At-Tahrim: 12

Ayah

Word by Word

وَمَرۡيَمَ

And Maryam

ٱبۡنَتَ

(the) daughter

عِمۡرَٰنَ

(of) Imran

ٱلَّتِيٓ

who

أَحۡصَنَتۡ

guarded

فَرۡجَهَا

her chastity

فَنَفَخۡنَا

so We breathed

فِيهِ

into it

مِن

رُّوحِنَا

Our Spirit

وَصَدَّقَتۡ

And she believed

بِكَلِمَٰتِ

(in the) Words

رَبِّهَا

(of) her Lord

وَكُتُبِهِۦ

and His Books

وَكَانَتۡ

and she was

مِنَ

ٱلۡقَٰنِتِينَ

the devoutly obedient

Translation

And Mary the daughter of 'Imran, who guarded her chastity; and We breathed into (her body) of Our spirit; and she testified to the truth of the words of her Lord and of His Revelations, and was one of the devout (servants).

Tafsir

The Disbelievers can cause no Harm to the Believers

Allah gives the parable for believers,

وَضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلً لِّلَّذِينَ امَنُوا اِمۡرَأَةَ فِرۡعَوۡنَ

إِذۡ قَالَتۡ

And Allah has set forth an example for those who believe:

the wife of Fir`awn, when she said:

This is a parable that Allah made of the believers, in that, if they needed to, their association with the disbelievers will not harm them. Allah the Exalted said,

لااَّ يَتَّخِذِ الۡمُوۡمِنُونَ الۡكَـفِرِينَ أَوۡلِيَأءَ مِن دُونِ الۡمُوۡمِنِينَ وَمَن يَفۡعَلۡ ذَلِكَ فَلَيۡسَ مِنَ اللَّهِ فِي شَىۡءٍ إِلَا أَن تَتَّقُواۡ مِنۡهُمۡ تُقَـةً

Let not the believers take the disbelievers as protecting friends instead of the believers, and whoever does that, will never be helped by Allah in any way, except you indeed fear a danger from them. (3:28)

Qatadah said,

Fir`awn was the most tyrannical among the people of the earth and the most disbelieving. By Allah! His wife was not affected by her husband's disbelief, because she obeyed her Lord. Therefore, let it be known that Allah is the Just Judge Who will not punish anyone except for their own sins.

Ibn Jarir recorded that Sulayman said,

The wife of Fir`awn was tortured under the sun and when Fir`awn would finish the torture session, the angels would shade her with their wings. She was shown her house in Paradise.

Ibn Jarir said that Al-Qasim bin Abi Bazzah said,

Fir`awn's wife used to ask, `Who prevailed?'

When she was told, `Musa and Harun prevailed', she said, `I believe in the Lord of Musa and Harun.'

Fir`awn sent his aides to her and said to them, `Find the biggest stone. If she insists on keeping her faith, throw the stone on her, otherwise she is my wife.

When they came to her, she looked up to the sky and was able to see her house in Paradise. She persisted on the faith and her soul was then captured. The stone was thrown on her lifeless body.

This is the meaning of her statement,

رَبِّ ابۡنِ لِي عِندَكَ بَيۡتًا فِي الۡجَنَّةِ

وَنَجِّنِي مِن فِرۡعَوۡنَ وَعَمَلِهِ

My Lord! Build for me a home with You in Paradise, and save me from Fir`awn and his work,

means, `deliver me from him, because I am innocent of his actions,'

وَنَجِّنِي مِنَ الۡقَوۡمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

and save me from the people who are wrongdoers.

Her name was Asiyah bint Muzahim, may Allah be pleased with her.

Allah said

وَمَرۡيَمَ ابۡنَتَ عِمۡرَانَ الَّتِي أَحۡصَنَتۡ فَرۡجَهَا

And Maryam, the daughter of Imran who guarded her chastity (private part).

meaning, who protected and purified her honor, by being chaste and free of immorality,

فَنَفَخۡنَا فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِنَا

And We breathed into it (private part) through Our Ruh,

meaning, through the angel Jibril.

Allah sent the angel Jibril to Maryam, and he came to her in the shape of a man in every respect. Allah commanded him to blow into a gap of her garment and that breath went into her womb through her private part; this is how `Isa was conceived.

