The Attributes of Jibril, the Trustee of the Revelation
The Almighty says:
"By the star when it plunges, your 'comrade is not astray nor does he err nor does he speak out of caprice. This is nothing but a revelation revealed, taught him by one terrible in power, endowed with strength, he stood poised..." (53:1-6)
And Allah Almighty says,
"Truly this is the word of a noble Messenger, having power, secure with the Lord of the Throne, obeyed, more- over trustworthy." (81:19-21)
Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, says of these ayats, "Allah, glory be to Him, has described His angelic messen- ger, Jibril, in this sura as being noble, strong, secure with his Lord, obeyed in the heavens, and trustworthy. These five qualities con- tain testimony of the trustworthiness of the isnad of the Qur'an and that Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, heard it from Jibril, peace be upon him, and that Jibril heard it from the Lord of the worlds. This isnad should be enough for you in respect of sublimity and majesty.
"The first quality is that the Messenger who brought it to Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, had 'nobli- ty'. This refutes the words of his enemies about Shaytan being the
one who brought it. Shaytan is foul and repulsive, vile, ugly and totally lacking in good. His inward is more ugly than his outward and his outward more evil than his inward. There is no good in him or with him. He is the furthest thing from nobility. The Messenger who brought the Qur'an to Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, was noble and of beautiful appear- ance. Allah describes him in Surat an-Najm, as "endowed with strength". Ibn Abbas said that this means to have a beautiful appearance and radiant form, to be full of excellence, good and wholesomeness, teaching those who are good. Every good in the earth is from guidance, knowledge, gnosis and belief and piety. That is part of what his Lord makes happen at his hand. This is the utmost degree of nobility in form and meaning.
"The second quality is "power", as Almighty says in Surat an- Najm, "Taught by one terrible in power." That calls our attention to several things. One of them is that by his strength he prevents shaytans from coming near him and obtaining anything from him and adding to or detracting from it. Rather, when Shaytan sees him, he flees from him and does not come near him. A second is that he is a supporter of the Messenger whom they denied and is his assistant, friend and helper. Whoever has this powerful one as his friend, helper, aide and teacher is the assisted guide and Allah is his guide and helper. Another is that anyone who opposes this Messenger also opposes his companion and friend, Jibril, and whoever opposes someone with power and force exposes himself to destruction. Yet another is that he is able to carry out what he is commanded to do on account of his power and is not incapable of doing it and conveying his trust as he was commanded. He is the Strong Trustee.
The third attribute is in the words of the Almighty, "secure with the Lord of the Throne," i.e. he has position and standing with Him and is the nearest angel to Him. It is indicated by His words, "with the Lord of the Throne," indicating the high position of Jibril, peace be upon him, since he was near to the Lord of the Throne glory be to Him!
The fourth attribute is in His word, "obeyed." This makes it clear that his troops and helpers obey him when he delegates them
to help his companion and friend, Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. It contains an indication that Jibril is obeyed in the heavens and that both of the Messengers are obeyed in their respective places and by their people, It also shows esteem for him since he has the position of kings who are obeyed among their people. Allah did not appoint to this immense matter anyone other than someone who would be obeyed like a king.
The fifth attribute is in the words of the Almighty, "then trust- worthy. His being described with trustworthiness contains an indication of the careful preservation of what he carried and of the fact that he conveyed it properly.