The True King and Ruler of the universe is Allah (swt). It is he who deserves obedience, fear, awe, love, reverance, and devotion. Supremely exalted is therefore Allah, The True King..(20:114, 23:116)It is he who in reality possessess the true authority. Thus no one can have authority other then his authority. The only true authority is his authority which he delegates to whom he pleases.
So the true authority belongs to him because he is the lord of mankind that deserves obedience. Some other people do hold authority in a sense people follow them and obey them and fear them but this not due to meriting it but due to people being engulfed in falsehood. Thus Firon has authority due to falsehood but if people were to come to realize the truth, then he would have no authority over them. On the other hand Musa (as) and Harun (as) were sent with the manifest authority and their authority was that of truth and it was God's authority they were sent with. Obeying them is obeying God. And certainly We sent Musa with Our signs and a clear authority,
To Firon and his chiefs, but they followed the bidding of Firon, and Firon's bidding was not right-directing.(11:96-97)
The consequence of turning against the true authority results in eternal damnation while the false authorities otherwise known as Taghuts hold only authority in this world. They said: We do not prefer you to what has come to us of clear arguments and to He Who made us, therefore decide what you are going to decide; you can only decide about this world's life. (20:72). In reality also, they only control to the extent God allows, and God can destroy the oppressors as he has done so with many oppressors in the past. On the other hand following those sent with God's authority results in victory for the followers, We will strengthen your arm with your brother, and We will give you both an authority, so that they shall not reach you; (go) with Our signs; you two and those who follow you shall be uppermost. (28:35)
Thus it is repeated in the Quran, not to fear people but to fear God...So fear not mankind, but fear Me. ..(5:44)...It is only the Shaitan that causes you to fear from his friends, but do not fear them, and fear Me if you are believers. (3:175)...of them as are unjust; so do not fear them but fear Me (2:150).
God is thus accepted as the True Master by the believers while the disbelievers take the false authority as Masters. The False Authority is termed as "Taghut" in the Quran.
There is no compulsion in religion; truly the right way has become clearly distinct from error; therefore, whoever disbelieves in the Taghut and believes in Allah he indeed has laid hold on the firmest handle, which shall not break off, and Allah is Hearing, Knowing.
Allah is the Master of those who believe. He brings them out of the darkness into the light; and (as to) those who disbelieve, their masters are the Taghuut, it takes them out of the light into the darkness; they are the inmates of the fire, in it they shall abide. (2:256-257)
An instance of true King due to God's authority is Ibrahim (as) who disputed a false authority who had authority only due falsehood of people. Ibrahim (as) however shows the true authority:
Have you not considered him who disputed with Ibrahim about his Lord, because Allah had given him the kingdom? When Ibrahim said: My Lord is He who gives life and causes to die, he said: I give life and cause death. Ibrahim said: So surely Allah causes the sun to rise from the east, then make it rise from the west; thus he who disbelieved was confounded; and Allah does not guide aright the unjust people. (2:258)
Say: O Allah, Master of the Kingdom! Thou givest the kingdom to whomsoever Thou pleasest and takest away the kingdom from whomsoever Thou pleasest, and Thou exaltest whom Thou pleasest and abasest whom Thou pleasest in Thine hand is the good; surety, Thou hast power over all things. (3:26 )
As the authority belongs to God he can bestow and take it away from whoever he wants, and then remember what Ibrahim (as) said about the day and night and read the next verse:
Thou makest the night to pass into the day and Thou makest the day to pass into the night, and Thou bringest forth the living from the dead and Thou bringest forth the dead from the living, and Thou givest sustenance to whom Thou pleasest without measure.(3:27 )
Thus (3:26-27) after having reminded of what was said by one of God's Prophets (as) about Talut (as) , it integrates it with Ibrahim's (as) argument.
The Quran has made it clear that to God belongs the authority and it is in his hands, he gives it to whom he pleases. Because the Authority is God and no one but God, and hence, only those whom been given his authority possess true authority. Those whom obeying is linked back to obeying God are the true authorities. As their Mastership is one and the same with God's mastership, they call peope to fear God and as result accept their authorty and turn away from the false authorities:
Therefore fear Allah and obey me;
And do not obey the bidding of the extravagant,
Who make mischief in the land and do not set aright. (26:150-152)
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