Tafsir of Surah Maryam - Verse 41

Ibrahim's Admonition of His Father

Allah, the Exalted, tells His Prophet, Muhammad ﷺ,

وَاذْكُرْ فِى الْكِتَـبِ إِبْرَهِيمَ

(And mention in the Book, Ibrahim.) "Recite this to your people who are worshipping idols and mention to them what happened with Ibrahim, the intimate Friend (Khalil) of the Most Beneficent. These idol worshippers (Arabs) are his descendants and they claim to follow his religion. Inform them that he was a truthful Prophet. Tell them about what took place with his father and how he forbade him from worshipping idols." Ibrahim said,

يأَبَتِ لِمَ تَعْبُدُ مَا لاَ يَسْمَعُ وَلاَ يَبْصِرُ وَلاَ يُغْنِى عَنكَ شَيْئاً

(O my father! Why do you worship that which hears not, sees not and cannot avail you in anything) Meaning that these idols will not benefit you, nor can they protect you from any harm.

يأَبَتِ إِنِّى قَدْ جَآءَنِى مِنَ الْعِلْمِ مَا لَمْ يَأْتِكَ

(O my father! Verily, there has come to me the knowledge of that which came not unto you.) This means, "Even though I am from your loins and you see me as inferior to you because I am your son, know that I have received knowledge from Allah that you do not know and it has not reached you."

فَاتَّبِعْنِى أَهْدِكَ صِرَاطاً سَوِيّاً

(So follow me, I will guide you to the straight path.) meaning, "a straight path that will carry you to the desired objective and save you from that which is dreaded (Hell)."

يأَبَتِ لاَ تَعْبُدِ الشَّيْطَـنَ

(O my father! Worship not Shaytan.) This is means, "Do not obey him by worshipping these idols. He invites to this (idolatry) and he is pleased with it." This is as Allah says,

أَلَمْ أَعْهَدْ إِلَيْكُمْ يبَنِى ءَادَمَ أَن لاَّ تَعْبُدُواْ الشَّيطَـنَ إِنَّهُ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُّبِينٌ

(Did I not command you, O Children of Adam, that you should not worship Shaytan. Verily, he is a plain enemy to you.) 36:60 Allah also says,

إِن يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِ إِلاَّ إِنَـثاً وَإِن يَدْعُونَ إِلاَّ شَيْطَـناً مَّرِيداً

(They invoke nothing but females idols besides Him (Allah), and they invoke nothing but Shaytan, a persistent rebel!) 4:117 Concerning Allah's statement,

إِنَّ الشَّيْطَـنَ كَانَ لِلرَّحْمَـنِ عَصِيّاً

(Verily, Shaytan has been a rebel against the Most Gracious.) This means obstinate and too arrogant to obey his Lord. Therefore, Allah expelled him and made him an outcast. Therefore, "do not follow him or you will become like him. "

يأَبَتِ إِنِّى أَخَافُ أَن يَمَسَّكَ عَذَابٌ مِّنَ الرَّحْمَـنِ

(O my father! Verily, I fear lest a torment from the Most Gracious should overtake you,) "because of your associating partners with Allah and your disobedience in what I am commanding you with."

فَتَكُونَ لِلشَّيْطَـنِ وَلِيّاً

(so that you become a companion of Shaytan.) This means, "there will be no one who will protect you, or help you, or assist you, except Iblis. However, neither he, nor anyone else, has any power over the outcome of matters. Following him will only cause you to be surrounded by the torment (of Allah)." This is as Allah says,

تَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَآ إِلَى أُمَمٍ مِّن قَبْلِكَ فَزَيَّنَ لَهُمُ الشَّيْطَـِّنُ أَعْمَالَهُمْ فَهُوَ وَلِيُّهُمُ الْيَوْمَ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

(By Allah, We indeed sent (Messengers) to the nations before you, but Shaytan made their deeds fair seeming to them. So he is their helper today (in this world), and theirs will be a painful torment.) 16:63

Commentary

Meaning of Siddiq

صِدِّيقًا نَّبِيًّا (Siddiq (a man of truth), a prophet - 19:41) The word صِدِّيقً (Siddiq) is a Qur'anic term which has been defined differently by different scholars. Some say it is applied to one who has never told a lie in his life. Others describe Siddiq (صِدِّيقً ) as one who is truthful in his beliefs, words and deeds. In other words his utterances truly reflect his beliefs, and his actions in turn match with his beliefs and words. Ruh ul-Ma` ani and Mazhari have adopted the latter meaning of the word. Then there are different degrees of صِدِّیقِیَت (Truthfulness) i.e. those who fall within this definition are placed at different pedestals. Only a prophet (نَبِی یَا رَسُول ) can be a true صِدِّيقً. While every prophet is gifted with this attribute, not everyone who has it is a prophet. A believer who follows in the footsteps of his prophet and attains this exalted position of صِدِّيقً (truthfulness) can also be called Siddiq. The Holy Qur'an itself has given the title of صِدِّيقًہ to Sayyidah Maryam (علیہا السلام) ، despite the view of the overwhelming, majority that she was not a prophet, and that a woman cannot be a prophet.

Abraham was born in Iraq. His father, Azar, was a polytheist. When Abraham received prophethood, he advised his father to give up polytheism and start worshipping God, or face God’s retribution. Worship of Satan does not mean actually worshipping Satan himself, but worshipping something indicated by Satan. Although it is an inherent part of human nature to feel the need to glorify some being, place it in an elevated position and then bow down and pay homage to it, the real focus of such feelings should be and is God. But, Satan, by various methods, influences people and diverts their minds from this in order to make them worship things other than God, i.e. place them on a par with those who associate others with God and offer only to others what they should offer to God.