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Ayah
Word by Word
قَالَ
He said
سَلَٰمٌ
Peace (be)
عَلَيۡكَۖ
on you
سَأَسۡتَغۡفِرُ
I will ask forgiveness
لَكَ
for you
رَبِّيٓۖ
(from) my Lord
إِنَّهُۥ
Indeed He
كَانَ
is
بِي
to me
حَفِيّٗا
Ever Gracious
قَالَ
He said
سَلَٰمٌ
Peace (be)
عَلَيۡكَۖ
on you
سَأَسۡتَغۡفِرُ
I will ask forgiveness
لَكَ
for you
رَبِّيٓۖ
(from) my Lord
إِنَّهُۥ
Indeed He
كَانَ
is
بِي
to me
حَفِيّٗا
Ever Gracious
Translation
Abraham said: "Peace be on thee: I will pray to my Lord for thy forgiveness: for He is to me Most Gracious.
Tafsir
He said, 'Peace be to you, from me - in other words, I shall not cause you any harm. I shall ask forgiveness of my Lord for you. Truly He is ever gracious to me (hafiyyan, from hafiyyun, meaning baarrun, 'kind') answering my prayers. And indeed he [Abraham] fulfilled his above-mentioned promise [as described] in [soorat] al-Shu'araa', And forgive my father [Q. 26:86]; but this was before it became clear to him that he [Abraham's father] was an enemy of God, as mentioned in [soorat] Baraa'a [Q. 9:114].
The Reply of Ibrahim's Father
Allah, the Exalted, informs of the reply of Ibrahim's father to his son, Ibrahim, in reference to what he was calling him to.
قَالَ
He (the father) said:
أَرَاغِبٌ أَنتَ عَنۡ الِهَتِي يَا إِبۡراهِيمُ لَيِن لَّمۡ تَنتَهِ لَاَرۡجُمَنَّكَ
Do you revile my gods, O Ibrahim! If you stop not (this), I will La'arjumannak.
This means, If you do not want to worship them (the idols) and you are not pleased with them, then at least stop cursing, abusing, and reviling them. For verily, if you do not cease, I will punish you, curse you and revile you.
This is the meaning of his statement;
لَاأَرۡجُمَنَّكَ
(La'arjumannaka).
Ibn Abbas, As-Suddi, Ibn Jurayj, Ad-Dahhak and others said this.
Concerning His statement,
وَاهۡجُرۡنِي مَلِيًّا
So get away from me Maliyan.
Mujahid, Ikrimah, Sa`id bin Jubayr and Mujahid bin Ishaq all said,
Maliyan means forever.
Al-Hasan Al-Basri said,
For a long time.
As-Suddi said,
وَاهۡجُرۡنِي مَلِيًّا
(So get away from me safely Maliyan),
This means forever.
Ali bin Abi Talhah and Al-Awfi both reported that Ibn Abbas said,
وَاهۡجُرۡنِي مَلِيًّا
(So get away from me safely Maliyan),
This means to go away in peace and safety before you are afflicted with a punishment from me.
Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah, Atiyah Al-Jadali, Malik and others said the same.
This is also the view preferred by Ibn Jarir.
The Reply of Allah's Friend (Khalil)
Allah tells
قَالَ
Ibrahim said:
With this, Ibrahim said to his father,
سَلَمٌ عَلَيۡكَ
Peace be on you!
This is as Allah said concerning the description of the believers,
وَإِذَا خَاطَبَهُمُ الجَـهِلُونَ قَالُواۡ سَلَماً
and when the foolish address them (with bad words) they say, Salaman (peace). (25:63)
Allah also says,
وَإِذَا سَمِعُواۡ اللَّغۡوَ أَعۡرَضُواۡ عَنۡهُ وَقَالُواۡ لَنَأ أَعۡمَـلُنَا وَلَكُمۡ أَعۡمَـلُكُمۡ سَلَـمٌ عَلَيۡكُمۡ لَا نَبۡتَغِى الۡجَـهِلِينَ
And when they hear Al-Laghw (false speech), they withdraw from it and say:To us our deeds, and to you your deeds. Peace be to you. We seek not (the way of) the ignorant. (28:55)
The meaning of Ibrahim's statement to his father,
سَلَمٌ عَلَيۡكَ
(Peace be on you!),
You will not receive any insult or harm from me.
This is due to the respect and honor of fatherhood.
