Tafsir of Maryam 19:28

This is an initiation of speech intended to renew the expression and emphasize the rebuke. It is not intended to refer to Aaron, the brother of Moses—peace be upon them both. This is because Ahmad, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'i, al-Tabarani, Ibn Hibban, and others recorded from al-Mughirah ibn Shu'bah that he said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) sent me to the people of Najran, and they said, "Do you not read 'O sister of Aaron,' while Moses was before Jesus by such and such [a period of time]?" I returned and mentioned this to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), who replied: "Did you not tell them that they used to name people after the prophets and the righteous who came before them?"

Rather, it is as narrated from al-Kalbi: he was a brother of hers through her father. Abd al-Razzaq and Abd ibn Hamid recorded from Qatadah that he said: He was a righteous man among the Children of Israel. It is also narrated from him that he said: It was mentioned to us that forty thousand people from the Children of Israel followed his funeral procession the day he died, all of whom were named Aaron. Based on this, the term "sister" implies resemblance; they likened her to him mockingly, or because of the piety they had previously observed in her. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded from Sa'id ibn Jubayr that he was a wicked man, and they likened her to him to insult her.

It has also been said that the intended meaning is Aaron, the brother of Moses (peace be upon them both). Ibn Abi Hatim also recorded this from al-Suddi and Ali ibn Abi Talhah, stating that she was from the descendants of those who were in that generation, and they described her with the kinship of "sister" because it was a description of her origin. It is also permissible that "Aaron" is applied to his offspring, like the names "Hashim" or "Tamim," and that "sister" simply means she is one of them, as one might say "a brother of the Arabs." This is what is narrated from al-Suddi.

Your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.

This is a confirmation that what she brought forth was a fabrication, or a notification that committing indecent acts is even more heinous when coming from the children of righteous people. In this, there is evidence that branches are generally pure when the roots are pure, and one is censured when they act in opposition to that. Umar ibn al-A'la al-Taymi, the poet who used to satirize Jarir, recited it as ma kana abaka imru'u su'in (making the predicate the definite noun and the subject the indefinite one), and this is considered slightly acceptable due to the existence of a justification for the initial noun in it, which is the genitive construction (idafah).