60:4 Al-Mumtahana (She that is to be examined)

قد كان لكم يا معشر المؤمنين { أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ } أي: قدوة صالحة وائتمام ينفعكم، { فِي إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ } من المؤمنين، لأنكم قد أمرتم أن تتبعوا ملة إبراهيم حنيفا، { إِذْ قَالُوا لِقَوْمِهِمْ إِنَّا بُرَآءُ مِنْكُمْ وَمِمَّا تَعْبُدُونَ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ } أي: إذ تبرأ إبراهيم عليه السلام ومن معه من المؤمنين، من قومهم المشركين ومما يعبدون من دون الله.ثم صرحوا بعداوتهم غاية التصريح، فقالوا: { كَفَرْنَا بِكُمْ وَبَدَا } أي: ظهر وبان { بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةُ وَالْبَغْضَاءُ } أي: البغض بالقلوب، وزوال مودتها، والعداوة بالأبدان، وليس لتلك العداوة والبغضاء وقت ولا حد، بل ذلك { أَبَدًا } ما دمتم مستمرين على كفركم { حَتَّى تُؤْمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَحْدَهُ } أي: فإذا آمنتم بالله وحده، زالت العداوة والبغضاء، وانقلبت مودة وولاية، فلكم أيها المؤمنون أسوة [حسنة] في إبراهيم ومن معه في القيام بالإيمان والتوحيد، والقيام بلوازم ذلك ومقتضياته، وفي كل شيء تعبدوا به لله وحده، { إِلَّا } في خصلة واحدة وهي { قَوْلَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ لِأَبِيهِ } آزر المشرك، الكافر، المعاند، حين دعاه إلى الإيمان والتوحيد، فامتنع، فقال إبراهيم : { لَأَسْتَغْفِرَنَّ لَكَ و } الحال أني لا { أَمْلِكُ لَكَ مِنَ اللَّهِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ } لكني أدعو ربي عسى أن لا أكون بدعاء ربي شقيا، فليس لكم أن تقتدوا بإبراهيم في هذه الحالة التي دعا بها للمشرك، فليس لكم أن تدعوا للمشركين، وتقولوا: إنا في ذلك متبعون لملة إبراهيم، فإن الله ذكر عذر إبراهيم في ذلك بقوله: { وَمَا كَانَ اسْتِغْفَارُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ لِأَبِيهِ إِلَّا عَنْ مَوْعِدَةٍ وَعَدَهَا إِيَّاهُ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ أَنَّهُ عَدُوٌّ لِلَّهِ تَبَرَّأَ مِنْهُ إن إبراهيم لأواه حليم } ولكم أسوة حسنة في إبراهيم ومن معه، حين دعوا الله وتوكلوا عليه وأنابوا إليه، واعترفوا بالعجز والتقصير، فقالوا: { رَبَّنَا عَلَيْكَ تَوَكَّلْنَا } أي: اعتمدنا عليك في جلب ما ينفعنا ودفع ما يضرنا، ووثقنا بك يا ربنا في ذلك.{ وَإِلَيْكَ أَنَبْنَا } أي: رجعنا إلى طاعتك ومرضاتك وجميع ما يقرب إليك، فنحن في ذلك ساعون، وبفعل الخيرات مجتهدون، ونعلم أنا إليك نصير، فسنستعد للقدوم عليك، ونعمل ما يقربنا الزلفى إليك

