38 Preface وَلَقَد أَرسَلنا رُسُلًا مِن قَبلِكَ وَجَعَلنا لَهُم أَزواجًا وَذُرِّيَّةً ۚ وَما كانَ لِرَسولٍ أَن يَأتِيَ بِآيَةٍ إِلّا بِإِذنِ اللَّهِ ۗ لِكُلِّ أَجَلٍ كِتابٌYusuf AliWe did send messengers before thee, and appointed for them wives and children:1 and it was never the part of a messenger to bring a sign except as God permitted2 (or commanded). For each period is a Book (revealed).3All the Prophets of whom we have any detailed knowledge, except one, had wives and children. The exception is Jesus, the son of Mary. But his life was incomplete: his ministry barely lasted three years; his mission was limited; and he was not called upon to deal with the many-sided problems that arise in a highly organised society or State. We pay equal respect to him, because he was God’s Messenger; but that is not to say that his Message covers the same universal ground as that of al Muṣṭafā. There is no reproach foranormal human being if he lives a normal human life; there is glory if he beautifies it and sets a nobler example of virtue than other men, as did al Muṣṭafā.No Prophet performed any miracle or showed forth any “Signs,” except as God willed. God’s will (Mash'ah) is an All-Wise, universal Plan, which is not formed for the benefit of one tribe or millah or of one age or country (see also next verse). The greatest Miracle in history was and is the Qur-ān. We can apprehend its beauty and grandeur today as much as did the people of al Muṣṭafā’s day-even more, as our collective knowledge of nature and of God’s creation has increased.Kitab: I have translated “a Book (revealed)”; but it can also mean “a Law decreed” or “a Decree established.” Ultimately the meaning is the same; for each age, according to God’s wisdom, His Message is renewed (Cf. 34:4).