Muayad Al-Samaraee

Introduction: The Qur’an Is a Book for a Global Path
The Holy Qur’an presents itself not as a historical book for a people or a tribe, nor as a record specific to a language or ethnicity, but as a book for a global path that addresses man as man, and links its message to the Hanif creed of Abraham, which was founded on pure monotheism, the critique of polytheism, the exercise of reason and innate nature, and individual responsibility. From this standpoint, the stories of the Qur’anic civilizations — Ad, Thamud, and Pharaoh — can be read not for mere historical narration, but to derive divine laws and patterns connected to security, stability, and collapse. When this vision is transferred to the question of “global national security,” a central problematic emerges: Are power, construction, and innovation enough to protect nations, or does true security rest on a monotheistic, just, and accountable moral foundation? The Qur’an answers that power without monotheism and justice is a path to destruction, and that the Abrahamic project remains a valid foundation for a global security vision based on human dignity, accountability of authority, sustainability, and peace.

The Universality of the Qur’an: Belief in the Books and Messengers Without Differentiation
The universality of the Qur’an begins from a clear creedal principle: Allah commanded us in it to believe in Him, His angels, His Books, and His messengers, and not to differentiate between any of His messengers. He said: “The Messenger has believed in what was sent down to him from his Lord, and the believers. All have believed in Allah, His angels, His Books, and His messengers: ‘We make no distinction between any of His messengers.’” [Al-Baqarah: 285]. And He said: “Say: We have believed in Allah and in what was sent down to us, and what was sent down to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and what was given to Moses, Jesus, and the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and to Him we submit.” [Al-Imran: 84]. This principle makes the Qur’an a universal book, not monopolized by a nation, language, or ethnicity, because it links faith to the entire system of messages, and makes the Muslim a believer in Allah’s Books and messengers altogether, not merely a witness against others. Hence, the universality of the Qur’an is not an emotional slogan, but a creedal structure: whoever disbelieves in some messengers or differentiates between them has departed from the logic of the Qur’an itself. The Creator has forbidden us in His Book to favor one messenger over another, or to compare His Books and messages in a manner of differentiation and disparagement, because their source is one, their purpose is one, their messages are complementary, and their seal is the Qur’an and Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Following the Creed of Abraham and the Station of Abraham in Prayer
The Qur’an does not present Muhammad (peace be upon him) as a substitute for Abraham, but as a seal upon Abraham’s creed and a caller to it. He said: “Then We revealed to you: Follow the creed of Abraham, a hanif, and he was not of the polytheists.” [An-Nahl: 123]. And He said: “The creed of your father Abraham. He named you Muslims before.” [Al-Hajj: 78]. Muhammad (peace be upon him) is not monopolized by a tribe or a group of people; rather, he is a messenger to all people: “And We have not sent you except as a mercy to the worlds.” [Al-Anbiya: 107]; “And We have not sent you except to all people as a bringer of glad tidings and a warner.” [Saba: 28]. Among the evidences of the universality of the Abrahamic path is that Allah commanded us, in our prayer, to take the Station of Abraham as a place of prayer: “And when We made the House a place of return for people and a place of security: Take from the Station of Abraham a place of prayer.” [Al-Baqarah: 125]. Prayer itself is linked to the memory of Abraham, and the Sacred House was made for all people, not for one people to the exclusion of another. This is a profound indication that the purposes of Muhammad (peace be upon him) are the purposes of Abraham: monotheism, purification, establishing a universal house, and a call that belongs neither to a tribe nor to a language.

The Abrahamic Objection: Do You Worship What You Carve?
Abraham’s objection to his people was logical and easy to deduce; it required neither complicated philosophy nor closed theological disputation. He said to them: “Do you worship what you carve, while Allah created you and what you do?” [As-Saffat: 95–96]. The equation is clear: you carve the idols with your own hands, you make them, then you worship them. How can the made creature be a god? How can the one you made be your creator? It is a blatant inversion of innate nature and reason. If man is the one who makes the “creator” with his hand, how can this “creator” be his creator? This is polytheistic thought in its inverted form. Hence Abraham’s rejection of idols was not rebellion against sacred things, but a submission to reason and innate nature: the made is not worshipped, the creature is not deified, and the powerless is not invoked. For this reason, Abraham’s creed was a hanif creed, founded on pure monotheism, not on blind imitation of ancestors. This confirms that following the creed of Abraham is not inherited imitation, but innate and rational inference: one who makes something does not worship it, and one who possesses neither benefit nor harm for himself is not invoked besides Allah.