يقول تعالى لعباده المؤمنين الذين أمرهم بمصارمة الكافرين وعداوتهم ومجانبتهم والتبري منهم "قد كانت لكم أسوة حسنة في إبراهيم والذين معه" أي وأتباعه الذين آمنوا معه "إذ قالوا لقومهم إنا برآء منكم" أي تبرأنا منكم "ومما تعبدون من دون الله كفرنا بكم" أي بدينكم وطريقكم "وبدا بيننا وبينكم العداوة والبغضاء أبدا" يعني وقد شرعت العداوة والبغضاء من الآن بيننا وبينكم ما دمتم على كفركم فنحن أبدا نتبرأ منكم ونبغضكم "حتى تؤمنوا بالله وحده" أي إلى أن توحدوا الله فتعبدوه وحده لا شريك له وتخلعوا ما تعبدون معه من الأوثان والأنداد. وقوله تعالى "إلا قول إبراهيم لأبيه لأستغفرن لك" أي لكم في إبراهيم وقومه أسوة حسنة تأسون بها إلا في استغفار إبراهيم لأبيه فإنه إنما كان عن موعدة وعدها إياه فلما تبين له أنه عدو لله تبرأ منه وذلك أن بعض المؤمنين كانوا يدعون لآبائهم الذين ماتوا على الشرك ويستغفرون لهم ويقولون إن إبراهيم كان يستغفر لأبيه فأنزل الله عز وجل "ما كان للنبي والذين آمنوا أن يستغفروا للمشركين ولو كانوا أولى قربي من بعد ما تبين لهم أنهم أصحاب الجحيم وما كان استغفار إبراهيم لأبيه إلا عن موعدة وعدها إياه فلما تبين له أنه عدو لله تبرأ منه إن إبراهيم لأواه حليم". وقال تعالى في هذه الآية الكريمة "قد كانت لكم أسوة حسنة في إبراهيم والذين معه إذ قالوا لقومهم إنا برآء منكم - إلى قوله تعالى - إلا قول إبراهيم لأبيه لأستغفرن لك وما أملك لك من الله شيء" أي ليس لكم في ذلك أسوة أي في الاستغفار للمشركين هكذا قال ابن عباس ومجاهد وقتادة ومقاتل بن حيان والضحاك وغير واحد. ثم قال تعالى مخبرا عن قول إبراهيم والذين معه حين فارقوا قومهم وتبرؤوا منهم فلجأوا إلى الله وتضرعوا إليه فقالوا "ربنا عليك توكلنا وإليك أنبنا وإليك المصير" أي توكلنا عليك في جميع الأمور وسلمنا أمورنا إليك وفوضناها إليك وإليك المصير: أي المعاد في الدار الآخرة.

The Good Example of Ibrahim and His Followers, when They disowned Their Disbelieving People

Allah the Exalted says to His faithful servants, whom He commanded to disown the disbelievers, to be enemies with them, and to distant themselves and separate from them:

قَدْ كَانَتْ لَكُمْ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ فِى إِبْرَهِيمَ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ

(Indeed there has been an excellent example for you in Ibrahim and those with him,) meaning, his followers who believed in him,

إِذْ قَالُواْ لِقَوْمِهِمْ إِنَّا بُرَءآؤاْ مِّنْكُمْ

(when they said to their people: "Verily we are free from you...") meaning, `we disown you,'

وَمِمَّا تَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ كَفَرْنَا بِكُمْ

(and whatever you worship besides Allah: we rejected you,) meaning, `we disbelieve in your religion and way,'

وَبَدَا بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةُ وَالْبَغْضَآءُ أَبَداً

(and there has started between us and you, hostility and hatred forever) meaning, `Animosity and enmity have appeared between us and you from now and as long as you remain on your disbelief; we will always disown you and hate you,'

حَتَّى تُؤْمِنُواْ بِاللَّهِ وَحْدَهُ

(until you believe in Allah alone,) meaning, `unless, and until, you worship Allah alone without partners and disbelieve in the idols and rivals that you worship besides Him.' Allah's statement,

إِلاَّ قَوْلَ إِبْرَهِيمَ لاًّبِيهِ لاّسْتَغْفِرَنَّ لَكَ

(except the saying of Ibrahim to his father: "Verily, I will ask forgiveness (from Allah) for you...") means, `you have a good example in Ibrahim and his people; as for Ibrahim's prayers for Allah his father, it was a promise that he made for his father.' When Ibrahim became sure that his father was an enemy of Allah, he declared himself innocent of him. Some of the believers used to invoke Allah for their parents who died as disbelievers, begging Him to forgive them. They did so claiming that Ibrahim used to invoke Allah to forgive his father. Allah the Exalted said in reply,

مَا كَانَ لِلنَّبِىِّ وَالَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ أَن يَسْتَغْفِرُواْ لِلْمُشْرِكِينَ وَلَوْ كَانُواْ أُوْلِى قُرْبَى مِن بَعْدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُمْ أَنَّهُمْ أَصْحَـبُ الْجَحِيمِ - وَمَا كَانَ اسْتِغْفَارُ إِبْرَهِيمَ لاًّبِيهِ إِلاَّ عَن مَّوْعِدَةٍ وَعَدَهَآ إِيَّاهُ فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ أَنَّهُ عَدُوٌّ لِلَّهِ تَبَرَّأَ مِنْهُ إِنَّ إِبْرَهِيمَ لأَوَّاهٌ حَلِيمٌ

