Surah Ali 'Imran 3:42-54 - Quran Translation Commentary

(3:44) These are a part of the tidings of the past that We reveal unto you (O Muhammad),⁸¹ for you were not there with them when they were casting their quills (to decide) which of them shall have charge of Maryam,⁸² nor were you there with them when they were disputing.

(3:45) When the angels said, 'O Maryam, verily Allah sends you the glad tiding of a Word⁸³ from Him, whose name is Al-Masih,⁸⁴ `Isa, son of Maryam,⁸⁵ held in high honor⁸⁶ in this world as well as in the next and of those brought nigh.

(3:46) He shall speak to the people from the cradle⁸⁷ as well as in maturity⁸⁸ and (shall be) of the righteous.’

(3:47) She exclaimed, 'How shall I have a child my Lord, seeing no mortal has touched me?’ He said, 'Even so, Allah accomplishes what He will. When He decrees a thing (to be) He (merely) says to it “Be,” and (Lo!) it is.’

(3:48) And he will teach him the Book, the Wisdom, the Tawrah and the Injil.

(3:49) A messenger unto the Children of Israel,⁸⁹ (proclaiming) 'I have indeed come to you with a sign from your Lord in that I mold for you out of clay the like of a bird and breathe into it and it becomes a bird,⁹⁰ by the leave of Allah. And I heal the blind and the leper and bring to life the dead by the leave of Allah. I also disclose to you what you eat and what you store in your houses. Surely, in that is a sign for you if you are believers.

(3:50) (I have come) confirming what has been before me of the Tawrah⁹¹ so that I may make lawful for you some of those things that were made unlawful to you (earlier)⁹² and thus, I have come to you with a sign from your Lord. So fear Allah and follow me.

(3:51) Surely, Allah is my Lord and your Lord. Therefore, worship Him (alone). This is a straight path.’

(3:52) And when `Isa perceived unbelief on their part, he said, 'Who will be my helpers unto Allah?’⁹³ The disciples⁹⁴ said, 'We are the helpers of Allah; we have believed in Allah; and bear thou witness that we have surrendered.’⁹⁵

(3:53) (They supplicated) 'Our Lord! We believe in what You have sent down and follow the Messenger.⁹⁶ Write us down, therefore, among those who bear witness.’⁹⁷

(3:54) (But) They (the Israelites) plotted⁹⁸ (a scheme against `Isa). And Allah (also) plotted. And Allah is the best of plotters.⁹⁹

Commentary

76. This demonstrates the possibility of angels speaking to non prophets following the opinion of the great majority that Maryam was not a Prophetess. Muslim has a report of the angels greeting `Imran b. Hussein. As for the 'speech' reserved for the Prophets, they are messages for transmission (Thanwi).

Qurtubi writes however that according to the majority, Maryam was a Prophetess.

77. Allah chose her because of her high degree of devotion, indifference to the world, life of chastity, and purity of the soul from sins and of the mind from doubts (Ibn Kathir).

78. Sa`id ibn al Musayyib used to quote a hadith of Abu Hurayrah in explanation of this verse in which Prophet said (Muslim):

"نِسَاءُ قُرَيْشٍ خَيْرُ نِسَاءٍ رَكِبْنَ الإِبِلَ. أَحْنَاهُ عَلَىَ طِفْلٍ. وَأَرْعَاهُ عَلَىَ زَوْجٍ فِي ذَاتِ يَدِهِ".

"The best of women that have mounted camels are those of the Quraysh. They are the most kind to their children, the best of housekeepers in the absence of their husbands.”

Abu Hurayrah added that Maryam did not ever ride a camel (i.e., despite that she attained great merits: Au).

`Ali Ibn Abi Talib has reported another hadith recorded both by Bukhari and Muslim in which the Prophet has been reported as saying:

يَقُولُ خَيْرُ نِسَائِهَا مَرْيَمُ ابْنَةُ عِمْرَانَ وَخَيْرُ نِسَائِهَا خَدِيجَةُ

"The best of its (i.e. of the Paradise: Ibn Jarir) women is Maryam and best of its women is Khadijah."

Anas has reported another version in which the Prophet said:

"حَسْبُكَ مِنْ نِسَاءِ الْعَالَمِينَ: مَرْيَمُ ابنة عِمْرَانَ، وَخَدِيجَةُ بِنْتُ خُوَيْلِدٍ، وَفَاطِمَةُ بِنْتُ مُحمّدٍ، وَآسِيَةُ امْرَأَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ".