Abraham: From an Institutional Zero to a Nation and an Imam
Allah commanded us to follow the Hanif creed of Abraham, not because man is self-sufficient in the sense of independence from his Creator, but because he was created honored by the spirit that Allah breathed into him, and equipped with innate nature, reason, and will. He is capable of research, observation, and inference, but he is not independent of Allah in his existence, guidance, or victory. The great civilizations — the people of Noah, Ad, and Thamud — had vanished, and no believing nation remained standing, no living messenger, and no institution preserving monotheism. Thus Abraham’s beginning was an institutional zero, not an absolute epistemic zero, because remnants of monotheism had not been completely cut off, and because the spirit was driving him to search. Abraham used his reason to critique idols, which are satanic filth, and reflected on the planets, the moon, and the sun, rejecting the worship of what sets and disappears, until he reached the Originator of the heavens and the earth. Then Allah guided him, showed him the dominion of the heavens and the earth, confirmed him, saved him from the fire, chose him for prophethood, and made him “a nation,” an imam, and a father of the prophets, and a new starting point for the monotheistic community.

The Sacred House and the Establishment of Abrahamic Universality
After severe trials for Abraham and Ishmael, Allah commanded him to build the House in Mecca, in an uncultivated valley, among a people who did not speak his language, so that it would be a place of return and security for people. They raised the foundations and supplicated: “Our Lord, and send among them a messenger from among themselves, who will recite to them Your verses and teach them the Book and wisdom.” [Al-Baqarah: 129]. This was the actual proof of Abraham’s universality: a house for all people, and a call belonging neither to a tribe nor a language. Then Allah commanded us to take the Station of Abraham as a place of prayer, made the creed of Abraham the Hanif Muslim creed, and linked it to the seal of the prophets. Allah answered his supplication with Muhammad (peace be upon him), who was sent among the people of this House, and upon whom the Qur’an was revealed, making it the final universal message. Thus spirit, innate nature, reason, striving, and reliance on Allah reach their peak in Abraham’s line: monotheism, trial, building, supplication, answer, and universality. But the spirit inspires and does not compel; the commanding soul whispers; Satan invites and does not force; and man is responsible for his choice: “Indeed, Allah does not change what is with a people until they change what is within themselves.” [Ar-Ra’d: 11].

The Middle Nation and Witnessing Over a Coming Nation: An Analytical Perspective
He said: “And thus We made you a middle nation, that you may be witnesses over the people, and the Messenger a witness over you.” [Al-Baqarah: 143]. In a contemporary Analytical Perspective, it is proposed that the selection of this nation is not an ethnic distinction for the inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula, nor a crowning of a nationality or language, but a greater event: a global mandate of witnessing. The middle nation is not a nation closed upon a previous religion, but a nation preparing to be a witness between the creed of Abraham and a coming nation we do not know, which might be the opposing pole to the Abrahamic creed. This proposal remains within the sphere of reflection and ijtihad, not within the sphere of certainty and definitive knowledge. What matters is that the verse transfers the nation from the logic of distinction to the logic of responsibility: witnesses over people, not hereditary rulers, nor guardians over Allah. Hence the security dimension in this vision is divine in reference: adherence to the creed of Abraham, the Holy Qur’an, the heavenly Books, and all that the Creator has asked of us, and readiness to be witnesses with justice among nations, not false witnesses with power, race, or wealth.

The Continuity of the Line of Jesus and His Followers Above the Fighters
Among the evidence of the universality of the Abrahamic path is that Allah informed us of the continuation of the line of Jesus and his followers above those who fought him until the Day of Resurrection: “When Allah said: O Jesus, I will take you and raise you to Myself, and purify you from those who disbelieved, and I will make those who follow you above those who disbelieved until the Day of Resurrection.” [Al-Imran: 55]. This means that the struggle between monotheism and tyranny is not confined to a time or a people, but is an extended line. Hence, global national security does not rest on religious closure, but on adherence to the unifying Abrahamic frame of reference: the creed of Abraham, the Holy Qur’an, the heavenly Books, and all that the Creator has asked of us. Readiness for witnessing among nations is not only military readiness, but epistemic, ethical, and spiritual readiness: that we understand, witness with justice, reject tyranny, do not favor one messenger over another, and do not compare Allah’s Books and messages in a manner of differentiation and disparagement.

