Tafsir of Al Imran 3:68

( Verily, the people closest to Abraham) — Awla (closest) is a superlative form derived from waliya (to be near/to take charge), in the sense of walyan and wifan. Its final radical (the alif) is a transformation of a ya, because its first radical is a waw; and a word whose first and final radicals are both waw does not exist in the language, except for waw itself. The origin of its meaning is "nearest," as in the hadith: "For the nearest (awla) man of those mentioned." It also carries the meaning of "most deserving," as when you say: "The scholar is the most deserving of precedence." This is the intended meaning here; that is, the people nearest and most specific to Abraham are those who followed him—meaning those who were upon his law during his time, or those who followed him in an absolute sense.

Thus, the conjunction in His saying, Exalted is He: (and this Prophet) is an instance of mentioning the specific after the general. It is coordinated with the relative pronoun (al-ladhina) preceding it, which is the predicate of inna. It has also been recited in the accusative case (wa hadha al-nabiyya), as a conjunction to the object pronoun in ittaba'uhu (they followed him). It has also been recited in the genitive case (wa hadha al-nabiyyi), as a conjunction to Abraham—meaning: "Verily, the people closest to Abraham and to this Prophet are those who followed him."

An objection has been raised that the pronoun in ittaba'uhu (they followed him) should have been dualized, saying ittaba'uhuma (they followed them both). The response is that this is of the type: "And Allah and His Messenger have more right that they should satisfy Him [singular pronoun]" (Quran 9:62), except that in this case—as it is said—there is an intervening element between the governor and the governed.

As for His saying, Exalted is He: (and those who believe), if it is a conjunction to alladhina ittaba'uhu (those who followed him), then the same issue exists. If it is a conjunction to hadha al-nabiyyi (this Prophet), then it carries no additional benefit, unless it is claimed that it is for the sake of honoring them by mentioning them. As for insisting that this is a case of coordinating attributes to one another, it is as you see [i.e., problematic].

Furthermore, the fact that those who followed Abraham, peace be upon him, in his time are the closest of people to him is evident. The fact that our Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, is the most entitled to him is due to the conformity of his law with the Abrahamic law, more so than the conformity of the laws of other messengers to it. Likewise, the believers of this nation are the same due to their following of what he [the Prophet] brought, and among that is the conformer.

(And Allah is the Ally of the believers) — He protects them and rewards them with the best, as is the habit of an Ally (wali). He did not say "their Ally" (waliyyuhum) to draw attention to the attribute by which Allah, Exalted is He, is an Ally to His servants, which is faith—based on the premise that linking a ruling to a derivative requires the presence of the principle of derivation.

From this, one learns the establishment of a ruling for the Prophet by the implication of the text. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with both of them, said: The leaders of the Jews said: "By Allah, O Muhammad, you know that we are closer to the religion of Abraham than you and others, and that he was a Jew, and nothing drives you but envy." So Allah, Exalted is He, revealed this verse.

'Abd ibn Humayd recorded from the path of Shahr ibn Hawshab, who said: Ibn Ghannim told me that when the companions of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, went out to the Negus, 'Amr ibn al-'As and 'Umarah ibn Abi Mu'ayt caught up with them and sought to cause them distress and transgression. They went to the Negus and informed him that "these people who have come to you from the people of Mecca want to overturn your kingdom, corrupt your land, and insult your Lord."

The Negus sent for them, and when they came to him, he said: "Do you not hear what your two companions say?"—referring to 'Amr ibn al-'As and 'Umarah ibn Abi Mu'ayt—"They claim that you came to overturn my kingdom and corrupt my land."

'Uthman ibn Maz'un and Hamzah said: "If you wish, leave it between one of us and the Negus, and let the one of us who is most eloquent speak to him. If it is correct, Allah will bring it about, and if it is anything other than that, you can say 'a young man'—for you have an excuse in that."

The Negus gathered his priests, monks, and translators, and then asked them: "Tell me, this companion of yours from whom you have come, what does he say to you? What does he command you to do, and what does he forbid you from? Does he have a book that he reads?"

They said: "Yes, this man reads what Allah, Exalted is He, has revealed to him and what he has heard from Him. He commands righteousness, commands good neighborliness, commands regarding the orphan, and commands that Allah, the Exalted, be worshipped alone, and that no other god be worshipped with Him."

He read to him Surah Ar-Rum, Al-'Ankabut, Al-Kahf, and Maryam. When Jesus was mentioned in the Quran, 'Amr wanted to make him angry with them. He said: "By Allah, they insult Jesus and revile him!"

The Negus said: "What does your companion say about Jesus?"

They said: "He says: 'Jesus is the servant of Allah, His Messenger, His Spirit, and His Word which He cast unto a noble [Mary].'"

The Negus took from his toothpick an amount that would irritate the eye and said: "The Messiah does not exceed what your companion says by the weight of this particle [which was] on his toothpick."

"So have glad tidings and do not fear, for there is no dahunah [meaning, in the Abyssinian tongue, 'blame'] upon the party of Abraham."

'Amr ibn al-'As asked: "Who is the party of Abraham?"

He said: "These people and their companion from whom they have come, and those who follow them."

So that day, regarding their contention, the verse was revealed to the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, while he was in Medina: (Verily, the people closest to Abraham) [up to] the verse.