"Enough for you of the women of the world: Maryam the daughter of `Imran, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, Asiyyah the wife of Fir`awn and Fatimah the daughter of Muhammad."

(The above text is from Tirmidhi who declared it Sahih.

In another version preserved by Tirmidhi the Prophet said:

كَمَلَ مِنْ الرِّجَالِ كَثِيرٌ وَلَمْ يَكْمُلْ مِنْ النِّسَاءِ إِلَّا مَرْيَمُ بِنْتُ عِمْرَانَ وَآسِيَةُ امْرَأَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ وَفَضْلُ عَائِشَةَ عَلَى النِّسَاءِ كَفَضْلِ الثَّرِيدِ عَلَى سَائِرِ الطَّعَامِ

"Of the men there have been many who achieved perfection, but of the women none achieved it but Maryam the daughter of `Imran and Asiyyah the wife of Fir`awn and `A'isha's superiority over other women is similar to that of tharid over other dishes" (Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

(Made from bread, meat and broth, tharid was considered a delicious dish in those times. The ahadith do not appear exactly as above in the tafsir works, but we preferred to take directly from Hadith works: Au.).

79. The original word here is qunut which is the state of humility in worship. Mujahid however interprets it as lengthy Prayers (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir).

Rashid Rida adds: "The Israeli Prayers were much different from ours. But the demand of quality was the same, that is, concentration, fear and sincerity."

80. (Apart from the meaning we have stated under note 113 of surah al Baqarah: Au.), 'bowing with those who bow' could also mean: "seek the company of those who are devoted to Allah" (Qurtubi).

Ibn al-Qayyim writes: "Prostrate yourself" and "Bow with those who bow down" have different connotations. The first refers to the Prayers performed at home, which is the place recommended for women while the latter refers to Praying with the congregation in the mosque. Thus she was asked to observe two different kinds of Prayers: one at home and the second with the congregation."

81. Majid has the following observation to make: "What is meant is, this is among those events of which the accurate records are now obliterated altogether, and there is no means of knowing it in full and exact details except through Revelation."

82. It is said that since Maryam was the daughter of the deceased chief priest of the Temple, and appeared to be a promising child, a dispute arose among the priests over who will take charge of her. The affair had to be decided by lots. Every contender threw his quill in the river Jordan. The one that floated against the others that were swept away by the current was Zakariyyah's. (Ibn `Abbas, Qatadah, Dahhak, Hasan: Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

Thanwi adds a legal point. "According to the Hanafiyyah, drawing lots is permissible in those affairs alone in which the Shari`ah has not given a ruling, (or allotted shares). Where the rights have been promulgated by the Shari`ah, deciding the shares by lots is not permissible. It is permissible, for instance, to decide by lots what portion of a house will an inheritor get (and not in what proportion, which will be decided by the laws of inheritance: Au.)."

83. Although everything that is created by Allah is by the command of a "word" (kalimah) alone, yet `Isa was specifically called a "Word" (kalimah) because, in his case, the normal process of creation was overruled and he was brought into being not by means of a father but at the behest of a word kun alone. (Ibn `Abbas, Shawkani, Manar). Ibn Jarir however prefers that the word kalimah should be understood to mean "bushra" i.e. glad tiding.

84. Since Masih has its origin in mas h which means to touch, rub, wipe (if the word is Arabic and not Hebrew, which in fact is more likely: Alusi) one probability is that he was called so because (as is reported of Ibn `Abbas: Qurtubi, Razi), he could heal the ailing with his very touch (Ibn Kathir). Ibn Jarir however quotes various authorities to the effect that he was called Masih because it was by a touch from Allah that he was purified and blessed. Dajjal has been called Masih al Dajjal because he will have no sensation in one eye (which is another meaning of mas h) or because, while he would trounce the world touching upon all the lands except Makkah and Madinah into which he will be prevented from entering, as predicted in a hadith (Ibn Jarir, Qurtubi, Shawkani). Another possibility is that its origin is mashih which is equivalent of "King" in Hebrew (Manar and others).

Majid adds: "(Maseeh) is the Messiah of the Bible. Messiah, the surname of Jesus, is a title of honor, literally meaning 'the anointed.' Notice that the Qur'an fully concedes the Messiahship of Jesus: it is only his Divinity, his Son ship, his God head that it is so unsparing for assailing."

