38وَلَقَد خَلَقنَا السَّماواتِ وَالأَرضَ وَما بَينَهُما في سِتَّةِ أَيّامٍ وَما مَسَّنا مِن لُغوبٍMuhammad Asadand [who knows that] We have indeed created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them in six aeons, and [that] no weariness could ever touch Us.1The whole of this passage (verses 36-38) stresses God's omnipotence, which can be perceived by "anyone whose heart is wide-awake". The above reference to God's having created the universe in six aeons' is the oldest in the chronology of Qur'anic revelation. In this connection it is to be noted that in ancient Arabic usage the term yawm does not always denote the twenty-four hours of the earthly "day", but is also applied to any period of time, however long or short. In the cosmic sense in which it is used here and elsewhere in the Qur'an, the plural ayyam is best rendered as "acons". The mention of the impossibility of God's ever being "wearied" by the process of creation connects the present passage with verse 15 of this surah and, thus, alludes to God's power to resurrect the dead.