Certainty and patience with perseverance are two necessary...

Certainty and patience with perseverance are two necessary conditions for leadership. (A leader must have certainty in the aim and he must have patience and perseverance until the last moment.) Therefore, this verse points to the honours that the children of Israel obtained under the shade of perseverance and faith in order that it can be a lesson for others.

It says: “And We appointed from among them leaders who guided (people) by Our command, when they endured patiently, and they were quite certain of Our signs.” Here the Holy Qur’an counts two things as the secrets and conditions of leadership: one is proving faith and certainty to the Divine verses, and the other is patience and perseverance. This matter is not allocated to the Children of Israel; it is a lesson for all nations and for the Muslims in all times.

They must strengthen the basis of their own certainty and do not fear from the difficulties found in the way of confirming the line of Monotheism. They must have patience and perseverance in order to become the leader of the nations throughout the history of the world.

The Qur’anic term /yahdun/ (they guide) is used in the simple present tense, and also the term /yuqinun/ (they are certain) which is in the simple present tense, too, are two evidences for the continuation of these two qualities throughout their lifetime since the subject of leadership is not far from difficulties even for a moment and in every step the godly leader of people encounters a new problem against which he must permanently struggle by the power of certainty and perseverance and continue the line of guidance by Allah’s commandment.

It is notable that the subject of guidance is conditioned to ‘Allah’s command’ and the Holy Qur’an says: “Who guided (people) by Our command” and the important thing in the subject of guidance is this very thing that it originates from the command of Allah, not from the people’s affair and the desire of the self, nor imitation from this and that.

Considering the contents of the Qur’an, Imam Sadiq (as) in his expressive tradition, divides leaders into two kinds: The first are the leaders who undertake the leadership of people by the command of Allah, not by people’s affair. They always give priority to the command of Allah, the Almighty, the Wise, rather than their own affairs and they consider Allah’s commandment above their own command.