Surah Maryam (19) — Ayah 41

(Ayah 41) ➊ { وَ اذْكُرْ فِي الْكِتٰبِ اِبْرٰهِيْمَ :} The main subject of this surah is to describe the events of Tawheed (monotheism), Prophethood, and Resurrection. There were two types of deniers of Tawheed: one, the Jews and Christians, who declared Isa (Jesus) and Uzair (Ezra), peace be upon them, as the sons of Allah and thus fell into shirk (polytheism). Therefore, in the previous verses, by mentioning the story of Maryam and Masih (Jesus), peace be upon them, their false beliefs were refuted. The second group were the polytheists of Arabia, who were involved in idol worship and, despite this false belief, claimed to be followers of the religion of Ibrahim (Abraham), peace be upon him. From here, by mentioning the story of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, the intention is to refute them, so that it becomes clear how Ibrahim, peace be upon him, tried to save his father and his people from idol worship and, in the end, left his homeland and relatives for the sake of Allah. But you, on the one hand, are from his descendants and also claim to be on his religion, yet on the other hand, you are caught in the curse of idol worship and are forcing those who raise the voice of Tawheed to leave their homeland. If you are truly followers of the religion of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, then what is the meaning of practicing this shirk and being hostile to the monotheists?

➋ {اِنَّهٗ كَانَ صِدِّيْقًا نَّبِيًّا: ’’ صِدِّيْقًا ‘‘ ’’صِدْقٌ‘‘} is an intensive form derived from 'Sidq'. Ibrahim, peace be upon him, was called Siddiq because he was very truthful in speech and also truthful in his dealings with his Lord. Being homeless for the sake of Allah, accepting to be burned in the fire, being exiled from his homeland, enduring the risk to his honor and dignity in a foreign land, leaving his wife and child in a barren, rocky valley, complying with the command to sacrifice his only son, and immediately acting upon the command of circumcision at the age of eighty (80) years—these are a few examples of his truthfulness in every matter. For further explanation of {’’ صِدِّيْقًا ‘‘}, see Surah An-Nisa (69) and Yusuf (46).

41. 1. Ṣiddīq is the intensive form of ṣidq (truthfulness). A very truthful person, that is, one whose words and actions are in harmony and whose hallmark is uprightness. This rank of ṣiddīqiyyah is the highest after prophethood. Every prophet and messenger is also the most truthful and upright person of his time, so he is also a ṣiddīq. However, not every ṣiddīq is a prophet. In the Noble Qur’an, Maryam is called ṣiddīqah, which means that she held a very high rank in piety, purity, and uprightness, although she was not a prophetess. There are also ṣiddīqīn in the Ummah of Muhammad, and at the forefront among them is Abū Bakr aṣ-Ṣiddīq (may Allah be pleased with him), who, after the prophets, is acknowledged as the best of mankind in the Ummah. May Allah be pleased with him.

41. And mention in the Book the story [37] of Abraham. Indeed, he was a man of truth [38] and a prophet.

[37] The address in the story of Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ is especially directed towards the Quraysh of Makkah, who claimed to be followers of the religion of Ibrahim. They are being told that he was not a polytheist, but a monotheist. He abandoned the imitation of his polytheist forefathers. You should also abandon it. The polytheist nation and his polytheist father gave him all kinds of threats, but he preferred to leave his home and homeland rather than accept polytheism. And you are such that you are so insistent on your polytheism that you torture the monotheists and force them to migrate. Then what truth is there in your claim of following the religion of Ibrahim?

[38] And Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ was truthful in speech and upright in his practical life, and besides being a Siddiq, he was also a Prophet. Some people, based on this verse, deny the authenticity of the following hadith in Bukhari:

Objection on the Hadith of Three Lies of Sayyiduna Ibrahim and Its Answer:

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairahؓ narrates that the Messenger of Allahﷺ said: Sayyiduna Ibrahim never told a lie except three times. Two times were for the sake of Allah: his saying "Indeed, I am sick," and his saying: ﴿بَلْ فَعَلَه كَبِيْرُهُمْ﴾ [21: 63] — both were for Allah. And the Prophetﷺ said that one day he and (his wife) Sarah were passing by a tyrant king. Someone told the king that a man has come here with a beautiful wife. The king summoned Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ and asked about Sarah, "Who is she?" Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ said, "She is my sister." Then he went to Sarah and said, "Sarah! At this time, there is no believer on the face of the earth except you and me, and that tyrant asked me, so I said that she is my (religious) sister. So do not call me a liar." [بخاري۔ كتاب الانبيائ۔ باب قول الله وَاتَّخَذَ اللّٰهُ اِبْرٰهِيْمَ خَلِيْلًا]

1. Of these three lies, two are mentioned in the Noble Quran. It was he who broke the idols, but when asked, he said that the big idol broke them. Similarly, when his people went out to celebrate and asked him to join, he said, "I am sick." Then at that very time, he went and broke their idols, so how could he have been sick? Were these not contrary to the facts? Therefore, the real objection of the critics should be towards the Quran, not towards the rejection of the hadith.

2. The Messenger of Allahﷺ himself, at the outset, clarified with these words: "Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ never told a lie." This is a great testimony to his being truly a Siddiq, that in his 175-year life, he did not utter more than three lies. Now, look at the days and nights of your own life: not in your whole life, but in just one day and night, how many times do you lie—both knowingly and unknowingly? Then decide for yourself: if a person does not utter more than three lies in a 175-year life, can he not be called a Siddiq? Then, there are solid reasons for all three incidents. Two of these lies were spoken to establish proof against the polytheists and to raise the word of truth, as is evident from the above hadith. The third, mentioned in the hadith, was spoken to save his own life. The law of the king of Egypt was that he would forcibly seize a beautiful woman. If she was accompanied by her husband, he would have him killed; if she was accompanied by her brother or another relative, he would seize the woman but spare the man's life. Now, if Sayyiduna Ibrahimؑ lied to save his life (even though, in a way, it is not even a lie as the words of the hadith indicate), then what calamity befell? If it is permissible to eat carrion to save one's life, why should it not be permissible to lie? Which Shariah is there that has imposed such strictness? To save one's life, Allah has even permitted uttering a word of disbelief, provided there is nothing of the sort in the heart [38: 14] — then is telling a lie a greater crime than that? Lying is a sin when it infringes upon someone's rights, and the greater the infringement, the greater the major sin it becomes. Always speaking the truth and avoiding lies is a great principle of Shariah, but there are exceptions even in this, when the aspect of reconciliation and goodness is prominent, and in the eyes of Shariah, it is truly reconciliation and goodness. For example, to reconcile between husband and wife, Shariah has not only permitted but considered it commendable to make up things and lie for reconciliation. Similarly, in jihad, such statements are permitted to frighten the enemy. Although, linguistically, the word "lie" can also be applied to these statements.