Tafsir of Al-Ahzab 33:40

This is a refutation of the source of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) fear of the people, which he was admonished for in the verse: "And you fear the people, while Allah has more right that you fear Him." This [source of fear] was the claim that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had married the wife of his son Zayd. The verse denies that Zayd was his son—the kind of son whose wife would be forbidden to him [the Prophet]—in the most eloquent manner, as you will soon learn, Allah willing.

"Men" (rijal) is the plural of rajul (man), as is well-known. According to the Qamus, it is a male who has reached puberty and maturity, or it is a male from the moment of birth. Some outward meanings of verses and Hadith support the latter, such as: "For men is a share of what the parents and close relatives leave," and His saying: "If a man inherits [by] kalalah," and the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) statement: "To the nearest male relative." The critical analysis offered by some great late scholars regarding these examples does not negate that this is the apparent meaning for an impartial observer. To support the former [definition—adult], some cite the verse: "And the oppressed among the men, women, and children," where rijal refers to adults; though this too is debated. Indeed, the explicit view of Al-Zamakhshari—a master of language and other Arabic sciences—indicates that a rajul is an adult male. Regardless, the genitive construction of "men" to the pronoun of the addressees is in relation to birth. If "men" means adult males, the meaning is: "Muhammad was not the father of any of your adult sons whom you have birthed." If it means males in general, the meaning is: "Muhammad was not the father of any of your sons whom you have birthed, whether they were young or old."

The term "father" is linguistically rooted in the biological parent, as understood from many linguists. The paternity negated here is the true, legal paternity, which entails the implications of true, linguistic paternity—namely inheritance, obligation of maintenance, and the prohibition of marriage (muharramat), whether through birth, breastfeeding, or the adoption of one born as another is born (an unknown lineage). Since he (peace be upon him) negated being the father of any of their men by any path of paternity, and it is known that Zayd was one of their men, the negation of his being Zayd’s father is absolute. That he (peace be upon him) is not his biological father is undisputed. The same applies to breastfeeding. As for the claim that he is not his father by adoption—despite the fact that he did adopt him—it is because the "paternity by adoption" that was negated is the true legal paternity. Such adoption does not entail it, as legal conditions must be met, among which is that the adopted person be of unknown lineage. This was not the case for Zayd, as his lineage was known among them (he was the son of Harithah). The generalization of the negation of his paternity, covering biological, breastfeeding, and adoption, serves to emphasize the negation of the latter—which is what those who said, "Muhammad married his son's wife," claimed—by threading the hidden [matter] into the string of that which is not hidden at all.

Perhaps this is the secret behind His saying: "Muhammad was not the father of any of your men" rather than "Muhammad was not the father of any men" or "Muhammad was not the father of any of you." Perhaps it is also why He explicitly negated his paternity of any of their men, so that one might learn from it the negation of any of their men being his son, rather than reversing the state by negating their sonship to him, so that his fatherhood to them might be inferred.

By interpreting the negated paternity as the "true, legal paternity," a difficulty in the verse is resolved: the context aims to negate his paternity to Zayd to refute those who object to the Prophet (peace be upon him) for marrying the divorcee of his "son." If paternity meant "true, linguistic paternity" (biological), it would not fit the context, as no one claimed he was Zayd’s biological father. If it meant "metaphorical paternity" (like adoption), the negation would be invalid, because he was metaphorically Zayd's father until the verse: "Call them by [the names of] their fathers" was revealed, after which they called him "Zayd ibn Harithah." The resolution is that "true legal paternity" occurs via birth, breastfeeding, or conditional adoption; Zayd does not fulfill any of these. As for his biological sons, the construction of "men" to the addressees refers to birth, so it does not conflict with the fact that he had sons.

Regarding the "adult" definition, it is said that all his sons died in childhood and never reached the age of men. It is also said that there is no problem here because he had no living son at the time the verse was revealed (the 5th year of the Hijra), as Ibrahim was born later in the 8th year. As for Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, the Prophet (peace be upon him) was their father by true, legal status. Some suggest they are excluded because they are the sons of Ali, but others argue that they are also the sons of the Messenger of Allah, albeit indirectly. If that is accepted, fine; otherwise, the answer is that they were not yet "adult men" at the time of revelation, or that the term "father" in the verse refers to the biological father, which he (peace be upon him) was not to them.

Some suggest the verse merely negates his paternity to any men by way of adoption, specifically to refute the claim regarding Zayd. It is silent on biological or breastfeeding paternity, thus there is no question regarding his sons or the grandsons. Abu Hayyan leans towards this.

Some Shafi'is used this verse to argue that one should not call the Prophet "the father of the believers." However, Al-Shafi'i (may Allah have mercy on him) stated it is permissible in terms of sanctity. Al-Raghib noted that "father" is applied to anyone who is a cause for something's creation, reform, or appearance. Hence, the Prophet is called the father of the believers in that sense, and there is a narration: "Ali and I are the two fathers of this nation." To this, he alluded by saying: "Every cause and lineage is severed on the Day of Resurrection, except my cause and lineage."

As for the permissibility of the absolute term, they say His saying, "But [he is] the Messenger of Allah," is a rectification of the negated true paternity to the establishment of a metaphorical paternity, which entails the duty of respect and reverence from them and compassion from him. It is also said that it rectifies the fear that the negation of his paternity would imply the negation of his messengership, as every messenger is a father to his nation.

As for "and the seal of the prophets," it has been said it was brought to indicate the perfection of his compassion, implying that his paternity to the nation is a perfect paternity, superior to that of other prophets. Or, it indicates the extension of that paternity until the Day of Resurrection. Or, it serves to dispel the illusion that he might have a biological son who would reach the age of men—for if he were to reach that age, he would be a prophet, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) would not be the "Seal of the Prophets."

As for the reports about Ibrahim (the Prophet's son), the Prophet said: "If a prophet were to come after Muhammad, his son Ibrahim would have lived; but there is no prophet after him." This suggests that the son's death was a condition for his status as the Seal of the Prophets.

"Seal" (Khatam) is an instrument noun. The majority read it with a kasrah on the ta (Khatim), meaning "the agent who seals," i.e., the last of them. Ibn Mas'ud's codex reads: "but a prophet who sealed the prophets." Since "prophet" is more general than "messenger," his being the Seal of the Prophets necessitates his being the Seal of the Messengers. This means the termination of the occurrence of the attribute of prophethood in anyone among the two weights (mankind and jinn) after he (peace be upon him) was adorned with it in this life.

This is not contradicted by the return of 'Isa (Jesus), upon whom be peace, because he was a prophet before our Prophet was adorned with prophethood in this life. When he descends, he remains on his previous prophethood but is not tasked with it, as it is abrogated in his case; rather, he will be a successor to the Messenger of Allah and a judge from the judges of his nation, judging by the law of our Prophet as he knew it in heaven. He will break the cross and kill the swine.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) is the Seal of the Prophets, as stated by the Book, spoken by the Sunnah, and agreed upon by the Ummah. Anyone who claims otherwise is an unbeliever and, if persistent, must be killed.