سُوْرَةُ اٰلِ عِمْرٰنَ
Surah Aal-i-Imraan (3) — Ayah 46
وَيُكَلِّمُ ٱلنَّاسَ فِى ٱلْمَهْدِ وَكَهْلًا وَمِنَ ٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ ﴿46﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
"He will speak to the people in the cradle and in manhood, and he will be one of the righteous."
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَيُكَلِّمُ
wayukallimu
And he will speak
ٱلنَّاسَ
l-nāsa
(to) the people
فِى
fī
in
ٱلْمَهْدِ
l-mahdi
the cradle
وَكَهْلًۭا
wakahlan
and (in) maturity
وَمِنَ
wamina
and (he will be) of
ٱلصَّـٰلِحِينَ
l-ṣāliḥīna
the righteous
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.
46. "He will speak to people in the cradle [47] and in maturity, and he will be of the righteous."
[47] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: No child has spoken in the cradle except for three. Among them is ‘Isa ibn Maryam ؑ. The second is Jurayj the monk from the Children of Israel, upon whom the accusation of an illegitimate child was placed: he spoke and revealed the name of his real father. The third is the child who, leaving his mother’s breast, said: O Allah! Do not make me like this oppressive rider.
[بخاری، کتاب الأنبیاء، باب قول اللہ واذکر فی الکتاب مریم اذا نتبذت من أھلھا]
And the meaning of speaking in the cradle is that the child is still in the lap, an infant, and has not yet reached the age of speech, nor has he learned to speak. And “maturity” means the age of full strength, that is, ‘Isa ؑ spoke in the cradle just as he did in maturity, or as other people speak in maturity, and at that age his speech was as profound and reasonable as that of ordinary people in maturity. What he said at that time will be detailed in Surah Maryam; for now, the purpose is to state that his speech at that age was meant to alert people. He was created by the perfect power of Allah, born without a father, and those who look at his noble mother with suspicion are in error. His mother is chaste, truthful, and upright. Whatever she says is entirely true and based on reality.
The Views Regarding the Birth of Sayyiduna ‘Isa:
Regarding this miraculous birth of ‘Isa ؑ, there are three differing groups. The first group is the Jews, who, despite seeing such clear signs of ‘Isa ؑ, say (Allah forbid) that he is illegitimate. They accused Maryam ؑ of adultery and involved Zakariyya ؑ with her. Then, based on this evil suspicion, they even killed him. The second group is the Christians, who say that Maryam ؑ was engaged to her cousin Yusuf Najjar. But before the marriage took place, by Allah’s power, she conceived ‘Isa. When Yusuf learned of this situation, he wanted to break the engagement, but in a dream, an angel told him that Maryam is a chaste woman and free from all accusations. She conceived by Allah’s power. Therefore, you should never leave such a chaste and pure-natured woman. Thus, Yusuf changed his mind. After that, he married Maryam, and they had children. This group, according to their statement, also presents references from various Gospels. The third group is the deniers of miracles, who do not accept the birth of ‘Isa without a father, but they present an interpretation for which there is no evidence from the Book and Sunnah, nor from the Gospels, nor from any other book. Their interpretation is that Maryam ؑ was not just engaged to Yusuf Najjar, but actually married, but the marriage had not yet been consummated when Yusuf went to Maryam or Maryam went to Yusuf, and from their union, conception occurred. And this is a statement that is in clear contradiction to the explicit Quranic statement
﴿ وَلَمْ يَمْسَسْنِيْ بَشَر﴾
As for the question: if this was the case, then why did the Jews revile Maryam ؑ? Their answer is that among the Jews, intimacy between husband and wife before the consummation is considered a grave crime, even if the marriage has taken place, and it was on the basis of this crime that the Jews reviled her. However, this too is completely contrary to the explicit statements of the Quran. Moreover, their view cannot be proven from any book. These are the very people who, instead of seeking guidance from the Quran, want to forcibly insert their own views into the Quran, even if it means denying many of its verses.
[47] The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: No child has spoken in the cradle except for three. Among them is ‘Isa ibn Maryam ؑ. The second is Jurayj the monk from the Children of Israel, upon whom the accusation of an illegitimate child was placed: he spoke and revealed the name of his real father. The third is the child who, leaving his mother’s breast, said: O Allah! Do not make me like this oppressive rider.
[بخاری، کتاب الأنبیاء، باب قول اللہ واذکر فی الکتاب مریم اذا نتبذت من أھلھا]
And the meaning of speaking in the cradle is that the child is still in the lap, an infant, and has not yet reached the age of speech, nor has he learned to speak. And “maturity” means the age of full strength, that is, ‘Isa ؑ spoke in the cradle just as he did in maturity, or as other people speak in maturity, and at that age his speech was as profound and reasonable as that of ordinary people in maturity. What he said at that time will be detailed in Surah Maryam; for now, the purpose is to state that his speech at that age was meant to alert people. He was created by the perfect power of Allah, born without a father, and those who look at his noble mother with suspicion are in error. His mother is chaste, truthful, and upright. Whatever she says is entirely true and based on reality.
The Views Regarding the Birth of Sayyiduna ‘Isa:
Regarding this miraculous birth of ‘Isa ؑ, there are three differing groups. The first group is the Jews, who, despite seeing such clear signs of ‘Isa ؑ, say (Allah forbid) that he is illegitimate. They accused Maryam ؑ of adultery and involved Zakariyya ؑ with her. Then, based on this evil suspicion, they even killed him. The second group is the Christians, who say that Maryam ؑ was engaged to her cousin Yusuf Najjar. But before the marriage took place, by Allah’s power, she conceived ‘Isa. When Yusuf learned of this situation, he wanted to break the engagement, but in a dream, an angel told him that Maryam is a chaste woman and free from all accusations. She conceived by Allah’s power. Therefore, you should never leave such a chaste and pure-natured woman. Thus, Yusuf changed his mind. After that, he married Maryam, and they had children. This group, according to their statement, also presents references from various Gospels. The third group is the deniers of miracles, who do not accept the birth of ‘Isa without a father, but they present an interpretation for which there is no evidence from the Book and Sunnah, nor from the Gospels, nor from any other book. Their interpretation is that Maryam ؑ was not just engaged to Yusuf Najjar, but actually married, but the marriage had not yet been consummated when Yusuf went to Maryam or Maryam went to Yusuf, and from their union, conception occurred. And this is a statement that is in clear contradiction to the explicit Quranic statement
﴿ وَلَمْ يَمْسَسْنِيْ بَشَر﴾
As for the question: if this was the case, then why did the Jews revile Maryam ؑ? Their answer is that among the Jews, intimacy between husband and wife before the consummation is considered a grave crime, even if the marriage has taken place, and it was on the basis of this crime that the Jews reviled her. However, this too is completely contrary to the explicit statements of the Quran. Moreover, their view cannot be proven from any book. These are the very people who, instead of seeking guidance from the Quran, want to forcibly insert their own views into the Quran, even if it means denying many of its verses.
