21:89 Al-Anbiyaa (The Prophets)

أي: واذكر عبدنا ورسولنا زكريا، منوها بذكره، ناشرا لمناقبه وفضائله، التي من جملتها، هذه المنقبة العظيمة المتضمنة لنصحه للخلق، ورحمة الله إياه، وأنه { نَادَى رَبَّهُ رَبِّ لَا تَذَرْنِي فَرْدًا } أي: { قَالَ رَبِّ إِنِّي وَهَنَ الْعَظْمُ مِنِّي وَاشْتَعَلَ الرَّأْسُ شَيْبًا وَلَمْ أَكُنْ بِدُعَائِكَ رَبِّ شَقِيًّا* وَإِنِّي خِفْتُ الْمَوَالِيَ مِنْ وَرَائِي وَكَانَتِ امْرَأَتِي عَاقِرًا فَهَبْ لِي مِنْ لَدُنْكَ وَلِيًّا* يَرِثُنِي وَيَرِثُ مِنْ آلِ يَعْقُوبَ وَاجْعَلْهُ رَبِّ رَضِيًّا } من هذه الآيات علمنا أن قوله { رَبِّ لَا تَذَرْنِي فَرْدًا } أنه لما تقارب أجله، خاف أن لا يقوم أحد بعده مقامه في الدعوة إلى الله، والنصح لعباد الله، وأن يكون في وقته فردا، ولا يخلف من يشفعه ويعينه، على ما قام به، { وَأَنْتَ خَيْرُ الْوَارِثِينَ } أي: خير الباقين، وخير من خلفني بخير، وأنت أرحم بعبادك مني، ولكني أريد ما يطمئن به قلبي، وتسكن له نفسي، ويجري في موازيني ثوابه.

يخبر تعالى عن عبده زكريا حين طلب أن يهبه الله ولدا يكون من بعده نبيا وقد تقدمت القصة مبسوطة في أول سورة مريم وفي سورة آل عمران أيضا وههنا أخصر منها " إذا نادى ربه " أي خفية عن قومه " رب لا تذرني فردا " أي لا وله لى ولا وارث يقوم بعدي في الناس " وأنت خير الوارثين " دعاء وثناء مناسب للمسألة.

Zakariyya and Yahya

Allah tells us of His servant Zakariyya, who asked Allah to grant him a son who would be a Prophet after him. The story has already been given in detail at the beginning of Surah Maryam and also in Surah `Imran. Here an abbreviated version is given.

إِذْ نَادَى رَبَّهُ

(when he cried to his Lord) means, in secret, hiding it from his people.

رَبِّ لاَ تَذَرْنِى فَرْداً

(O My Lord! Leave me not single,) means, with no child and no heir to stand among the people after me.

وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ الْوَرِثِينَ

(though You are the Best of the inheritors.) This is a supplication and form of praise befitting the topic. Allah says:

فَاسْتَجَبْنَا لَهُ وَوَهَبْنَا لَهُ يَحْيَى وَأَصْلَحْنَا لَهُ زَوْجَهُ

(So We answered his call, and We bestowed upon him Yahya, and cured his wife for him.) Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid and Sa`id bin Jubayr said: "She was barren and never had a child, then she gave birth."

إِنَّهُمْ كَانُواْ يُسَارِعُونَ فِى الْخَيْرَتِ

(Verily, they used to hasten on to do good deeds,) means, acts of worship and acts of obedience towards Allah.

وَيَدْعُونَنَا رَغَباً وَرَهَباً

(and they used to call on Us with hope and fear,) Ath-Thawri said, "Hoping for that (reward) which is with Us and fearing that (punishment) which is with Us."

وَكَانُواْ لَنَا خـشِعِينَ

(and they were Khashi`in before Us.) `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas that this means, sincerely believing in that which was revealed by Allah. Mujahid said: "Truly believing." Abu Al-`Aliyah said: "Fearing." Abu Sinan said: "Khushu` means the fear which should never leave our hearts." It was also reported from Mujahid that the Khashi`in are those who are humble." Al-Hasan, Qatadah and Ad-Dahhak said, "The Khashi`in are those who humble themselves before Allah." All of these suggestions are close in meaning.

And mention Zachariah Zakariyyā is substituted by the following idh nādā rabbahu … when he cried out to his Lord saying ‘My Lord do not leave me without an heir without a son to inherit from me and You are the best of inheritors’ the One that endures after all of your creation has perished.

Commentary

Sayyidna Zakariyya (علیہ السلام) wished for a son and heir for which he prayed to Allah. But at the same time he made it clear that Allah is the best heir no matter if he had a son or not وَأَنتَ خَيْرُ‌ الْوَارِ‌ثِينَ. You are the best of inheritors - 21:89). This was the manifestation of the prophetic respect in that the main concern of the prophets should always be toward Allah Ta’ ala, and even if someone else came into focus, their attention should not deviate from the main objective.

And Zachariah, when he supplicated his Lord, “My Lord, leave me not solitary.” In the tasting of the recognizers and the allusion of the realizers, the meaning is “Leave me not empty of Your protection from sin or turning away from Your remembrance or occupying myself with anything but You.” The Pir of the Tariqah said, “God has no use for treasuries and no need for anything. Whatever He has, He has it for the servants. Tomorrow He will give the treasury of mercy to the disobedient and the treasury of bounty to the helpless so that they may discharge what is rightfully due to Him from His treasuries, for the servants cannot discharge His rightful due with what they have of their own. When a sultan gives his daughter to a beggar, the beggar does not have a dower worthy of the sultan's daughter. From his own treasury the sultan sends the dower to the beggar so that the beggar may give the dower to the princess from his treasury.” When the servant obeys Him, he does so with His success-giving and protection from sin. He discharges what is rightfully due to Him with His confirmation and bestowal of strength. Then through His bounty He praises the servant for the excellence of his obedience and through His generosity He approves of him. What He shows to the world's folk is this: