Ayah
Word by Word
أَلَمۡ
Did not
تَرَ
you see
إِلَى
[towards]
ٱلَّذِي
the one who
حَآجَّ
argued
إِبۡرَٰهِـۧمَ
(with) Ibrahim
فِي
concerning
رَبِّهِۦٓ
his Lord
أَنۡ
because
ءَاتَىٰهُ
gave him
ٱللَّهُ
Allah
ٱلۡمُلۡكَ
the kingdom
إِذۡ
When
قَالَ
Said
إِبۡرَٰهِـۧمُ
Ibrahim
رَبِّيَ
My Lord
ٱلَّذِي
(is) the One Who
يُحۡيِۦ
grants life
وَيُمِيتُ
and causes death
قَالَ
He said
أَنَا۠
I
أُحۡيِۦ
give life
وَأُمِيتُۖ
and cause death
قَالَ
Said
إِبۡرَٰهِـۧمُ
Ibrahim
فَإِنَّ
[Then] indeed
ٱللَّهَ
Allah
يَأۡتِي
brings up
بِٱلشَّمۡسِ
the sun
مِنَ
from
ٱلۡمَشۡرِقِ
the east
فَأۡتِ
so you bring
بِهَا
it
مِنَ
from
ٱلۡمَغۡرِبِ
the west
فَبُهِتَ
So became dumbfounded
ٱلَّذِي
the one who
كَفَرَۗ
disbelieved
وَٱللَّهُ
and Allah
لَا
(does) not
يَهۡدِي
guide
ٱلۡقَوۡمَ
the people
ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ
(who are) [the] wrongdoers
أَلَمۡ
Did not
تَرَ
you see
إِلَى
[towards]
ٱلَّذِي
the one who
حَآجَّ
argued
إِبۡرَٰهِـۧمَ
(with) Ibrahim
فِي
concerning
رَبِّهِۦٓ
his Lord
أَنۡ
because
ءَاتَىٰهُ
gave him
ٱللَّهُ
Allah
ٱلۡمُلۡكَ
the kingdom
إِذۡ
When
قَالَ
Said
إِبۡرَٰهِـۧمُ
Ibrahim
رَبِّيَ
My Lord
ٱلَّذِي
(is) the One Who
يُحۡيِۦ
grants life
وَيُمِيتُ
and causes death
قَالَ
He said
أَنَا۠
I
أُحۡيِۦ
give life
وَأُمِيتُۖ
and cause death
قَالَ
Said
إِبۡرَٰهِـۧمُ
Ibrahim
فَإِنَّ
[Then] indeed
ٱللَّهَ
Allah
يَأۡتِي
brings up
بِٱلشَّمۡسِ
the sun
مِنَ
from
ٱلۡمَشۡرِقِ
the east
فَأۡتِ
so you bring
بِهَا
it
مِنَ
from
ٱلۡمَغۡرِبِ
the west
فَبُهِتَ
So became dumbfounded
ٱلَّذِي
the one who
كَفَرَۗ
disbelieved
وَٱللَّهُ
and Allah
لَا
(does) not
يَهۡدِي
guide
ٱلۡقَوۡمَ
the people
ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ
(who are) [the] wrongdoers
Translation
Hast thou not Turned thy vision to one who disputed with Abraham About his Lord, because Allah had granted him power? Abraham said: "My Lord is He Who Giveth life and death." He said: "I give life and death". Said Abraham: "But it is Allah that causeth the sun to rise from the east: Do thou then cause him to rise from the West." Thus was he confounded who (in arrogance) rejected faith. Nor doth Allah Give guidance to a people unjust.
Tafsir
Have you not seen him who disputed with Abraham, concerning his Lord, because of the fact, that God had given him the kingship?, that is, his arrogance towards this very grace of God: this was Nimrod (Nimrood). When (idh is a substitution for haajja, 'disputed') Abraham, in response to the other's question, 'Who is this Lord of yours to whom you are calling us?', said: 'My Lord is He who gives life, and makes to die', the One that creates life and death in bodies; he [Nimrod] said, 'I give life, by sparing, and make to die', by killing. He then had two men brought before him, killed one and spared the other. When Abraham realised that this man was a fool, Abraham, resorting to a more sophisticated argument, said: 'God brings the sun from the east; so bring, you, it from the west.' Then the disbeliever was confused, perplexed and amazed; and God guides not the folk who do evil, disbelieving, to the art of argument.
