Tafsir of Al Imran 3:17

Āl 'Imrān: (17) The Patient, the Truthful, the Devout...

Issue 1: The Grammatical Case of {الصابرين} (The Patient)

It is said that the accusative case (Naṣb) is for praise (Madḥ), implying: I mean the patient ones.

Alternatively, it is in the genitive case (Jarr) as an apposition (Badal) to those (referring to the preceding description of the believers).

Issue 2: Elucidation of the Five Attributes Mentioned

Allah (Exalted is He) mentioned five attributes here:

The First Attribute: Being Patient ({الصابرين}) This means being patient in fulfilling obligatory and recommended duties, and in refraining from prohibitions. It also means being patient regarding any tribulations and hardships that befall them, by not showing impatience but rather being content in their hearts with Allah, as He says: {Those who, when afflicted with a calamity, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return"} (Al-Baqarah: 156).

Sufyān ibn 'Uyaynah said regarding the verse: {And We made of them leaders, guiding by Our command, when they were patient} (As-Sajdah: 24), that this verse indicates they only deserved those high ranks from Allah due to patience.

It is narrated that a man approached al-Shiblī and asked: "Which patience is the hardest for the patient?" He replied: "Patience in Allah." The man said: "No." He asked: "Patience for Allah?" He said: "No." He asked: "Patience with Allah?" He said: "No." He asked: "Then what is it?" He replied: "Patience away from Allah (i.e., restraining oneself from turning away from Him)." Al-Shiblī then cried out a shriek that nearly destroyed his soul.

Allah has greatly praised the patient, saying: {And the patient in poverty and affliction and at the time of fighting} (Al-Baqarah: 177).

The Second Attribute: Being Truthful ({الصادقين}) The term truthfulness (Ṣidq) can apply to speech, action, and intention.

1. Truthfulness in Speech is well-known (avoiding falsehood).
2. Truthfulness in Action is performing the action and not abandoning it before completion. It is said: "So-and-so was truthful in battle" or "truthful in the charge." Its opposite is being false in action.
3. Truthfulness in Intention is confirming the resolve and adhering to it until the action is completed.

The Third Attribute: Being Devout/Obedient ({القانتين}) We have already explained this in the verse: {And stand up obediently to Allah} (Al-Baqarah: 238). In summary, it signifies continuous devotion and perseverance in worship.

The Fourth Attribute: Being Charitable/Spending ({المنفقين}) This includes a person's spending on themselves, their family, relatives, maintaining kinship ties, paying Zakāh, striving in Jihād, and all other forms of righteousness.

The Fifth Attribute: Seeking Forgiveness at Dawn ({المستغفرين بالأسحار}) Al-Sahar is the time just before the break of dawn. One tasahhara if they eat at that time. The meaning here is those who pray at night and follow it up with seeking forgiveness and supplication, because a person does not engage in supplication and seeking forgiveness unless they have prayed beforehand. Thus, {and those who seek forgiveness at dawn} indicates they had already prayed during the night.

Seeking forgiveness at dawn has a special effect on strengthening faith and perfecting servitude for several reasons:

1. At dawn, the light of morning appears after total darkness. With the appearance of this light, it is as if the dead become alive. This is a time of universal generosity and complete outpouring (Fayḍ). It is plausible that when the morning of the Great World (the cosmos) appears, the morning of the Small World (the heart) appears—which is the manifestation of the light of Allah's Majesty in the heart.
2. Dawn is the sweetest time for sleep. When the servant turns away from this pleasure and turns toward servitude, the obedience is more perfect.
3. It is narrated from Ibn 'Abbās regarding {and those who seek forgiveness at dawn} that he meant those who perform the Dawn Prayer (Ṣalāt al-Ṣubḥ).

Issue 3: The Superiority of the Noun Form

The phrasing {The Patient, the Truthful} is more eloquent than saying those who are patient and those who are truthful (using verbs), because the noun form ({الصابرين}) indicates that this quality is their habit and nature, and they are never separated from it.

Issue 4: The Order of the Attributes

Allah (Exalted is He) imposes various types of obligations upon His servants. The Patient one is he who is patient in fulfilling all types of these obligations. Furthermore, a servant might voluntarily commit to other types of obedience, either by choice or by initiating them. The perfection of this rank is that when one commits to an act of obedience, they must be Truthful in that commitment by performing what was vowed without any deficiency whatsoever. Since this rank comes after the first, Allah rightly mentioned the Patient first, then the Truthful second.

Then, Allah encouraged perseverance in these two types of obedience by mentioning The Devout ({القانتين}). Thus, these three terms encourage perseverance in all types of obedience.

After that, He mentioned specific acts of obedience. The two greatest acts of obedience in rank are:

1. Service with wealth, indicated here by {and those who spend} (Al-Munfiqīn). This corresponds to the saying of the Prophet (peace be upon him): "Compassion for Allah's creation."
2. Service with the self, indicated here by {and those who seek forgiveness at dawn}. This corresponds to the saying: "Exalting the command of Allah."

Query: Why did He mention spending ({المنفقين}) before seeking forgiveness at dawn ({المستغفرين بالأسحار}) here, while the order was reversed in the saying (Exalting Allah's command and Compassion for His creation)?

Answer: Because this verse describes the servant's ascent from the lower rank to the most noble rank. Therefore, it is appropriate that the conclusion is marked by mentioning seeking forgiveness at dawn. Conversely, the saying (Exalting Allah's command and Compassion for His creation) describes the descent of the servant from the noble rank to the lower rank, so the order is reversed.

Issue 5: The Use of the Conjunction 'Waw' (And)

These five attributes refer to one single described subject. Therefore, the conjunction 'Waw' (and) should have been omitted, as in the verse: {He is Allah, the Creator, the Originator, the Fashioner} (Al-Hashr: 24). However, the conjunction 'Waw' was mentioned here. I surmise—and Allah knows best—that whoever possesses even one of these characteristics falls under the great praise and deserves this immense reward.

7 < { Allah testifies that there is no deity except Him, [as do] the angels and those of knowledge, [He is] the Maintainer of justice. There is no deity except Him, the Exalted in Might, the Wise. } > 7 !