Religious History as Divine Laws: Ad, Thamud, and Pharaoh
The stories of the three civilizations in the Holy Qur’an — Ad, Thamud, and Pharaoh — are organized along one line: exceptional civilizational power, unique engineering inventions, then tyranny and rejection of the messengers, then destruction and lesson. Allah described each nation with a description indicating its achievement: “Iram of the Pillars” for Ad, “And you carve houses out of the mountains, being insolent” for Thamud, and “And Pharaoh, possessor of the stakes” for Pharaoh. These descriptions can be read — within a contemporary ijtihadi framework — as references to integrated environmental and social inventions. But the common denominator is that power and construction do not save from Allah’s punishment if they are combined with rejection and tyranny, and that the most dangerous polytheism is what denied resurrection and corrupted morals and society, not only what claimed divinity.

Ad and Thamud: Power and Engineering, Then Tyranny
As for Ad, they were the people of the Prophet Hud (peace be upon him), who lived in the region of Al-Ahqaf, south of the Arabian Peninsula. Allah described them as “Iram of the Pillars, which was not created like it in the lands.” “Al-Imad” refers to the pillars and columns that raise towering buildings, and “not created like it” means that no like of it existed in its architectural uniqueness. Their achievement was based on vertical structural engineering, raising palaces, fixing them, and providing ventilation, shade, and strength. As for Thamud, they were the people of the Prophet Salih (peace be upon him), who came after Ad and lived in the region of Al-Hijr, northwest of the Arabian Peninsula, known today as Mada’in Salih. Allah said: “And you carve houses out of the mountains, being insolent.” “Farihin” may mean arrogance and insolence, and it may also mean skill and proficiency. On the second meaning, the invention lies in precise mountain engineering: carving houses and palaces into rock, adapting them climatically. In summer they lived in the plains, and in winter they resorted to the mountains. It was a thermal and environmental-social engineering based on insulation, integration with the terrain, and sustainability. But Thamud hamstrung the she-camel, felt secure from Allah’s plan, and spread corruption in the land, so they were utterly destroyed.

Pharaoh: A Security Project to Protect Power, Not the People
As for Pharaoh, he was the king of Egypt in the time of Moses and Aaron (peace be upon them), and the Qur’an described him as “possessor of the stakes.” “Possessor of the stakes” is traditionally interpreted as strength, soldiers, and kingship, but the modern scientific proposal reads it as a reference to the pyramids and their environmental function. What matters is that Pharaoh was a state tyrant who knew the truth and concealed it, as shown by his allowing a believing advisor to defend Moses, the belief of the magicians after the miracle, and the Qur’an’s statement that he became certain of the signs wrongfully and arrogantly, and his belief at the drowning, which was rejected because he was a corrupter. His punishment was drowning, while his body was saved to be a sign for those after him. Pharaoh was running what could be called a “national security project,” but it was the security of power, not the security of the people: weakening the Children of Israel, killing sons, sparing women, recruiting magicians, mobilizing cities, propaganda with “I am your highest lord,” building the tower, pursuing Moses with his armies, and preventing faith except by his permission. All of that was aimed at serving his power and the continuation of his rule. It is noted that Pharaoh used the magicians even though his state had presented engineering and construction in major projects, but he summoned them when he saw that Moses’ miracle — the staff that became a living serpent — resembled magic, so he wanted to confront magic with magic. But the magicians believed after seeing the truth, so Pharaoh threatened them with crucifixion and dismemberment, exposing that his security project was protecting power, not the people.

Differentiation of Polytheism and Punishment: A Qur’anic Principle in Security and Justice
As for Ad and Thamud, they were gross in criminality: they explicitly denied resurrection, relied on power, were arrogant and insolent, and worshipped idols. Then Thamud received a clear sign — the she-camel — and hamstrung it out of stubbornness, felt secure from Allah’s plan, and spread corruption in the land, so they were utterly destroyed. As for the people of Lot, they committed an indecency no one had preceded them in, cut off the road, and committed abomination in their assembly, so their punishment was the overturning of their cities and the raining of stones upon them. The study points out that “farihin” and “mutrafiha” describe the criminal affluent class that was the origin of corruption, as in Thamud and Korah; Allah destroys the affluent first, then the punishment becomes general. It concludes that the difference in punishment is not a simple gradation in severity, but a difference in its function and nature, according to a Qur’anic principle that considers knowledge and evidence, the type of crime, the scope of corruption, and the function of punishment: a sign for others, or the eradication of a model of corruption, or total destruction for corruption that touches innate nature and progeny.

