Can Allah speak about himself in the third person: He, Him, His, Who?
“Surely, His is the Creation and Commandment”. (Q. Ala'raf)
Nothing resembles Him as Allah says:
“There is nothing like Him; and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer”. (Q. Ashu'ara)
No effort is expended by Him in carrying any action out as He says:
“Verily, His command when He intends a thing is only that He says to it ‘Be!' – and it is!” [Q. yaseen]
and in Ayat-ul-Kursi Allah says :
“…and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them (the heavens and the earth)…”
“So all the Praises and Thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the heavens and the Lord of the earth and the Lord of the Worlds. And His (Alone) is the Majesty in the heavens and the earth, and He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise”. [Q. Aljathiya]
“And with Him are the keys of all that is hidden, none knows them but He” [Q. Alanam]
In the above you have quotes from the Koran.
In one verse Allah speaks clearly by saying: We in 76:2.
Whereas in the other 23: 78 Allah seems to speak in the third person using He Who.
Now, going to the passage where this last verse came from, the following is how Allah is quoted in the holy Koran as speaking, four different translations are being quoted to minimise any chance of wrong translation:
023.075
YUSUFALI: If We had mercy on them and removed the distress which is on them, they would obstinately persist in their transgression, wandering in distraction to and fro.
PICKTHAL: Though We had mercy on them and relieved them of the harm afflicting them, they still would wander blindly on in their contumacy.
SHAKIR: And if We show mercy to them and remove the distress they have, they would persist in their inordinacy, blindly wandering on.
KHALIFA: Even when we showered them with mercy, and relieved their problems, they plunged deeper into transgression, and continued to blunder.
023.076
YUSUFALI: We inflicted Punishment on them, but they humbled not themselves to their Lord, nor do they submissively entreat (Him)!-
PICKTHAL: Already have We grasped them with punishment, but they humble not themselves unto their Lord, nor do they pray,
SHAKIR: And already We overtook them with chastisement, but they were not submissive to their Lord, nor do they humble themselves.
KHALIFA: Even when we afflicted them with retribution, they never turned to their Lord imploring.
023.077
YUSUFALI: Until We open on them a gate leading to a severe Punishment: then Lo! they will be plunged in despair therein!
PICKTHAL: Until, when We open for them the gate of extreme punishment, behold! they are aghast thereat.
SHAKIR: Until when We open upon them a door of severe chastisement, lo! they are in despair at it.
KHALIFA: Subsequently, when we requited them with the severe retribution they had incurred, they were shocked.
023.078
YUSUFALI: It is He Who has created for you (the faculties of) hearing, sight, feeling and understanding: little thanks it is ye give!
PICKTHAL: He it is Who hath created for you ears and eyes and hearts. Small thanks give ye!
SHAKIR: And He it is Who made for you the ears and the eyes and the hearts; little is it that you give thanks.
KHALIFA: He is the One who granted you the hearing, the eyesight, and the brains. Rarely are you appreciative.
023.079
YUSUFALI: And He has multiplied you through the earth, and to Him shall ye be gathered back.
PICKTHAL: And He it is Who hath sown you broadcast in the earth, and unto Him ye will be gathered.
SHAKIR: And He it is Who multiplied you in the earth, and to Him you shall be gathered.
KHALIFA: He is the One who established you on earth, and before Him you will be summoned.
023.080
YUSUFALI: It is He Who gives life and death, and to Him (is due) the alternation of Night and Day: will ye not then understand?
PICKTHAL: And He it is Who giveth life and causeth death, and His is the difference of night and day. Have ye then no sense?
SHAKIR: And He it is Who gives life and causes death, and (in) His (control) is the alternation of the night and the day; do you not then understand?
KHALIFA: He is the One who controls life and death, and He is the One who alternates the night and day. Do you not understand?
It is just amazing how Allah uses We in verses 23:75-77
And then the same Allah uses the third person.
In 23:78-80 we see that He, Him, His and Who are used!
It is said that the Koran is the word of Allah.
So, who is Allah referring to when in verses 23:78-80 we read:
He, Him, His and Who???
A reply to the question was given somewhere else thus:
“In all of those verses Allah is referring to Himself! Whenever there's a He, Him, His and who, it may sound as though some one else is speaking on behalf of Allah but in fact it's just Allah referring to Himself (using the third person) and whenever there's the plurals We, Us and Our you'd think that Allah was speaking of more than one person when He's only speaking of Himself. It makes much more sense when reading the actual text.”
As Muslims believe, without a shadow of doubt, that the Koran is the words of Allah, then a question arises.
How can Allah say about himself: He, Him, His, Who???
Is it Allah speaking or somebody else???
It just does not make sense?
Why God, The Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth, Creator of every thing there is, creator of the sun, moon, stars, black holes, pulsars, galaxies and whatever else is there that we know and do not know,
Why such an Omnipotent god refer to Himself as:
Him, He, His, Who???
Reading the actual text, the whole passage, does not make sense at all!!!
Because He (Allah) start by saying We, then in 2-3 verses after changes to He, Him His and Who!!!
Is it because the Koran took 23 years to complete, and the first verses quoted in the first posting in this thread were said at a different time to the following ones?
That can be an explanation?
Or is there more than one “entity” or “person” speaking?