Surah 19. Maryam

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Verses [Section]: 1-15[1], 16-40 [2], 41-50 [3], 51-65 [4], 66-82 [5], 83-98 [6]

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Quran Text of Verse 1-1519. Maryam Page 30519. Maryamبِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِیْمِكٓهٰیٰعٓصٓ۫ۚKaaf Ha Ya Ain Sad ذِكْرُ(A) mentionرَحْمَتِ(of the) Mercyرَبِّكَ(of) your Lordعَبْدَهٗ(to) His servantزَكَرِیَّاۖۚZakariya اِذْWhenنَادٰیhe calledرَبَّهٗ(to) his Lordنِدَآءًa callخَفِیًّا secret قَالَHe saidرَبِّMy LordاِنِّیْIndeed, [I]وَهَنَ(have) weakenedالْعَظْمُmy bonesمِنِّیْmy bonesوَ اشْتَعَلَand flaredالرَّاْسُ(my) headشَیْبًا(with) whiteوَّ لَمْand notاَكُنْۢI have beenبِدُعَآىِٕكَin (my) supplication (to) Youرَبِّmy Lordشَقِیًّا unblessed وَ اِنِّیْAnd indeed, Iخِفْتُ[I] fearالْمَوَالِیَthe successorsمِنْafter meوَّرَآءِیْafter meوَ كَانَتِand isامْرَاَتِیْmy wifeعَاقِرًاbarrenفَهَبْSo giveلِیْ[to] meمِنْfromلَّدُنْكَYourselfوَلِیًّاۙan heir یَّرِثُنِیْWho will inherit meوَ یَرِثُand inheritمِنْfromاٰلِ(the) familyیَعْقُوْبَ ۖۗ(of) Yaqubوَ اجْعَلْهُAnd make himرَبِّmy Lordرَضِیًّا pleasing یٰزَكَرِیَّاۤO ZakariyaاِنَّاIndeed, Weنُبَشِّرُكَ[We] give you glad tidingsبِغُلٰمِof a boyسْمُهٗhis nameیَحْیٰی ۙ(will be) YahyaلَمْnotنَجْعَلْWe (have) assignedلَّهٗ[for] itمِنْbeforeقَبْلُbeforeسَمِیًّا (this) name قَالَHe saidرَبِّMy Lord!اَنّٰیHowیَكُوْنُcanلِیْI haveغُلٰمٌa boyوَّ كَانَتِwhile isامْرَاَتِیْmy wifeعَاقِرًاbarrenوَّ قَدْand indeedبَلَغْتُI have reachedمِنَofالْكِبَرِthe old ageعِتِیًّا extreme قَالَHe saidكَذٰلِكَ ۚThusقَالَsaidرَبُّكَyour LordهُوَItعَلَیَّ(is) easy for Meهَیِّنٌ(is) easy for Meوَّ قَدْand certainlyخَلَقْتُكَI (have) created youمِنْbeforeقَبْلُbeforeوَ لَمْwhile notتَكُyou wereشَیْـًٔا anything قَالَHe saidرَبِّMy Lord!اجْعَلْMakeلِّیْۤfor meاٰیَةً ؕa signقَالَHe saidاٰیَتُكَYour signاَلَّا(is) that notتُكَلِّمَyou will speakالنَّاسَ(to) the peopleثَلٰثَ(for) threeلَیَالٍnightsسَوِیًّا sound فَخَرَجَThen he came outعَلٰیtoقَوْمِهٖhis peopleمِنَfromالْمِحْرَابِthe prayer chamberفَاَوْحٰۤیand he signaledاِلَیْهِمْto themاَنْtoسَبِّحُوْاglorify (Allah)بُكْرَةً(in) the morningوَّ عَشِیًّا and (in) the evening 19. Maryam Page 306یٰیَحْیٰیO Yahya!خُذِHoldالْكِتٰبَthe Scriptureبِقُوَّةٍ ؕwith strengthوَ اٰتَیْنٰهُAnd We gave himالْحُكْمَ[the] wisdomصَبِیًّاۙ(when he was) a child وَّ حَنَانًاAnd affectionمِّنْfromلَّدُنَّاUsوَ زَكٰوةً ؕand purityوَ كَانَand he wasتَقِیًّاۙrighteous وَّ بَرًّۢاAnd dutifulبِوَالِدَیْهِto his parentsوَ لَمْand notیَكُنْhe wasجَبَّارًاa tyrantعَصِیًّا disobedient وَ سَلٰمٌAnd peace beعَلَیْهِupon himیَوْمَ(the) dayوُلِدَhe was bornوَ یَوْمَand (the) dayیَمُوْتُhe diesوَ یَوْمَand (the) dayیُبْعَثُhe will be raisedحَیًّا۠alive

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Translation of Verse 1-15In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

(19:1) Kaf. Ha'. Ya'. Ayn. Sad.

