A Note on S 6:163

No partner has he. And with that have I been commanded and I am the first of the Muslims.

The reader's first thought may be that the verse is saying that the founder of Islam is saying that he is the first Muslim.

But consider an alternative interpretation:

a) The narrator is saying that (Allah) has no partner.

b) With that have I been commanded.

c) I am the first Muslim.

It may be argued that this is a continuation of the preceding verse. But there is no 'Say!' preceding, unlike in verses 161 and 162 and again in verse 164. So there is room for positing that the usual narrator is speaking, elsewhere 'supposedly Allah', and if it is saying that Allah has no partner, then how many Allahs are there? So the narrator/Allah has been commanded with its not having a partner, which makes no sense. The narrator/Allah is the first Muslim.

The First Muslim

If 'believer' is synonymous with 'Muslim' then is Allah really a Muslim?

S 59:23 He is Allah, who is no god but him, the king, the holy one, the peace, the believer, the dominant, the mighty, the tyrant, the arrogant. Praise be to Allah from what they associate!

Allah, if that is what is meant by 'my lord' in S 11:56, is on a straight path.

I have put my trust in Allah, my lord and your lord. There is no beast but he takes it by its forelock. My lord is on a straight path.

This path, however, may or may not be the same straight path as the Muslims pray to be guided to.

Straight Path

The Muslims, presumably, want the Hereafter. In S 8:67 we read:

It was not for a prophet that he should have prisoners until he should injure in the land. You want the display of the dunya and Allah wants the hereafter. And Allah is mighty, wise.

Who Wants the Hereafter?