Abraham’s descendants

Abraham's descendants Commentary by Sayyid Qutb

In the Name of God, the Lord of Grace, the Ever Merciful We gave Abraham the happy news of Isaac, a prophet and a righteous man; and We blessed him and Isaac; but among their offspring there were those who do good and others who would glaringly sin against their souls. We also bestowed Our favor on Moses and Aaron; We saved them and their people from great distress; We gave them support, so that it was they who achieved victory. We gave them the Scripture which made things clear; We guided them to the right path; We caused them to be praised by later generations: Peace be upon Moses and Aaron! Thus do we reward those who do good. Both were among our believing servants. Elijah too was one of Our messengers. He said to his people: 'Have you no fear of God? How can you invoke Baal and forsake the best of creators, God, your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers?' But they accused him of lying. Therefore, they will certainly be brought (for punishment). Not so God's true servants. We caused him to be praised by later generations: Peace be upon Elijah! Thus do we reward those who do good. He was truly one of our believing servants. Lot was also one of Our messengers. We saved him and all his household, except for an old woman who stayed behind. Then We utterly destroyed the others. Surely you pass by their ruins at morning-time, as also by night. Will you not, then, use your reason? (Ranged in Rank, Al-Saffat: 37: 112-138) The descendants of Abraham and Isaac included Moses and Aaron: "We also bestowed Our favor on Moses and Aaron; We saved them and their people from great distress; We gave them support, so that it was they who achieved victory. We gave them the Scripture which made things clear; We guided them to the right path; We caused them to be praised by later generations: Peace be upon Moses and Aaron! Thus do we reward those who do good. Both were among our believing servants." Here we only have a glimpse of the story of Moses and Aaron, highlighting God's favors bestowed on them first in being chosen to deliver His message, then in saving them and their people from great distress, which is recounted in detail in other surahs. God's favors on them also included their victory over their enemies, Pharaoh and his people, as also giving them the Scriptures and guiding them to the right path. It should be clear that God guides to this right path only those who believe in Him. He further ensured that they would be praised by future generations. This glimpse concludes with a greeting and blessing of peace from God to Moses and Aaron. Again the type of reward given to those who do good and the great value of faith, for which believers are held in honor, is repeated here. A similar glimpse of the story of Elijah, a prophet mentioned in the Old Testament, is given here. Elijah was a messenger to people in Syria who worshipped a statue called Baal. The ruins of the city of Baalbek in Lebanon retain traces of such worship: "Elijah too was one of Our messengers. He said to his people: 'Have you no fear of God? How can you invoke Baal and forsake the best of creators, God, your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers?' But they accused him of lying. Therefore, they will certainly be brought (for punishment). Not so God's true servants. We caused him to be praised by later generations: Peace be upon Elijah! Thus do we reward those who do good. He was truly one of our believing servants." Elijah called on his people to believe in God's oneness, denouncing their practice of worshipping Baal in preference to God, the best of creators. Thus, he followed the same line as Abraham when he denounced his people's idolatrous worship. The same stance was taken by every messenger when they encountered idol worship. The wrongdoers' response was to accuse Elijah of lying and to reject his message. God confirms here that they too will be brought before Him for punishment, except for those of them who believed in the message of the truth. This snippet ends in the same way as other historical accounts in this surah by emphasizing the honor God grants to His messengers: This by giving them the greeting and blessing of peace, outlining the reward of people who do good and the great value of faith. This is the only occasion that an account of Elijah is given in the Qur'an. Then we take a brief look at Lot, whose story occurs after Abraham's story in other surahs: "Lot was also one of Our messengers. We saved him and all his household, except for an old woman who stayed behind. Then We utterly destroyed the others. Surely you pass by their ruins at morning-time, as also by night. Will you not, then, use your reason?" The depiction here is similar to that given of Noah. It refers to the fact that Lot was God's messenger, and that he was saved with his family, except his wife, while the hardened unbelievers were destroyed. This is followed by a reminder to the Arabs who used to pass by the area where Lot's people lived without heeding the lesson their ruins told, and without fearing that they would be destroyed in similar fashion.