Tafsir of Al-Baqarah 2:135

"Nay, [we follow] the religion of Abraham, inclining toward truth, and he was not of the polytheists."

"Nay, [we follow] the religion of Abraham" It means: "We are the people of his religion." This is like the saying of Adi ibn Hatim: "I am of a religion," meaning: "I am of the people of a religion." It is also said: "Nay, we follow the religion of Abraham." It has been recited as millatu Ibrahima (in the nominative case), meaning: "His religion is our religion," or "Our affair is his religion," or "We are his religion," in the sense of being the people of his religion.

"Inclining toward truth (hanifan)" This is a state (hal) of the genitive noun (al-mudaf ilayh), similar to your saying: "I saw the face of Hind standing."

The Hanif is one who inclines away from every false religion toward the religion of truth. Hanaf is the inclination in the feet, and one says "he became a hanif" (tahannafa) when he inclines. It was recited in verse: "But we were created, when we were created, inclining toward our religion away from every [other] religion."

"And he was not of the polytheists" This is an insinuation against the People of the Book and others, because each of them claims to follow Abraham while they are upon polytheism.