"
The Debate Between Ibrahim Al-Khalil and King Nimrod
The king who disputed with Ibrahim was King Nimrod, son of Canaan, son of Kush, son of Sam, son of Noah, as Mujahid stated.
It was also said that he was Nimrod, son of Falikh, son of Abir, son of Shalikh, son of Arfakhshand, son of Sam, son of Noah.
Mujahid said,
""The kings who ruled the eastern and western parts of the world are four, two believers and two disbelievers. As for the two believing kings, they were;
Suleiman bin Dawud and
Dhul-Qarnayn.
As for the two disbelieving kings, they were;
Nimrod and
Nebuchadnezzar.""
Allah knows best.
Allah said,
أَلَمۡ تَرَ
Have you not looked,
meaning, ""With your heart, O Muhammad!""
إِلَى الَّذِي حَأجَّ إِبۡرَاهِيمَ فِي رِبِّهِ
at him who disputed with Ibrahim about his Lord,
meaning, about the existence of Allah.
Nimrod denied the existence of a god other than himself, as he claimed, just as Fir`awn said later to his people,
مَا عَلِمۡتُ لَكُمۡ مِّنۡ إِلَـهٍ غَيۡرِى
I know not that you have a god other than me. (28:38)
What made Nimrod commit this transgression, utter disbelief and arrant rebellion was his tyranny and the fact that he ruled for a long time. This is why the Ayah continued,
أَنۡ اتَاهُ اللّهُ الۡمُلۡكَ
Because Allah had given him the kingdom.
It appears that Nimrod asked Ibrahim to produce proof that Allah exists.
إِذۡ قَالَ إِبۡرَاهِيمُ رَبِّيَ الَّذِي يُحۡيِـي وَيُمِيتُ
When Ibrahim said (to him):""My Lord is He Who gives life and causes death"",
meaning, ""The proof of Allah's existence is the creations that exist after they were nothing and perish after they had existed. This only proves the existence of the Creator, Who does what He wills, for these things could not have occurred on their own without a Creator who created them, and He is the Lord that I call to for worship, Alone without a partner.""
This is when Nimrod said,
قَالَ أَنَا أُحۡيِـي وَأُمِيتُ
He said, ""I give life and cause death"".
Qatadah, Muhammad bin Ishaq and As-Suddi said that he meant,
""Two men who deserved execution were to be brought before me, and I would command that one of them be killed, and he would be killed. I would command that the second man be pardoned, and he would be pardoned. This is how I bring life and death.""
However, it appears that since Nimrod did not deny the existence of a Creator, his statement did not mean what Qatadah said it meant. This explanation does not provide an answer to what Ibrahim said. Nimrod arrogantly and defiantly claimed that he was the creator and pretended that it was he who brings life and death.
Later on, Fir`awn imitated him and announced,
مَا عَلِمۡتُ لَكُمۡ مِّنۡ إِلَـهٍ غَيۡرِى
I know not that you have a god other than me. (28:38)
This is why Ibrahim said to Nimrod,
قَالَ إِبۡرَاهِيمُ فَإِنَّ اللّهَ يَأۡتِي بِالشَّمۡسِ مِنَ الۡمَشۡرِقِ فَأۡتِ بِهَا مِنَ الۡمَغۡرِبِ
Ibrahim said, ""Verily, Allah brings the sun from the east; then bring it you from the west"".
This Ayah means,
""You claim that it is you who brings life and death. He who brings life and death controls the existence and creates whatever is in it, including controlling its planets and their movements. For instance, the sun rises everyday from the east. Therefore, if you were god, as you claimed, bringing life and death, then bring the sun from the west.""
Since the king was aware of his weakness, inadequacy and that he was not able to reply to Ibrahim's request, he was idle, silent and unable to comment. Therefore, the proof was established against him.
فَبُهِتَ الَّذِي كَفَرَ
So the disbeliever was utterly defeated.
Allah said,
وَاللّهُ لَا يَهۡدِي الۡقَوۡمَ الظَّالِمِينَ
And Allah guides not the people, who are wrongdoers.
meaning, Allah deprives the unjust people of any valid proof or argument. Furthermore, their false proof and arguments are annulled by their Lord, and they have earned His anger and will suffer severe torment.
The meaning that we provided is better than the meaning that some philosophers offered, claiming that Ibrahim used the second argument because it was clearer than the first one. Rather, our explanation asserts that Ibrahim refuted both claims of Nimrod, all praise is due to Allah.
As-Suddi stated that the debate between Ibrahim and Nimrod occurred after Ibrahim was thrown in the fire, for Ibrahim did not meet the king before that day."
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