23 Preface وَإِنّا لَنَحنُ نُحيي وَنُميتُ وَنَحنُ الوارِثونَYusuf AliAnd verily, it is We Who give1 life, and Who give death: it is We Who remain inheritors2 (after all else passes away).Note how the argument has mounted up from 15:16 onwards to 15:23? from things most remote from man to things touching his inmost being, and each of them in its own way is a wonderful instance of God’s glory and goodness, and the beauty, order, and harmony of His creation. First, the heavens, the Zodiacal Signs, the stars, and the mysterious phenomena that we see above us; then the earth, and the perfect balance of life and forces therein, with man as an important factor, but not the only factor; then, the inexhaustible sources of energy, of which God alone is the fountainhead, but which come to us in measured proportions, as needed; and lastly, Life and Death itself, which will pass away but God will remain. A noble passage, and a fine vindication of God’s wisdom and providence in dealing with His creatures.Literally, “We are the Heirs, or Inheritors,” Cf. 3:180: “To God belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth.” See also the latter part of n. 988 to 6:165.