سَأَسۡتَغۡفِرُ لَكَ رَبِّي
I will ask forgiveness of my Lord for you.
meaning But, I will ask Allah to guide you and forgive you for your sin.
إِنَّهُ كَانَ بِي حَفِيًّا
Verily, He is unto me Hafiyya.
Ibn Abbas and others said that Hafiyyan means, Kind.
Meaning, since He guided me to worship Him and direct my religious devotion to Him alone.
As-Suddi said,
Al-Hafi is One Who is concerned with his (Ibrahim's) affair.
Thus, Ibrahim sought forgiveness for his father for a very long time, even after he migrated to Ash-Sham. He continued to seek forgiveness for him even after building the Sacred Masjid (in Makkah) and after the birth of his two sons, Ismail and Ishaq.
This can be seen in his statement,
رَبَّنَا اغۡفِرۡ لِى وَلِوَالِدَىَّ وَلِلۡمُوۡمِنِينَ يَوۡمَ يَقُومُ الۡحِسَابُ
Our Lord! Forgive me and my parents, and (all) the believers on the Day when the reckoning will be established. (14:41)
From this tradition, during the beginning stages of Islam, the Muslims used to seek forgiveness for their relatives and their family members who were polytheists. They did this following the way of Ibrahim, the Khalil (Friend) of Allah, until Allah revealed,
قَدۡ كَانَتۡ لَكُمۡ أُسۡوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ فِي إِبۡرَاهِيمَ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ
إِذۡ قَالُوا لِقَوۡمِهِمۡ إِنَّا بُرَاء مِنكُمۡ وَمِمَّا تَعۡبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهٍِ
كَفَرۡنَا بِكُمۡ وَبَدَا بَيۡنَنَا وَبَيۡنَكُمُ الۡعَدَاوَةُ وَالۡبَغۡضَاء أَبَدًا حَتَّى تُوۡمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَحۡدَهُ
إِلاَّ قَوۡلَ إِبۡرَاهِيمَ لاَِبِيهِ لَاَسۡتَغۡفِرَنَّ لَكَ وَمَا أَمۡلِكُ لَكَ مِنَ اللَّهِ مِن شَيۡء
Indeed there has been an excellent example for you in Ibrahim and those with him, when they said to their people:
Verily, we are free from you and whatever you worship besides Allah, we have rejected you, and there has started between us and you, hostility and hatred forever until you believe in Allah alone, --
except the saying of Ibrahim to his father:
Verily, I will ask forgiveness for you, but I have no power to do anything for you before Allah. (60:4)
meaning, except for this statement, so do not follow it.
Then Allah explains that Ibrahim abandoned this statement and retracted it.
Allah, the Exalted, says,
مَا كَانَ لِلنَّبِيِّ وَالَّذِينَ امَنُواۡ أَن يَسۡتَغۡفِرُواۡ لِلۡمُشۡرِكِينَ وَلَوۡ كَانُواۡ أُوۡلِي قُرۡبَى مِن بَعۡدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُمۡ أَنَّهُمۡ أَصۡحَابُ الۡجَحِيمِ
وَمَا كَانَ اسۡتِغۡفَارُ إِبۡرَاهِيمَ لاَِبِيهِ إِلاَّ عَن مَّوۡعِدَةٍ وَعَدَهَا إِيَّاهُ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ أَنَّهُ عَدُوٌّ لِلّهِ تَبَرَّأَ مِنۡهُ إِنَّ إِبۡرَاهِيمَ لاوَّاهٌ حَلِيمٌ
It is not (proper) for the Prophet and those who believe to ask Allah's forgiveness for the Mushrikin, even though they be of kin, after it has become clear to them that they are the dwellers of the Fire (because they died in a state of disbelief).
And Ibrahim's invoking (of Allah) for his father's forgiveness was only because of a promise he (Ibrahim) had made to him (his father). But when it became clear to him (Ibrahim) that he (his father) is an enemy of Allah, he dissociated himself from him. Verily, Ibrahim was Awwah and forbearing. (9:113-114)
Concerning Allah's statement
وَأَعۡتَزِلُكُمۡ وَمَا تَدۡعُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَأَدۡعُو رَبِّي
And I shall turn away from you and from those whom you invoke besides Allah. And I shall call upon my Lord,
This means, And I worship my Lord alone, associating no partners with Him.