Muhammad Asad comments: "The designation al masih is the Arabicized form of the Aramaic messiha which, in turn is derived from the Hebrew mashiah, "the anointed" a term frequently applied in the Bible to the Hebrew kings, whose accession to power used to be consecrated by a touch with holy oil taken from the Temple. This anointment appears to have been so important a rite among the Hebrews that the term "the anointed" became in the course of time more or less synonymous with "king". Its application to Jesus may have been due to the widespread conviction among his contemporaries (references to which are found in several places in the Synoptic Gospels) that he was descended in direct and obviously legitimate line from the royal House of David. (It is to be noted that this could not have related to his mother's side, because Mary belonged to the priestly class descending from Aaron, and thus to the tribe of Levi, while David descended from the tribe of Judah.) Whatever may have been the historical circumstances, it is evident that the honorific "the Anointed" was applied to Jesus in his own lifetime. In the Greek version of the Gospels which is undoubtedly based on a now lost Aramaic original this designation is correctly translated as Christos (a noun derived from the Greek verb chriein, "to anoint"): and ... it is in the form "the Christ" that the designation al masih has achieved currency in all Western languages."

85. Imam Razi asks as to why Allah added the words "Ibn Maryam" when He was addressing Maryam herself and answers that it was to emphasize that he would be born out of her alone without a father.

86. Says Majid: "(This is) chiefly in answer to the calumnies of the Jews who remembered him ... as 'one who practiced magic and deceived and led astray Israel,' with coarse allusions to His birth.' (ERE. VII. p. 551)"

87. Abu Hurayrah has reported the Prophet as having said:

لم يتكلم في المهد إلا ثلاثة: عيسى، وصبي كان في زمن جريج، وصبي آخر

"In all, three infants spoke from their cradle. (i) `Isa, (ii) the child of the times of Jurayj, and (iii) the infant (of the woman thrown into the pit by the As hab al Ukhdud" (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

There are other reports, however, that speak of other infants speaking from the cradle (Shawkani), such as the child who, according to some stories, spoke for Yusuf from the cradle (Au.).

88. The word in the original is kahl which is the period of life between youth and old age (Ibn Jarir, Alusi).

Why did Allah say "and in his maturity" when we know that everyone speaks in his maturity? It is as if to say that he will speak on the same subjects with authority from his cradle as he will in his maturity (Alusi). An added reason could be to give the tiding that he was going to attain his full age (Razi, Alusi, Manar).

Another doubt has been raised. Why does the Christian literature not record this particular miracle? The answer is: first of all those who had gone to Maryam questioning her integrity were a few people and not a large crowd that would transmit it to others on a large scale. Secondly, the Jews were opposed to `Isa and hence kept the matter to themselves (Razi).

Further, the Gospels are not a complete and fully trustworthy account of Prophet’s Jesus’ life, and, therefore, one may not look into it for any missing detail (Au.).

89. So his was not a universal message. Says Majid: "Witness his own words in the NT, plain and conclusive (to his disciple: Au.): (Addressing his disciples he said), 'Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel' (Matthew 10: 5,6). 'I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel' (15: 24). And modern Christian scholars have to acknowledge the reluctance of Jesus and his earliest disciples to treat his message as universal in ways as round about as their conscience would permit: 'The earliest group of disciples, it is true, did not appreciate the universality of the teaching of Jesus’ (EBr. V. p. 632)' ... 'nor did He seek converts outside Israel' (p. 631)."

Majid has summed up the opinions of Muslim commentators, old and new, on this point: It is true that `Isa was not a universal messenger; but, what about the Gentiles such as Romans, Palestinians, Aramaens and many other communities that lived in Jerusalem at that time? Did his prophetic mission require that he was to reject any non-Israelite ready to acknowledge Allah as his sole Lord and him as His Messenger? The Gospels answer in an emphatic yes. But, has the Qur'an stated that? The answer is, no. It is merely stating the fact of he being sent a messenger to the Israelites to start his mission with. (After all, Musa was sent to the Israelites; but did that imply that none of the folks of Fir`awn believed in him? – Au.).

