Tafsir of Al Imran 3:53

This is a presentation of their state before Him, the Exalted, after having presented it to His Messenger, seeking thereby the clouds of response for the supplication that follows. It is also said: it is an exaggeration in manifesting their matter.

Meaning: We have complied with what he brought to us from You.

That is, Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and his nation, because they testify to the messengers regarding the delivery of the message, and Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) testifies to their truthfulness. This was narrated by ‘Ikrimah from Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both). Abu Salih narrated from him that they are those who believed from the nations before them.

It is also said: The intended meaning of "the witnesses" is the prophets, for every prophet is a witness for his nation and against it. Muqatil said: They are the truthful ones. Al-Zajjaj said: They are those who testify to the truthfulness of the prophets. It is also said: They desired [to be] with those who are immersed in witnessing Your Majesty, such that we are indifferent to the hardships and trials that reach us, thus making it easy for us to fulfill what we have committed to regarding supporting Your Messenger.

It is also said: They meant "record our mention in the company of those who witness Your Presence from the angels brought near," similar to the saying of the Exalted: "Indeed, the record of the righteous is in 'Illiyin." The affectation in this latter interpretation is not hidden. The meaning in the other interpretations is: "Include us in the number of those [the witnesses] or in the number of their followers."

It is said: They expressed this act of Allah, the Exalted, towards them with the word "record us" (fa-uktubna), as writing restricts and secures what requires verification and knowledge at a later time. It is also said: The intended meaning is "ordain this and decree it in the Preserved Tablets (the scrolls of eternity)." Some people have made the "writing" a metonym for establishing them upon faith at the final end. The prepositional phrase (among the witnesses) is related to a deleted term that acts as a state (hal) for the object of "record us."