عَسَى أَلاَّ أَكُونَ بِدُعَاء رَبِّي شَقِيًّا
I certainly hope that I shall not be unblessed in my invocation to my Lord.
The word `Asa (I hope) here means that which will necessarily occur and not that which is hoped for from the impossible. For verily, he (Ibrahim) is the leader of the Prophets other than Muhammad.
Allah gave Ibrahim Ishaq and Yaqub
Allah, the Exalted, says;
فَلَمَّا اعۡتَزَلَهُمۡ وَمَا يَعۡبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ وَهَبۡنَا لَهُ إِسۡحَقَ وَيَعۡقُوبَ
So when he had turned away from them and from those whom they worshipped besides Allah, We gave him Ishaq and Ya`qub, and each one of them We made a Prophet.
Allah, the Exalted, says that when the Friend of Allah (Ibrahim) withdrew from his father and his people for the sake of Allah, Allah gave him in exchange those who were better than them. He gave him Ishaq (Isaac) and Yaqub (Jacob), meaning his son, Ishaq, and Ishaq's son, Yaqub. This is as Allah said in another Ayah,
وَيَعۡقُوبَ نَافِلَةً
and Yaqub, a grandson. (21:72)
Also, Allah says,
وَمِن وَرَاءِ إِسۡحَـقَ يَعۡقُوبَ
and after Ishaq, of Yaqub. (11:71)
There is no difference of opinion about Ishaq being the father of Yaqub. This is what is recorded in the Qur'an in Surah Al-Baqarah.
أَمۡ كُنتُمۡ شُهَدَاءَ إِذۡ حَضَرَ يَعۡقُوبَ الۡمَوۡتُ إِذۡ قَالَ لِبَنِيهِ مَا تَعۡبُدُونَ مِن بَعۡدِى قَالُواۡ نَعۡبُدُ إِلَـهَكَ وَإِلَـهَ ابَأيِكَ إِبۡرَهِيمَ وَإِسۡمَـعِيلَ وَإِسۡحَـقَ
Or were you witnesses when death approached Yaqub When he said unto his sons, What will you worship after me!
They said, We shall worship your God the God of your fathers, Ibrahim, Ismail and Ishaq. (2:133)
Allah only mentioned Ishaq and Yaqub here to show that He made Prophets from among his descendants and successors in order to give him relief and happiness in his life.
This is why Allah says,
وَكُلًّ جَعَلۡنَا نَبِيًّا
and each one of them We made a Prophet.
If Yaqub had not become a Prophet in the lifetime of Ibrahim, then Allah would not have limited the promise of Prophethood to him, but He would have mentioned his son Yusuf as well. For verily, Yusuf was also a Prophet, just as the Messenger of Allah said in a Hadith whose authenticity is agreed upon, when he was asked who was the best of people.
He said,
يُوسُفُ نَبِيُّ اللهِ ابۡنُ يَعۡقُوبَ نَبِيِّ اللهِ ابۡنِ إِسۡحَاقَ نَبِيِّ اللهِ ابۡنِ إِبۡرَاهِيمَ خَلِيلِ الله
The Prophet of Allah, Yusuf, the son of the Prophet of Allah Yaqub, the son of the Prophet of Allah Ishaq, the son of the Friend of Allah Ibrahim.
In another wording of this Hadith, he said,
إِنَّ الۡكَرِيمَ ابۡنَ الۡكَرِيمِ ابۡنِ الۡكَرِيمِ ابۡنِ الۡكَرِيمِ يُوسُفَ بۡنَ يَعۡقُوبَ بۡنِ إِسۡحَاقَ بۡنِ إِبۡرَاهِيم
Verily, the noble one is the son of the noble one, who is the son of the noble one, who is the son of the noble one. That is Yusuf, the son of Yaqub, the son of Ishaq, the son of Ibrahim.
Concerning Allah's statement,
وَوَهَبۡنَا لَهُم مِّن رَّحۡمَتِنَا وَجَعَلۡنَا لَهُمۡ لِسَانَ صِدۡقٍ عَلِيًّا
And We gave them of Our mercy, and We granted Sidqin `Aliyyan on the tongues.
Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn Abbas said,
Sidqin `Aliyyan means the good praise.
As-Suddi and Malik bin Anas said the same thing.
Ibn Jarir said,
Allah only said `Aliyyan (loftiness, exalted) because all of the religions commend them and mention them with praises, may Allah's peace and blessing be upon them all.
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