This is why Allah said here,

فَنَفَخۡنَا فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِنَا

وَصَدَّقَتۡ بِكَلِمَاتِ رَبِّهَا وَكُتُبِهِ

And We breathed into it through Our Ruh, and she testified to the truth of her Lords Kalimat, and His Kutub,

meaning His decree and His legislation.

وَكَانَتۡ مِنَ الۡقَانِتِينَ

and she was of the Qanitin.

Imam Ahmad recorded that Ibn `Abbas said,

The Messenger of Allah drew four lines on the ground and said,

أَتَدۡرُونَ مَا هَذَا

Do you know what these lines represent?

They said, `Allah and His Messenger know best.'

He said,

أَفۡضَلُ نِسَاءِ أَهۡلِ الۡجَنَّةِ خَدِيجَةُ بِنۡتُ خُوَيۡلِدٍ وَفَاطِمَةُ بِنۡتُ مُحَمَّدٍ وَمَرۡيَمُ ابۡنَةُ عِمۡرَانَ وَاسِيَةُ بِنۡتُ مُزَاحِمٍ امۡرَأَةُ فِرۡعَوۡن

The best among the women of Paradise are

- Khadijah bint Khuwaylid,

- Fatimah bint Muhammad,

- Maryam bint `Imran and

- Asiyah bint Muzahim, wife of Fir`awn.

It is confirmed in the Two Sahihs from Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari that the Messenger of Allah said,

كَمُلَ مِنَ الرِّجَالِ كَثِيرٌ وَلَمۡ يَكۡمُلۡ مِنَ النِّسَاءِ إِلاَّ اسِيَةُ امۡرَأَةُ فِرۡعَوۡنَ وَمَرۡيَمُ ابۡنَةُ عِمۡرَانَ وَخَدِيجَةُ بِنۡتُ خُوَيۡلِدٍ وَإِنَّ فَضۡلَ عَايِشَةَ عَلَى النِّسَاءِ كَفَضۡلِ الثَّرِيدِ عَلَى سَايِرِ الطَّعَام

Many men have reached the level of perfection, but none among women have reached this level except

- Asiyah -- Fir`awn's wife,

- Maryam--the daughter of `Imran, and

- Khadijah--the daughter of Khuwaylid.

And no doubt, the superiority of `A'ishah to other women is like the superiority of Tharid to other meals.

In my book, Al-Bidayah wan-Nihayah, I have mentioned these Hadiths using their various chains of narration in relating the story of Prophet `sa and his mother Maryam, peace be upon them, all praise be to Allah.

This is the end of the Tafsir of Surah At-Tahrim, all thanks and praise are due to Allah.

Related Q&A

Was Maryam a sister of Harun, a mother of Isa or a daughter of Imran?

Allah said in the Qur'an: "O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste." (Quran 19:28)

Allah also said: "And Mary, the daughter of 'Imran, who guarded her chastity, so We blew into [her garment] through Our angel, and she believed in the words of her Lord and His scriptures and was of the devoutly obedient." (Quran 66:12)

Then, was Maryam a sister of Harun, a mother of Isa or a daughter of Imran?

ANSWER:

Mary's father was Imran (Amram) while she had a brother whose name was Harun (Aaron). She then begotted a prophet named Isa (Jesus) may peace be upon him.

Please do not be puzzled by the fact that Prophet Harun's (Aaron) father was also known as Imran. The latter was the father of Prophet Musa (Moses) as well. Additionally, both Prophet Harun and Prophet Musa also had a sister called Miriam.

This similarity in names does not show that the Qur'an made a historical mistake. Some Arab Christians in the era of the Prophet Muhammad may peace and salutation be upon him tried to criticize the Quran from this point also.

Al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah narrated: When I came to Najran, they (Christians) asked me: "You read (in the Quran) 'O sister of Aaron' while Moses was before Jesus for a long period of time."

Al-Mughirah continued: Once I met the Messenger of Allah may peace and salutation be upon him (in Madina), I greeted him and asked him about that question. Then the Prophet said: "They named their children with their prophets' and pious people's names."

(Muslim no. 2135)

Here the Prophet explained that there is no historical mistake in this regard. It is totally true that Moses and Aaron were before Mary and Jesus for centuries. But due to this custom between People of the Book (Ahl Al-Kitab) who name their children with pious people's names or prophet's names, we find similarity between these two generations.

Allah knows best.