Numbers: literal vs. figurative:
Numbers in the Quran serve two functions — literal (an actual count) and figurative (an indefinite large quantity) — and context is the deciding factor.
"Seven" (sab) and "seventh":
- Literal: "seven heavens" (2:29) — "seven fat cows" (12:43)
- Figurative for abundance: "Even if you ask forgiveness for them seventy times, Allah will never forgive them" (9:80) — meaning: no matter how many times, they will not be forgiven. Al-Tabari said: "even if he exceeded seventy."
"Seventy" (sabuun):
A figure for an uncountable large quantity in Arab usage — as in At-Tawbah 9:80.
"Thousand" (alf) and "thousands":
- Literal: "a thousand years minus fifty" (29:14)
- Figurative: "one of them would love to be granted a thousand years" (2:96) — exaggeration of the desired lifespan.
- Multiplication of reward: "like a grain that grows seven spikes with a hundred grains in each spike" (2:261)
The principle:
Ibn Ashur said: "The Arabs use seven, seventy, a hundred, and a thousand to indicate abundance, not a precise count."
Question: What does "seventy times" mean in At-Tawbah 9:80? Is it a literal number? What is the general principle for numbers in the Quran?
Answer: Not a literal number — it means: no matter how many times you seek forgiveness, they will not be forgiven. Principle: Arabs use 7, 70, 100, 1000 to express abundance not a specific count.