This point does not seem to have been entirely lost by the commentators. Shawkani for instance explains that the verse could be saying: "A Messenger, sent to the children of Israel, will speak to them saying: 'I have indeed come to you with a sign from your Lord ...' There is a sea of difference between the Qur'anic statement and the one in the Gospels which says: "I am not sent but unto the house of Israel."

Shabbir `Usmani adds the following note at this point: "That is, after having been appointed a Messenger he will give this message to the Children of Israel (I have indeed come to you with a sign ...)." That is, the emphasis is on being made a Messenger and not on who he was specifically sent to (Au.).

90. Majid quotes Christian sources: 'Jesus having come to the sepulcher where everyone was weeping said: "Weep not, for Lazarus sleepeth, and I am come to awake him," ... Said Master, "Lord, he striketh, for he hath been dead four days," ... Then Jesus lifted up his hands to heaven, and said: "Lord God of Abraham, God of Ishmael and Isaac, God of our father, have mercy upon the affliction of these women, and give glory to thy holy name." And when everyone had answered "Amen,": Jesus said with a loud voice: "Lazarus! Come forth." Thereupon he that was dead arose.' (GB. pp. 431, 437

Rashid Rida writes: "A summary of what the Sufiya have to say about the dead coming back to life is as follows. `Isa's spiritual powers, when compared to those of other ordinary mortals, greatly overwhelmed his physical powers, because his spirit had been directly blown into his mother's womb by the angel. Hence he could interact at a deeper level with other spirits than others could. Accordingly, when he took a handful of clay that was destined to become a bird by the normal process, and beckoned its spirit (that was already created and was awaiting order to join the body not yet created), to come and join the clay and become a living bird, it did. Similarly when he beckoned a spirit that had left a human body, and which had not yet decayed, it answered his call and that person stood up alive. However, the spiritual power of a man can never be strong enough to be able to bring back to life those who had died long ago and whose physical being had decayed and become dust. Hence we see that he brought back to life only those who had died a short while ago."

91. "The fact that Jesus preached the same religion as that expounded earlier by Moses and the other Prophets is also borne out by the statements of the existing Gospels. According to Matthew, in his Sermon on the Mount the Messiah categorically declared: 'Think not that I have come to abolish them' (Matthew 5: 17). And when a Jewish lawyer enquired: 'Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?' Jesus replied: 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, This is the greatest and the first commandment. And a second like it, is that you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depends the law of the prophets' (ibid, 22: 37 40). He also instructed his disciples: 'The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, so practice and observe whatever they tell you, but not what they do, for they preach, but do not practice'" (ibid, 23: 2 3) Mawdudi.

Sayyid Qutb comments: "This verse throws light on the nature of the din (commonly translated as "religion": Au.) whichever din it might be (whether that brought by Musa, `Isa or Muhammad, peace be upon them: Au.) that it has to be a comprehensive system of life, and that it should not be one-sided: in either moral, spiritual or devotional spheres. If it is, then such a system cannot be called a din proper. Din is nothing but the way of life that has been designed by Allah for mankind: the way of life that binds and harmonizes the lives of the people with the ways of Allah. Hence it is not possible that the faith and beliefs, for instance, be delinked from the system of worship, moral principles, or the organization of the legislature. That cannot be done by a religion that endeavors to organize life on the pattern designed by Allah.

"Now, this is what happened to Christianity because of various historical reasons, apart from the fact that it was never designed to last, rather a stop gap arrangement until the "final din" made its appearance. What happened is that because of antagonism, a breach occurred between Christ and his followers on one side, and the Jews on the other. This in turn led to a breach between the Tawrah, which contained the Law, and Injil, which contained moral teachings and admonitions addressing the soul. With this breach, Christianity became a sect without law: incapable of guiding the people in the affairs of this world. Thus, it lost the qualification to guide the "whole of the human life" forcing its followers to create a breach between the life of the soul and the life of the human society (the rules for which had to be of necessity borrowed from other systems: Au.). Thus, it is a religion that remains suspended in the air, or, at best, limps (on the ground: Au.).

"Now, this was not a minor event for humankind. Rather, a great disaster that led to confusion and bewilderment that lasts to this day both in the Christian world as well in the lives of those who came under its influence."

92. Rabi`, Ja`far ibn Zubayr and Hasan are reported to have said that the Shari`ah of `Isa was comparatively more lenient than that of Musa, peace be on both (Ibn Jarir).