(It is not for the Prophet and those who believe to ask Allah's forgiveness for the idolators, even though they be of kin, after it has become clear to them that they are the dwellers of the Fire (because they died in a state of disbelief). And Ibrahim's request for his father's forgiveness was only because of a promise he made to him .But when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of Allah, he dissociated himself from him. Verily, Ibrahim was Awwah and was forbearing.) (9:113-114) Allah said here,

قَدْ كَانَتْ لَكُمْ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ فِى إِبْرَهِيمَ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ إِذْ قَالُواْ لِقَوْمِهِمْ إِنَّا بُرَءآؤاْ مِّنْكُمْ

(Indeed there has been an excellent example for you in Ibrahim and those with him, when they said to their people: "Verily, we are free from you...") until,

إِلاَّ قَوْلَ إِبْرَهِيمَ لاًّبِيهِ لاّسْتَغْفِرَنَّ لَكَ وَمَآ أَمْلِكُ لَكَ مِنَ اللَّهِ مِن شَىْءٍ

(... except the saying of Ibrahim to his father: "Verily, I will ask forgiveness for you, but I have no power to do anything for you before Allah.") meaning, `You cannot follow Ibrahim's example as proof in the case mentioned here, as being allowed to ask Allah to forgive those who died on Shirk.' This is the saying of Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Qatadah, Muqatil bin Hayyan, Ad-Dahhak and several others. Allah the Exalted said that Ibrahim and his companions, who parted with their people and disowned their way, said afterwards, while invoking Allah in humility and submission,

رَّبَّنَا عَلَيْكَ تَوَكَّلْنَا وَإِلَيْكَ أَنَبْنَا وَإِلَيْكَ الْمَصِيرُ

(Our Lord! In You we put our trust, and to You we turn in repentance, and to You is the final Return.) meaning, `we trust in You for all matters, we surrender all of our affairs to You, and to You is the final Return in the Hereafter,'

رَبَّنَا لاَ تَجْعَلْنَا فِتْنَةً لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ

(Our Lord! Make us not a trial for the disbelievers,) Mujahid said, "It means, `Do not punish us by their hands, nor with a punishment from You.' Or they will say, `Had these people been following the truth, the torment would not have struck them'." Ad-Dahhak said something similar. Qatadah said, "Do not give the disbelievers victory over us, thus subjecting us to trials by their hands. Surely, if You do so, they would then think that they were given victory over us because they are on the truth." This is the meaning that Ibn Jarir preferred. `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas: "Do not give them dominance over us, lest we suffer trials by their hands." Allah's statement,

وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا رَبَّنَآ إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ

(and forgive us, Our Lord! Verily, You, only You, are the Almighty, the All-Wise.) means, `cover our mistakes from being exposed to other than You, and forgive us for what (sin) is between us and You.'

إِنَّكَ أَنتَ العَزِيزُ

(Verily, You, only You, are the Almighty,) `and those who seek refuge in Your majesty are never dealt with unjustly,'

الْحَكِيمُ

(the All-Wise.) `in Your statements, actions, legislation and decrees.' Allah the Exalted said,

لَقَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ فِيهِمْ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو اللَّهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الاٌّخِرَ

(Certainly, there has been in them an excellent example for you to follow -- for those who look forward to (the meeting with) Allah and the Last Day.) asserting what He has said before with the exemption mentioned, i.e., the good example that Allah mentioned before,

لِّمَن كَانَ يَرْجُو اللَّهَ وَالْيَوْمَ الاٌّخِرَ

(for those who look forward to Allah and the Last Day.) thus encouraging the believers who believe in Allah and the Return to Him. Allah said,

وَمَن يَتَوَلَّ

(And whosoever turns away) meaning, from what Allah has ordained,

فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الْغَنِىُّ الْحَمِيدُ

(verily, Allah is Al-Ghani, Al-Hamid.) Allah said in another Ayah,

إِن تَكْفُرُواْ أَنتُمْ وَمَن فِى الاٌّرْضِ جَمِيعًا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَغَنِىٌّ حَمِيدٌ

(If you disbelieve, you and all on the earth together, then verily! Allah is Ghani, Hamid.) (14:8) `Ali bin Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas,

لَغَنِىٌّ

"(Ghani) is the One Who is perfectly rich." That is Allah. This is Allah's attribute that He alone is worthy of being described by; surely, He has no equal, none like unto Him. All praise is due to Allah, the One, the Irresistible.

