37. Sūrat al-Ṣāffāt

٣٧۔ سُورَةُ الصَّافات

Qurʾān > Chapter 37 > Section 9
القرآن > كتاب ٣٧ > باب ٩

37.9 The Prophet Abraham was asked to offer his only son in sacrifice as a test and he fulfilled it.

٣٧۔٩ مقطع في سُورَةُ الصَّافات

quran:37:99 –

And ˹then˺ he said, "Indeed, I will go to ˹where I am ordered by˺ my Lord; He will guide me.  

And he said, ‘I shall indeed depart to my Lord, I shall emigrating to Him from the abode of disbelief — He will guide me, to the place to which My Lord has commanded that I end up in, and this was Syria. When he reached the Holy Land, he said:
القرآن:٣٧:٩٩ –

وَقَالَ إِنِّي ذَاهِبٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّي سَيَهْدِينِ  

{وقال إني ذاهب إلى ربي} مهاجر إليه من دار الكفر {سيهدين} إلى حيث أمرني ربي بالمصير إليه وهو الشام فلما وصل إلى الأرض المقدسة قال.
quran:37:100 –

My Lord, grant me ˹a child˺ from among the righteous."  

My Lord! Grant me, a child, of the righteous’.
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٠ –

رَبِّ هَبْ لِي مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ  

{رب هب لي} ولدا {من الصالحين}.
quran:37:101 –

So We gave him good tidings of a forbearing boy.  

So We gave him the good tidings of a forbearing son.
القرآن:٣٧:١٠١ –

فَبَشَّرْنَاهُ بِغُلَامٍ حَلِيمٍ  

{فبشرناه بغلام حليم} أي ذي حلم كثير.
quran:37:102 –

And when he reached with him ˹the age of˺ exertion, he said, "O my son, indeed I have seen in a dream that I ˹must˺ sacrifice you, so see what you think." He said, "O my father, do as you are commanded. You will find me, if Allah wills, of the steadfast."  

And when he was old enough to walk with him, that is, to go about with him and help him out — this is said to have been ˹either˺ at the age of seven or at the age of thirteen — he said, ‘O my dear son, I see, that is, I have seen, in a dream that I shall sacrifice you — and the visions of prophets are ˹always˺ true and their actions are ˹inspired˺ by the command of God, exalted be He. So see what you think’, of this dream. He consulted him so that he ˹his son˺ might accept the idea of being sacrificed and comply with the command for it. He said, ‘O my father (the ˹final˺ tā’ ˹in abati˺ replaces the yā’ of the genitive ˹possessive˺ annexation ˹yā abī˺) do whatever you have been commanded, to do. You shall find me, God willing, of the steadfast’, in this ˹affair˺.
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٢ –

فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ مَعَهُ السَّعْيَ قَالَ يَا بُنَيَّ إِنِّي أَرَىٰ فِي الْمَنَامِ أَنِّي أَذْبَحُكَ فَانْظُرْ مَاذَا تَرَىٰ ۚ قَالَ يَا أَبَتِ افْعَلْ مَا تُؤْمَرُ ۖ سَتَجِدُنِي إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ مِنَ الصَّابِرِينَ  

{فلما بلغ معه السعي} أي أن يسعى معه ويعينه قيل بلغ سبع سنين وقيل ثلاث عشرة سنة {قال يا بنيَّ إني أرى} أي رأيت {في المنام أني أذبحك} ورؤيا الأنبياء حق وأفعالهم بأمر الله تعالى {فانظر ماذا ترى} من الرأي شاوره ليأنس بالذبح وينقاد للأمر به {قال يا أبت} التاء عوض عن ياء الإضافة {افعل ما تؤمر} به {ستجدني إن شاء الله من الصابرين} على ذلك.
quran:37:103 –

And when they had both submitted and he put him down upon his forehead,  

And when they had both submitted, ˹when˺ they had submitted to and were prepared to comply with God’s command, exalted be He, and he had laid him down on his forehead, ˹when˺ he had pushed him down to the ground thereon — every human being has two brows (jabīn) between which is the forehead (jabha); this was at Minā. Abraham passed the knife across his ˹son’s˺ throat but it did not do anything, by some impediment of the Divine Power,
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٣ –

فَلَمَّا أَسْلَمَا وَتَلَّهُ لِلْجَبِينِ  

{فلما أسلما} خضعا وانقادا لأمر الله تعالى {وتله للجبين} صرعه عليه، ولكل إنسان جبينان بينهما الجبهة وكان ذلك بمنى، وأمرَّ السكين على حلقه فلم تعمل شيئا بمانع من القدرة الإلهية.
quran:37:104 –

We called to him, "O Abraham,  

We called to him, ‘O Abraham!
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٤ –

وَنَادَيْنَاهُ أَنْ يَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ  

{وناديناه أن يا إبراهيم}.
quran:37:105 –

You have fulfilled the vision." Indeed, We thus reward the doers of good.  

