frame with "Him" is inserted between the name Allah and an oath-like assertion that He will gather people to the Day of Standing.
- 59:23 The frame with "Him" is followed by a long series of terms: the Sovereign, the Holy, and others.
- 6:106 The frame with "Him" is set between a command to follow what was inspired and a command to turn away from the ones who join partners.
- 7:158 The frame with "Him" is followed by "He gives life and causes death" within a messenger's address to all people.
All Qur'anic expressions