Al-Baqarah: (130) And whoever turns away from...

Verse Analysis

Know that after Allah, the Exalted, mentioned the affair of Abraham (peace be upon him), the noble laws established by him, the trial he underwent, his building of the House (the Ka'bah), and his command for God's servants to perform pilgrimage to it, along with the innate eagerness God instilled in him for the welfare of His servants and his supplication for good upon them, and other matters mentioned in the preceding verse, people wondered. Thus, He said: {And whoever turns away from the religion of Abraham} (2:130).

This verse serves as a reprimand to the Jews, the Christians, and the polytheists of Arabia.

• The Jews boast of their connection to Abraham through the lineage of Israel.
• The Christians boast, though their boast is not truly centered on Jesus, who is traced back to Israel through his mother's side.
• The Quraysh attained all their prestige in the pre-Islamic era because of the House Abraham built, leading them to claim adherence to the Book of God.
• The rest of the Arabs (the descendants of 'Adnan) trace their lineage back to Ishmael and boast over the Qahtani Arabs due to the prophethood God granted to Ishmael.

Upon investigation, the boast of all these groups ultimately reverts to Abraham (peace be upon him). Since it is established that Abraham (peace be upon him) was the one who supplicated to God to send this Messenger in the latter days, and he earnestly prayed for this very objective to be achieved, it is astonishing for one who magnifies his lineage and virtues through Abraham to then disbelieve in the Messenger who is the very object of Abraham's supplication. Undoubtedly, this warrants astonishment.

Issues Arising from {And whoever turns away from the religion of Abraham, except one who fools himself}

1. "Raghaba 'an" (رغب عن): Means to dislike or turn away from something.
2. "Raghaba fi" (رغب فيه): Means to desire something.
3. "Man" (من): In the phrase {ومن يرغب} (And whoever turns away), it is an interrogative particle implying censure (reproach). In {إلا من سفه نفسه} (except one who fools himself), it means "whoever" (relative pronoun).
4. Grammar of Man: Al-Kashshaf states that man (in man safaha) is in the nominative case as an apposition (badal) to the pronoun implied in yarghabu. This substitution is valid because man yarghabu (the one turning away) is indefinite, similar to saying: "Has anyone come except Zayd?" (where the implied subject is indefinite).

A question arises here: Is the "religion of Abraham" meant to be the very religion brought by Muhammad (peace be upon him)? The goal of the discourse is to encourage people to accept this religion.

There are two possibilities:

1. This religion is identical to Abraham's religion in both fundamentals (usūl) and branches (furū').
2. This religion shares the fundamentals (Tawhid, prophethood, noble ethics) but differs in the specific branches of law and methods of practice.

Rebuttal to Possibility 1: This is false because the Prophet (PBUH) claimed that his law abrogated all previous laws. How can it be said that this law is identical to that law?

Rebuttal to Possibility 2: This is unhelpful for the intended purpose. Acknowledging the fundamentals—Tawhid, justice, noble ethics, and the Hereafter—does not necessitate acknowledging the prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH). How, then, can this statement be used to establish that claim?

Another Question: Since Muhammad (PBUH) acknowledged that Abraham's law was abrogated, and the term millah (religion/path) encompasses both fundamentals and branches, it implies that Muhammad (PBUH) himself is turning away from Abraham's religion. This leads to the same condemnation being applied to him.

The Answer: When God recounted that Abraham (PBUH) supplicated to God to send this Messenger, support him, aid him, and spread his law, He expressed this meaning by referring to it as the "religion of Abraham." Since the Jews, Christians, and Arabs acknowledged that Abraham (PBUH) was truthful in his plea, they are obligated to recognize the prophethood of this person who was the object of Abraham's supplication.

The Questioner's Objection: They might concede that Abraham requested such a Messenger, but Muhammad (PBUH) merely narrated this report from Abraham to use it as a basis to obligate them to accept his prophethood. Thus, his prophethood is not proven unless this narration is proven true, and the narration is not proven true unless his prophethood is proven—leading to a circular argument (dawr), which is invalid. Even if they accept the narration, it only states that Abraham asked God to send a Messenger from his progeny and the progeny of Ishmael. How can it be definitively concluded that this Messenger is this specific person? Perhaps someone else will come later. If the answer to this prayer could be delayed by two thousand years (the time between Abraham and Muhammad), why could it not be delayed by three thousand years, meaning the desired person is someone other than this specific individual?

The Answer to the First Objection: The Torah and the Gospel bear witness to the truthfulness of this narration. If they did not, the Jews and Christians would have been the quickest to deny this claim.

The Answer to the Second Objection: The basis for establishing his prophethood (PBUH) is the manifestation of miracles through him, namely the Qur'an and his reports of hidden matters that only a prophet could know, such as these historical accounts. Furthermore, this argument serves as a confirmation of the intended purpose. And God knows best.

There are two main views regarding the accusative case of nafsahu (himself):

View 1: It is the Object (Maf'ūl bihi). Al-Mubarrid stated that safaha can be intransitive or transitive. Under this transitive view, there are several interpretations:

1. He humiliated it and treated it lightly: The root meaning of sifh (foolishness) is lightness. The evidence is the Hadith: "Arrogance is to reject the truth and look down upon people." Whoever turns away from what no rational person would turn away from has reached the extreme in degrading and incapacitating himself, as he has acted contrary to every rational soul.
2. He was ignorant of himself and lost himself (Al-Hasan): Meaning, he turns away from Abraham's religion only if he is ignorant and has not reflected upon the signs of creation within it, which lead to the knowledge of God's Oneness and Wisdom, and subsequently to the truth of Muhammad's prophethood (PBUH).
3. He destroyed himself (Abu 'Ubaydah).
4. He misguided himself.

View 2: Nafsuhu is not the Object. There are several justifications for this view:

1. The preposition fi (in) is omitted (nuz' al-khāfiḍ): Meaning, sāfaha fī nafsihi (he was foolish in himself).
2. It is for Tafsīr (Explication) (Al-Farra'): Meaning, sāfaha nafsan (he was foolish in a manner/way), and then it was made possessive (idāfa). The meaning is equivalent to "except the fool" (illā as-sāfih), and mentioning the nafs (self) is for emphasis, like saying, "This matter itself" (hādhā al-amru nafsahu), intended to exaggerate his foolishness.
3. Variant Reading: The fā' in saffaha (سَفَّهَ) is read with a shaddah (doubling).

Subsequent Verses and Context

After establishing the foolishness of one who turns away from Abraham's path, God explains the reason: {And We gave him choice in this world, and indeed, in the Hereafter, he will be among the righteous} (2:130, continued).

This means: When We chose him for prophethood over all creation, and taught him the religion that encompasses Tawhid, justice, laws, and a lasting Imamate until the Hour, and then attributed the judgment of God to him, God honored him with a title that signifies the utmost majesty—a status attained by no human king, let alone the King of Kings and Legislators. Therefore, every person of intellect must realize that the one who turns away from his path is indeed a fool.

Then, God clarifies that in the Hereafter, Abraham will have a great station, encouraging people to follow his way to attain a similar station.

Some scholars suggest a transposition (taqdīm wa ta'khīr) in the verse: "And indeed, We chose him in this world and the Hereafter, and verily, he is among the righteous." However, if the wording stands as it is without transposition, it is preferable. Al-Hasan said this refers to those who deserve honor and good reward through God's generosity.

{7 < When his Lord said to him, "Submit," he said, "I have submitted to the Lord of the worlds." >}

(This section marks the beginning of the next verse, 2:131, which is being introduced.)