حَمِيدٌ

(Hamid) means, the praiseworthy, in all His statements and actions, there is no (true) God except Him alone.

Verily there is for you a good example read iswa or uswa in both instances meaning qudwa in the person of Abraham in terms of his sayings and deeds and those who were with him of believers when they said to their people ‘We are indeed innocent of you bura’ā’ is the plural of barī’ similar in form to zarīf ‘charming’ and of what you worship besides God. We repudiate you we disavow you and between us and you there has arisen enmity and hate forever wa’l-baghdā’u abadan pronounce both hamzas fully or replace the second one with a wāw until you come to believe in God alone’ except for Abraham’s saying to his father ‘I shall ask forgiveness for you — this statement is excepted from ‘a good example’ so it is not right for you to follow his example in this respect by asking forgiveness for disbelievers. As for his saying but I cannot avail you anything against God’ — that is either against His chastisement or to secure for you of His reward — he Abraham is using it to intimate to his father that he can do nothing for him other than to ask forgiveness for him which saying is itself based on that former statement albeit excepted from it in terms of what is meant by it even if on the face of it it would seem to be semantically part of the good example to be followed Say ‘Who can avail you anything against God’ Q. 4811; his Abraham’s plea of forgiveness for him was before it became evident to him that he his father was an enemy of God as mentioned in sūrat Barā’a Q. 9114. ‘Our Lord in You we put our trust and to You we turn penitently and to You is the journeying these are the words of the Friend of God Abraham and those who were with him in other words they were saying

قَدْ كَانَتْ لَكُمْ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ فِي إِبْرَ‌اهِيمَ ۔ ۔ ۔ حَتَّىٰ تُؤْمِنُوا بِاللَّـهِ وَحْدَهُ (Indeed, there is an excellent example for you in Ibrahim and those with him, when they said to their people, "We disown you and what you worship instead of Allah. We disbelieve in you. Enmity and hatred has arisen between us and you forever, unless you believe in Allah alone",....60:4). This verse supports and emphasizes the abstaining from maintaining close friendly relations with non-believers. This rule of law is illustrated by the excellent example of Holy Prophet Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) whose entire family worshipped idols, but he not only washed his hands of them and disowned them, but also announced, and erected a wall of, enmity and hatred with them forever, unless and until they give up idol-worship and have belief in Allah alone.

Allaying a Doubt

The current verse emphasizes that Muslims should follow the excellent model of Holy Prophet Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) and, it is established in Surah Taubah and in other places in the Qur'an that, he prayed for the forgiveness of his father who was an idol-worshipper. This could create doubt that, in pursuance of the command of Allah to follow the example of Prophet Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) is permitted to pray for the forgiveness of one's parents or other relatives who are idol-worshippers. But the later part of Verse [ 4] makes an exception to the command of following Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) .

إِلَّا قَوْلَ إِبْرَ‌اهِيمَ لِأَبِيهِ لَأَسْتَغْفِرَ‌نَّ لَكَ (...but [ his example is ] not [ to be followed ] in what Ibrahim said to his father, "I will pray to my Lord for your forgiveness... 60:4). This implies that it is imperative to follow the model of Holy Prophet Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) in all respects, except in the case of prayer for his father's forgiveness. It is not permitted to emulate his sunnah in this respect. His reason for praying for his father's forgiveness has been explained in Surah Taubah. He prayed for his father's forgiveness before the prohibitory injunction was ordained, or probably when he felt that faith has entered into his father's heart, but when it became plain to him that he was Allah's enemy he washed his hands of him and disowned him, thus فَلَمَّا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ أَنَّهُ عَدُوٌّ لِّلَّـهِ تَبَرَّ‌أَ مِنْهُ (...and when it became clear to him that he was an enemy of Allah, he renounced him....9:114)

Some of the scholars analyze the phrase اِلَّا قَولَ اِبرٰھِیمَ (but not in what Ibrahim said ...) grammatically as istithna' munqati`, that is, exceptive sentence in which the exception is severed from, or wholly different in kind from, the general term. In terms of this grammatical analysis, praying for his father's forgiveness is not contrary to Abrahamic model. Holy Prophet Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) was under the impression that his father had become a Muslim, so he prayed for the forgiveness of his Muslim father. Later when he learnt the truth, he gave up praying for him and renounced him. If anyone believes, even today, that a particular unbeliever has most probably embraced Islam, there is no harm in praying for his pardon. [ Qurtubi ]. Allah knows best!