(19:2) This is an account¹ of the mercy of your Lord to His servant Zechariah²

(19:3) when he cried to his Lord in secret.

(19:4) He said: "Lord! My bones have grown feeble and my head is glistening with age; yet, never have my prayers to You, my Lord, been unfruitful.

(19:5) I fear evil from my kinsmen after I am gone;³ and my wife is barren, so grant me an heir out of Your special grace,

(19:6) one that might be my heir and the heir of the house of Jacob;⁴ and make him, Lord, one that will be pleasing to You.

(19:7) (He was told): "Zechariah, We bring you the good news of the birth of a son whose name shall be Yahya (John), one whose namesake We never created before."⁵

(19:8) He said: "My Lord! How can I have a boy when my wife is barren and I have reached an extremely old age?"

(19:9) He answered: "So shall it be." Your Lord says: "It is easy for Me," and then added: "For beyond doubt, I created you earlier when you were nothing."⁶

(19:10) Zechariah said: "Lord, grant me a Sign." Said He: "Your Sign is that you shall not be able to speak to people for three nights, though you will be otherwise sound."

(19:11) Thereupon Zechariah came out from the sanctuary⁷ and directed his people by gestures to extol His glory by day and by night.⁸

(19:12) "O John! Hold the Book with all your strength."⁹ We had bestowed wisdom upon him while he was still a child;¹⁰

(19:13) and We also endowed him with tenderness¹¹ and purity, and he was exceedingly pious

(19:14) and cherishing to his parents. Never was he insolent or rebellious.

(19:15) Peace be upon him the day he was born, and the day he will die, and the day he will be raised up alive.¹²

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Commentary

1. For comparison see Al ‘Imran 3: 33 ff. where, with some minor variation, substantially the same story is recounted.

2. Zechariah, who is mentioned here, was from the family of Aaron. For an appropriate understanding of his position it is necessary to comprehend the Israelites’ priestly system. After their occupation of Palestine, the Israelites entrusted the government of the land to the twelve tribes, all descended from the Prophet Jacob (peace be on him) by dividing the functions of the government between them; whereas, the religious duties were assigned to the thirteenth tribe, the Levites. Even among the Levites though, the house that was set apart to ‘sanctify the most holy things ...’ and to ‘burn incense before the Lord’, was the house of Aaron. Other Levites were permitted to enter the Temple, but their duties were ‘to assist the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the Lord, having the care of the courts and the chambers, the cleansing of all that is holy, and any work for the service of the house of God...’ Chronicles 23: 28). They were also required to stand every morning, thanking and praising the Lord, and likewise at evening, and whenever burnt offerings are offered to the Lord on Sabbaths, new moons, and feast days .. .’ (I Chronicles 23: 30-1).

The descendants of Aaron comprised 24 houses, and these performed their duties in turn. One of these was the house of Abijah whose chief was Zechariah. Whenever it was his house’s turn to serve the Temple, it was Zechariah’s duty to go there and burn the incense. (For further details, see / Chronicles 23-4 and Luke 1: 5 ff. — Ed.)

3. What Zechariah meant was that he did not see any suitable successor in the house of Abijah who could hold his office after his death. No one in his family had the religious and moral qualities essential for shouldering the task which had so far been entrusted to him. He perceived that future generations held little promise.

4. He was not only concerned as an individual that he should have a good successor. What is more, he was looking for someone who would inherit all the virtues of the House of Israel.

5. According to Luke: ‘None of your kindred is called by this name’ (Luke 1:61).

6. One should take particular note of this conversation between Zechariah and the angel. For it is the same statement — viz. that the creation of a child is easy for God [even when the usual causes of such a birth do not exist] - which occurs a little later in the surah when the story of Mary is recounted (see verse 17 ff.). It is obvious that the same statement although appearing in two places has the same meaning.

Zechariah asks the angel how, given he is age-stricken and his wife barren, a son can be born to -him. The angel simply replies: ‘So shall it be.’ In other words, he tells Zechariah that notwithstanding his old age and his wife’s barrenness he will be blessed with a son. In this context, the angel obviously refers to God’s infinite power, God Who has brought man into existence from a state of non-existence. If God can create a being from total non-existence, how can it possibly be difficult for Him to grant a son to one who has fallen into old age and whose wife is barren?

7. For the meaning of ‘mihrab’ see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, vol. I, Al ‘Imran 3, n. 36, pp. 249-50.

8. The relevant Biblical account of the event as narrated in Luke is reproduced below. This will enable the reader to have a comparative view of both the Qur’anic and Biblical accounts:

In the days of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years. Now while he was serving as priest before God, when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, it fell to him by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, ‘Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.

