سُوْرَةُ مَرْيَمَ
Surah Maryam (19) — Ayah 41
وَٱذْكُرْ فِى ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ صِدِّيقًا نَّبِيًّا ﴿41﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And mention in the Book (the Qur’ân) Ibrâhîm (Abraham). Verily he was a man of truth, a Prophet.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَٱذْكُرْ
wa-udh'kur
And mention
فِى
fī
in
ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ
l-kitābi
the Book
إِبْرَٰهِيمَ ۚ
ib'rāhīma
Ibrahim
إِنَّهُۥ
innahu
Indeed, he
كَانَ
kāna
was
صِدِّيقًۭا
ṣiddīqan
a man of truth
نَّبِيًّا
nabiyyan
a Prophet
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
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.
[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.
