The Reason for Using the First Person Plural Pronoun

The first person plural pronoun in the phrase “We taught him from Our presence” does not indicate the involvement or participation of angels or other beings (meaning “I or the angels endowed Khiḍr with divine knowledge”). In verses concerning divine unity, God the Exalted definitely uses the first person singular pronoun to remove any misconception. However, in verses not related to divine unity, He uses the first person plural pronoun for two reasons:

1. Sometimes it refers to the presence of angels and divine forces: “Indeed, We sent it down on the Night of Power”.(86)

2. At times it is used for glorification and exaltation of the Speaker Himself; it also indicates the greatness and majesty of the mercy and knowledge that God the Exalted bestowed upon His special servant, just as He referred to special mercy with the word “presence” (ʿind) and used the word “presence” (ladun) for knowledge, which is more specific and more expressive than the word “presence” (ʿind): “Then they found one of Our servants upon whom We had bestowed mercy from Us and whom We had taught knowledge from Our presence”; meaning Khiḍr learned knowledge from its source and was a direct student of God the Exalted.