{Praise be to Allah, who has granted me, despite old age...}

(That is, despite my advanced years and my despair of having children). "‘Ala" (upon) here means "ma‘a" (with/despite), as in the saying: "Even though (‘ala) I am, despite what you see of my old age, one who knows from where the shoulder blade is eaten." The prepositional phrase is in the position of a state (hal), and this qualification is used to emphasize the greatness of the blessing and to manifest gratitude for it. It is also valid to interpret "‘ala" in its original meaning, with the superiority (isti‘la’) being metaphorical, as stated in al-Bahr. The meaning of his superiority over old age is that he reached its extreme limit, as if he transcended it and climbed atop it, similar to the saying, "He arrived at the beginning (lit. the head) of the year." It contains a hyperbole that is evident.

Some have said: If it were for superiority, it would have been more appropriate to make the "old age" the object being dominated, as in their saying: "I have a debt (lit. upon me is a debt)" and his saying: "And they have a charge against me (lit. against me is a sin)." In fact, "old age" is more suited for being dominated than those two, as its effect appears on the head ("and the head has flared up with white hair"). Yes, it is possible to treat it in its literal sense by making it relate to stability and continuity; meaning, he was established and persistent in old age. This is the most appropriate for manifesting what is in the structure of the verse, as he was not in the beginning of old age. This contains a negligence regarding what we have mentioned.

{...Ishmael and Isaac} It is narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, that Ishmael was granted to him when he was ninety-nine years old, and Isaac was granted to him when he was one hundred and twelve years old. In another narration, Ishmael was born to him at sixty-four, and Isaac at seventy. From Ibn Jubayr: No child was born to Abraham, peace be upon him, until after one hundred and seventeen years.

{"Indeed, my Lord..."} And the Master of my affair, {"...is the Hearer of supplication."} That is, the Answerer of it. So "hearing" in the sense of acceptance and answering is a metaphor, as in "Allah hears the one who praises Him," and their saying, "The King heard his speech," meaning he took note of it and accepted it. It is a fa‘il form (an intensive adjective). Sibawayh allowed it to take an object (‘amal), though the majority of Basrans disagreed with him. The Kufans disagreed with him regarding it and the functioning of all other forms of this pattern.

If we allow its ‘amal (governance), it is genitive to its object (maf‘ul) if intended for the future. It is said it does not govern because it is intended for the past or continuity. Al-Zamakhshari allowed it to be genitive to its metaphorical agent, so the origin would be samī‘ du‘ā’uhu (Hearer, His supplication), by making the supplication itself the hearer. The intention is that the One called upon—Allah Almighty—is the Hearer. Abu Hayyan countered this as being far-fetched, as it would necessitate it being of the category of the "resembling participle" (sifah mushabbahah), which is transitive, and that is not permitted except according to al-Farisi in cases where there is no ambiguity, such as "Zaid is a judge of slaves" (Zaid zalim al-‘abid) when it is known he has slaves who are oppressors. Here, there is ambiguity, for it is clearly the genitive of the adjective to its object. This is a solid argument.

The statement that ambiguity is non-existent because the meaning is based on metaphorical predication is a weak argument, because metaphor is contrary to the apparent meaning, so the ambiguity in it is more severe. Similar to this is the claim that the absence of ambiguity is only a condition for its addition to its agent in the absolute sense. This, as some distinguished scholars have said, along with it being a completion of the praise and thanks—due to its description of the Almighty as One whose custom is the acceptance of supplication—serves as a justification in the manner of an appended clause (tadhil) for the aforementioned granting. It signals the multiplication of the blessing, as it occurred after the supplication: "My Lord, grant me from among the righteous," so the granting was accompanied by the acceptance of the supplication.

Some have mentioned that the placement of "Praise be to Allah" and its appending acts as an interruption between his supplications, peace be upon him, in this place, to confirm the request by reminding of the accustomed acceptance, seeking favor from Him through the precedence of His blessings in his affair. As if he, peace be upon him, is saying: O Allah, answer my supplication regarding my progeny in this place, for You have always been the Hearer of supplication. I have prayed to You in my old age to grant me a child, and You answered my prayer and granted me Ishmael and Isaac.

It is not hidden that Isaac, peace be upon him, was not yet born at the time of his previous supplication. Thus, the correct view is not to treat this as an interruption, but rather that Allah Almighty narrated parts of what Abraham, peace be upon him, said at different times. All of them share the purpose for which the speech was brought: that he was upon faith and righteous deeds, and sought that for his progeny, and that his true offspring are those who followed him in that, leaving behind obstinacy and disbelief. This was mentioned by the author of al-Kashf. This is supported by what Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, and Ibn Abi Hatim recorded from Ibn ‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, that he said regarding "Praise be to Allah...": He said this after that by a while. He, peace be upon him, used the singular pronoun in "My Lord" even though it followed the mention of the two sons, because the blessing of the granting was overflowing upon him specifically, and they were among the blessings, not among those upon whom the blessing is bestowed.