Al-Anbiyaa (The Prophets)

69. “We said: ‘O fire! Be you cold and safety for Abraham!’”

70. “And they intended a device against him, but We made them the worse losers.”

The men of Allah are so steadfast in their divine aims that they are ready to devote their souls. Burning alive a person is the most terrible kind of slaughter.

There are many matters cited in commentaries about the event of throwing of Abraham (as) into fire, among which is that: the polytheists, with the help and guidance of Satan, made a mangonel.

Abraham, with his matchless trust to Allah, did not ask any help from any of the angels, even from Gabriel, and, at that time, he was busy praying to Allah in solitude and supplicating to Muhammad (S) and his Ahl-ul-Bayt (as).

At last, with cries of exultation of people and while they were shouting applauding, Abraham was thrown into the horrible flames of the prepared fire by means of a mangonel. They were shouting so happily that as if the breaker of the idols was destroyed for ever and turned to ash.

But Allah, Whose command is obeyed by everything, and Who had even taught the quality of burning to fire, and Who had taught the secret of love to mothers, decided to keep safe this sincere believing servant in the ocean of fire, and to add another proof to the evidences of his honour, as the Qur’an here says:

“We said: ‘O fire! Be you cold and safety for Abraham!’”

Undoubtedly, the command of Allah (s.w.t.) was a genetic command, the same command that, in the world of existence, He issues for the sun, the moon, the earth, the heaven, the water, the fire, the plants, the birds and everything, and without that command no effect comes forth from any cause.

Imam Sadiq (as) said:

“When Allah commanded the fire, saying:

‘Be you cold…’,

because of the extreme cold (in the midst of Namrud’s fire), the teeth of Abraham were shivering and hitting against each other, until the time it was told:

‘… and safety’

when its coldness disappeared and caused safety for him.”1

Then, to draw a conclusion, the Holy Qur’an, in a short sentence, concisely implies that the polytheists had decided to annihilate Abraham (as) by this evil plan, but Allah made them the worse losers of people.

The verse says:

“And they intended a device against him, but We made them the worse losers.”

It is evident that by remaining Abraham safe in the middle of that fire, the scene changed entirely, the cries of joy fell down, and the mouths were wide open out of surprise, but still bigotry and obstinacy hindered them to accept the truth perfectly, although the alert hearts (minds) got their interest from this event and their faith unto the Lord of Abraham was increased.

However, the Arabic word /’axsarin/ has been applied in the Qur’an for those who do an indecent action while they think that their action is good, and therefore, they usually do not comprehend their loss to try to compensate it.