Verily you have fulfilled the vision’, by what you have done, in that you were able to go through with the act of sacrifice. In other words, that ˹which you have done˺ suffices for you ˹as redemption˺ (the statement nādaynāhu, ‘We called to him’, is the response to the lammā, ‘when’, so that the wāw ˹in wa-nādaynāhu, ‘We called to him’˺ is extra). So, in the same way that We have rewarded you, do We reward those who are virtuous, to their own souls in obeying the Command ˹of God˺, by removing from them their distress.
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٥ –

قَدْ صَدَّقْتَ الرُّؤْيَا ۚ إِنَّا كَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ  

{قد صدقت الرؤيا} بما أتيت به مما أمكنك من أمر الذبح: أي يكفيك ذلك فجملة ناديناه جواب لما بزيادة الواو {إنا كذلك} كما جزيناك {نجزي المحسنين} لأنفسهم بامتثال الأمر بإفراج الشدة عنهم.
quran:37:106 –

Indeed, this was the clear trial.  

Truly this, sacrifice to which he was commanded, was indeed a clear test’, that is to say, the ultimate test ˹of faith˺.
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٦ –

إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَهُوَ الْبَلَاءُ الْمُبِينُ  

{إن هذا} الذبح المأمور به {لهو البلاء المبين} أي الاختبار الظاهر.
quran:37:107 –

And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice,  

Then We ransomed him, the one whom he had been commanded to sacrifice, namely, Ishmael or Isaac — two different opinions — with a mighty sacrifice, ˹a mighty˺ ram from Paradise, the same one that Abel had offered as as sacrifice: Gabriel, peace be upon him, brought it and the lord Abraham sacrificed it as he cried, Allāhu akbar, ‘God is Great’.
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٧ –

وَفَدَيْنَاهُ بِذِبْحٍ عَظِيمٍ  

{وفديناه} أي المأمور بذبحه، وهو إسماعيل أو إسحاق قولان {بذبح} بكبش {عظيم} من الجنة وهو الذي قربه هابيل جاء به جبريل عليه السلام فذبحه السيد إبراهيم مكبرا.
quran:37:108 –

And We left for him ˹favorable mention˺ among later generations:  

And We left, We preserved, for him among posterity, fair praise ˹namely˺:
القرآن:٣٧:١٠٨ –

وَتَرَكْنَا عَلَيْهِ فِي الْآخِرِينَ  

{وتركنا} أبقينا {عليه في الآخرين} ثناءً حسنا.
quran:37:110 –

Indeed, We thus reward the doers of good.  

So, in way that We rewarded him, do We reward those who are virtuous, to their own souls.
القرآن:٣٧:١١٠ –

كَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ  

{كذلك} كما جزيناه {نجزي المحسنين} لأنفسهم.
quran:37:111 –

Indeed, he was of Our believing servants.  

Indeed he is one of Our faithful servants.
القرآن:٣٧:١١١ –

إِنَّهُ مِنْ عِبَادِنَا الْمُؤْمِنِينَ  

{إنه من عبادنا المؤمنين}.
quran:37:112 –

And We gave him good tidings of Isaac, a prophet from among the righteous.  

And We gave him the good tidings of ˹the birth of˺ Isaac — some have argued that this proves that the one who was sacrificed was not him ˹Isaac˺ — a prophet (nabiyyan is a future circumstantial qualifier, that is to say, ‘he will come to be, with his prophethood decreed), one of the righteous.
القرآن:٣٧:١١٢ –

وَبَشَّرْنَاهُ بِإِسْحَاقَ نَبِيًّا مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ  

{وبشرناه بإسحاق} استدلَّ بذلك على أن الذبح غيره {نبيا} حال مقدرة: أي يوجد مقدرا نبوته {من الصالحين}.
quran:37:113 –

And We blessed him and Isaac. But among their descendants is the doer of good and the clearly unjust to himself.  

And We blessed him, by multiplying his descendants, and Isaac, his son, ˹We also blessed˺ by appointing the majority of prophets from among his progeny. And among their descendants is he who is virtuous, ˹he who is˺ a believer, and he who plainly wrongs his soul, ˹he who is˺ a disbeliever, whose disbelief is manifest.
القرآن:٣٧:١١٣ –

وَبَارَكْنَا عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَىٰ إِسْحَاقَ ۚ وَمِنْ ذُرِّيَّتِهِمَا مُحْسِنٌ وَظَالِمٌ لِنَفْسِهِ مُبِينٌ  

{وباركنا عليه} بكثير ذريته {وعلى إسحاق} ولده بجعلنا أكثر الأنبياء من نسله {ومن ذريتهما محسن} مؤمن {وظالم لنفسه} كافر {مبين} بيَّن الكفر.