Translation
Say: “Shall we call upon or rely on anyone or anything, other than God, which can neither benefit us nor harm us—only to prove our turning away from God after guidance has come to us? This is how the Devil [and his evil companions] entice and beguile ones who are prone to earthly (low-value) desires—by saying: ‘Come to Our guidance.’” Say: “True guidance comes from God, Who has inspired us to submit to the Sustainer of the Universe—to maintain constancy in prayer and to be mindful of our responsibilities; it is to Him that we will all be gathered.” 340
He is the One Who has created the universe and the earth in truth [in the same principles that He governs Himself]. Whenever He says: “Be,” it comes into existence [according to the same principles]. His words define the truth, and His Dominion will be evident when such manifestation will be announced [Trumpet is blown]. He knows what is manifest and what is hidden; He is Wise and Aware! 341
[Remember] when Abraham said to his father, Azar: “How is it that you consider idols to be gods? I see this as you and your community straying from reality.” We helped Abraham to comprehend the essence of the universe and the earth in a way that he might be of those who have full conviction. He reflected on a star that became visible during the night. He thought: “This is my Sustainer God.” But when the star went down, he said: “I cannot worship that which is not permanent.” Then he reflected on the moon rising and said: “Could this be my Sustainer?” But when the moon disappeared, he said: “If my true Sustainer does not guide me, I will also become one of those who stray from reality.” Then he reflected on the sun rising and said: “Could this be my Sustainer God? Is this greater than anything else?” So, when the sun too set and disappeared, he said: “O my people, I am clear of all that you worship besides God. Indeed, I have accepted and oriented myself wholly to the Originator of the Universe and the Earth, being truthful, and I do not associate anything or anyone with the divine God.” (note: this last statement is also used to initiate Islamic Prayer as one stands and gets ready to pray – a fitting homage to Abraham)
His people did argue with him, and he responded: “Do you dispute with me regarding God and the fact that He has guided me to Him? I am not afraid of those whom you have set up with God, unless my Sustainer wills as such. My Sustainer encompasses all things in His knowledge. Why would not you reflect on these? How could you want me to accept partners that you have set up with God while you are not afraid to set up partners with God for which you have no confirmation from God? Which party, then—you or me—should feel more secure, if you really want to know?” Those who believe in God and do not taint their faith with evils of inequity will have security and are properly guided. He is how We inspired Abraham with Our arguments against his people. We honor by increment whom We please; God is Ever Wise and All Knowing.
Interpretation
340 The concept of monotheism is central to Islam and Judaism. Such monotheism is also the foundational teaching of Jesus Christ, even though some groups of Christians have encumbered their religious theology with irreconcilable concepts of Trinity or assigning divinity to the Pope; saints; Holy Ghost, Mary, mother of Jesus; and to Jesus himself. Abraham being the founding father of monotheism, this concept is introduced as a prelude to the discussion of Abraham and his life story in the section that follows. Just as our grandparents—Adam and Eve—were driven away from Heaven due to the evils of Satan, who made false promises and was jealous of humankind, the same evils continue today, and they come from the Devil himself and ignorant people who subscribe to such evils and wish to create divisions among human beings by causing them to depart from their natural disposition to One God to multiple godheads or conceiving divinity in created beings. Human beings have been endowed with divine attributes (“I [God] breathed into Adam My spirit” [15:29]), but we are not divine, and we do not have partnership with divinity. But we do seek alignment with divinity through acknowledging God and shaping our lives and our society in the way God had guided us and in the way God has already programmed those guidance, values, and morals into our souls.
341 As a further prelude to the story of Abraham, who searched for God within himself, looked at nature to assess how one should define and understand God’s presence, and debated with his community about their religious beliefs and practices, in these verses it is clearly established that God is the source of all creation—this universe that we are part of and this planet Earth that is able to support us with light and warmth from the distant sun. God’s creative power is expressed as His will to create something, and it becomes. The universe operates, and so do our lives, accordingly to certain truths that God has established and to which He binds himself. These truths are manifested in natural laws, the nature of our inner core, the ways our human communities and communities of all living beings operate and behave. The original endowment of knowledge to Adam and Eve and the constant pursuit of knowledge and wisdom by humankind is itself a manifestation of the natural laws that God put in place in His creation. Some aspects of these laws are kept hidden, and others are being revealed to us each and every day through science, technology, thoughts, inspiration, and revelations. The nature of the Afterlife is something kept hidden but explained through revelations of certain aspects of it and will be made known when God so wills, when the world as we know it comes to an end. Each human being will then find itself alive after its death in this earthly life and facing God to account for her or his life.
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REFLECTION
The story of the life of the Prophet Abraham, central to three of the major religious traditions in the world—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—is kept at the core of the narrative of Islamic teachings and traditions. Not only from the perspective of lineage, where the prophets Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad are the great-grandsons of the Prophet Abraham, but also in terms of teachings of monotheism and an uncompromising attachment and devotion to truth, social justice, and human dignity, all of which stem from the teachings of the Prophet Abraham, found in the Torah, the Bible, and various parts of the Qur’an.
ACTION
To take lessons from the life of a prophet and magnificent human being such as Abraham is to reaffirm our commitment to our common heritage as human beings and as followers of the same guidance that Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad brought to mankind.
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Key Arabic Terms
100. Sur (Trumpet, or event that exposes reality of Afterlife)