Allah commanded Prophet Dawud ‘alayhis-salaam saying:
“Make full-length armor, and ˹perfectly˺ calculating and balancing the links, and do righteous work. I see all the things you do.” [Surah Sabaa’ 34: 11]
.
Look at the part of this ayah where Allah says:
وقدر في ٱلسرد
{wa qaddir fee as-sard}
“and ˹perfectly˺ calculating and balancing the links”
.
There is a subtle gem in this. Prophet Dawood was skilled in making chain armors made of steel links. Some scholars said that the word {as-sard} in the ayah refers to the nails that are put in between the two chain links of the armor, so that they are linked together. So {wa qaddir fee as-sard} means: ensure that the nails are not too big, nor too small, so that the nails can go through and link the chains together.
.
You might be wondering, why does Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala tell us about this in the Qur’an? What’s so important about making sure that these nails can go into chain armors?
Because Allah is teaching us here to have ihsan / excellence in the job that we do. To try and perfect our crafts. For example:
.
Teachers – ensure that the materials you’re teaching are easily grasped by your audience. Adjust your teaching method so that your students can easily understand the content.
Engineers – make sure that the product you’re producing is done in the best way possible for the people, while keeping the safety of the environment in mind.
Doctors – ensure that you do not assign more prescriptions beyond what is needed. And there are many more examples regarding this.
.
{Wa qaddir fee as-sard} is a call for everyone to do an excellent job! What a motivating ayah, subhana Allah. Indeed, Allah loves the excellent people (Al-Muhsinin).
.
May Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala allow us to be excellent in our crafts for His sake, and then for the benefit of His creations. Ameen.