Abrahamic Commonalities and a Ground for Global Cooperation
When comparing the Qur’an, the Torah, and the Gospel, shared figures emerge such as Adam, Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, Zechariah, John, and Jesus, with theological and legal differences among the religions. Their commonalities lie in divine selection, revelation, the call to monotheism and reform, miracles, trial and patience, leadership, covenant, glad tidings, salvation, and ethics. In the Qur’an, each prophet has a special role: Adam is the origin of creation and repentance; Noah is a steadfast warner; Abraham is the father of the prophets and the destroyer of idols; Joseph is a model of patience, chastity, and administration; Moses is a liberator, lawgiver, and one spoken to by Allah; David is a king, prophet, and possessor of the Psalms; Zechariah and John are examples of supplication and purity; and Jesus is the servant and messenger of Allah, the possessor of miracles, and the bearer of glad tidings of Muhammad (peace be upon him). The five major messages are not separate religions, but one graduated divine project: its source is one, its purpose is one, its messages are complementary, and its seal is the Qur’an and Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Toward a Global Abrahamic Security Model
Starting from the universality of the Qur’an and the creed of Abraham, foundations for global national security can be formulated. The first foundation is monotheism, meaning the negation of deifying authority, race, money, or the state; every political tyranny begins with the inflation of the self until it thinks itself above accountability. The second foundation is justice and accountability, for there is no sanctity for rulers; Pharaoh knew the truth and concealed it, and became certain of the signs wrongfully and arrogantly, so his punishment was drowning while his body was saved to be a sign for those after him. The third foundation is human dignity; man is honored by the breath of the spirit, so it is not permissible to weaken, kill, or torture him in the name of security. The fourth foundation is protecting innate nature, the family, and morals; the collapse of nations begins with the corruption of the affluent class, denial of resurrection, cutting off the road, and the spread of indecency. The fifth foundation is knowledge and construction in the service of man; architecture, engineering, and environmental innovation are civilizational values, but they do not protect a nation if coupled with arrogance. The sixth foundation is freedom and responsibility; there is no compulsion in religion, guidance is clarification, the soul is a struggle, and man is responsible: “Indeed, Allah does not change what is with a people until they change what is within themselves.” The seventh foundation is universality and Abrahamic cooperation; the commonalities among the Abrahamic religions are suitable as a global ethical ground, while preserving theological and legal differences.

Contemporary Applications
In today’s world, global national security is threatened by armed conflicts, arms races, terrorism, climate crises, economic disparity, and identity crises. The Qur’anic-Abrahamic vision proposes a security based on justice, not repression; sustainable development that preserves the environment and does not corrupt it; accountability of tyrants and preventing the use of religion for coercion; dialogue among the Abrahamic religions on the basis of ethical commonalities; education that cultivates reason, innate nature, and spirit, not blind indoctrination; and rejection of deifying the state, the leader, the market, or race. It also proposes a deeper understanding of the universality of the Qur’an: that it is a book for a global path, believes in Allah’s Books and messengers altogether without differentiation, commands following the creed of Abraham, makes the middle nation a witness over people, and prepares its members to be witnesses with justice between the creed of Abraham and coming nations, not hereditary rulers nor guardians over Allah. All of this remains within the sphere of reflection and ijtihad, not within the sphere of certainty and definitive knowledge.

Conclusion: Power Does Not Protect Without Monotheism and Justice
The universality of the Qur’an and the creed of Abraham means that true security is not merely military power or material construction, but monotheism that liberates man from worship of other than Allah, justice that prevents tyranny, responsibility that safeguards innate nature and morals, and universality that opens the House, prophethood, and the message to all people. Ad, Thamud, and Pharaoh reached the peak of power and construction, but they rejected Allah’s messengers and tyrannized, so their achievements availed them nothing. Power without faith and justice is a path to destruction, and the Abrahamic project — with its monotheism, trial, building, supplication, and universality — remains a valid foundation for a global security vision based on human dignity, accountability of authority, sustainability, and peace. And the Qur’an, in all this, is not a book for a people, but a book for a global path: it believes in Allah’s Books and messengers altogether, commands following the creed of Abraham, makes the middle nation a witness over people, and prepares its members to be witnesses with justice between the creed of Abraham and coming nations, not hereditary rulers nor guardians over Allah.