Ibrahim (Verse 5-6)

Issues in the Verse

When Allah (SWT) explained that He sent Muhammad (PBUH) to bring people from darkness to light, and mentioned the perfection of this favor upon him and his people, He followed this by detailing the missions of previous prophets to their nations and how their people treated them. This was to console the Prophet (PBUH) regarding the harm from his people and to guide him on how to converse and deal with them.

Following the usual pattern, Allah mentioned the stories of some prophets, beginning with Moses (PBUH): {And We certainly sent Moses with Our signs...}

• Al-Asamm said: The signs of Moses (PBUH) were the staff, the shining hand, the locusts, the lice, the frogs, the blood, the splitting of the sea, the bursting forth of springs from the rock, the shading of the mountain by the cloud, and the sending down of Manna and Quail.
• Al-Jubba'i said: Allah sent Moses (PBUH) to the Children of Israel with His signs, which are His proofs, and the revealed Books, commanding him to clarify the religion to them.
• Abu Muslim al-Isfahani said: Allah described Muhammad (PBUH) as: {A Book which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], that you may bring mankind out of darknesses into the light} (Ibrahim: 1). And regarding Moses (PBUH), He said: {that you bring your people out of darknesses into the light}. The intent is to show that the objective of prophethood is singular for all prophets: to strive to bring creation out of the darkness of misguidance into the light of guidance.

Al-Zajjaj said: The phrase {that you bring out your people} means by bringing out your people.

Then, regarding {that} (أَن):

1. It can be explanatory (مُفَسِّرَة), meaning "i.e." or "saying." The meaning becomes: "We sent Moses with Our signs, meaning, 'Bring out your people,'" as if Allah commanded him: "Bring out your people." This is similar to {And the chiefs who disbelieved among his people said, "We do not see you but as a man like us, and we do not see any who follow you except those who are the meanest of us [in opinion]." And we do not see that any have preference over us; rather, we think you are liars} (Sad: 5), where the meaning is "Go!" or "It was said to them: Go!"
2. It can be the lightened form of إِنَّ (the particle of affirmation), meaning it is a statement. The meaning is: "We sent him by bringing out his people," although the preposition (الباء) is omitted, and أَن is connected with the imperative form. This is like saying, "I wrote to him that he should stand up," meaning I commanded him that he should stand up. Al-Zajjaj narrated these two opinions from Sibawayh.

Regarding {And remind them of the Days of Allah}

Allah commanded Moses (PBUH) to do two things in this context:

1. Bring them out of the darkness of disbelief.
2. Remind them of the Days of Allah.

Al-Wahidi said: أيام is the plural of يوم (day). A day is the duration from sunrise to sunset. Originally, the plural was أَيْوَام (aywām). When the يَاء (yā') and the وَاو (wāw) met, and one of them took a quiescent form, one was merged into the other, and the يَاء predominated.

The term "Days" is used to refer to significant events that occurred during them. It is said, "So-and-so is knowledgeable of the Days of the Arabs," meaning their battles/events. The proverb states: "Whoever sees a day [of joy], he will see a day [of sorrow]," meaning whoever rejoices over the downfall of another on one day will see his own downfall on another day. Allah says: {And these days We alternate among the people} (Al 'Imran: 140).

Knowing this, the meaning is: Admonish them with encouragement and deterrence, promise and threat.

• Encouragement and Promise: Remind them of the favors Allah bestowed upon them and upon those who believed in the messengers before them during past days.
• Deterrence and Threat: Remind them of Allah's wrath, punishment, and vengeance upon those nations who denied the messengers in past days, such as the punishment that befell 'Ad and Thamud, so that they may be inclined toward the promise (and thus believe) and be warned by the threat (and thus abandon denial).

The "Days of Allah" concerning Moses (PBUH) included:

1. Days of trial and tribulation, when the Children of Israel were under the oppression of Pharaoh.
2. Days of ease and bounty, such as the sending of Manna and Quail, the splitting of the sea, and the shading by clouds.

{Indeed in that are signs for every patient, grateful one.}

This means that in this reminding and admonition are proofs for everyone who is patient (صَبَّار) and grateful (شَكُور). This is because the situation is either one of trial/affliction or one of favor/gift. If it is the former, the believer is patient; if it is the latter, he is grateful. This indicates that the believer's time should never be devoid of one of these two states: if circumstances align with his nature and desire, he is occupied with gratitude; if circumstances oppose his nature, he is occupied with patience.

If it is asked: Since those reminders are signs for everyone, why were they specified for the patient and grateful?

The answer has two aspects:

1. Since they are the ones who benefit from those signs, it is as if the signs only exist for them, similar to {guidance for the righteous} and {You are only a warner to whoever fears it}.
2. It is plausible that benefiting from this type of reminder is only possible for one who is patient or grateful. Whoever is not characterized by these traits will not benefit from these signs.

{And [recall] when Moses said to his people, "Remember the favor of Allah upon you when He saved you from the people of Pharaoh, who were inflicting upon you severe torment...}

After mentioning that he commanded Moses (PBUH) to remind them of the Days of Allah, Allah recounts Moses (PBUH) doing so: {And [recall] when Moses said to his people, "Remember the favor of Allah upon you when He saved you from the people of Pharaoh, who were inflicting upon you severe torment...}

The phrase {when He saved you} (إِذْ أَنْجَاكُمْ) is an adverbial phrase (ظرف) related to the favor (نعمة), meaning the act of bestowing favor at that time.

There are questions remaining regarding this verse:

Answer:

• In Surah Al-Baqarah, {they used to slaughter} (يَذْبَحُونَ) is mentioned without the و (wa) because it is an explanation (تفسير) of {severe torment} (سوء العذاب). In explanation, adding و is inappropriate, like saying, "The people came to me, Zayd and 'Amr," when you mean to explain "the people" as Zayd and 'Amr. Similarly, {And whoever does that will meet a penalty * and the punishment will be doubled for him} (Al-Furqan: 68-69); since the penalty (أثام) is explained as the doubling of punishment, the و is omitted.
• However, in this Surah, the و is included (وَيَذْبَحُونَ), because the meaning is that they tormented them not only by slaughtering but also by other means. Thus, {and they used to slaughter} represents another type of torment, not merely an explanation of what preceded it.

Answer in two ways:

1. Allah granting them the power to do what they did was a trial from Allah.
2. This refers to the salvation itself, which was a great trial (بلاء). Trial (البلاء) means testing, which can be through favor or through affliction. Allah says: {And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient} (Al-Baqarah: 155, similar meaning in Al-Anbiya: 35). This second view is stronger because it aligns with the beginning of the verse: {Remember the favor of Allah upon you}.

Answer:

1. Sparing the women was a favor in that it saved them from being killed.
2. Furthermore, keeping the women isolated from the men resulted in greater harm (مضار).

{And [recall] when your Lord proclaimed, "If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor]; but if you deny, indeed, My punishment is severe."} (7)