And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth; for he will be great before the Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the sons of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.’

And Zechariah said to the angel, ‘How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.’ And the angel answered him, ‘I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God; and J was sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their time.’ And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered at his delay in the temple. And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, and he made signs to them and remained dumb (Luke 1: 5-22).

9. The Qur’anic narrative does not mention certain details of John’s story — his birth under God’s special command, and his attainment of youth. Omitting all this, the Qur’an mentions the mission entrusted to John (peace be on him) when he attained maturity. This mission is referred to in just a single sentence on the occasion of his designation to the office of prophet hood. That mission consisted of adhering to the Torah and to making efforts to ensure that the Israelites did the same.

10. The word hukm connotes the power of making the right decision, the ability to apply the principles of faith to changing circumstances, and the capacity to comprehend the teachings of the faith both in letter and spirit. It also connotes the ability to arrive at correct judgements, and to have the authority from God to judge things.

11, The Qur’an uses the word hanan, which roughly denotes the love and compassion characteristic of mothers. (See hnn in Ibn Manzur, Lisan al-‘Arab —Ed.) The idea is that John’s compassion for God’s creatures was comparable to a mother’s compassion for her children.

12. The Biblical account of Prophet John’s life and work can be found in different parts of the Bible. In what follows below we have attempted to develop an integral image of John with the help of these various statements, hoping that the statement made about him in the Qur’an, both here and in Surah Al ‘Imran, will be thereby further explicated.

According to Luke, John (peace be on him) was older than Jesus (peace be on him) by six months. His mother and Jesus’ mother were close relatives. John was designated to prophet hood when he was about 30 years old. According to the Book of John, it was in Jordan that he commenced his prophetic mission, inviting people to turn to God in penitence. He told people: ‘I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Make straight the way of the Lord’’, as the prophet Isaiah said’ (John 1: 23).

According to Mark, John asked people to repent and baptized those who did 50. This meant that he would have people repent and then take baptism in order that they become clean both in body and soul. A large number of people both in Judea and Jerusalem became his devotees and went to him for baptism (Mark 1: 4-5). He, therefore, came to be known as John the Baptist. The Israelites in general recognized him as a Prophet (Matthew 21: 26). Jesus (peace be on him) said of him: ‘Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist’ (Matthew 11: 11).

John (peace be on him) wore a garment made of camel’s hair and had a leather girdle around his waist. His staple diet consisted of locusts and honey (Matthew 3: 4). Leading such an ascetic life, John would proclaim: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’ (Matthew 3: 2). This meant that. Jesus’ prophet hood and the mission were close at hand. John is, therefore, known as Jesus’ irhas (precursor). (For the meaning of irhas see Lisan al-‘Arab, q.v.rhs —Ed.) The Qur’an makes the same point: ‘Allah gives you good tidings of John who shall confirm a command of Allah’ (Al ‘Imran, 3: 39).

John (peace be on him) urged people.to pray and fast. (For the praying and fasting of John’s followers see Matthew 9: 14; Luke 3: 3, 5: 33 and 11: 1.) He also said: ‘He who has two coats, let him share with him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise’ (Luke 3: 11). Tax collectors asked him, ‘Teacher, what shall we do?’ And he said to them: ‘Collect no more than is appointed you.’ Soldiers also asked him: ‘And we, what shall we do?’ and he said to them: ‘Rob no one by violence or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.’ (See Luke 3: 12-14.) - When the Pharisees and Sadducees, people immersed in evil ways, came to him for baptism, he retorted: ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? and do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘‘We have Abraham as our father’’. . .. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire’ (Matthew 3: 7—10).

The ruler of the day, in whose domain John carried out his mission was a Jew by the name of Herod. Herod, however, was immersed in the ways of the Romans with the net result that corruption and immorality spread far and wide; indeed, Herod himself was so perverse that he had Herodias, his brother’s wife, live with him in his house. John reproached Herod at this, raising his voice in protest at such incestuous behavior. Before long Herod had John arrested, casting him into prison. But at the same time Herod knew that John was a pious and truthful person and honored him in his heart on that account. He also held him in some awe as a result of his influence on the public. Herodias, however, burned with rage against John; the moral consciousness which he aroused inevitably meant that women of her ilk were stigmatized. Hence, she wanted John beheaded. The whole story is ably narrated in Matthew: _. . Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison, for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife; because John said to him, ‘It is not lawful for you to have her.’ And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet. But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company, and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, ‘Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.’ And the king was sorry; but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given; he sent and had John beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. (Matthew 14: 3-11. See also Mark 6: 17-29; Luke 3: 19-20.)