Bismillah

Allah ta’ala says in Suratul Waaqi’ah:

وَإِنَّهُ لَقَسَمٌ لَّوْ تَعْلَمُونَ عَظِيمٌ

And that is indeed a mighty oath if you but knew,-(56:76)

What is this magnificent oath that Allah azza wa jal has taken?

إِنَّهُ لَقُرْآنٌ كَرِيمٌ

That this is indeed a Qur’an, Kareem. (56:77)

Kareem is from kaaf-ra-meem and karam is used for a grape vine. A grape vine looks very beautiful and brings a lot of benefit. When Kareem is used for Allah: it means Allah ta’ala is very generous and He is of high status. When kareem is used for a person, it means they are very honorable and hold a great position as well as they have character. When kareem is used for speech, it means a word that is gentle, good, humble and beneficial.

When used for Qur’an, Kareem means:

1- This Qur’an that is very beneficial, full of blessings, katheerun naf’, full of benefits. Every letter brings you reward, every reading brings you a new lesson.

2-This Qur’an which is honorable. Honored by who? By Allah azza wa jal, it is Allah’s Kalaam–the most honored Kalaam with an exalted status.

This Qur’an is Kareem: it changes hearts and guides a person to action, it shows people the reality of life and the reality of the hereafter.

Imam Sa’di rahimahullah states in his tafseer that Kareem means: katheerul khayr, containing every good and every type of knowledge. It is a book that if one seeks to benefit from, they will.

This is a Kareem book, revealed  by Al Kareem, to a messenger that is Kareem for us…Yet what have we done with it?

More Characteristics of the Qur’an here.