19:8 Maryam (Mary)

، فحينئذ لما جاءته البشارة بهذا المولود الذي طلبه استغرب وتعجب وقال: { رَبِّ أَنَّى يَكُونُ لِي غُلَامٌ ْ} والحال أن المانع من وجود الولد، موجود بي وبزوجتي؟ وكأنه وقت دعائه، لم يستحضر هذا المانع لقوة الوارد في قلبه، وشدة الحرص العظيم على الولد، وفي هذه الحال، حين قبلت دعوته، تعجب من ذلك

هذا تعجب من زكريا عليه السلام حين أجيب إلى ما سأل وبشر بالولد ففرح فرحا شديدا وسأل عن كيفية ما يولد له والوجه الذي يأتيه منه الولد مع أن امرأته كانت عاقرا لم تلد من أول عمرها مع كبرها ومع أنه قد كبر وعتا أي عسا عظمه ونحل ولم يبق فيه لقاح ولا جماع والعرب تقول للعود إذا يبس عتيا يعتو عتيا وعتوا وعسا يعسو عسوا وعسيا وقال مجاهد: عتيا يعني قحول العظم وقال ابن عباس وغيره: عتيا يعني الكبر والظاهر أنه أخص من الكبر وقال ابن جرير: حدثنا يعقوب حدثنا هشيم أخبرنا حصين عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس قال لقد علمت السنة كلها غير أني لا أدري أكان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقرأ في الظهر والعصر أم لا؟ ولا أدري كيف كان يقرأ هذا الحرف "وقد بلغت من الكبر عتيا" أو عسيا.

His amazement after the acceptance of His Supplication

Zakariyya was amazed when his supplication was answered and he was given the good news of a son. He became extremely overjoyed and asked how this child would be born to him, and in what manner he would come. This was particularly amazing because his wife was an old woman who was barren and had not given birth to any children in her entire life. Even Zakariyya himself had become old and advanced in years, his bones had become feeble and thin, and he had no potent semen or vigor for sexual intercourse. The Answer of the Angel

قَالَ

(He said:) That is, the angel, in his response to Zakariyya and his was amazement.

كَذَلِكَ قَالَ رَبُّكَ هُوَ عَلَىَّ هَيِّنٌ

("Thus says your Lord: `It is easy for Me..."') Meaning the birth of the son will be from you and from this wife of yours and not from any other (woman).

هَيِّنٌ

(easy) Meaning, it is simple and easy for Allah to do. Then he (the angel) mentioned to him that which is more amazing than what he was asking about. The angel said that the Lord said,

وَقَدْ خَلَقْتُكَ مِن قَبْلُ وَلَمْ تَكُ شَيْئاً

(Certainly I have created you before, when you had been nothing!) This is similar to Allah's statement,

هَلْ أَتَى عَلَى الإِنسَـنِ حِينٌ مِّنَ الدَّهْرِ لَمْ يَكُن شَيْئاً مَّذْكُوراً

(Has there not been over man a period of time, when he was not a thing worth mentioning) 76:1

He said ‘My Lord how shall I have a son when my wife is barren and I have reached infirm old age?’ ‘itiyyan derives from the verb ‘atā ‘it became withered’ in other words he had reached extreme old age 120 years; and his wife had reached the age of 98 ‘atiya in terms of its root derives from ‘utuwwun but the tā’ is vowelled as -ti- to soften it the first wāw vowel is changed into a yā’ to be in harmony with the –ti- vowelling while the second wāw letter is changed into a yā’ so that the previous yā’ can be assimilated with it.

The word عِتِيًّا is derived from which actually means 'unresponsive' or 'insensitive', and in the present context it means dryness of the bones.