Surah Al-Anbiyaa (21) — Ayah 70

(Ayah 70){ وَ اَرَادُوْا بِهٖ كَيْدًا … : ’’ الْاَخْسَرِيْنَ ‘‘} Although this is an elative (ism tafdil), here it does not mean someone who suffers more loss than others, rather it is an intensification among the losers, therefore it has been translated as "those in utter loss." If the comparative meaning is taken, then {’’أَخْسَرِيْنَ مِنْ كُلِّ خَاسِرٍ‘‘} will be meant, that is, those who suffer more loss than every other loser. {’’ كَيْدًا ‘‘} refers to a secret plot. It appears that the disbelievers kept the conspiracy to burn Ibrahim (peace be upon him) hidden from him. Perhaps their purpose was that Ibrahim (peace be upon him) should not escape from their hands. (Ibn Ashur) In {’’ فَجَعَلْنٰهُمُ الْاَخْسَرِيْنَ ‘‘}, by both {’’هُمْ‘‘} and {’’ الْاَخْسَرِيْنَ ‘‘} being definite, the benefit of restriction is achieved, that only they became those in utter loss, and Ibrahim (peace be upon him) did not suffer the slightest loss. They were called losers (unsuccessful) because they could not answer any of the arguments of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) with which he proved the sun, moon, and stars powerless, or with which he proved the king to be powerless, or proved that idols are not deities. Then they could neither take revenge for the breaking of the idols nor could they burn him in the fire, rather everything they prepared to punish him became a miracle and a cause of his greatness, and the ultimate loss was that after this incident Allah's punishment came upon that nation, as mentioned in Surah Al-Hajj regarding those nations upon whom Allah's punishment came, and among them is also mentioned the nation of Ibrahim, and at the end it is said: «{ فَاَمْلَيْتُ لِلْكٰفِرِيْنَ ثُمَّ اَخَذْتُهُمْ فَكَيْفَ كَانَ نَكِيْرِ }» [ الحج : ۴۴ ] "So I gave respite to those disbelievers, then I seized them, so how was My punishment?"