According to the Holy Qur’an the angel Gabriel appeared and commanded Him to “Read” (Proclaim) in the name of thy Lord.”

As He had come to Muhammad as the transmitter of the Word of God, so He came to Bahá’u’lláh in that same capacity, commanding Bahá’u’lláh to “Say.”

Whenever we read passages that start with the command “Say” we are privy to statements from the holy ‘Word of God’ to the ‘Pen of God’. They are an instruction to the Manifestation of the Word of God to “Say” something to us.

Once we have received the message, it is our turn to Read or Say something. Bahá’u’lláh writes, “Whoso openeth his lips in this day, and maketh mention of the name of his Lord, the hosts of Divine inspiration shall descend upon him from the heavens of My Name, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. On him shall also descend the Concourse on high, each bearing aloft a chalice of pure light. Thus hath it been foreordained in the realm of God’s Revelation, by the behest of Him Who is the All-Glorious, the Most Powerful.” (GWB, p. 280)