Al-An'am (The Cattle): (83) And that was Our argument which We gave to Abraham...

Issues in the Verse:

There are several interpretations regarding what the demonstrative pronoun {And that} refers to:

1. It refers to His previous statement: {I do not love those who set} (referring to the stars/idols).
2. It refers to the argument Abraham presented to his people when they warned him, saying: "Do you not fear that our gods will strike you because you insulted them?" Abraham responded by saying: "Do you not fear, while you have committed yourselves to associating partners with God, equating the Creator and Sustainer of the universe with carved wood and fashioned idols?"
3. It refers to all of the preceding context.

If this is understood, then: {And that} (وتلك) is the subject (mubtada'), and {Our argument} (حجتنا) is the predicate (khabar). And {We gave to Abraham} (آتيناها إبراهيم) is an adjective describing that predicate.

The statement {And that was Our argument which We gave to Abraham} indicates that this argument was established in Abraham's intellect only through God's giving and manifestation of that proof within his mind.

This implies that faith and disbelief occur only through the creation of God, the Exalted. This is further confirmed by His statement: {We raise in degrees whom We will}. This means that God Almighty raised Abraham's degrees because He bestowed that argument upon him. If the acquisition of knowledge from that argument were solely from Abraham and not from God, then Abraham would have raised his own degrees. In that case, His statement {We raise in degrees whom We will} would be false. Thus, it is established that this verse is explicit proof for our position regarding the issue of guidance and misguidance.

This verse is one of the strongest proofs against the position of the Hashawiyyah (literalists) who criticize the use of rational deliberation (naẓar), establishing proof (taqrīr al-ḥujjah), and citing evidence (dhikr al-dalīl).

This is because God Almighty affirmed that Abraham attained elevation and achieved high ranks precisely because he presented, established, and defended the proof for Monotheism. This indicates that there is no rank higher or more noble, after prophethood and messengership, than this rank achieved through intellectual proof.

'Asim, Hamzah, and Al-Kisā'ī recited {degrees} (درجات) with tanwīn (indefinite), without iḍāfah (genitive construction). The rest recited it with iḍāfah.

• The first reading (with tanwīn) means: "We raise many degrees for whomever We will," making man (whom) in the accusative case. Ibn Muqsim said this reading is more indicative of preferring some over others in rank and elevation.
• Abu 'Amr stated that the iḍāfah construction indicates both a single degree and many degrees, whereas tanwīn only indicates many degrees.

There is a difference of opinion regarding what those degrees (درجات) refer to:

1. They are the degrees of his deeds in the Hereafter.
2. They are the high degrees of those arguments, as they necessitate great reward.
3. We raise whom We will in this world through prophethood and wisdom, and in the Hereafter through Paradise and reward.
4. We raise whom We will through knowledge.

Know that this verse is one of the strongest proofs that the perfection of happiness lies in spiritual attributes and distance from corporeal attributes.

The evidence for this is that God Almighty said: {And that was Our argument which We gave to Abraham concerning his people}. Then, immediately after, He said: {We raise in degrees whom We will}. This indicates that the cause for attaining this elevation is the giving of that argument. This necessitates that the soul's realization of the truth of that argument and its apprehension of its radiance caused the spirit to ascend from the depths of the corporeal world to the heights of the spiritual world. This proves that there is no elevation or happiness except in spiritual matters. And God knows best.

As for the meaning of {Wise, Knowing} (حكيم عليم), it means that He only raises the degrees of whomever He wills according to the dictates of wisdom and knowledge, not based on desire or recklessness. For the actions of God are pure from futility, corruption, and falsehood.

7 < {And We granted him Isaac and Jacob; We guided them both. And We guided Noah before him, and of his descendants, David, Solomon, Job, Joseph, Moses, and Aaron. Thus do We reward the doers of good. * And Zechariah, John, Jesus, and Elias—all were of the righteous. * And Ishmael, Elisha, Jonah, and Lot. Each one We preferred above the worlds. * And of their fathers, their descendants, and their brethren; and We chose them and guided them to a straight path. * This is the guidance of God; He guides with it whom He wills of His servants. And if they had associated others [with God], then surely all that they were doing would have been rendered worthless for them.} > 7

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