Al-Anbya 21:64–75

The People's admission of their gods' incapability, and Ibrahim's preaching

Allah tells us that when Ibrahim said what he said, his people

(turned to themselves) meaning, they blamed themselves for not taking precautions and protecting their gods. They said:

(Verily, you are the wrongdoers) i.e., because you neglected them and did not guard them.

(Then they turned to themselves) means, they looked at the ground, and said:

(Indeed you (Ibrahim) know well that these speak not!) Qatadah said: "The people admitted their guilt and confusion, and said,

("Indeed you know well that these speak not!") `So how can you tell us to ask them, if they cannot speak and you know that they cannot speak' At this point, when they admitted that, Ibrahim said to them:

(Do you then worship besides Allah, things that can neither profit you nor harm you) meaning, if they can- not speak and they can neither benefit you nor harm you, then why do you worship them instead of Allah

(Fie upon you, and upon that which you worship besides Allah! Have you then no sense) `Do you not realize the extent of the mis- guidance and extreme disbelief which you are following, which no one could accept but one who is an igno- rant and evil wrong- doer' He defeated them in argument and left them with no way out. Allah said:

e(And that was Our proof which We gave Ibrahim against his people) 6:83

How Ibrahim was thrown into the Fire and how Allah controlled it

When their arguments were refuted and their incapability became clear, when truth was made manifest and falsehood was defeated, they resorted to using their power and strength, and said:

حَرِّقُوهُ وَانصُرُواْ ءَالِهَتَكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ فَعِلِينَ

("Burn him and help your gods, if you will be doing.") So they gathered together a huge amount of wood. As-Suddi said, "I if a woman was sick, she would make a vow that if she recovered she would bring wood to burn Ibrahim. Then they made a hole in the ground and set it aflame, and it burned with huge sparks and immense flames. There had never been a fire like it. They put Ibrahim, peace be upon him, into a catapult, at the suggestion of a nomadic Kurdish man from Persia." Shu`ayb Al-Jaba'i said, "His name was Hayzan, and Allah caused the earth to swallow him up, and he will remain sinking into it until the Day of Resurrection. When they threw him he said, `Sufficient for me is Allah, and He is the best disposer of affairs.' " This is similar to what Al-Bukhari recorded from Ibn `Abbas that Ibrahim said, "`Sufficient for me is Allah, and He is the best disposer of affairs," when he was thrown into the fire, and Muhammad ﷺ said it when they said:

إِنَّ النَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُواْ لَكُمْ فَاخْشَوْهُمْ فَزَادَهُمْ إِيمَناً وَقَالُواْ حَسْبُنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيلُ

(Verily, the people have gathered against you, therefore, fear them. But it increased them in faith, and they said: "Allah is sufficient for us, and He is the best disposer of affairs.") 3:173. Sa`id bin Jubayr reported that Ibn `Abbas said: "When Ibrahim was thrown into the fire, the keeper (angel) of the rain said: `When will I be commanded to send rain' But the command of Allah was more swift. Allah said:

ينَارُ كُونِى بَرْداً وَسَلَمَا عَلَى إِبْرَهِيمَ

(O fire! Be you cool and safety for Ibrahim!), and there was no fire left on earth that was not extinguished." Ibn `Abbas and Abu Al-`Aliyah said: "Were it not for the fact that Allah said,

وَسَلَماً

(and safety), Ibrahim would have been harmed by its coldness." Qatadah said: "On that day there was no creature that did not try to extinguish the fire for Ibrahim, except for the gecko." Az-Zuhri said: "The Prophet commanded that it should be killed, and called it a harmful vermin."

وَأَرَادُواْ بِهِ كَيْداً فَجَعَلْنَهُمُ الاٌّخْسَرِينَ

(And they wanted to harm him, but We made them the worst losers.) they were defeated and humiliated, because they wanted to plot against the Prophet of Allah, but Allah planned against them and saved him from the fire, and thus they were defeated.

The Migration of Ibrahim to Ash-Sham (Greater Syria), accompanied by Lut

Allah tells us that He saved Ibrahim from the fire lit by his people, and brought him out from among them, migrating to the land of Ash-Sham, to the sacred regions thereof.

(And We bestowed upon him Ishaq, and Ya`qub Nafilatan.) `Ata' and Mujahid said, "Nafilatan means as a gift." Ibn `Abbas, Qatadah and Al-Hakam bin `Uyaynah said, "The gift of a son who has a son," meaning that Ya`qub was the son of Ishaq, as Allah says:

(But We gave her glad tidings of Ishaq, and after Ishaq, of Ya`qub) 11:71. `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said, "He asked for one son, and said,

("My Lord! Grant me from the righteous.") So Allah gave him Ishaq, and gave him Ya`qub in addition.

(Each one We made righteous. ) means, both of them were good and righteous people.

(And We made them leaders,) means, examples to be followed.

(guiding by Our command,) inviting to Him by His leave. Allah says:

(and We revealed to them the doing of good deeds, performing Salah, and the giving of Zakah,) Here the general is followed by the specific.

(and of Us (Alone) they were the worshippers.) means, they did what they enjoined others to do.

The Prophet Lut

Then Allah mentions Lut, whose full name was Lut bin Haran bin Azar. He believed in Ibrahim and followed him, and migrated with him, as Allah says:

(So Lut believed in him. He (Ibrahim) said: "I will emigrate for the sake of my Lord") 29:26. Allah gave him wisdom and knowledge; He sent Revelation to him, made him a Prophet and appointed him to Sadum (Sodom) and its vicinity, but they rejected him and resisted him, so Allah utterly destroyed them, as He tells us in several places in His Book. Allah says;

(and We saved him from the town who practised Al-Khaba'ith. Verily, they were a people given to evil, and were rebellious. And We admitted him to Our mercy; truly, he was of the righteous.)