Rejection of a part is not always rejection of the whole. Hence, there is no contradiction between this statement and the one preceding one which said that he had appeared "confirming what has been before me of the Tawrah" (Manar). The reference could also be to declaring lawful those things that were made unlawful by the Jewish priests and interpolated into the Tawrah (Qurtubi, Razi, Ibn Kathir).

93. He sought their help and protection in the propagation of his message in the same manner as our Prophet sought the help of the tribes during his last years at Makkah and migrated when they declined (Ibn Kathir).

94. There have been several interpretations of the word hawari who seem to have been by profession butchers, fishermen, painters and of other humbler callings. Ibn `Abbas is of the opinion that it means "whiteness." They were so called because they wore white dresses (Qurtubi, Shawkani and others).

Alternatively, it could mean "helpers." This is strengthened by the hadith in which the Prophet drew Zubayr ibn al `Awwam to himself and said:

وَسَلَّمَ إِنَّ لِكُلِّ نَبِيٍّ حَوَارِيًّا وَإِنَّ حَوَارِيَّ الزُّبَيْرُ بْنُ الْعَوَّامِ

"Every Messenger has a hawari. My hawari is Zubayr b. `Awwam (Ibn Kathir).

Whatever the word meant, it is obvious that they were his disciples (Au.).

95. Majid quotes a Christian scholar: 'The faith of the Musalman is concentrated in a single word Islam: devotion, resignation of our own will to the supreme decree. That word was not limited to Muhammad's own followers: it was used ungrudgingly of his Judaic Christian predecessors. There is no fitter word for the religion of the human race' (Dr. J.H. Bridges).

96. Thus we see that actions followed declaration of faith. This is because faith demands actions according to its dictates, if such faith is based on knowledge. In contrast, if knowledge has no influence on faith, it signifies either its incompleteness or uncertainty, and not a certainty that leads to faith in it. Often it happens that a man is led to believe that he knows a thing. But when he attempts to act according to his knowledge he fails to do a good job of it, indicating that he was incorrect in his claim to knowledge (Manar quoting Sheikh `Abduh).

97. According to a reliable report, the opinion of Ibn `Abbas is that the allusion is to this Ummah (al Muslimah: Au.) by the words: "among those who bear witness" (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

Referring to the phrase: "Write us down, therefore, among those who bear witness," Sayyid Qutb says: "It is a demand upon him who believes in this religion that he bear the testimony the testimony that will guarantee that this religion will last and thus help establish the good and virtue that this religion carries with it. Obviously, he does not and cannot bear this testimony without first being himself what this religion demands and without presenting an image of it through his own person an image that the people observe and in which they discover the ideal example. Thus his very person bears the testimony to the truth of this religion.

"Obviously too, he cannot bear this sort of testimony without accepting this religion as the basis upon which to build his own life, as well as that of the world around him working out the law in its light. Such efforts would include a nation organizing its life and society in its light. And, of course, it will include struggling in its cause and offering his life, if necessary, for the sake of living his life under its banner rather than under the shades of those life systems that are opposed to it. Thus he bears witness that death in its cause is better than life under other systems that do not agree with nor follow this system of life. It is then that he earns the appellation, a martyr."

98. This refers to the efforts of the Jews contemporary to `Isa ibn Maryam to hatch a plan against him and get him executed. They petitioned to the Roman Governor of Palestine (who alone could pass a death sentence: Au.) that a man born out of sin had appeared among them, claiming himself to be the "awaited Messiah." He divides peaceful homes, is misleading the people, and will all but form a new seditious sect. He deserves to be put to death. They persisted in their efforts until the Governor decided to take action. It is another thing that when they went to arrest him, he was protected by Allah and raised to the heaven alive. They captured another person in his stead who looked similar to him and crucified him (Ibn Kathir).

99. Makr: The expression used for the unbelievers as well for Allah is the same but the meanings are different. Makr on the part of man is secretive plotting or scheming with mischievous intents. Allah responds with His own plots to frustrate the plotting of His subjects. But His slaves remain completely in the dark about what He plans and how He intends to accomplish it. (Thus, the sharing of the meaning of secretiveness allows for use of the same term: Au.) However, Allah's plotting and scheming is entirely within the norms of justice. Finally, His plotting is based on wisdom and hence entirely beneficial to man as well as to an unknown number of His creations. Therefore, He is the best of plotters.

Also see note 37, surah al Baqarah.