Tafseer Ibn Kathir of AL FURQAAN [61]

61. Blessed be He Who has placed in the heaven Al-Buruj, and has placed therein a great lamp, and a moon giving light. 62. And He it is Who has put the night and the day in succession (Khilfatan), for such who desires to remember or desires to show his gratitude. Here Allah glorifies Himself and praises the beauty He created in the heavens of Al-Buruj, the giant stars, according to the view of Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Abu Salih, Al-Hasan and Qatadah. This is like the Ayah,

(And indeed We have adorned the nearest heaven with lamps) (67:5). Allah says:

(Blessed be He Who has placed in the heaven Al-Buruj, and has placed therein a great lamp,) which is the sun which shines like a lamp, as Allah says:

(And We have made (therein) a shining lamp) (78:13).

(and a moon giving light.) means, shining and illuminated by the light of something else, different from the light of the sun, as Allah says:

(It is He Who made the sun a shining thing and the moon as a light) (10:5). And Allah tells us that Nuh, peace be upon him, said to his people:

(See you not how Allah has created the seven heavens one above another And has made the moon a light therein, and made the sun a lamp) (71:15-16). Then Allah says:

(And He it is Who has put the night and the day in succession (Khilfatan),) meaning, each one comes after the other, in a never-ending alternation. When one goes the other comes, and vice versa, as Allah says:

(And He has made the sun and the moon, both constantly pursuing their courses) (14:33).

(He brings the night as a cover over the day, seeking it rapidly) (7:54).

(It is not for the sun to overtake the moon) (36:40).

(for such who desires to remember or desires to show his gratitude.) means, He has caused them both to follow one another to show the times when His servants should worship Him. So whoever misses an act of worship during the night can make it up during the day, and whoever misses an act of worship during the day can make it up during the night. It was recorded in a Sahih Hadith:

(Allah spreads forth His Hand at night for the one who has done evil during the day to repent, and He spreads forth His Hand during the day for the one who has done evil during the night to repent.) Mujahid and Qatadah said: ”Khilfatan means different, i.e., because one is dark and the other is light.''